11/24/10 the cold dance

If someone were moving this way at the bus stop in summer, I think they would have a wide swath of empty space around them. But the woman in the padded blue jacket with the fake fur ruff on the hood was not in the least out of place or isolated as she did the cold dance at the bus stop in near-dark in late November. Shifting rapidly from one foot to another, she looked as if she were in the alto section of a highly caffeinated gospel choir. We're northerners. We do what we have to, to keep warm. The cold dance is spontaneous, universal and effective. The cold dance--coming soon to a bus stop near you.