the stranger

3 BEDROOMS / 2 BATHS

TO BE BUILT BY MV BUILDERS ON THIS SITE

ROBERT MOGER, OWNER

Above you will find, word for word, what a man with tousled gray hair, a gash on his hand that may still have been bleeding, and a wild look in his eye kindly asked me to write on a giant board for him. Last I knew, The UPS Store did not offer "sign writing" as a service, but I obliged, mostly out of terror. The conversation began with talk of a frustrating one hour wait at Home Depot for this wooden board and quickly spiralled into mentally unstable demands; every marker stroke met with "Is that going to be ok? Can I see the marker?" He proceeded to go over each line with a palsied hand, rendering my perfect print bulky and awkward. Fortunately, his phone rang, keeping him occupied for the writing of the last line. He then handed me three dollars, hesitantly asking if I was unable to accept it "like the Children's Hospital" and staggered out the door, repeating "Thank you" the whole way. Probably the strangest exchange in my days at UPS.