Confidence.......At A Distance.

As I promised myself I would, I made another trip to the recycling center today as Melissa. Wearing white capris, a sleeveless black kit top, and a pair of black patent, buckle loafers, I loaded the truck with a bag full of catalogs and magazines, some more broken down cardboard boxes, and a few bags of household trash. Back in the house, I threw my cell phone into a black leather bag, slung it over my shoulder and headed back out to the truck for the drive to the recycling center.

It was fairly late by the time I took off, sometime between 4:30 and 5:00 in the afternoon. The two gas station/convenience stores a couple of miles down the road, were alive with customers as I drove passed, and made the right turn down the road to the recycling center. It was overcast, yet still a lovely day. Fall is just starting to ease its way into the mid-Atlantic piedmont, and the weak woods were already starting to turn shades of red and yellow. The temperature, in a welcome relief from the summer heat, was hovering in the upper sixties or lower seventies, depending on what source you were relying on. My computer said the local temp. was 72∘when I left the house, but the digital thermometer on the console in my truck, said 68∘. The recycling center is about four miles past the turn off, on a narrow two lane road, that winds its way through rolling hills, past a couple of ponds, and through some very beautiful farmland. The drive is always pleasant.

When I got there, the recycling center appeared to be empty, but I knew it wasn't. It never is. There are always a couple of attendants there, to keep the place in order. They do an excellent job too. For what is essentially a garbage dump, they always keep the place very clean and tidy. They have a small frame shed, that serves as an office, and they were both inside when I pulled in and parked in front of the recyling dumpsters.

I got out and started sorting magazines and catalogs , from cardboard, and depositing them in their appropriate dumpsters. This time I made sure not to forget the pile of old news papers, I left on the seat the week before. As I was doing this, one of the attendants emerged from the shed, sat in a chair out front, and lit up a cigarette. I was the only show in town, so I'm sure he noticed me. After unloading the papers and cardboard, I got back in the truck and drove over to the garbage dumpster. I parked in front of it, and got out to throw my garbage bags off the dock, into the dumpster. While doing this, the second attendant emerge from the shed, and sat down next to his partner, facing me. I was directly in front of them, about thirty yards away.

It was perfect. Both of them looked at me for about a second or two, and then resumed their conversation, as if nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. As far as they were concerned, I was just another female county resident, using the facility. They didn't even bother to give me a second look, as I drove within fifteen feet of them, on the way out. That's just the reaction I had hoped for. I don't want to stand out, I just want to blend in.