BAREFOOT IN A PINSTRIPE SUIT

 I use public transportation to get to and from work.

It is much more relaxing than driving,

however it also means I must put up

with the occasional jerk.

This morning, I was treated to a yuppie

jerk getting a comeuppance.

There were 2 men sitting directly across

from me on the Metro train.

One man was the typical arrogant,

impeccably dressed lawyer type:

navy blue pin stripe suit, starched white shirt,

cufflinks, suspenders, silk tie,

polished tassel loafers,

with his legs crossed and work stretched

out with no regard for the person

seated next to him.

The other man was a much older guy,

dressed kind of shabbily,

small and thin and he was getting annoyed

at being tapped with the bottom of the

expensive shoe from the Master of the Universe

with the crossed legs next to him.

The train was very crowded and

when the old guy was ready to exit the train,

he excused himself and stood up.

Pinstripes didn't even bother to stand

to let him out. He simply shifted in his seat,

with his legs still crossed.

As the old man exited,

he suddenly reached over and slipped the

offending tasselled loafer from hotshot's extended foot.

Then, he reached under the cuff of the tailored suit

and pulled off his dress sock.

In a second, the old man was out of the train

and the executive was so stunned that he only

realized what he did after the doors had closed

and he could do nothing about it.

So there he sat, in his $1500 suit and

his $100 tie and his monogrammed cufflinks,

wearing only one very expensive shoe and

one black business sock,

staring at his bare foot while turning crimson and purple.

I looked out the window and saw the

old guy holding up the polished shoe

and the sock and laughing.

He looked like a hunter holding up a trophy.

I laughed my head off,

as did several others who witnessed this.

He was smart enough not to look

for sympathy from any of us.

Another old guy looked at him with pity though

tapped him on the shoulder.

He pulled something out of a plastic bag:

it was a pair of plastic flip-flops! 

The man explained that he didn't need them

and suit-boy took them without speaking

and took off his remaining shoe and sock,

replacing what had been a pair of $500 shoes

with $2.98 flip-flops.

Now THAT is a humbling experience.