random thoughts – Day 1,425 – (Saturday) – browsing

The weather was warmer today, in the high 50s, but that didn’t stop me from feeling chilly. While driving out to meet Mom, the heater was on, as well as the heated seat, which I swear is the best automotive feature of the modern age. It almost makes up for the absence of a built-in CD player and cargo space.

Mom and I visited the booth at the antiques co-op and were glad to see several items had sold in our first few days there. Mom and Sis had been there on Thursday to add some things, and today, a few more things were added. Then we walked around and shopped, admiring the items in the other booths.

After the shopkeeping bit, we had lunch at Slattery’s. Our shared Margherita flatbread pizza was tasty and satisfying. After lunch, we headed our separate ways.

Girl dancing near a bridge.

My travels took me to Ocean State Job Lot because I remembered I had a gift card from last week’s special sale event and figured I’d poke around. On the way, I saw a dark-haired woman in a white and blue outfit dancing near the bridge on Bemis Road. 

There had been several recent mentions in a Fitchburg Facebook group about a girl who often dances on a bridge, and I was a little excited to see the infamous dancing girl. It had to be the one of Internet renown. How many girls dancing on bridges could one city have?

Traffic was piled up at a red light when I noticed the figure on the bridge, and these are the moments when I really appreciate red lights. Her back was to me, and the brilliant white skirt was what caught my eye. The skirt was topped with a dark blue and black jacket and white kerchief. Her hair was pulled neatly into a bun at the nape of her neck.

She moved gracefully to music that couldn’t be heard with the traffic, or maybe it played just for her via ear buds, unlike the annoying drivers with the sound systems that blare music and punish the general public as they cruise around the city. The traffic heading into Fitchburg had a view of the front of her dress and performance, and I was a bit envious of the vantage point.

When the traffic moved forward on the green light, I was able to turn for a moment and see the front of her outfit. It featured two dark blue panels that hung down the front of the skirt and looked like a folkloric costume of some sort.

The next mile or two of travel were occupied with musings about the beautiful girl dancing on the bridge. Is she the same one mentioned in the Facebook group? Is she dancing on a bridge during busy Saturday afternoon traffic to become accustomed to chaotic situations? Is she waiting for a ride to a performance? Is she a beautifully attired exhibitionist? So many questions.

The browsing at Ocean State was fruitful and the gift card was exhausted. Back in Lowell, there was a stop at St. Vincent de Paul, now a weekly routine. Shopping was limited to the two discount tag colors, and yielded two small art canvasses still in the original packaging, and a heavy glass candle holder that exactly matches the one I bought around Christmas when I got the glass tree. What a day.