grassroots recycling

i was sitting on a bench at the monroe blue line stop waiting for the o'hare bound train.

i just got off the phone with my mom and was still beaming in my excitement that we had our first etsy shop sale (wahoo!) when an older fellow with a large belly and buzzed head sat down next to me. he was really more the type you would expect to see sitting at a diner in a town like Poughkeepsie than waiting for the train in a city like Chicago.

i didn't pay him much attention. i was busy thinking of new ideas for products, repurposing, recycling, upcycling, lists of things i needed from the hardware store. you know, the normal thought process. until he held out the paper and said

"Care for the Tribune?"

"I'm sorry, what was that?" I asked startled from life inside my head.

"The Chicago Tribune" he repeated.

"Oh, yes, sure, thanks" I said. Again, a bit startled.

"That's called grassroots recycling right there" he said slowly to no one in particular as he let out a deep breath.

People are full of surprises.
Sometimes the best ideas do not come from the inside of my own head.