Black and White and Black And White

What’s black and white and black and white? Dominoes falling together…OR, Catholic nuns springing into ninja mode to defend themselves from the Vatican.

Subterranean Dominoes

The way some subway train drivers hit the brakes, do you think they’re trying to make dominoes of the standing passengers? I often wonder if the people holding onto the poles who catch those knocked off balance cause the loss of points.

Wrong About The Cheese

One of the first songs children learn is “The Farmer In The Dell.” After a cheerful series of events, it ends on a sad note: “the cheese stands alone.” When this came to mind today as I considered topics to write, I realized that that is a misconception. The cheese doesn’t stand alone. The cheese may be the last one chosen, but it is chosen nonetheless.

Let’s look at it from end to beginning. The cheese is taken by the rat who is taken by the cat who is taken by the dog. The dog is taken by the nurse who is chosen by the child who is taken by his mother. The mother is taken by the farmer; ah, you know what I mean. This isn’t FIFTY SHADES OF GREY! The point is the cheese is carried along by this entire group from the dell. The cheese is not, never was, alone.

Sometimes things fall apart, but sometimes they do fall together. We are never truly alone.

Which is…

The difference between a chain reaction and the domino effect is a matter of independence. In a chain reaction all the components are linked by probability and predictability. With dominoes each piece stands in relation to the next, but independently. This allows for even the most minute difference to foil the prediction and something that was never thought or imagined happens. I think I have always been and shall remain a domino: slightly off but my own design.

Mondays and Dominoes

The good news was that an item I had listed on eBay sold. The downside was that it sold as I was preparing to meet a friend to see a new film, but I needed to pack and mail the item. I ran to the post office to get the flat rate priority box and then at home again began the search for the bubble wrap, tape, etc. I needed for the task. I’m still living from boxes so getting my hands on these items was a scavenger hunt. With one eye on the clock, I was feeling rushed but I got the job done. As I headed for the front door to leave, I decided to grab one of the wrapped peppermints from the kitchen. Fumbling with the cellophane wrapper projected the candy in an “Angry Birds” arch ending with an explosion on the floor where it shattered on impact. A second mint made it successfully to the inside of my cheek while the first met with a broom and dustpan.

I ran to the post office to deposit the package. On the way to the subway, I paused to text my friend that I was on my way.

I arrived at the venue in plenty of time for the film; I just wasn’t as early as I had planned. I don’t need to rehearse being the “late great me.” When the time comes, I’ll play the scene in one take.

A Domino Moment

#1: Oh my God!  I’m dying!

#2: What makes you think you’re dying?  Have you seen a doctor?

#1: No doctor, but I’m seeing spots before my eyes.

#2: Dude, you’re a domino; we’re all dominoes.

#1: Thank God!  I thought my life was passing before my eyes.

The Open End

In domino lingo the open end is a domino to which another player can play his piece. It’s the only opportunity for a play.

One snowy day in New York a few years ago when I was working at the Ralph Lauren store on Madison Avenue, I ventured out with a co-worker to visit a mutual friend who worked at a store across the avenue. We hadn’t bothered to put on boots for the short walk and the pavement was slippery.

As we began our crossing I told my friend, “If you feel yourself start to fall, don’t grab me. I don’t want to fall with you like dominoes.” In that moment, I slipped on a manhole cover and fell down. I hit hard and slipped again which caused my head to strike the metal disc. It sounded like the crack of a baseball meeting a bat! Somehow I managed to bounce back to vertical. My friend and I were both laughing as I rubbed the back of my head and he asked if I was alright. “Of course I’m fine; I landed on my head. Otherwise I might have gotten hurt, so let’s go!” I joked. I could only imagine how comical I looked, and it made a for a good laugh at myself.

I had made myself an open end. Karma made her play. I lost the round, but I’m still in the game.

The Boneyard

The game begins with the boneyard. The dominoes are all turned face down on the table and carefully swirled to shuffle them.  No one knows what will happen.

It seems to never fail that whenever I’m in the biggest rush is when things go wrong.  Take for instance the subway. So many times I have run to catch a train and made it, even scoring a seat only to realize I was traveling in the wrong direction!  Some of the stations here in NYC allow a rider to enter the station and then go to the platform for either direction.  Other station entrances only lead to one direction.  Trains follow the the above ground traffic, so there is a visual clue to where to go, if riders take the time to notice.

Last week I was in a hurry.  As I descended the station stairs I heard a train arriving, so I ran to catch it.  I got a seat and commenced reading the book I was carrying.  A few stops later I thought I must be approaching my destination.  I looked up and saw that I had been going the wrong direction.  Ugh!  I got off at the next stop that had dual access and briskly walked to the opposite platform, swearing to myself along the way.  I really did not need this delay!  The train arrived in a manner of minutes, I boarded and got another seat.  I was on my way.

Then the second domino fell.  The train proceeded only halfway into the tunnel and stopped.  A voice came over the loudspeaker that every commuter dreads.  “Ladies and Gentlemen, due to the train ahead of us with locked brakes, we are being held here until the station can be cleared.”  More delay! The voice in my head is shouting, “Not today.  Not today!  Not now!” There was nothing I could do about it except sit there, wait, and read my book.  I opened it, but my anxiety over being late prevented me from focusing on the printed page.  Five hours later, well maybe it was two minutes, we were moving again.

The train arrived at my destination.  The doors opened and I went flying through the turnstile and up the stairs to the street.  Just a few paces brought me to a quarter on the sidewalk which I rescued.  A few more paces and I ran into a friend I hadn’t seen in a long time.  She wanted to chat and suddenly I wasn’t so pressed for time anymore.  We were both happy for our chance meeting.  It completely changed the tone of the day for me.  I realized there wasn’t going to be a third domino that day.  The game was over.  I had won.

About Dominoes

Gallery

There was a television commercial a few years ago that showed a woman trying to make room in her kitchen for her new microwave oven.  She moved something to make room for it, but then she needed to move something else to make room for that.  She decided  to replace another object with that one, only to still need a place for the thing she was holding.  It was a kind of domino effect: solving one problem caused another problem.  We all have similar experiences.  I certainly do.  In fact, I often refer to myself as Lucy because of some of the situations I get myself into.  Sometimes I have an Ethyl to help pull me out.  Other times I’m left going in circles.  At all times I end up having a good laugh at myself, emphasis on “end up.”  The laughs sometimes have to wait for the blueness of the air to clear, but they do always come.

ABOUT DOMINOES is a journal of my life, frustrations and laughter.  I invite you to share my therapy sessions as I write about daily events and make fun of them and my responses to them.  I hope my shenanigans entertain you, and possibly help you find the funny side to your own fall of dominoes.