Exploding Wallet

A funny thing happened at work this morning.

I came into the office early (stoned-already hilarious) and curt, the junior designer, had slept in the office because he essentially had to finish the work that I didn't do, while I enjoyed a long meal and a beer at the Good Dog the night before. The fire alarm went off 15m after i sat down to begin "working". Curt came groggy eyed from the editing rooms in back, where he had slept, and said he was going downstairs with the small crowd that had already gathered- glad for the excuse to be out of the office. I said "sure", because, apparently, it is my job to grant permission to save oneself from a fire, and he took the stairs because the elevator automatically locks when the alarm goes off. It's funny that I am so certain its not a fire, that I am willing to risk my life to get a head start on a job- for a client i hate.

Curt calls my cell phone from downstairs and says he wants to get a sandwich from grillmaster, forgot his wallet upstairs, and can't get back in the building to grab it. I ask if he wants me to throw it to him. He says "yes". I look down from the seventh floor window in my office, and try to find him. He isn't there, but calls a minute later because he had gone around the alley side of the building (avoiding the crowd in front). I run to the other side of the office and throw open the window to find him waiting. I can't believe he is going to let me do this, and quickly throw the heavy leather, before he can have second thoughts.

The wallet lands perfectly in curts hands, but somehow manages to explode outward into the extremely strong gust of wind that ride through the alley. I am immediately laughing harder than I ever have before, as curt aimlessly chases what looks like hundreds of pieces of confetti. Apparently, they were his movie ticket stubs from the past 6 years. I wish I could write exactly how that slow motion wallet fell and exploded into little colored pieces of my laughter.