Chapter 4
George Wakes Up
15George woke up the next morning feeling
tired, anxious, and stressed as usual. Every
day he wondered what else was going to
go wrong, but at least today he knew he
wouldn’t have car problems. “Do you want
me to drive you today?” his wife asked. “I do have time.”
“No, it’s okay,” he answered. “I’ll take the bus. It’s not
that bad. Except for the driver.”
“What’s wrong with the driver?” she asked.
“Long story, I’ll tell you later,” he said as he put on his
sneakers for his trek to the bus stop. Then his mood turned
even more sour as he thought about seeing the bus driver,
who had insulted him. “Choose wisely; soap opera” stuck
in his head. Who does she think she was talking to? He
shook his head and then turned his attention toward his
sneakers because it became painfully obvious that he
wasn’t able to untie his shoes. The laces were tied in 20 dif-
ferent knots, and he knew full well that his kids had been
playing in his closet again. He threw his shoes against the
wall, breathed a big huff, and just sat in painful silence.
More silence.
A minute later he looked in the mirror above his