Fortunate (?) Accidents

I believe I ran straight into two Serendipitous moments today. I was at work doing my job of guiding train tours, and as part of the job, I answer any questions the paying customers feel inclined to ask. One of the usual ones is where I go to college. After answering that question for the row before him, I progressed onward to a very excited looking gentleman.
"You go to Thomas Academy?"
It took me a second, "Oh! No, I go to Thomas Aquinas."
"In Santa Paula? Great Books?"
At this point I'm nearly jumping up and down, "Yes! You've heard of it?"
"My niece goes there!"
So he and I had a lovely chat. Said niece will be a sophomore, and we excheanged names, so I'll meet her in the fall.

End Serendipitous Moment #1

On the morning train today I was answering questions when I recieved another common one, where am I from. When I said Upstate NY, the gentleman promptly told me he used to live in Corning! This guy attended West High School, and he told me all the things he and his buddies did on Market Street, etc. It was an enjoyable 15 minutes of time on an otherwise mildly annoying train.

End Serendipitous Moment #2

Overall, a lovely day, including the rainy weather. There's something very honest about rain: the way it smells, it always takes the easy way downhill, it washes dirt away with persistence not strength. The smell I'll miss from CO is the way the aspen trees smell after a rainstorm. Musty, rotted-ish, but fresh in their own, earthy way.