Just Enough

I woke at 11:09am this morning after spending the early mornings reading of Frodo and Sam's journey up the stairs of Cirith Ungol and deep into Shelob the Spider's lair, ending this endeavour at 3:30am. Thus, I woke up like a reanimated zombie, moving about without much zest. I only began to show much of a pulse of excitement at the thought of brunch (breakfast+lunch) and reading the sunday papers which are the best editions IMHO. Thus, I grabbed my keys and went of to the nearby coffee shop to pack some chicken rice.

"Chicken rice, add rice", I said to the guy who chops all the juicy and delicious pieces of chicken meat.

Often, my lunches on weekends are complete meals - economy rice with two types of vegetables and one meat or beancurd dish but today I felt the need for a change. And, the economy rice stall which is just next to that selling chicken rice (owbed by same person) would often have the dishes half finised by early noon as people would go there and eat or pack by as early at 10:30 am. I only eat the economy rice there if the time have not passed 12:00 pm.

As the chicken rice dude is chopping the pieces of roasted chicken for my pack of rice, I went and reached for my wallet in the back pocket. "Where is it... eh? Where is it? The heck...!". I forgot to bring the one thing that can ensure I don't starve - the wallet! I brought all the keys and the cellphone but not the wallet!

I ate chicken rice there before and I know that the price would be RM 3.40 for added rice. "How will I go through this?", I thought. The shopkeeper knew of me because I buy from them just about every weekend but not close enough for casual conversations. I don't quite think that they'll allow for credits and I myself don't feel like owing anybody any money.

"Think, university boy, think!", I went. One way to do so is to ask if I could credit but as said before, I don't like this idea. The other is to drive all the way home and grab the wallet, come back and pay. The latter is most ridiculous but perhaps is the most sensible. Yet, somehow when I thought about going back to the car to drive back, I remembered that I have some money in the ash tray.

I went to check and indeed, there was money - a few 20 cents coins, one 50 cents coin and one piece of RM 2 note which had been in there since last month. Why didn't I use to pay for toll, I don't know but one reason is perhaps because of the queue at the toll - since that I have RM 1 to pay, might as well pay that one and not hold up the line. I counted and counted, excluding all the 5 cents, I have exactly RM3.50.

As I sat at the table eating the chicken rice I bought, reading of Samwise Gamgee's choice to continue on without his master, I could only wonder and be amused that we are all but a small part of a large plan.

Luck or coincidence?

I guess the Big Guy upstairs must be watching me with amusement and decided to bail me out by blotting out all memories about the RM2 note before today until the time it is needed.