ok, so this week i have noticed that i am in a decided 'time slot' when i drive the children to school. i tend to see the same person pulling out of candlewood, the same truck and cars waiting at the light at boone trail and lex-ave, the same cars dropping off at jenny rogers, etc. if my timing varies by 2-3 minutes either way, i cross-over into unfamiliar sights- i see a father and his two daughters from cayle's swim team coming out of the apt building at 4th and walnut on their way to woodlawn, only if i am running late. i see the new emh ceo walking around the hospital- making rounds?- only if i am running early. i know that i am running early, on time, or late by these markers, not just by the clock and the npr radio cadence...... to get cayle to school before the tardy bell i must be at the stanford road light before the morning business report comes on.......all of this time slot talk reminds me of my favorite bar in cincinnati- the blind lemon in mt adams. it was around the corner from the apt i shared with a friend from grad school. we would go for happy hour every friday from 5-7, and order 2 beers each, and have pretzels while we played backgammon. the bartender would automatically get out the board and pour our beers when we walked in- the price was always the same, so we knew how many single bills to take along. we got to know some of our neighbors, who also came for friday happy hour. .....once- on a double date, we went in on saturday night. we didn't know a soul-- not the bartender, not the waitresses, none of the crowd was familiar- the bartender didn't even know they had a backgammon board because no one ever asked for it on his shift....what a difference a time slot makes.....