An Incredible Tale of Destiny Part Three

We passed out more bookmarks – we had about 2000 left – and our friend and I got rid of another 500 while my wife took many pictures and handed out a few herself.  When it grew near one p.m., we were all pretty tired and hungry, so we took the trolley to Anthony’s Fish Grotto a couple miles down the harbor.  We were exhausted, and accepted a ride in a pedi-cab the five blocks we would have had to walk, as a guy offered to take us for whatever tip we felt was fair.  I tipped him 10 bucks.

We had a wonderful seafood lunch and felt much better after sitting and relaxing for an hour.  We walked the five blocks back to the trolley and met another interesting guy on the train ride back.

He Had a Comic-Com badge  and he too was a Lost fan, but one who liked the finale, which I couldn’t understand because he was a bright guy.  He told us if we wanted to do a book presentation at Comic-Con in the future to contact a guy named Eddie Ibrahim at the Convention Center around the first of the year.  Nice guy…

We made it back to the place we had worked before as people in costumes strolled the walkway, and we passed out more bookmarks and my wife took more pictures.  I needed to contact the messenger company to see if the book had been delivered to Tim Surette as yet, so we returned to the truck for the phone number.  I checked my phone and had four missed calls from them. 

I called them immediately and played phone tag a bit but finally got through.  They told me they’d tried to deliver it but the Comic-Con folks had said there was no tv.com registered there.  I told them it was because they were there as press, and asked him to try again and tell them that. 

That was when our friend spilled the beans – magic beans she had gotten during our last bookmark pass out.  A lady had approached her with coupons for a five p.m. event at the Petco Center, the side entrance of which we were now looking at from our parking space in the garage across the street. She had listened to the woman’s spiel and picked up on tv.com, which she had heard me mention.  They were going to have the tv.com awards there at five – today only.

My mind raced, and I called the messenger company with some more phone tag thrown in just to make it suspenseful.  I told them the tv.com folks were all over there around the side entrance as I spoke - and some were standing outside by the growing line to get in.  He talked with someone there with him and told me they’d get right on it. 

I walked over there and asked security where a package for one of the tv.com people would be received, and the lady told me to take it to receiving down the block.  I went back to the structure as I called them to relay the info, and then the magic beans kicked it into high gear.

I looked through the grill of the parking structure to see a man I believed to be Tim Surette standing at the curb, when a guy in a red messenger shirt on a bicycle approached him and handed him a package – my package.  A bike messenger, I had forgotten about them, but sure, how very cool – gotcha Tim!

I saw the man I believed to be Tim Surette take the package with terror on his face.  He ripped the package open and his face calmed a bit as he realized he wasn’t being served with legal papers. I was happy that he didn’t toss the package in the trash, but turned and walked up the street. He rounded the corner and disappeared, and it was done.

I had believed it was important to get my book to Tim Surette of tv.com, although I don’t know what I expected him to do – maybe nothing – but it just seemed right, you know?

I called the messenger company that had been so wonderful, and I thanked them again and the guy said they were glad they could help.

I looked at my exhausted gals and said, “Well, that’s it, we’re done, the end of a perfect day. Let’s go home.”

My wife protested, “Are you sure, John, we’ve got quite a few bookmarks left.  I don’t want to hear tomorrow that we should have stayed and passed them all out.”

“I’m sure,” I said, “We did what we came here to do and we reached well over a thousand people from all over the country, we met some wonderful people who may help us a great deal with this book.  I’m quite satisfied and happy.  You won’t hear anything from me tomorrow except what a great trip it was.”

As we left San Diego, we began talking about the day, and how it had all come together so perfectly. Then we keyed on the numbers from Lost, and how they had actually applied in some ways. The key numbers for us, it seemed, were “8” (for Hurley) and “23” (for Jack), because they kept popping up all day. We had driven to San Diego on Interstate 8. John had insisted that we go on Friday, which we realized was July 23 – the only Lost number in the 20s, and the only day we could have reached Tim Surette – and my wife’s trolley ticket was #23.  There were others, but I can’t seem to recall the rest just now.

As we headed out of town we were in great spirits, and decided not to get a motel, but to drive on home. Our friend wanted a bathroom, but the rest area between San Diego and El Centro was closed on both sides. The next option was a casino. We knew the restrooms would at least be clean. We decided that since my wife’s trolley ticket had been 23 that she was most likely to win – even though she NEVER wins at the casino. But what the heck – the idea of putting $20 in a video poker machine was irresistible. So, she found a JACKS or better machine – marked number EIGHT. She sat down and started winning – and Jacks, 8’s and Aces kept popping up. We don’t know what the aces meant, but we were happy with the Jacks and 8’s! She hit four of a kind on all three several times, but mostly 8’s and Jacks. One time, she hit four 8’s, and a Jack was the fifth card. She didn’t win a lot – but she didn’t lose at all – and her winnings even paid for the gas home.

What a mystical and marvelous day it had been!