First off, if you haven't already, I would like to politely ask you to read my article on President Obama's appearance at the Mystics game on Sunday. If it is good enough for the Ted Leonsis, owner of the Wizards/Mystics/Capitals to link it in HIS blog, surely its good enough for you to link in yours...and I won't call you Shirley anymore.

Now, this morning as I taking my post-run cool-down-walk towards my apartment, I noticed a woman trying to parallel park right in front of me. She was driving a full sized car, and the space she was attempting to squeeze into was a full sized space exactly. I thought she was old, but when upon closer examination, she looked to be around 30 or so. I could see her getting frustrated that this process was not working in her favor, and when she saw me, she gave me this "go away" look and I started to do just that. But in my neverending quest to become a better person, I did not go away at all. I ignored the fact that I was sweaty, and it may have been a bit creepy to be approaching anyone, let alone a woman alone in a car, at 6 in the morning.

I went to the driver's side of the car, motioned for her to roll down the window, and I told (not asked) her that I would help her fit her car in the space (sounds like a sexual reference). I switched to the passenger side of the car, so I could see how close she was to the curb, I asked her to roll the window down so she could hear my commands, and I got her in the space with room to spare. Normally I would take this time to promote the stereotype that women can't drive, but it really was a difficult spot for her to navigate through. And who among us hasn't needed some assistance getting into a tight spot...pause.

Anyway, she thanked me, I said no problem at all, and she said thank you sooo much, and I again said no problem and told her to have a great day. I did a good deed, and I appreciated her thanking me, but I felt like some early morning small talk was about to be thrown my way, and quite frankly, that would have ruined the moment. Seriously though, it really does feel good to help people when they aren't expecting..and that's one to grow on.

And now, a selection from Branford and Wynton Marsalis: