This past week while in Manhattan at work, I stopped at a drugstore to buy a replacement 9 volt battery for my apartment’s smoke alarm detector. I was a bit annoyed that the drugstore only sold 9 volt batteries in two packs since I only needed one, which would probably last for about 6 months to a year, but I decided to buy the two pack anyway instead of having to spend more time finding a store that sold 9 volt batteries individually.
On my way home that night I saw Patrick whom I described in an earlier post. Patrick is a local resident of Astoria who plants his telescope out on a sidewalk on Ditmars Boulevard and invites nighttime strollers to take a look at the brightest things in the sky that night. I have stopped several times to take a look at his telescope, including a couple of times to view the amazing view of Jupiter and its moons.
Patrick was having trouble that evening getting his telescope to locate the right star in the sky. He could punch in the star he wanted and the telescope would rotate its way around and focus in on just the right spot. But after 10 minutes of fiddling, Patrick finally said, “It’s the battery, it’s run down.” There was a drugstore just down the street so I offered to go there and buy a new battery for him, thinking that this was the least I could do for someone who provides this wonderful service for free.
I asked him what type of battery he needed, and wouldn’t you know it he answered, “Nine volt.”
“Nine volt,” I exclaimed, “I’ve got one of those right here!” I pulled out the second battery that I didn’t need and handed it to Patrick, who was thrilled to have a fresh battery in his telescope.
My faith in a higher power was restored a bit that night, or at least a higher power with a presence over Astoria.
Stumble It!
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