i joined the crowd...

...not my usual m.o. to be sure, but i had been driving - crawling really - through the thick afternoon traffic of beverly hills & west hollywood & was feeling frustrated & cranky. couldn't wait to get home, kick off my shoes, wash my face, & settle down with a cup of tea & the latest issue of the new yorker.

just then i looked up & saw the sign, huntley drive. my mind made quick associations: the street of pink berry, l.a.'s latest, most trendy place for frozen yogurt with fresh fruit that people are so crazy about they wait on long lines & park illegally, risking huge fines & getting towed, just for a hit of this cool refreshing delight.

instinctively, i made a quick right turn onto huntley drive thinking there won't be a spot so i'll just keep driving & go home. from the corner of my eye i saw a small crowd of people lingering around in front of the shop & thought, not me, i don't go with the crowd...

but this was my day to win the lottery. just as i was about to accelorate down the street someone pulled out of a legal spot directly across the street from the place. i parked and found the meter still had 30 minutes to go. a young woman in short shorts sat cross-legged on the grassy patch on the street beside my car spooning pink berry yogurt into her mouth. is it good? i asked. great she replied.

i followed my destiny & joined the line outside the shop, composing my order in my mind while i waited. plain yogurt, of course. chocolate chips? no. papaya? no. fresh berries? yes. pineapple? yes. i looked around at the people waiting in line & inside the shop: mostly females, young, thin & beautiful; many blondes, many asians. it could have been a modeling agency, or an open commercial audition. where were the boys? i noticed one or two including a cute young man with curly brown hair & big blue eyes on line ahead of me. then suddenly it was my turn & i felt the same excitement i felt as a child when i was allowed to go to the corner candy store & order a chocolate malted.

another few minutes' wait & a large plastic cup, labeled with my name & choices, heaped with dazzling creamy frozen yogurt, piled high with the freshest sparkling berries & pineapple chunks was handed to me. the blue-eyed young man ahead of me asked for a bag of ice. what for? i asked. i'm bringing this home to my girlfriend, he said, fitting a clear, plastic-domed cover over his large, overflowing container. i wish i had a boyfriend like you, i said.

i grabbed a plastic spoon & a napkin & sat down at a table. slowly i savored my treat; slowly i let the cool, creamy, slightly acid substance melt on my tongue. slowly i chewed the freshest sweet plump blackberries, raspberries & sweet ripe pineapple that burst with flavor inside my mouth & blended with the creamy stuff. slowly, my frazzled nerves relaxed; traffic was far away, there was no crowd after all. i breathed deeply; was happy; read the sign on the wall: yogurt is good for you. it has calcium, improves your complexion, makes strong bones... and other things like that. just what i needed.