Polka Dots

On the plane back to Portland, the seat next to me was empty because that's where Luka was supposed to be sitting.  I cancelled her fight so she could spend some more time in Wisconsin with my family and not have to witness her mom's first encounter with chemotherapy.

I looked at the empty seat a couple times and was about to set my jacket there when the woman in the aisle seat threw down her newspaper and her Horticulture - Planning for Spring Magazine.

Onto Luka's seat.  

For some third grade type reason, this made me mad.  The woman sat squarely in her seat, pleasant as can be, adjusting her seatbelt and moving her hips to get comfortable and she did not know that I was totally pissed at her.  She was wearing black pants and a black sweater with big  green, blue and white polka dots and a green turtleneck that matched some of the polka dots.

After a few minutes, she put an empty candy bar wrapper on the seat too.

Why did she think that she got to use the empty seat?  Didn't she know that was Luka's seat, where she should be sitting all scrunched up complaining about being hungry and wanting another cookie and then laying her head against my arm?  But that she wasn't there because her mom has to go get some chemOtherapy on Tuesday?  

She did not know this and I knew I could not blame her, but I still sat there mad at her for putting her stuff there and sitting in her aisle seat, smug as toast, wearing polka dots.