Broom

I was shopping for groceries in Chinatown when I decided to buy Matt a broom. He only had a vacuum cleaner and since his apartment was all hardwood floors, I thought it would be more practical (and easier) to clean if we had a broom there instead. It was the last thing on my shopping list and I had just enough cash to buy a broom for him. Now let me tell you, I bought an Asian broom, not one of those brooms with the black bristles that Americans use. Asian brooms are made out of straw and they are tapered at one end. The handle is also shorter but thicker which makes it easier to handle with only one hand. Western-style brooms tend to be long and extremely thin, forcing a lot of people to use both hands in order to sweep properly. The handle of an Asian broom is also wrapped in wire or in plastic of two colors set in a horizontal pattern. Look one up if you're curious. Well, when I was shopping around for a broom, I just picked the first Asian broom I saw and paid for it. I regretted it a few minutes afterwards because some of the straw in the middle had been cut short, giving the broom a split look. This will make the broom slightly less effectively, but I had already paid for it so I just took it home anyway. In either case, I loved carrying that broom around Chinatown. It made me feel like a witch about to fly off into the sunset, kind of like the witch Kiki from the Miyazaki film. Turns out later that the broom I chose would garner some attention.

When I was carrying the groceries and the broom home on the subway, a few young gentlemen came into the subway with some drums and sat down right in front of me. One of the men looked at my broom and immediately said, "Quidditch?" I did not hear him, and asked, "What?" but at that point, his friend had prodded him and they all began playing their drums. When they finished, they went around the subway car asking for donations and wishing people a good day. Then, when they all sat down again, the same gentleman turned to me and said, "Is that for Quidditch?" I didn't understand what he was talking about until I saw him point to my broom and that was when I realized that my broom handle was decked out in red and gold plastic.

"Oh!" I laughed, suddenly understanding the reference.
"Do you know what I'm talking about?" he asked.
"Yes!" I told him excitedly. "The Harry Potter books?"
"Yeah. Have you seen the movies?" he asked me. At this point, his friends had gathered around and were looking at my broom as well. They smiled.
"No, I haven't seen all the movies. Most of them..." I answered him. "But I read all the books."
"That broom looks like a Quidditch broom with the..."
"Red and gold." I confirmed, nodding. "Gryffindor colors."
"Yes!" He and his friends began to talk excitedly, but the subway stopped right then and they got off, still talking about the broom.

When I got home later, I was so excited about the broom that I moved all of Matt's things aside and swept the whole apartment three times. The entire time, I pretended that I was the Mickey Mouse character from The Sorcerer's Apprentice, enchanting my broom to do my work for me. Sometimes, I do love my imagination. When Matt came home, I told him the whole story and he went over to take a look at the broom as well. He thought it was awesome and he ended up really liking it. After that, we walked around barefoot the rest of the evening, enjoying the feel of smartly swept floor.