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SO, there are likely coincidences and there are unlikely coincidences. When a couple walked up to rob and I in a crowded Asheville, NC, coffeehouse to ask directions because they are from Baltimore … Small, marginally likely coincidence. Cool, but not improbable. Black Widow on the engine of Darryl Hannah’s matte back lowrider biodiesel El Camino bought by friends? Cool, but not even really a coincidence (FYI – both of these things happened during this tour).

But what about coincidences so perfect and serendipitous as to be just … beyond coincidence? Disquieting, even? The kind that make you wonder if there is an equation by which the lining up of X number of factors elevates it from coincidence to something else. I submit the craziest thing that has ever happened to me:

Our St. Louis road-Mom, Susan, had a bad day and I wanted to do something nice for her. She always makes us really good home-cooked meals, so I decided to cook for her for once … have dinner hot and waiting for her when she got home since she lives alone and it’s not something I imagine she’s had for some time. 

I start hunting spices and have everything I need except nutmeg. Ah, well. Spices are expensive and I’m not going to buy nutmeg for one dish, so I improvise and get around it. We eat, and it’s great. We head out to our gig tonight at this bar in St. Louis.

We play our set, and the host walks out on stage and rallies the crowd. At which time he produces something from his pocket.

“We don’t have much to offer, but it never hurts to have some flavor for the road …”

And he hands me a container of … nutmeg. 

I look at Susan, because I’m sure this must be a joke she’s in on, and she’s as floored as I. 

It turns out one of the bar regulars worked at a store where they sell spices, and if someone breaks the plastic seal on a spice gift basket, they can’t sell the contents separately even if they are still closed. So she figured she’d bring a ton of the orphans in a box that said, “Free to good homes.” The venue host had grabbed one at random and  walked on stage when we ended our set.

This is a coincidence several very specific layers deep, which I feel there should be a word for the way mondegreen describes a misheard lyric in a song. I don’t even think synchronous covers it … I choose to make dinner tonight and need that spice. She’s sure she has it and doesn’t. We play that bar tonight. The regular brings spices of all things. The host grabs that one and decides it would be funny to make a bit about it on stage. 

At that many levels of synchronicity … is there a lesson here in the nutmeg? Is there a moral? Ask, and yee shall receive 6 hours later when it won’t be useful, but it will be weird  as hell? 

Eh, sometimes it’s also just nice to feel some small, dumb sign that you’re in the right place at the right time.