Dear Sketch Artist,

It's not everyday that I notice someone that keeps on looking up at me while I'm reading the newspaper on the bus (the finance section, in case you were curious since you couldn't see). But when I was flipping the page from finances to the health section, I noticed that you were looking right at me before you looked back down.

You had a coiled notebook and a black pen in your hands.

I'll admit that it rather creeped me out at first. I was too tired this morning to figure out what you were doing. And after maybe about three more minutes, you stopped your cycle of looking down and looking at me and started focusing on someone else on the bus. And you flipped the page over and I caught sight of this rather good sketch of me. Done on a moving bus. In pen. However, from what I could ese, I do believe that you may have put my ponytail just a little bit too high. But that's about it.

You moved onto the next person quite easily and did a quick sketch of them. When you yawned, you let your sketch book rest on your lap and I saw this great full-page sketch of the girl who was sitting across from me. You sketched out what you could see, and the way her eyes were intently staring at her cell phone.

So while it was a bit creepy (and they do teach people that staring is considered to be rude), it's some kind of awesome that you were doing sketches that quickly and that nicely. So I'll give you props for that.

Just... Try not to stare so intently next time. It's kind of creepy.

Sincerely,
Drawn

Dear Woman with Books,

When you accidentally hit someone with your bag full of books, it is customary in this country (Canada) to apologize to said person and then, perhaps, sit down (since there were available seats on the bus). It is not, however, polite (or legal...) to look at the person who said 'ouch' when you first hit them (that person being me) and then giving them a look of disgust while you go "That didn't hurt!" and then proceed to swing your bag (full of books) back at that person, that you had already hit once, right in the ribs.

Let's have a lesson today from the Criminal Code of Canada:

(1) A person commits an assault when
(a) without the consent of another person, he applies force intentionally to that other person, directly or indirectly;
(b) he attempts or threatens, by an act or a gesture, to apply force to another person, if he has, or causes that other person to believe on reasonable grounds that he has, present ability to effect his purpose; or
(c) while openly wearing or carrying a weapon or an imitation thereof, he accosts or impedes another person or begs.

And next time you want to hit someone with something, don't do it on a bus with witnesses and a bus driver who asks the person being hit if they want to call the police. It's not particularly very smart.

At least you had the intelligence to run. I really wouldn't have had an issue with the first hit (the unintentional one) if you had at least the manners to apologize for it. I wasn't asking for a gold engraved plaque stating your apologies, just a simple "sorry" would have done.

Sincerely,
Girl with the bruises