Ron Biederman's Trousers

Of all the bizzare coincidences I've experienced, this is my personal favourite: I was working as a singing gondolier in Miami, and managed to get all my possessions stolen on a Greyhound bus trip. I was literally left with the straw hat, stripey shirt, shorts and sandals I was wearing at work before boarding the bus. At that time, I was staying at a backpackers in Miami Beach, and a lovely jewish chap, Ron Biederman, very kindly gave me some clothes, including a roughly-made Israeli shirt, with broad, dull red stripes. I was forced to return to the UK shortly afterward, now being somewhat destitute, and the gondoliering scene being somewhat less profitable in Miami Bay, than on the canals of Venice…. My long-suffering dad let me store a box of stuff in his attic, including the shirt. I never once wore it in the UK, as I had some decent clothes stored there. I immediately applied for a job on a cruise ship, and was flying back out to Miami to join the ship a few weeks later. Fast forward two years, I ended my contract, and returned to the UK for a break. Needing some temporary clothes to wear, with the intention of discarding them before long, I grabbed Ron Biederman’s shirt from my dad’s attic, before heading to London, where I checked in at a backpackers in Earl’s Court. I got chatting to another backpacker, and we decided to have dinner in the basement café run by the hostel. We got our food, and sat opposite two girls. We soon discovered that they had recently returned from a kibbutz in Israel. Without thinking, I said: “I knew a guy from New York who used to spend a lot of time on kibbutzes….what was his name……Ron something….” “There was a guy called Ron at the kibbutz we were staying at, he’s brilliant, Ron Biederman.” One of the girls said. “That’s him….it must be! I can’t believe you know Ron Biederman……big jewish guy from New York?” “That’s right! Oh my God!” I looked down and realised for the first time, that I was actually wearing the shirt Ron had given me. “You’re not going to believe this, but Ron gave me this shirt…I can’t believe it, it’s the first time I’ve worn it in years!” “No ******* way”, she replied. “No ******* way! He gave me these just before I came to England.” The girl stood up, and was wearing the matching trousers to the shirt I was wearing. Immediately, very obviously matching, with identical dull red stripes. I have to say, we spent the evening discussing impossible coincidences! It’s just soooooo unlikely…..if I’d worn the shirt all the time, perhaps not so much, but I wore it just the once in the UK. Or, if there had been a much shorter time-frame, but there was a long time the shirt being in storage….. I had no clue the girl was wearing the trousers, as she was sitting down opposite me at the table, so when she stood up, the astonishment level at the “reveal” (the moment you become aware of a bizarre coincidence) was really up there, I have to tell you.