Yesterday evening after work I took the boisterous dog for his usual walk. I passed a pair of yoots who entered one of the seedier and neglected dwellings on our block. The door opened and the crowd inside yelled "Surprise!" I have never experienced or heard of a surprise party in real life. And to finally, at a remove, to witness the phenomenon -- ah, what a sweet gift giver is life. We take as received wisdom the tropes of existence, and yet their realization is not far removed from the true apotheosis. Meaningless, perhaps, yet not slight.