Next time, knock--and lock

The hallowed halls of one of our state's premier universities was filled with cries of horror this afternoon. And it was my fault--sort of.

Preparing to give a presentation just a couple of doors down from the president's office, I had a few minutes to spare and made a dash for the bathroom across the hall. I opened one of the stalls to see someone I knew sitting there in a compromised position. She screamed, and startled, I screamed. I'm not sure why, looking back on it. It wasn't the most pleasant scene, but it wasn't as if I'd encountered an axe murderer on the other side of the stall door. Maybe it was all the caffeine I had in my tea at lunch, or the adrenaline that preceeds public speaking. Or it simply could have been the horror of recognizing the shocked face staring back at me and, in a nanosecond, realizing that I would have to face her again, fully clothed.

Whatever caused it, the screams caused a melee of excitement, and soon, there were was a mass of people in the bathroom.

Fortunately, it was determined that the university president's security was not threatened.

Not unless he forgets to lock the stall door, too.