Karma Cleanser - May 29 2003

?Dear Karma Cleanser:
I recently won a ticket to a crowded movie one hour before show time. I didn't have my glasses, so I went early to pick a seat. After the previews, a group of eight or nine people came in, shifting people on rows around me.

Finally, the main talker and his date asked me to move so they could sit together. I declined. She said it was OK and sat to my left, while he killed me with nasty glances on my right.

Winning the ticket was a blessing — the movie was great — so I'm worried about the decision affecting my karma. Did I have a right to my seat, or should I have joined the caravan of love?

-- Monie in the Middle


Sure you had a right to your seat, and a right to refuse to move for the latecomers. However, we can't quite swallow the notion that moving one seat over would have seriously changed your view of the screen. Unless, of course, you were sitting perfectly between two support beams, or behind a couple with extravagant hats. It's certainly no grievous sin to break up the "love caravan," but your offhand rudeness might just stop you from winning more movie tickets any time soon.

br>?Dear Karma Cleanser:
My girlfriend and I recently suffered a series of house-related misfortunes, culminating a couple of weeks ago with a fly infestation reminiscent of The Amityville Horror. We've both been wondering where all this bad karma is coming from, but disagree on the possible sources. My girlfriend admits that she never pays the required $2 parking fee when she goes for a run in the local state park, but she says that karma is always paid back in the same manner as it's earned (i.e., parking karma begets parking karma, house karma begets house karma).

Is that true? Or can bad karma earned in one area of life be paid in a completely unrelated fashion?

-- Triple Lutz Karma Couple


With Karma, as with life, there are no absolutes. We tend to favor the notion that the universe employs a winking (and usually befitting) system of payback, one that makes sense in the grand scheme of life. But then again, sometimes evil simply flies in out of nowhere, like buzzing houseguests who crap on the ceiling and refuse to leave. Insects are another example. In your case, we say don't focus so much on the karmic cause of your domestic disturbances. Instead, make it a point to do one small act of good each day. Oh, and tell your girlfriend to start paying the meter — just in case.?

Been bad? karma@creativeloafing.com.