Six degrees of separation on the bus

Six degrees of separation is the theory that everyone and everything is six or fewer steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person in the world, so that a chain of "a friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps. Wikipedia

And so, given Six Degrees of separation, I am introduced by The Wife to Lynnsey Evakarla Braun, the transgender woman accused of gunning down a fellow passenger on a Sacramento Regional Transit light rail train.

It seems that Braun was, until recently, a regular rider of the Yolo Bus that The Wife takes most days from downtown Sacramento to her job in West Sacramento.

Not long ago The Wife attempted to befriend Braun. She learned that Braun was originally from Texas. As far as The Wife could tell, Braun was homeless, living out of a suitcase she lugged around with her on the bus and using an all-day bus pass to stay out of the cold. Homeless transgender Texan. Can life be more difficult?

But The Wife soon decided chatting up Braun might not be a good idea. The Wife doesn't recall exactly what Braun said that made her uncomfortable. Something mumbled that didn't make sense. Something clearly disconnected from reality. The Wife stopped talking to Braun. She avoided eye contact when on the bus. It became one of those uncomfortable public transportation dilemmas.

And then Braun was no longer on The Wife's morning ride to the office and soon forgotten.

Until Saturday morning and the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department's booking photo of Lynnsey Evakarla Braun.

"I know that woman," The Wife said, looking over my shoulder at the news story on my computer monitor. "She had a gun?!"

Homeless transgender Texan accused of murder held in Sacramento County Jail separately from male inmates because she identifies as a woman. So it seems life can get more difficult.