Indulge me for a minute, will you? One of the great mysteries of my life is that 90% of humanity says hello to me in passing. Complete strangers say hi. Janitors say hi. Friends, Romans, countrymen, all go out of their way to greet me.

It’s been that way as long as I can remember.

Hallways, stairwells, grocery stores, if there’s a place for another human being to cross paths with me, they’ll give me a salutation. I’m not sure why that is exactly, given that I’m never actually in the moment. For instance, if I’m walking down the hallway at work, I’m usually thinking about 18 different things, none of which involve the person walking towards me. I’m zoned out, spaced out, checked out, that is, until someone blurts out a nonchalant “Hi” to me and hits my reset button. It happens at least a half dozen times a day.

But, oddly — the greeting is usually reserved only for me. If there are multiple people in the hallway, I’m the only one who gets a nod.

I often want to stop people and ask, “Why did you just say hi to me, but ignore the other three perfectly acceptable people in the elevator?” Part of me thinks I already know the answer.

I think it’s because I go through life blissfully unaware of most everything around me. Sad, isn’t it? Instead of “resting bitch face”, my face contorts into some sort of “resting affable face” which makes me approachable to men, women, small children and dogs.

Today once again proved my theory. I’m walking out of the gate area at the airport in to the concourse. The TSA agent I walked by said hello to me. I said hello back, but then waited curiously just out of his eyesight. He didn’t say hello to anyone else. Why was I the sole recipient of his greetings and salutations? Lucky me, I guess.

Am I wildly approachable? Does the free world think we went to college together? Even if I’m gazing wistfully into my smart phone, the greeters of the world are undaunted.

I’m not complaining, mind you. I just think it’s beyond odd — like I’ve got some sort of honing beacon on me that says, “Please exchange pleasantries with this man.” And yes, before you ask, I’m always sure to say hello back in a courteous and respectful manner. We’re all on this big blue marble together. I wouldn’t ever say hell-no to the hello.

Maybe I should learn a few things from the people of HelloLand? I’m just not sure why I’ve become their exalted ruler. But as my friend pointed out — “a hello could lead to a million things.” Perhaps I should learn to embrace that?