The Vampiric blood boils stronger than usual. The sun burns my skin. Feels like I should sleep while it’s up but I don’t. Can’t sleep while it’s down. What time is it? What day is it? Who farted?
Can’t decide how to work out. Too many choices. Yoga’s relaxing. Running is liberating. I like the burn of lifting weights. Swimming is soothing but I know the kids pee in the pool. Lots of choices at Gold’s but someone always smells funny. Dancing. Ahh, dancing. The only workout where beer is the standard drink during the break.
But what to wear? It won’t matter. Epiphany. Because I don’t care. Just want to get out. Tired of writing…no…tired of needing to write. I miss building houses…no…I miss hitting things with a hammer.
Music. Loud. Lots of faces. Sad. Happy. Lost. Odd, I’m in the minority. Honky white boy in a sea of Latino. What do I care? A Rezner mix of Enigma. It makes me smile. Eyes shut. Move. Glide. Groove. The world fades away. Mood lifts. It’s temporary. It won’t last. I don’t care. Embrace it. Protect it. Dance.
Why are so many attracted to the darkness? Do they sense the loss? Is it simply the mystery? I make new friends. Lots of them. Mohawk stands out…perhaps because of the mo’hawk. He introduces his girl. Did I hear that right? Her name is Flower? Bless her heart. The heart on her neck that is. The tattoo. There are seven acceptable places for a tattoo on a woman’s body. The entire right side of the neck is not one of them.
Bow Tie concerns me. He’s in their clique but I get the sense he’s currently stalking his next kill. He has a knife in his boot. No one goes dancing in boots. The bouncers should stop them at the door. His girl is abused. She’s cute but she doesn’t know it…no…she doesn’t believe it. Abused. Not saying he hits her…but she lets him treat her poorly. I don’t see examples…can just tell.
There’s Business Girl. She’s been on her cell phone the whole time. How she hears over the music is beyond me. She has nice legs. The dummy should be dancing like the rest of us. Who brings work to a club? I can see the stress. She’ll be lucky to see forty.
Dark Hair. She’s the prettiest. And she knows it. She keeps glancing. Wants to catch me looking. I won’t give her the satisfaction. Humble up, darlin’. I’ve had better.
Stop it. Stop people watching. Dance. Close eyes. Dance. It’s good music. Embrace. it.
Life of the party. Funny guy. Big bald guy with a touch of rhythm. I’m asked what I do for a living. I lie. I build houses. The friend I brought hears me. Knows I’m lying. Grins. Yeah, whatever. Laugh it up fuzz ball. That’s what Han said to Chewy, you know.
Rhythm going. Fatigue bar filling up. Sucky song anyway. Time for some Gatorade. Replenish the vitamins and minerals. I order a milk. The Bartender stares. Doesn’t get the humor. He says something smart. I didn’t catch it over the music. But I get the gist. Count to ten. Let him live. Doesn’t he realize I haven’t been in a fight in over a year? That I’d love the excuse to give the ol’ mallets a fresh workout?
There’s nowhere to sit. A good corner wall is high dollar real estate. My new friends stumble over. They’ve had alot more Gatorade. I wonder if they’re driving. Conversation. Stories are told. Bonding. I laugh when others laugh. But I’m not listening. I’m ready to go. I’m thinking about the ocean. No clue why. I don’t even like the ocean. But now I have to pee.
I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry.
I tell my new friends goodbye. And oddly enough I find myself genuinely smiling. I guess I like them…well…except for Bow Tie who I’m certain will kill before the sun rises.
It’s been raining. Or misting perhaps. Little beads of water cover the little blue car. I drive my friend home. No thank you. No coffee for me. I should get some sleep. I lie. I have an early meeting. It’s actually a late meeting. 5:00 at Fox. No reason to hurt anyone’s feelings by saying, “No, darlin’, there’s a hole in my life and your particular brand of coffee won’t fill it.”
So…I drive.
Not another car in sight. I am legend. I end up on Kanan Road. Wow do the German’s know how to hug the curves. I park at the fish joint. I can’t recall the name. It’s so quiet that the Ocean is deafening. Well, we aren’t talking ears bleeding or anything but it’s louder than I expect. And cold. I’m clearly under dressed.
I curse the Queer Eye girls. They said I shouldn’t wear socks with dress shoes…now I got sand rubbing my feet raw. There’s a boat out there. I can see the lights. It’s gorgeous. It’s so overcast I can’t tell where the sky and the ocean meet. The glow of lights in the center of a void.
I want to take a picture. My phone tells me to go away, it’s full. I hear rhythm. Metal against metal. A chain. A dog collar. A dog trots along the beach. I kneel for him to come closer. Jerk doesn’t even glance at me. Just keeps on going. I can only assume he was busy. His family must have moved to Seattle and he’s on a journey to be reunited with them.
It’s cold. But I’m determined to hang for a couple of hours so I can watch the sun rise. Then I remember that we’re on the West freaking coast. Yes, it’s true. The sun sets in the West. Sigh. I could have been drinking coffee but instead I’m standing knee deep in seaweed with sand in my shoes and cold ocean air blowing up my bum.
It’s time to go home.
The drive seems longer.
A song starts to play from a CD. And it’s perfect.
They call her Mississippi
But she dont flow to me
Spends her light on the bayou
But she dont come to see
Shes the one that makes my dreams
They call her Mississippi
But she dont flow to me
The shape of her horizon
Makes the morning sun
When she puts her eyes on
Each and anyone
Shes the one that makes me fall
Midnight moon shines through it all
Shes the one that makes me fall
Midnight moon shines through it all
Shes the one that makes my dreams
They call her Mississippi
But she dont flow to me
They call her Mississippi
But she dont flow to me
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