Warming Sign
Tonight was the first night in a long time that I turned on my lava lamp. That blue ooze slowly dancing around in a cyclic pattern has the uncanny ability to slow a person down and make them think. I am one of the last left here in Woodbury; the Exodus back to college began about two weeks ago. Now, only Matt, Shayla, and I remain. John remains as well, but he doesn’t leave; I think that still counts, though. Steve and I ran some errands and by the end of them, he had exactly $15 from what his dad had given him to buy mid-semester school restocking supplies. So, we pulled into the gas station and started filling up the car. “You know,” Steve said as he and a freezing wind jumped into the car, “I hope the gas doesn’t go over fifteen dollars, that’s all I have. Though, it sure would make a great story if I hit exactly fifteen dollars.” I thought for a second and mentioned the quarter I had in my wallet. But Steve was looking though the rear window at the pump. I glanced back as well and, seeing the “total sale” value rapidly climbing to fifteen, I was pretty sure he would go over. I turned away for a second and then heard a resounding “thump.” “Uhh, Alex.” “Yeah?” “Look.” “WHAT THE HECK. NOO! YOUR KIDDING. OH MY GOD! What the HECK?” Total Sale: $15.00 - there in undeniable orange and black. I still think we should have gone to the casino, or at least bought a lottery ticket. When it was all said and done, Steve couldn’t help but muse, “Why do I get lucky with stuff that doesn’t matter?” I don’t know. Fun times.
By the way, it has been around 30 below wind chill lately. It’s not at the “nose hair freezing” cold level yet, but it’s enough to freeze your pants into stiff pieces of fabric. It’s the kind of cold that makes you happy that sheep give us wool and geese give us down (and DuPont gives us MicroHyperUltraGoreTec). I will reiterate: thank goodness for my scarf. If I had a digital camera I would share a picture of it.
What a warming trend, isn’t it?
I don’t know about you, but good Lord, I need a back massage. [Coldplay - Moses - Live Cut]