2/12/2023

I was driving down the street I lived on before I left for Colorado Springs. Snow had fallen and the plows hadn't done their job yet, though New Jerseyans were already braving the drifts for errands of varying necessity. I was driving an ancient gray Thunderbird with a scarlet interior which were my wheels in the early nineties. The front floor was rusting out and there were holes where I could watch the asphalt rush under the car as I sped along. At one point I realized I was going too fast, attempted to slow down rather than slam on the brakes and slalom to safety.
No such luck. I hit a car, spun, the rear end of the car was bashed up by a tree stump. Knowing this was verging on nightmare territory I hit the oneiric eject button and said a silent prayer for this to be truly a dream than a cruel reality I didn't need.
I woke in the half darkness, got up to pee, then returned to bed. I don't recall if I dreamt the rest of the night.

My Saturday was uneventful. Discovered I could cook meatloaf in a slow cooker and made plans for Sunday, barring any last-minute invites to watch the Superbowl with any friends who might think of me. If I am at home then I'll go to the supermarket late in the afternoon when everyone dutifully gathers around the television for this annual event. When I get back home and unpack the groceries then I'm going to rent a documentary called Tukdam: Between Worlds (thugs-dam) about Buddhist monks who die while meditating. Freaky bit is their corpses don't behave like corpses for quite some time.

Saturday night I decided to try a new watering hole, The Sea Crab, but found it not to my tastes and expensive. Seven bucks for a beer (Cape May Brewery, Coastal Evacuation, acceptable), fifteen for calamari, and five for pineapple juice that was probably starting to turn. I get a beer at Johnny Mac's, two or three pineapple juices, and a free personal pizza for $10 and leave a $5 tip. Maybe in a few weeks I'll hang at the Wonder Bar, I already know it'll be dear, and see how that scene goes.

On the bright side I picked up Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt again, it's been languishing on my bedside table for weeks, and fell back into the groove of the story again. I think the act of reading helped mitigate my loneliness a bit and I am grateful.