explanation of the previous evening's adventures

In succinct and unslurred tones, I will commence to tell you the story of my Saturday afternoon, which as Saturday afternoons go, was quite the party.

High Country West (the small, community club I work at) has an annual picnic in July, with a DJ, pool games, various forms of meat between slices of bread, ice cream, pony rides, and beer.

That last is vitally important to the storyline.

I arrived at 2 to do my part, starting out by guarding for the pool games, and at 3 serving ice cream (the worst job there, and the stickiest). At 4 Aaron and I cleaned up the ice cream table and joined the rest of the staff in picking up trash, rearranging patio furniture, and just generally getting the place back in order. Aaron West and his brother Cameron were playing a live set, which made it quite a pleasant sunny July afternoon (today, I have Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" stuck in my head). As I wandered back to the area with the drinks and grills, I found Dana (boss), Sean, McKenna, Heidi, and Jared standing amicably around the keg. I was given a cup. I thought, "this job rules" and tucked in.

I wandered back and forth between the keg and the music, pretending like I was actually doing work, but mostly just feeling a general warmness of being that often comes with summer days and community happenings. At the drinks patio, the guards mentioned above were rapidly becoming drunk as proverbial skunks, teasing the tweenagers and behaving rather erratically. I had to work til 10, so I imbibed responsibly up until a point. The point were I thought, "fuck it," this opportunity comes so rarely, and you're only young once, Cameron's just played "Vienna" for me and all is right with the world. My headguard, McKenna, is the one encouraging me to drink, so what can you do? The boss says jump, you say "how high," the boss says drink, you say "how much?"

We had quite a good time 'round that keg. It was my turn to lifeguard, so I went, did my half hour (the Red Cross specifically warns against the imbibement of alcoholic beverages whilst lifeguarding, as it impares the mind's ability to think quickly and make decisions. Also, it makes it hard to care), and wandered back again to find them still firmly planted about the keg.

The rest of my shift went uneventfully- McKenna and I walked down to the elementary school to smoke (I watched) and chatted. She's quite a cool kid, and closer to my age and mental state than some of the other employees. Also, she's much in need of friends in San Diego, so there will be many more good times with her before I leave.

I left early- cleaned the bathroom counters and toilets as penance for my misdeeds, and ended up at a party in the same neighborhood (behind Megan's house, coincidentally enough) with McKenna and Aaron. There was much pot smoking. It was the kind of evening that lately I've been having a lot of- this desire to put something bad in my lungs and swirl it around a bit. It's not the kind of desire that makes me want to take up smoking (lords no) but just one that wanders around after I've been drinking and encourages me to "lighten up" and "live a little." Just so. The party was rather dull but it did the trick and I left, after sobering up, much satisfied with the events of my evening.

The post below is not a reference to any sort of hook up (sadly so), but just to my laziness and general sense of partied-outness. Today I find that my room is a wreck: there are clothes scattered on every available surface (not all of this is from last night, it has been steadily building the past week or so) and papers and boxes are taking up my limited floor space. Today I have nothing to do, as planned, and intend to pack up my clothes. Books are done, many things are already in boxes. Could get started on my CDs, as well.

With that anticlimactic end to my nocturnal adventures, I leave you, dear reader, to shake your head in wonderment and go about your day as if nothing has changed. No, nothing whatsoever.