I didn't really even realize what I was doing. My mind just snapped; I had to keep him quiet. I rushed him and tackled him to the ground. We wrestled around there for a minute then I grabbed his throat and choked him. That was when I learned that alot of the vampire myths aren't true. They aren't killed by sunlight; they just don't like it. And they aren't as strong as ten men because if Jon was then I wouldn't have been able to choke him to death. After a couple minutes of squeezing as hard as I could, he went limp.
It was night, so thankfully no one saw this happen. I hid his body in the bushes, pulled my car around and loaded the body inside. I drove around to my apartment, and after going inside for blankets to wrap Jon in, made sure it was clear and carried the wrappped body in.
Then it happened. He started to wake up. Quickly the other myths that I had not yet seen disproven came to my head. How do you kill a vampire? Wooden stake to the heart. So, that's what I did. That was an last night and he hasn't moved since. I don't know what to do now. I have the body in my bathtub... in pieces. I figured it couldn't hurt, and like I said, my mind just snapped. I don't think I could stand to kill him a third time.
I haven't been able to fall asleep since then. It's three in the morning on Sunday now. I've been thinking about Jon's family; I had killed Diane's husband of 364 years, and Anna's father of 70 years. I had destroyed a family. But what would Jon have done to me? He would have killed me, I saw it in his eyes. He paid no attention to the friendship we had built over the past week. But I guess that a vampire doesn't live for hundreds of years trusting everyone he meets. He definately would have killed me. I know it, and I did what I had to do. Now I just have to figure out what to do next.
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Shedding Some Light Pt 2
Saturday, Jan 21 2006 (cont.)
"Where are you going?" Jon asked me.
"Um, I'm... leaving," I said.
"Look, man, don't let the dogs get to you. They're like that to everyone. I know this town can get a little rough, but dealing with the werewolves is nothing compared to dealing with the humans."
"How so?"
"Oh, come on! what do you mean? You know how the humans are. The werewolves want to take over, sure. They want to be the ones in charge of the town and they want all the vampires off the council. But, we have something in common with them. We are both ancient, endangered species, and we would never wish extinction upon each other... like the humans do."
"What do you mean?" I didn't even realize at the time that my questions may give me away as a human who knew nothing about monster/human relations.
"Alex, are you dense? They hate us. That's why we founded this town, and that's why we can't advertise about it. If the humans found out about a town full of vampires and werewolves, they'd burn it to the ground the next day." He was silent for a moment, his eyes cast to the ground, as if he were searching for the right words to say. "That's why no one leaves."
"No one leaves the town?"
"Well, we have other communities set up all over the world, but this is the only one in western hemisphere of the United States. There are so few of us left. If you really wanted to leave this town, we could set you up in another community, but for safety reasons, once you're in the loop, you stay in it."
"Safety reasons?"
"In the past we have had the problem of Unnaturals selling secrets to humans. A werewolf clan wants vampires out of the way, they go rogue and live in the forest and tell the humans about a town full of vampires. End of vampires; end of town. Vampires aren't innocent of those charge, either. Our numbers are too small to risk that again. So no one leaves. There are Invisibles guarding the borders; Poltergeists. If you try to leave, they'll kill you."
"What the hell? Why didn't anyone explain this to me in the beginning?"
"Alex, everyone knows this stuff. Unless they're raised by humans!" Jon laughed out loud at this, but I just stared at him. His laughter died away quickly.
"Wait," he said. "You're..."
I started backing away. If he found out the truth he was going to kill me. What would you have done? What else could I have done? I killed him.
I feel sick... I can't even write about it right now.
"Where are you going?" Jon asked me.
"Um, I'm... leaving," I said.
"Look, man, don't let the dogs get to you. They're like that to everyone. I know this town can get a little rough, but dealing with the werewolves is nothing compared to dealing with the humans."
"How so?"
"Oh, come on! what do you mean? You know how the humans are. The werewolves want to take over, sure. They want to be the ones in charge of the town and they want all the vampires off the council. But, we have something in common with them. We are both ancient, endangered species, and we would never wish extinction upon each other... like the humans do."
"What do you mean?" I didn't even realize at the time that my questions may give me away as a human who knew nothing about monster/human relations.
"Alex, are you dense? They hate us. That's why we founded this town, and that's why we can't advertise about it. If the humans found out about a town full of vampires and werewolves, they'd burn it to the ground the next day." He was silent for a moment, his eyes cast to the ground, as if he were searching for the right words to say. "That's why no one leaves."
"No one leaves the town?"
"Well, we have other communities set up all over the world, but this is the only one in western hemisphere of the United States. There are so few of us left. If you really wanted to leave this town, we could set you up in another community, but for safety reasons, once you're in the loop, you stay in it."
"Safety reasons?"
"In the past we have had the problem of Unnaturals selling secrets to humans. A werewolf clan wants vampires out of the way, they go rogue and live in the forest and tell the humans about a town full of vampires. End of vampires; end of town. Vampires aren't innocent of those charge, either. Our numbers are too small to risk that again. So no one leaves. There are Invisibles guarding the borders; Poltergeists. If you try to leave, they'll kill you."
"What the hell? Why didn't anyone explain this to me in the beginning?"
"Alex, everyone knows this stuff. Unless they're raised by humans!" Jon laughed out loud at this, but I just stared at him. His laughter died away quickly.
"Wait," he said. "You're..."
I started backing away. If he found out the truth he was going to kill me. What would you have done? What else could I have done? I killed him.
I feel sick... I can't even write about it right now.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Shedding Some Light Pt 1
Saturday, Jan 21 2006
The next day I went to the very small town library. I read up on the town history books as well as read newspaper articles from the past two hundred years from the Shadowdale Times. Basically, here's what I learned:
Shadowdale is a safe-haven town for vampires and werewolves, collectively called Unnaturals. As a rule, there is no fighting allowed. It is mostly 'normal' middle-class vampire families that just want to live in peace, away from human... interaction, and don't want any trouble, though there are some groups that exist that vie for the superiority of one race or the other. Of these groups, most are werewolves. The vampires may have a few black sheep, but the werewolves are generally extremely hostile to others.
Vampires can change into many forms; bats, crows, panthers, other cats, lizards, snakes, reptiles, and even bears. Each ancient lineage is linked to a different animal family. I looked up those who founded the town in the 1800s: there was a counsel of 17 members, vampires and werewolves, and one of the members was a Nathaniel Scrivious; yeah, that's pretty close to my name, Scriver. That was how I got confused for a vampire! They thought I was one of his descendants.
They never allowed humans to live there, and rarely even to enter. That's the bottom line; no matter how peaceful the vampires are to toher vampires, they are just as viscious as the werewolves when it comes to humans. Sometimes they even killed harmless wanderers that accidentally found their way into town. Well, only if they saw something they shouldn't have seen; like I had.
That was when I realized that I had to get out of this town. I left the library, went home and packed a bag. The road out of town was just a few blocks away from Shadow Oaks, so I hit the pavement. I didn't get far.
Jon stopped me at the apartment complex's gate.
The next day I went to the very small town library. I read up on the town history books as well as read newspaper articles from the past two hundred years from the Shadowdale Times. Basically, here's what I learned:
Shadowdale is a safe-haven town for vampires and werewolves, collectively called Unnaturals. As a rule, there is no fighting allowed. It is mostly 'normal' middle-class vampire families that just want to live in peace, away from human... interaction, and don't want any trouble, though there are some groups that exist that vie for the superiority of one race or the other. Of these groups, most are werewolves. The vampires may have a few black sheep, but the werewolves are generally extremely hostile to others.
Vampires can change into many forms; bats, crows, panthers, other cats, lizards, snakes, reptiles, and even bears. Each ancient lineage is linked to a different animal family. I looked up those who founded the town in the 1800s: there was a counsel of 17 members, vampires and werewolves, and one of the members was a Nathaniel Scrivious; yeah, that's pretty close to my name, Scriver. That was how I got confused for a vampire! They thought I was one of his descendants.
They never allowed humans to live there, and rarely even to enter. That's the bottom line; no matter how peaceful the vampires are to toher vampires, they are just as viscious as the werewolves when it comes to humans. Sometimes they even killed harmless wanderers that accidentally found their way into town. Well, only if they saw something they shouldn't have seen; like I had.
That was when I realized that I had to get out of this town. I left the library, went home and packed a bag. The road out of town was just a few blocks away from Shadow Oaks, so I hit the pavement. I didn't get far.
Jon stopped me at the apartment complex's gate.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Lucky to be Alive
Friday Jan.20 2006
I thought I was going to die. I'm lucky to be alive. Everything makes sense... I have to let someone know... I haven't been able to write much the rest of the week because I've been working so much, so today I went out to The Fang for a drink, to finish up the story about the town. I had a few drinks since it's friday and I even had a ruby slipper, which totally messed me up. As I sat at the bar wasted, I kept drinking. I had another ruby slipper and at about 11pm things got crazy as hell.
A bunch of people went in this secret room that opened from the wall behind the pool tables by pulling a fake pool cue attached to some sort of mechanism in the wall. Red light poured into the bar from this room and when they came out they were carrying a man whose hands were bound! Everyone was cheering and they threw him on the bar. The bartender hooked a bar tap into an iv that was already implanted in his neck(!!!) and basically turned him into a keg!! Everyone came and drank from the tap and it was like a blood-fest; they were throwing it, smearing it on everything, singing and dancing etc. It ws the craziest thing I've ever seen. It was disgusting.
So, what did I do? I threw up all over the bar. Everyone looked at me and asked if I was okay, and when I looked up at them, I saw that they all had huge fangs in their mouths; they were vampires!! I know, I didn't believe it either, but they were. As I ran out of the bar, I saw that the blood was beginning to only trickle out of the tap-man, and they had torn him down and started using their fangs in different parts of his body where there were major arteries (neck, wrists, thighs, etc) and they sucked him dry! He wasn't screaming so I can only guess that he was sedated.
I ran... I thought about going back into The Mangy Mutt, but what I saw in the street outside stopped me. It happened to be a full moon, and two guys ran out of the Mutt. They stopped in the middle of the street, ripped off their clothes, and started screaming at the sky. Slowly their screams turned into howls, and slowly they turned into dogs... well, wolves. Werewolves! I was gawking, obviously, and they saw me. They trotted over to me on all fours and stood in front of me.
"What are you lookin at?" one of them said. "You have your own place to be, so don't worry about what we're doin out here."
Then they started circling me, talking in some strange language and growling at me. I was sure I was going to die. Then four vampires came out of The Fang and started screaming at them in the same language. Then they spoke english:
"Get away, he's new in town."
"Yeah, he was comin' to our place the other night. Keep your own where they belong!" one of the wolves said. "Besides, he smells funny; different from the rest of you."
At that, I was sure my cover was blown.
"He's a writer for the magazine; he's doing a story on the town. Lighten up! It's people like you that are going to destory this town and everything it stands for. If you don't want to be here in peace, then leave!" That was another one of the vampires.
The wolves just looked at each other and started barking and growling and baring their teeth, Then they each raised their legs and pissed on my shoes... and ran away back in to the bar.
At this point I thought the vampires would kill me, especially after my throwing up in the bar at the sight of all the blood...
All they did was ask if I was okay, and one of them said even though the whole point of this town is to live in peace, the werewolves are too independant; they feel like they are more important. They cannot coexist... but he said they can't kick them out, either, or there would be a rebellion. the town would be exposed and the residents more than likely destroyed. He said the vampires had to be the glue of this town. Although, there were also a minority of vampires that felt the same way.
Then they asked me about the vomit... I told them I had too much to drink; that I'm not used to the bar scene, and they accepted that, and they drove me home.
There's alot more I have to learn. I'll let you know what I find.
I thought I was going to die. I'm lucky to be alive. Everything makes sense... I have to let someone know... I haven't been able to write much the rest of the week because I've been working so much, so today I went out to The Fang for a drink, to finish up the story about the town. I had a few drinks since it's friday and I even had a ruby slipper, which totally messed me up. As I sat at the bar wasted, I kept drinking. I had another ruby slipper and at about 11pm things got crazy as hell.
A bunch of people went in this secret room that opened from the wall behind the pool tables by pulling a fake pool cue attached to some sort of mechanism in the wall. Red light poured into the bar from this room and when they came out they were carrying a man whose hands were bound! Everyone was cheering and they threw him on the bar. The bartender hooked a bar tap into an iv that was already implanted in his neck(!!!) and basically turned him into a keg!! Everyone came and drank from the tap and it was like a blood-fest; they were throwing it, smearing it on everything, singing and dancing etc. It ws the craziest thing I've ever seen. It was disgusting.
So, what did I do? I threw up all over the bar. Everyone looked at me and asked if I was okay, and when I looked up at them, I saw that they all had huge fangs in their mouths; they were vampires!! I know, I didn't believe it either, but they were. As I ran out of the bar, I saw that the blood was beginning to only trickle out of the tap-man, and they had torn him down and started using their fangs in different parts of his body where there were major arteries (neck, wrists, thighs, etc) and they sucked him dry! He wasn't screaming so I can only guess that he was sedated.
I ran... I thought about going back into The Mangy Mutt, but what I saw in the street outside stopped me. It happened to be a full moon, and two guys ran out of the Mutt. They stopped in the middle of the street, ripped off their clothes, and started screaming at the sky. Slowly their screams turned into howls, and slowly they turned into dogs... well, wolves. Werewolves! I was gawking, obviously, and they saw me. They trotted over to me on all fours and stood in front of me.
"What are you lookin at?" one of them said. "You have your own place to be, so don't worry about what we're doin out here."
Then they started circling me, talking in some strange language and growling at me. I was sure I was going to die. Then four vampires came out of The Fang and started screaming at them in the same language. Then they spoke english:
"Get away, he's new in town."
"Yeah, he was comin' to our place the other night. Keep your own where they belong!" one of the wolves said. "Besides, he smells funny; different from the rest of you."
At that, I was sure my cover was blown.
"He's a writer for the magazine; he's doing a story on the town. Lighten up! It's people like you that are going to destory this town and everything it stands for. If you don't want to be here in peace, then leave!" That was another one of the vampires.
The wolves just looked at each other and started barking and growling and baring their teeth, Then they each raised their legs and pissed on my shoes... and ran away back in to the bar.
At this point I thought the vampires would kill me, especially after my throwing up in the bar at the sight of all the blood...
All they did was ask if I was okay, and one of them said even though the whole point of this town is to live in peace, the werewolves are too independant; they feel like they are more important. They cannot coexist... but he said they can't kick them out, either, or there would be a rebellion. the town would be exposed and the residents more than likely destroyed. He said the vampires had to be the glue of this town. Although, there were also a minority of vampires that felt the same way.
Then they asked me about the vomit... I told them I had too much to drink; that I'm not used to the bar scene, and they accepted that, and they drove me home.
There's alot more I have to learn. I'll let you know what I find.
Friday, May 05, 2006
On Assignment: The Fang and The Mangy Mutt
Jan 18, 2006 Wednesday
Today I got my first writing assignment at work.
Roland said to me, "Okay, Alex, I got the perfect assignment for you. I want you to write an article about this town. Is it everything you hoped it would be? Is it everything you've heard about and more? Or less? Y'know, just write your opinions compared to the hype. If you do it well enough then maybe more of us will come here to live. No pressure though. Ha!" Whenever he laughs like that, it's usually accompanied with a shoulder-slap. "Anywho, I'll give you some time to explore a bit and take the town in. SO, why don't you look at haveing that in to me... in about two weeks. Does that sound good?" I told him it did and I was about toask some questions about the assignment but he gave me a big smile, another shoulder-slap and said "Good" as he walked away. Then he turned back and said, "Hey if you want to you can go ahead and help with the movie reviews or something else you find interesting in the newspaper." Then he disappeared in to his office.
When I got home I changed my clothes and went out to one of the bars at the end of the street, The Fang, to try to get a look at the night life. I got there at about 7:30 and I sat there for a couple hours and it was pretty dead most of the time. I talked to the bartender, Ted. He was pretty cool. He asked me where I came from so I told him about where I used to live in Colorado and what my old job was. He was pretty interested in what I had to say.
"How could you stand to live in those conditions for so long? I mean all the humans?," he asked. I thought that was a funny way of asking about the population.
"Oh, I don't think it's quite as crowded as you think," I told him.
"But I'm sure there are alot more of them than there are of your own kind." I was a bit suprised that Ted understood that writers really are their own breed of people.
"Actually there was quite a large group of us that hung out pretty often. But you're right, without them I don't know if I could have survived among 'all those mortal humans'." We laughed at that for a minute and then he told me that I should get all of my friends from Denver to move out here to Shadowdale. I told him they had their own lives and jobs and families, but that it would be nice to have them.
It wasn't until about 9:45 that other people started coming in in droves. By the time I left at 10:15 or so there were about fifty people in there! It was a pretty small place, too. They were dancing it up, drinking it up, and eventually when people started getting tipsy they would each go to the bar and ask for a Ruby Slipper. Ted would pour three-quarters of a glass of vodka and a quarter of a glass of this red stuff. I couldn't tell what it said but man they loved it. I thought about trying one, but I was technically working so i had to keep coherent. The whole time I had just the one drink. It started getting a little crazy so I decided to get outta there before I started REALLY drinking with everyone else. I paid Ted what I owed him and said goodbye. He looked a little disappointed that I would leave when things were just getting started, but I told him that I was on assignment and he understood.
Across the street from The Fang was The Mangy Mutt, so I tried that place next. Before I went in , though, I promised myself that I wouldn't drink much. As soon as I stepped inside, everyone looked at me kinda strange. I felt like they alreasy didn't want me there for some reason. As I looked around everyone was covered in tattoos pretty much from the neck down. I'm sure I looked a little strange with my bare, tattooless skin. Then the bartender spoke up:
"Where's your mark?"
"Excuse me?"
"What are you doing in here? You know the rules."
"I'm sorry, I'm new in town I don't-"
"You're new in town? Well I guess we can give you a break. But the rule is; stay out." Everyone in the place cheered and raised their glasses and drank. I just walked out. It sounded pretty dumb to me; childish. But whatever.
At that point I just went home, making two notes to myself: 1) The Mangy Mutt is off limits to normal people and 2) this weekend I HAD to try a Ruby Slipper!
Today I got my first writing assignment at work.
Roland said to me, "Okay, Alex, I got the perfect assignment for you. I want you to write an article about this town. Is it everything you hoped it would be? Is it everything you've heard about and more? Or less? Y'know, just write your opinions compared to the hype. If you do it well enough then maybe more of us will come here to live. No pressure though. Ha!" Whenever he laughs like that, it's usually accompanied with a shoulder-slap. "Anywho, I'll give you some time to explore a bit and take the town in. SO, why don't you look at haveing that in to me... in about two weeks. Does that sound good?" I told him it did and I was about toask some questions about the assignment but he gave me a big smile, another shoulder-slap and said "Good" as he walked away. Then he turned back and said, "Hey if you want to you can go ahead and help with the movie reviews or something else you find interesting in the newspaper." Then he disappeared in to his office.
When I got home I changed my clothes and went out to one of the bars at the end of the street, The Fang, to try to get a look at the night life. I got there at about 7:30 and I sat there for a couple hours and it was pretty dead most of the time. I talked to the bartender, Ted. He was pretty cool. He asked me where I came from so I told him about where I used to live in Colorado and what my old job was. He was pretty interested in what I had to say.
"How could you stand to live in those conditions for so long? I mean all the humans?," he asked. I thought that was a funny way of asking about the population.
"Oh, I don't think it's quite as crowded as you think," I told him.
"But I'm sure there are alot more of them than there are of your own kind." I was a bit suprised that Ted understood that writers really are their own breed of people.
"Actually there was quite a large group of us that hung out pretty often. But you're right, without them I don't know if I could have survived among 'all those mortal humans'." We laughed at that for a minute and then he told me that I should get all of my friends from Denver to move out here to Shadowdale. I told him they had their own lives and jobs and families, but that it would be nice to have them.
It wasn't until about 9:45 that other people started coming in in droves. By the time I left at 10:15 or so there were about fifty people in there! It was a pretty small place, too. They were dancing it up, drinking it up, and eventually when people started getting tipsy they would each go to the bar and ask for a Ruby Slipper. Ted would pour three-quarters of a glass of vodka and a quarter of a glass of this red stuff. I couldn't tell what it said but man they loved it. I thought about trying one, but I was technically working so i had to keep coherent. The whole time I had just the one drink. It started getting a little crazy so I decided to get outta there before I started REALLY drinking with everyone else. I paid Ted what I owed him and said goodbye. He looked a little disappointed that I would leave when things were just getting started, but I told him that I was on assignment and he understood.
Across the street from The Fang was The Mangy Mutt, so I tried that place next. Before I went in , though, I promised myself that I wouldn't drink much. As soon as I stepped inside, everyone looked at me kinda strange. I felt like they alreasy didn't want me there for some reason. As I looked around everyone was covered in tattoos pretty much from the neck down. I'm sure I looked a little strange with my bare, tattooless skin. Then the bartender spoke up:
"Where's your mark?"
"Excuse me?"
"What are you doing in here? You know the rules."
"I'm sorry, I'm new in town I don't-"
"You're new in town? Well I guess we can give you a break. But the rule is; stay out." Everyone in the place cheered and raised their glasses and drank. I just walked out. It sounded pretty dumb to me; childish. But whatever.
At that point I just went home, making two notes to myself: 1) The Mangy Mutt is off limits to normal people and 2) this weekend I HAD to try a Ruby Slipper!
Sunday, April 30, 2006
First Contact
Jan 17, 2006 Tuesday
Jon and his family just left my apartment. I didn't expect them to come over, but it was nice. I was actually about to go over there to say hi to them when they showed up at my door. I invited them in and introduced myself to his wife and little girl. I had never met either one of them, only heard about them briefly at work from Jon. They were almost exactly how I would have imagined them. They stayed for about an hour and a half and, frankly, there were a few things I noticed about them. Nothing bad, just... odd.
First of all, Jon. I didn't get much of a feeling for him during our brief conversation at work, but spending actual time with him showed that he was a pretty cryptic guy. Again, I don't mean in a bad way, but when I asked him how long he and his wife had been married his response was, "About 364 years." Now, most people would take this as a joke. Which I did, and laughed. He didn't. There was absolutely no emotion in his face. This started to make me think that he was unhappily married and to him felt like his marriage had lasted this long. I expected Diane to fire back with a comment about how he is ungrateful or insensitive, or a pig, and maybe the reason she didn't was because they were in the presence of company, but strangely the only emotion she showed was a small, satisfied smile. This entire senario was strange to me, so I didn't press the matter. I didn't know quite what I would have gotten into. I just let it go.
Secondly was Anna. She looked like she was about 7 years old... and that's when I realized that what happened yesterday at work. I thought Jon said she was 70, and laughed, but it seems I made a mistake. I must have heard him wrong. When I thought about it, it occured to me that it was a little noisy in the office at that time. I considered bringing it up, but I just decided to leave it be. One day, when they ask me about after we've been friends then it will be funny and I could tell the whole story, but to try that now would just be a lengthy, difficult explanation. But even at 7, Anna seemed beyond her years. She was very well behaved, which isn't unheard of at 7, but sometimes unlikely. She was well involved in our conversations and used words a bit larger than any other 7 year old I've met before. For example, when I showed them around the place (which is, in fact, stil a bit messy since I just moved in), Anne said, "Well, you're quite the bachelor, aren't you?" in such a snooty, humorous way that I would have expected it from Diane, but not the seven year old. Then again, it wasn't horribly out of line for her to make a joke like that. She could read alot of books, or watch movies with her parents. It just struck me as strange...
Thirdly, there was Diane herself. Well not so much her, but what she brought. When they came in she was carrying a small platter covered in foil. She went into the kitchen right next to the living room and removed the foil, saying that she had made a little something as a housewarming gift. I told her she didn't have to do that, and she insisted that that is what good neighbors do. It turned out she had made a platter of red jello cubes; hardly any staple that I knew of for new neighbors, but I appreciated them just the same. I mean, I've heard of cookies, brownies, maybe even a cake, but i have never heard of jello. Again, the fact that she made them for me is not terribly strange, just strange enough to draw my attention. But the strangest part was the taste. They literally tasted like... like rust. If I could imagine tasting a cube of gelatin-rust, this would have been exactly what it would've tasted like! It was awful! Of course I did not act like it was. I even noticed the expressions on Jon and Anne's faces as expressions of joy. They loved it! I automatically assumed that they may have been pretending as I had, but this theory was shattered by the fact that DIANE love it too! She could have been trying to fool herself for the sake of us, if that makes any sense, but I believe that they really and truly liked the way it tasted. It was a delicacy to them. In fact, they ate most of the platter themselves. I had two cubes and couldn't take anymore. They left me about eight or ten in my refrigerator which I do not plan to eat.
Anyway, all of these do not necessarily constitute as extremely strange, but like I said before they were strange enough to draw my attention. I do not like them less and will not hold any of it against them. I'm sure I have little quirks and food preferences that they might think are weird, so I'm not too worried about it...
Jon and his family just left my apartment. I didn't expect them to come over, but it was nice. I was actually about to go over there to say hi to them when they showed up at my door. I invited them in and introduced myself to his wife and little girl. I had never met either one of them, only heard about them briefly at work from Jon. They were almost exactly how I would have imagined them. They stayed for about an hour and a half and, frankly, there were a few things I noticed about them. Nothing bad, just... odd.
First of all, Jon. I didn't get much of a feeling for him during our brief conversation at work, but spending actual time with him showed that he was a pretty cryptic guy. Again, I don't mean in a bad way, but when I asked him how long he and his wife had been married his response was, "About 364 years." Now, most people would take this as a joke. Which I did, and laughed. He didn't. There was absolutely no emotion in his face. This started to make me think that he was unhappily married and to him felt like his marriage had lasted this long. I expected Diane to fire back with a comment about how he is ungrateful or insensitive, or a pig, and maybe the reason she didn't was because they were in the presence of company, but strangely the only emotion she showed was a small, satisfied smile. This entire senario was strange to me, so I didn't press the matter. I didn't know quite what I would have gotten into. I just let it go.
Secondly was Anna. She looked like she was about 7 years old... and that's when I realized that what happened yesterday at work. I thought Jon said she was 70, and laughed, but it seems I made a mistake. I must have heard him wrong. When I thought about it, it occured to me that it was a little noisy in the office at that time. I considered bringing it up, but I just decided to leave it be. One day, when they ask me about after we've been friends then it will be funny and I could tell the whole story, but to try that now would just be a lengthy, difficult explanation. But even at 7, Anna seemed beyond her years. She was very well behaved, which isn't unheard of at 7, but sometimes unlikely. She was well involved in our conversations and used words a bit larger than any other 7 year old I've met before. For example, when I showed them around the place (which is, in fact, stil a bit messy since I just moved in), Anne said, "Well, you're quite the bachelor, aren't you?" in such a snooty, humorous way that I would have expected it from Diane, but not the seven year old. Then again, it wasn't horribly out of line for her to make a joke like that. She could read alot of books, or watch movies with her parents. It just struck me as strange...
Thirdly, there was Diane herself. Well not so much her, but what she brought. When they came in she was carrying a small platter covered in foil. She went into the kitchen right next to the living room and removed the foil, saying that she had made a little something as a housewarming gift. I told her she didn't have to do that, and she insisted that that is what good neighbors do. It turned out she had made a platter of red jello cubes; hardly any staple that I knew of for new neighbors, but I appreciated them just the same. I mean, I've heard of cookies, brownies, maybe even a cake, but i have never heard of jello. Again, the fact that she made them for me is not terribly strange, just strange enough to draw my attention. But the strangest part was the taste. They literally tasted like... like rust. If I could imagine tasting a cube of gelatin-rust, this would have been exactly what it would've tasted like! It was awful! Of course I did not act like it was. I even noticed the expressions on Jon and Anne's faces as expressions of joy. They loved it! I automatically assumed that they may have been pretending as I had, but this theory was shattered by the fact that DIANE love it too! She could have been trying to fool herself for the sake of us, if that makes any sense, but I believe that they really and truly liked the way it tasted. It was a delicacy to them. In fact, they ate most of the platter themselves. I had two cubes and couldn't take anymore. They left me about eight or ten in my refrigerator which I do not plan to eat.
Anyway, all of these do not necessarily constitute as extremely strange, but like I said before they were strange enough to draw my attention. I do not like them less and will not hold any of it against them. I'm sure I have little quirks and food preferences that they might think are weird, so I'm not too worried about it...
Friday, April 28, 2006
Hard Day at the Office
Jan. 16, 2006 Monday
Well, I got home about about an hour ago from my first day of work. It was nice. I can tell it'll be a great job. The people are nice, my boss Roland, is nice, the view from my window is great, too. From the third story it overlooks the river running right next to the building. I dunno, I can just tell that this job will be a challenge. I'm not used to that, but I welcome it. Roland said i'll probably get my first assignment by the end of the week, "Just hang tight, " he said.
I also found out that my neighbor from across from me works in an office down the hall from mine. That'll be cool... if he's cool. Ha! If he's a jerk or something that wouldn't be cool cause I'll never be able to escape him. Anyway, his name's Jon. Shoot, I almost forgot his wife's name. Diane. They have a daughter named Anna. Sounds like a pretty family. We had a brief conversation at work, where he told me about his family and stuff, but not much more than that. He's apparently a pretty funny guy, though, because when I asked him how old his daughter was he said 70. I laughed and he pretended not to understand why I was laughing. With that sense of in-the-zone humor I think we'll get along just fine. I think I may go over and say hi to them tomorrow or the next day. We'll see... I don't want to be the weird new neighbor.
Well, I got home about about an hour ago from my first day of work. It was nice. I can tell it'll be a great job. The people are nice, my boss Roland, is nice, the view from my window is great, too. From the third story it overlooks the river running right next to the building. I dunno, I can just tell that this job will be a challenge. I'm not used to that, but I welcome it. Roland said i'll probably get my first assignment by the end of the week, "Just hang tight, " he said.
I also found out that my neighbor from across from me works in an office down the hall from mine. That'll be cool... if he's cool. Ha! If he's a jerk or something that wouldn't be cool cause I'll never be able to escape him. Anyway, his name's Jon. Shoot, I almost forgot his wife's name. Diane. They have a daughter named Anna. Sounds like a pretty family. We had a brief conversation at work, where he told me about his family and stuff, but not much more than that. He's apparently a pretty funny guy, though, because when I asked him how old his daughter was he said 70. I laughed and he pretended not to understand why I was laughing. With that sense of in-the-zone humor I think we'll get along just fine. I think I may go over and say hi to them tomorrow or the next day. We'll see... I don't want to be the weird new neighbor.
A New Day
Jan. 15, 2006 Sunday
Today is the first day in my new home, on my new adventure. I have moved to this small town of Shadowdale, California from Denver, and this is my first night here. I start my new job tomorrow at MTU Communications. It is a small company based in this town and does business in about 12 towns and cities across the southwest. Local newspapers, magazines, public radio and television, etc. They brought me as a writer to liven up their newspapers with columns, their magazines with articels, and their radio and television programs with interesting scripts. I gey my own office with a window and everything. I never thought I'd be here this young. I'm only turning 26 next month!
The job I left was a dead-end office job that I took hoping to be able to work my way to the top. But you know how that goes; you keep trying and trying until finally you can't take anymore. When you work hard to earn something for so long without getting it, you eventually get burned out. And when you've been burned out for too long, the only thing you can do is go crazy. And when you've been crazy for too long it's time to move on. So I did.
I found this cool little shady apartment complex called Shadow Oaks. It's nice, quiet. the neighbors seem to keep to themselves. Of course, I hope to meet them soon, and I hope they're nice. But usually when someone is new and the neighbors don't come over for a few days, I see that as just being respectful. Teh new guy might just want to get used to his new environment for a few day before everyone starts rushing over to be his first new friend. Blah. Just let me adapt first... and so far that's what they're doing. I got a few waves and smiles, and that shows me that they mean well, and they're not animals. They're just giving me time.
Well, it's getting late and tomorrow is a big day for me, so I'm gonna end this first entry and get my beauty rest!
Today is the first day in my new home, on my new adventure. I have moved to this small town of Shadowdale, California from Denver, and this is my first night here. I start my new job tomorrow at MTU Communications. It is a small company based in this town and does business in about 12 towns and cities across the southwest. Local newspapers, magazines, public radio and television, etc. They brought me as a writer to liven up their newspapers with columns, their magazines with articels, and their radio and television programs with interesting scripts. I gey my own office with a window and everything. I never thought I'd be here this young. I'm only turning 26 next month!
The job I left was a dead-end office job that I took hoping to be able to work my way to the top. But you know how that goes; you keep trying and trying until finally you can't take anymore. When you work hard to earn something for so long without getting it, you eventually get burned out. And when you've been burned out for too long, the only thing you can do is go crazy. And when you've been crazy for too long it's time to move on. So I did.
I found this cool little shady apartment complex called Shadow Oaks. It's nice, quiet. the neighbors seem to keep to themselves. Of course, I hope to meet them soon, and I hope they're nice. But usually when someone is new and the neighbors don't come over for a few days, I see that as just being respectful. Teh new guy might just want to get used to his new environment for a few day before everyone starts rushing over to be his first new friend. Blah. Just let me adapt first... and so far that's what they're doing. I got a few waves and smiles, and that shows me that they mean well, and they're not animals. They're just giving me time.
Well, it's getting late and tomorrow is a big day for me, so I'm gonna end this first entry and get my beauty rest!
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