It's been a while since I wrote last. I found that I had become repetitive and the stories, memories and accounts all sounded similar and familiar. I must have begun a half dozen stories that ended up crumpled in my Recycle Bin. I was seeking a semblance of reality but it didn't seem to work out that way. The women all seemed like R. Crumb characters. So I took an extended sabbatical and allowed my encounters to happen without keeping them in my head to remember for later. That possibility would happen naturally. I didn't want any bees in my brain to distract me. Naturally, this had a positive result in bringing me back into the moment. But, what were those moments? My current friend/fuck-buddy/source is a nice woman however we have no emotional attachment and very often fucking is like an exercise. She comes around when she is horny. It's that simple. And, anyway, my buddy left for Michigan, her former haunts. Who knows when or if she'll be back. The pure fact was, I was having no 'moments!'
I had a flu shot and so, you know, I had to get the flu. It lasted a couple of weeks and was very exhausting, especially with being alone and tending to myself. How much fucking chicken soup could I swallow? I felt that loneliness as the flu hung on but dissipated a little more each day as I recuperated. And then, I was bored. When the flu finally passed through me, I was at loose ends, very much a fart in a windstorm.
I also got my appetite back and my desire to fill my pie-hole was intense. Fortunately, an old landmark restaurant had reopened and was advertising their world famous cheesesteak (with peppers, onions and melted mozzerella), with fries and fried onion slivers in a combo deal. Tell me, how could I resist?
I called in my order and went to pick it up. As I got out of my car, I spotted a woman who looked very familiar to me. As I walked closer, it came to me. Didi. I once went out on a fishing party boat and she and her chubby husband, Jake, had also rented seats. I remembered that we had a strange relationship on the boat. They argued a lot over little detail. I think I might have stared at DiDi's rack once too often. For a small woman, maybe five-foot or so, she had an huge pair, maybe forty-D's. In any event, they didn't fit the rest of her trim, tight little body.
Now, in the parking lot, she was standing in front of me. "Didi, right?"
"Yes. I remember your face but not your name..."
"Ray. We met years ago on a fishing boat...you and your husband,...
"Ex-husband. It was a short, uneventful marriage. Hiya, Ray. I remember now. You caught a few groupers, right? I'm here picking a cheesesteak special, and you?"
"The same. My mouth is watering."
"Me, too. Do you have to run home or would you like to come over, eat at my place and get reacquainted?"
Oh, Jeez. Am I stepping into something. Is there danger ahead? Whenever confronted with questions like this, I step right in it, so to speak. "Nothing sending me home. Let me pick up some beer."
"Good idea. I hate to eat alone. I like Amstel Light."
We picked up our meals and, headed out, me following her. She lived in one of the higher apartments along the bay. While it was small, it was certainly big enough for a single person. Plus, it had some view.
As she set the table, I admired the panoramic vista from the balcony. It was nippy out there and when the table was set, she called me inside.
"So, Ray, what happened to your life since we last met?"
"Oh, about ten million things...most of them good. And you?"
"Mostly good. I have some mixed thoughts about being single. You?"
"No, I'm glad I'm single. I live a pretty full life. Haven't you had fun since your divorce?"
"Honestly? Sometimes. A few times. At least, I don't have to argue with him everyday."
"Yes, I remember. You two argued a lot on the boat."
"He was so peculiar. And jealous. I think he was mad because you looked at my breasts a lot."
"Guilty as charged. How could I not? They are pretty spectacular. I'd say, they are breastacular!"
She laughed hard. She really liked the joke. She wiggled her chest, showing them off. "My girls!," she said. "Let me ask you, how is your sex life?"
I considered her question as I scarfed down my cheesesteak. "Well, that's pretty forward, don't you think?"
"I'm curious, you know? And I just can't control my lack of a filter. Life is too short and I say what's on my mind. So, do you get laid a lot? You didn't answer."
"These days, I don't get it nearly enough and I wish I did. I get lonely. I have to take things into my own hands."
