Sealed storage unit
The door was sealed with a plastic tag so they knew no one has been in it since they put the lock and welcome pamphlet in there. The manager explained that the email was automated because I didn't use the app to open any doors since i paid for the storage unit. He led me to where it was and explained how to get there more conveniently from the other entrance and also how to exit via the gate there. I thanked him and went home.
I taped up and packed five of the boxes into my car and drove back and dropped them off using the side entrance. I think I made the right decision and plan to get more stuff in there once it warms up a little bit.
After the storage unit I went to Wegmans in the hope that I could get a bag of raw pecans but they only had either halves or crushed bits of pecans in individual containers. The containers were pretty large so I bought two of them then stood outside and took a picture of the sky and ate some of the pecans for lunch and watched the clouds.
At Starbucks there was a book sitting on the roof of someone's car. i got Shannon's name right and then told her about it, she asked the customers and nobody owned the car. It had a flower painted on the front. She said it might be someone at the wireless company next door. I was going to say, I can't imagine that company inspiring literacy, but I kept my mouth shut.
I spent a little time there writing and thinking about whether I wanted to go to a bar and drink non alcoholic beer and try to meet new people. Or, go home and watch return to oz which my friend in Washington crazy redhead recommended.
There is a metaphor where I have this car that I love, it looks great, drives great, when i turn on the air carbon monoxide exhaust comes through and the longer I drive it the more dizzy and headache I get, I lose my appetite, and eventually I have to go to the hospital for oxygen treatment because it is killing me. I keep putting money into this vehicle and did not prioritize getting the exhaust inspected and repaired because I trusted the dealer to have done it when I took it back the first time. They did not do it right.
The stereo doesn't play correctly. I can't roll down the passenger window using the console on the drivers' side, the cruise control and steering wheel buttons don't work, there's no voltage coming from the cigarette lighter in the center of the dashboard, the center console has been torn open and won't lock, fragments of plastic float around inside and it flops and makes snapping noises when you rest your elbow on it. People complain there are tears in the leather seats. There's no way anybody could sit in the back seat because it's a sports car.
I went to Bond Brothers Beer Company where it was not dead but also not alive. Certainly not undead. I finished two non-alcoholic beers and sat in the back puzzling over whether I should drive to downtown Raleigh and visit Umbrella Dry Bar. I also thought to myself that live shows and events would probably be a better way to meet people since most of the folks I see at the bar are there with someone else. And, I'm not that great at approaching people and introducing myself.
Last night (Saturday) I drove out to downtown Durham and parked at LAZ and then walked to Boxcar Bar and Arcade which was much closer than I remembered and I was grateful. It was so cold my face was in pain and I couldn't keep my hands outside my pockets even with gloves on. I was grateful I brought a scarf but hadn't managed to put it on before I left the car.
When I arrived I sent Code a SnapChat message to let him know I was at the bar. He was the one who invited me a few days before. I ordered a non-alcoholic beer and watched people around me. I noticed Blake and someone else, I sent James another message to let him know. I also sent a text to Blake but he was engrossed in a game called Burger Time which was nestled between Donkey Kong and Frogger.
When Code arrived he also did not notice I was at the bar. I watched them play Gauntlet (the newer version) for awhile then walked over and said hello.
We ordered some pizza and ate it outside where they assured me the overhead heaters would be sufficient. They were not. Every time the wind picked up I regretted the decision to eat outside.
When we went back indoors they played some skee-ball and then the four of us put some quarters into a table hockey game. Albie and I wiped the floor with them. They were only able to score one goal, I lost count of how many we scored. It was pretty sad for them.
We played Mortal Kombat and the original Ninja Turtles game after Albie left. But, the controllers on the fighting games were not working right, one would not move forward. I got the impression from my winning streak that there was more wrong with Code's controller than he was letting on. He said he was feeling bored so we decided to leave.
We walked Blake to his car which was the opposite direction from where Code and I had parked. He drove us to Code's truck and once inside he revealed he had been listening to a new band and had the stereo up so loud he blew a speaker. I asked him what year his truck was because I recently had trouble getting people to work on my car because it is sixteen years old. He dropped me off at the parking garage and we agreed to go to Boxcar again in the future. Mainly because I had a pocket full of tokens, I thought the games would be more expensive and got ten dollars worth, then they gave me their leftover tokens because I told them I was thinking about going to their singles event in February. I said, you think getting four free tokens is a deal, here have four more.
The reason why things worked out with Kenna was that I approached them, asked for help, they were in a position to help me, then at the bar we sat next to eachother and I asked them, do you know what band this is?
No, who is it?
I don't know, that's why I asked you.
That kicked off a long conversation about music, the songs that were playing. I learned quite a bit about them. And that is what I should try to reproduce again. I often have moments like that with employees at stores but I don't like to ask people out while they are on the job.
I went to the gym alone this morning, my best friend is packing for a trip to West Virginia to go skiing and snowboarding.
When I got to the gym Diana was at the desk wearing a name tag. I asked her if they sold headphones and she slowly made her way to the kiosk behind the counter and returned with a set. She was wearing a cream sweater over her usual uniform, had her nails done so they were thin white claws. Very nice.
Do they have the lightning kind, I held up my phone.
No, only this.
I frowned and said, thank you, I appreciate you trying.
You're welcome.
When I unpacked my bag I was searching around for the padlock for the locker. I found a small black container with three acamprosate pills inside. I flinched and then noticed they were resting in a nest of white wires, a headset for my phone. So, I got lucky and was able to work out and listen to music this morning.
This morning at the gym my car would not start because the ignition thought the steering column had been locked by turning the wheel. I turned the wheel anyway so it locked. When I was on the phone with the locksmith I tried it again and it turned over. I may ask Ford to look at that in two weeks when I take it in for the exhaust manifold and air conditioning and heater inspection. I think I'll also ask them to address the speakers and subwoofer if the stereo company can't get it working on Monday. And, the driver's side control for the passenger window.
My hands smell like lavender because I bought a cheap used leather jacket on the internet and it smells like someone died in it. Or, they were a lifelong smoker who had the jacket indoors where they smoked. It appears to be of German origin, a motorcycle jacket. So, it is probably very cold there and they have indoor smoking areas. It's supposed to have been manufactured in the nineteen nineties. I first tried lavender deodorizing spray that works everywhere else. There's a sick sweet smell in there that is tough to cut through, it overpowered the lavender. I also put some saddle soap treatment on it to try to infuse it with a different stink. Then, I sprayed it with vinegar but once that faded the smell remained. So, I took the jacket into the bathroom and scrubbed it with warm water and baking soda on a wet sponge.
I was hoping Shaw would be at Starbucks today. When she asked, how are you doing?
I need your help. How much time do we have?
What's going on?
Last we talked you said you were in the market for a leather jacket at thrift stores, right?
Yes.
I bought a used leather jacket cheap and it has a smell. You know how to deal with that? I'm struggling.
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Instead a new person was at the register, asked for my name. They put it on the order but either I didn't hear them because I was listening to the music or they didn't call out my name because they don't do that anymore. There are people posting online about how Starbucks supports the genocide of Palestinian people so maybe they are trying to send me a message to go somewhere more ethical.
My weekends are spent unpacking and re-packing things for moving. Then, I go to Starbucks to write or to For Garden's Sake to relax and think. I have a list of cemeteries I plan to visit and take pictures but it has been below freezing for the past three days, I've stayed close to home.
My romance scammer referred me to the woman in San Diego who was originally from Finland. That other person asked me how I slept and wished me good morning. I haven't replied and also have not heard from my romance scammer since then. I think we are officially broken up. Probably because I refused to sign into her strange website and take the two thousand dollars she offered me to learn to trade cryptocurrency.
I think one of my goals this week will be to learn to play Nick Drake's song Suicide is Painless aka the theme song from M*A*S*H. I'd like to switch up the lyrics, drop the pitch to a gothic one, and add a sad little bridge, as kind of an odd tribute.