awaiting the serious moonlight

David Bowie certainly knew about this. Van Morrison, too.
What a glorious night for a moon dance!
Good music, good food, good friends!

And, if you move your feet just right, if you invite the music of the moonlight into the core of your being, you may even be able to dance up the silvery ocean path straight to the moon itself... ah, what a glorious feat that would be! To be as light as the molecules of air, to twirl and float and sway, clothed in shimmery moonbeams!
Best to dream large, my dears, dream large... the night will soon give way to the bright lights of the new day.
While the night is at hand, dance, dance, dance, in the moonlight!

dancing, dancing, DANCING, dancing machine

I'm thinking the sugar and caffeine combination here contributed to my energy level last night and this (very early!) morning. Maybe? Maybe not! But we'll begin our story with those all-natural drugs, shall we?
I had scheduled my evening to begin at Panera, as they had a free birthday treat waiting for me. Free, you say? Indeed! How can you get in on such largesse? Easy! All you have to do is to register on their website, with your loyalty swipe card, and then wait for your birthday to roll around. They even give you two months to claim your treat; believe me, that last part is quite generous, as most places will only grant you a few days to a couple of weeks to come claim your birthday swag.
So, as I was saying, I began with the celebration of my birthday at that restaurant, in particular, the location downtown. My rationale: park once, early on before the crowds arrive, then easily walk to my other destinations that evening. Done! I had already been told that they would let me choose one of the pastries for my birthday. Sweet! I headed straight to that section, perusing the treats behind the glass. Huge bearclaws, generously strewn with sliced almonds? Maybe... but what about the wild blueberry muffin, nearly bursting with blue? Oh, that cherry danish looks scrumptious!!! Oh, wait, that would have cheese in it, and I didn't bring any lactase. Well, that pumpkin muffin looks mighty rich! On my third passage in front of the display case, the item nearly dead center kept tugging at me.
"What's the cobblestone muffin?"
"That is our cinnamon roll dough, pinched into pieces and cooked as a muffin, then drizzled with glaze."
Whoa... sounds like bread pudding to me!
So, that's what I got. It also turned out to be the most expensive pastry they had. Moreover, that was the last cobblestone muffin they had.
And now it was mine!
I bought an iced coffee to go along with it. You know: breakfast at night, what a delight! I had a little more than thirty minutes before my next destination would require my presence, so I had a nice, leisurely little sit-down. How refreshing!
Then I took my brand-new Italian birthday top down to the Lucas for some more Marilyn Monroe. For this show, it would be the fabulous "Some Like It Hot", featuring Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. Yeah!!! And the oh-so-huggable Hai would be there to share the film with me!!!!! Woohoo!!!
Wait a sec... Italian birthday top? That trip was a year ago.
Yeah... but I have not yet worn this particular top. As you may recall, I had taken some old clothes on the trip with me, purchasing new items along the way. Right? As it so happens, the tops I bought were all pretty fancy - for me - and so I haven't really had the opportunity to wear them. And so they have been trapped in the closet, waiting to come out. (Sorry, I just couldn't resist that reference! I really enjoyed that video soap opera!)

I do realize the clamdiggers aren't quite the right shade, but I don't care. I wanted to loose that splash of colors from the tangle of other clothes. So, I did! I even had my first niece take a picture to record the occasion. I felt like such a girl again! The top, and the remembrances it conjured up, definitely added to my energy level. it's a wonder I was able to sit through the film!
Next on the aganda was a trip to a new place to hear a new band. Why? The drummer had invited me, as he was also the drummer for Barefoot Booyah, which I know I've mentioned a time or two. This group is called Hellhounds and is all about blues! I came in about the time they launched into "Sweet Home Chicago", which was a nice segue from the film I had just seen. Cool! They did a very nice job with it, too!
I danced a bit, chatted with the drummer a bit, and, on their seccond break, said my adieus for another dance site. After all, there were (Magic) Rocks on The Roof, playing tunes I knew and loved! So, off I went, timing my entrance pretty well. I must have caught them shortly after a break, so the energy level was up and there were actually dancers on the floor! I mean, besides me! I danced to every song, until their next break, then I danced to every song until the end of the gig. Fab-u-LOUS!!! "Purple Rain" and "Last Dance with Mary Jane" and "Signed, Sealed, Delivered"!!!
After the guys started putting their instruments to rest, a woman came up to me. I had seen her and her husband dancing to some of the tunes earlier. She comes right up to me and says, "We really enjoyed watching you dance tonight. You're so graceful!"
Wasn't that a lovely thing to say to someone? Wasn't that a lovely thing to say to me?
I tell you, I walked out of there floating.
What a nice way to end a birthday evening!

no, i think it was a ball...and the ump says?

My car has officially earned its second strike. Last Saturday was the first strike.

Oh, no. Really? It broke down again?

You betcha. And with a real lack of imagination, it did so the same way it had before: gear shift knob just rattling around loose, not even trying to find a gear. Very aggravating.

You were out and about?

Well, no. Fortunately, I was at home. I had moved the car earlier in the driveway when I was mowing the front yard and the car had not even hinted that it had a problem. No. It waited until I was showered and ready to go... then it wouldn't. I was to meet the best-hugger friend at an art reception and had to let him know he would need a different ride home.

How terrible!

Not really. I mean, it could have been raining buckets. And he could have ended up stranded, but didn't.
And when I called my first niece for assistance, she could have been out and about.
Fortunately, she was not.

What about the tow truck?

Well, fortunately, my road assistance picked up the tab on that. I was here, so i knew where to have the car taken, so that was fortunate, too.

Excellent!

Really, it was. My first niece and her family picked me up and we went traipsing off to dine on Italian fare and had a nice meal together.
Then I came home and the librarian fetched me and we went dancing with Magic Rocks, accompanied by a cooling breeze and night view from the roof of the purple and red palms.

Ohhhh-kayyyy! That sounds like fun!

It really was! I had feared I wouldn't be able to get any dancing in, with my car having failed me again. My night's fun was rescued!

Very good. And your car?

Well, knowing the librarian had other plans today, as did my first niece, I decided to take a cue from the wave and researched bus routes. Fortunately, the 31 bus stop is just a few minutes from my front door and it would take me almost to the car shop. Nice! Even better, the trip would only take about 35 minutes, which is pretty incredible, considering how many stops are along the way.
Things were going pretty good. I only waited about ten minutes for the bus. The driver understood that it had been awhile since I rode and was patient with me, reassuring me that this bus would, indeed, take me close to my destination.
So, off we go! And the bus is making good time, too.
And I mistakenly get off about two stops early along my route, but that's only about a quarter-mile off, so I start walking.
And the rains come! Torrential downpour, with gusting winds and thunder and lightning!

Oh my God! Did you have an umbrella???

Seriously, that would NOT have helped! I managed to run up under the eaves of a nearby business and that was helpful for a bit, until the wind started blowing the rain nearly perpendicular. I noticed the side of the building looked a bit more protective, so I ran over there... and was out of the path of the downpour. Whew!
Then it was a matter of waiting it out... and waiting... and waiting. Even after the opaque downpour had slowed to a steady soft rain, it was still enough water falling that I would have been totally soaked long before I reached the car repair shop. Which would be closing in less than an hour.

So... the rain finally stopped?

No, I didn't have to wait that long. When I could tell that the worst of the storm had passed, I ventured under the front overhang again, making me visible to all driving by. So, I'm watching the raindrops hitting the parking lot puddles, watching for a sign that it was safe to hit the street again, and the street came to me!

That sounds like a cute trick.

No, really, I'm just standing there, fairly damp from earlier, and this little, faded red car pulls in and a window lowers partially, and I hear the words "do you need a ride?"

Seriously!? What the hey!

Yeah, right? But there was actually a little concern in the voice. So I looked at the young man driving and told him I was waiting for the rain to stop so I could retrieve my car. And he said he could take me there. So, I made a quick decision and let him do so.
Yeah, I know. You NEVER get into the car of a stranger. N E V E R. But I did.
Fortunately, he was a good guy. He knew the woman who owned the business I was sheltered by and he had been concerned for her sake when he saw me there.
Then he saw my bedraggled self and my butterfly bag and decided to offer help.
Seriously. I think it was my Italian butterfly bag that tipped the scale in my favor, in his eyes.
Maybe.

You must be out of your mind. You got into a stranger's car? And no one knew where you were??? You simply do NOT do that!

But I did. And fortunately, all ended well or I would not be writing this now. Right?
He wasn't a big, burly guy, so I feel sure I could have muscled my way around him. And he was alone in the car, so I wasn't concerned about getting overpowered.
He was a nice young man on his way home from work. And I think he was at least as nervous as I was when I accepted his offer and climbed into the car.
Fortunately, he took me straight to the car repair shop, which wasn't far at all, dropping me off right at the door. Very nice!
Of course, I thanked him several times.
How very fortunate I was that he came along...

How very fortunate you were that he wasn't dangerous...

Yes, yes, yes. I know. And fortunately, the guy at the shop was very understanding of my being put out with them earlier. He had the two cables there waiting for me, explaining what was wrong with them and reiterating what I had already found out: only one of the cables and the bushing had been replaced before.
I guess sometimes we hear what we want to hear. And I had not known of there being twin cables leading from my console to the transmission.
But now I do.
So I waited about fifteen minutes for the rain to slow, then I took my cables and went home. In the rain. Waiting for the car to try to strand me again. Hoping it would not.

And...?

And I arrived home just fine. As did the car.
And I put on dry clothes and tried to decide what to do with my evening. I let my first niece and the karate kid and the wave and the librarian know that I was home. Of course, I didn't tell them about my taking a ride with a stranger.
I didn't want them to fuss at me about it.
I can be a bit too trusting at times, I know.

You think?

Yes. I had thought the librarian and I would go to a new play tonight, but she had an out-of-town friend show up unexpectedly and so those plans changed. Still, I thought I would still go to the play, until my Quaker friend called. He was concerned about my car situation and was a bit upset that I had not called him for a ride! So, I'll do better about that next time...Maybe. You know how stubbornly self-reliant I can be sometimes, right?

SOME times? You do mean, MOST of the time, right?

(Grin.) Maybe. Anywho, he invited me to come to the concert of the cigarbox guitar and cigarbox bass and cigarbox ukelele, so I agreed to go.
What a great idea!
I had expected my copper friend to be there, but she ended up changing her plans.
I did see my baseball foodie friend there and met some of his buddies.
And I did dance! By myself at first, but then joined by a fellow named Jay, who was pretty good on that concrete floor. Woohoo!
And to think, I had not planned to be there at all.
How fortunate that I was!
And afterward, I had dinner with my Quaker friend and his neighbor and she insisted on paying. What a treat!
And now, I am home, and gratefull to be in for the evening.
My librarian asked if I wanted to go out with her and her group tonight, but I need a night off, I think.
Or, if not off, at least early.
G'night, all. And sweet dreams.

fortune cookie

Ya gotta love fortune cookies. They say the damnedest things at the damnedest times, much like a three-year-old child. "A nice cake is waiting for you" is a prime example.
You think the message is garbled until subsequent events seem to prove the cookie right. I say "seem to" because the end can usually be made to fit the means, if you're a mind to do so.
Even so, sometimes I choose to lend credence to the words. For some times, I need to believe in a bit of positive in my corner. Some times are a bit rougher than others and warrant clutching at wisps of "yes" wherever they appear. This time of year can be especially cold and chill you to the bone, if you're not careful.
Most of the time, when I dine at my favorite source of massive quantities of fresh vegetables, cooked to order, I don't bother with a fortune cookie. Not that they are unavailable or hard to obtain. Oh, no. There's a jar full of them on the check-out counter, luring eyes and fingers. No, my reason for not grabbing one is this: I prefer to receive my fortunes as a random gift. If the waiter doesn't bring one with the bill, then I abstain.
My waitress this evening, a waitress I have had before, surprised me with the gift of a fortune cookie. I thanked her and decided to wait until I was home to break it open, as I was unusually full from dinner. Also, I felt the need to BE home, as I had been out all afternoon and most of the evening. So, I arrive home (the dash light working this time, so I could see my speedometer), enter my warm, lit house, and get settled in. The cookie had already crumbled in my pocket by the time I pulled it out, but the fortune was still nestled in the folds, avoiding my view. I open the wrapper, remove half the cookie and eat it as I am freeing the message.
"You will have many friends when you need them."
Nice! But how did the cookie know I had been wondering about such things?
Last night was one of those rare occasions when I felt that life was GOOD. I had gone downtown to hear Magic Rocks making rock music, as I had been invited to the gig. Ordinarily, I would have seen the 22:30 start time and opted out. This time was different, as if I were truly meant to be there. The weather had warmed such that I didn't really need a jacket, though I took one anyway. The traffic downtown was almost nonexistent; I effortlessly found parking close to where I thought I was going.
I ended up having a nice stroll whilst looking for the venue and arrived right after a large party had left, vacating several tables right in front of the band. Incredible. I had no sooner sat down than I was joined by a new friend, with word that others were on their way from a birthday celebration. Fabulous! And there we were with plenty of room for all! And the band was playing some of my favorite songs... and the waitress helped enact my request for a dance floor... and the others had arrived and we were all grooving to the music... And I realized how GOOD it felt to be surrounded by friends, beside me, behind me, in front of me, listening to great music and watching a ship pass by in the windows behind the band as they rocked out.
I spend a lot of time alone. That isn't unusual for me and, quite truly, that's the way it has been for much of my life. "Alone" doesn't mean "lonely". I have found that "lonely" can, and does, occur when others are present. But last night, I had gone out alone, but not lonely, and had been in the right place for friends to find me and join me.
I think I need to keep doing that.