Ok, so you've taken the plunge and decided after seeing "Bucholera" pop up on or beside whatever it is that you were reading, and thought to yourself "What the hell is that?" Well, I chose the name because of its slightly oxymoronic nature. See, it's a portmanteau, a word created by the combining of two other words. In this case, I've combined the words bucolic and cholera. I feel as if this blog will somedays have sort of a pastoral, almost idyllic, feel. Other days, it will probably resemble something disturbing or otherwise unpleasant. Either way, you, like myself, mayhap won't know what to expect.
Allright, now that we've answered that question, we're off to the next point of interest (sic): fortune cookies. It all started when I went out for some lo mein during lunch break last week. Often, I had received interesting fortunes. Many times they weren't fortunes at all but rather proverbs. But that day was different. There was nothing in the sky, no aroma on the air, nor no sound on the breeze that could have foretold the kind of suprise I would have from my fortune cooke. I've often heard that there were really pleasing fortunes, and some even came true. For instance, once seven people won the powerball lottery on the same day by using the numbers on the back of the fortune in their fortune cookies. (Apparently, the real fortune was on the back rather than the front.) Anyways, I finished my pound of lo mein and in traditional manner (by balling up a fist and pummeling once or twice the small confection) opened my fortune cookie. Tearing the plastic, I quickly separated the bone-like fragments of sugar and hardened dough with it's real prize: the fortune. My eyes skimmed the text. Then it hit me: "You will inherit an unexpected sum of money within the year." "Hot Damn!", I thought. "But, damn, who's going to have to sacrifce themselves for my financial glory?" Trying to look at a brighter side of things, I hypothesized that it might be some kind soul I don't remember to whom I have no emotional attachment. Then I realized that notion was even a bit morbid for my mood, and stuck the fortune in my front pocket. I then went on about my business. I've decided to hang on to that fortune for about a year. If it doesn't come true, maybe I'll slip it into someone's space when they aren't looking just to see their expression. Who knows? It might even make them happy.
The early summer storms in these areas have been pretty severe thusfar, and the entire town (we'll refer to it as Dunderland for now) ended being without power from 4:00 in the afternoon until about 12:45 a.m. the next morning. Naturally, this meant that we had to rid ourselves of the possibility of rotting meat in our refrigerators as the reports said that the power could have been out for days. Therefore we got all the beer we could together and grilled the meat througout the evening to avoid possible spoilage. Having contacted my work ahead of time, I did not foresee having to attend the next day's session. (Silly me!) I realized I only had really one thing I could do without the assistance of electricity, and that was play guitar. Therefore, I brought it along. I skirted through the windy streets of Dunderland, and quickly reached my destination where we began to drink and be merry in our soon-to-be-dark comraderie. Somewhere along the way I had some wine - big mistake. I got kind of drunk. Having diffiulties starting the fire in those windy conditions, we moved the grill around back between houses, and I took over. It was slow going, but I got the fire started and got some burgers going. Over the next couple hours, I continued to get drunker, and it didn't help that I was standing in the wind on an incline in the dark with a fire a foot or two away. But no worries; I'm a champ. I navigated this situation masterfully as I had before, chatting up the neighbors with drunken stories of this and that. I was in form. Almost rare form.
The night passed, until we were all sated with the sweet flesh of chckens, turkeys, and bovine. All I wanted to do was sit in front of the fire pit out front and relax. The rest of the party decided to go walking through the darkness of powerless Dunderland. I took this time to grab the guitar, and rest my weary (maybe wobbly would be more precise) bones on the front steps and gaze into the mesmerizing shapes of the fire. One fellow stayed around and took pictures of the fire - his phtography rig and tripod makes me think he may have been an area artist or photography student. Away this guy snapped phtos from one angle and another. I continued to play to the rhythm of the fire dancing in the coals. One flash, two flash, and then he was done. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a street light. My brain took itsef out of neutral, and thrust itself into drive. "Power! The power's back on!", I said. "Damn! Now I have to go to work tomorrow. Shit!", I continued. The boy responded with a chuckle, and disappeared into the night as quickly as he had appeared mumbling something about sudden bad lightning. I looked at my watch - 12:47. I rolled my eyes as the sounds of drunken friends tap dancing up the sidewalk echoed through the neighborhood rang out. Soon thereafter, I said goodbye and left. In fifteen minutes time, I was unconscious in bed. The night was over.
Now, these things may appear to not have anything in common. But if you are the kind of person who may fancy themselves a bit of an idealist, and you understand that most things of the universe are connected in some way or another, then you also realize that a fortune cookies and power outages probably do, indeed, relate in some strange and obscure way. What is that connection? Simple. At the very least and for the moment, I shall consider that I inherited a great group of people to hang out with in times of uncertainty, who will share themselves with me in those times, and appreciate the bond. If that's not fortune, then I don't know fortune in the least. It doesn't have to be a sum of money. We can pretend that fortune cookie was speaking figuratively. Because it suits my purpose, at least (once again) for the moment, I will stand on that.
Invino Veritas
4/28/11
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