Friday, January 9, 2009

The End Days

(wow i went totally spy code there but here's the corrected version...
Found a computer that types both the "O" and "L" but messes up everything else and thought I'd chat you. Yesterday i got up early around 6... didn't even tell you that I woke up at 3 the other night and stepped in a big puddle of water, thought it could be something leaking, like the fridge defrosting, but sloshed through the lake to turn off the roaring load a/c and then went back to bed. Who knew the water would keep running until it flooded half the room! But I digress.

With time on my hands I journeyed by myself to Quepos on the immortal search for a hammock. Leaving Cath curled up in bed, shaking her head at my admittedly ridiculous quest. But travel like this, I decided, Is full of such self-directed assigning. Which either leads to feelings of success and heady intrepidness, or slumped over on a curb, and mumbling at yourself while clutching a map and your last Quetzal. And after peering through many closed shops and finding breakfast, sitting by the bay, circling the town like a shark and eventually checking my email; and almost sweating to death..., the kind of heat where you feel the sweat pooling and trickling down your back, to find some cold refreshing bubbly water, a few more breaks, was thwarted at everyshop I hoped was "thee" shop, and finally finally finally found a hammock to buy, buy asking, do you have any more? yes? Glorious! (insert chorus of angels). Sure now I have to figure out how to hang it, but whatever. It's beautifully colored and hopefully perfect.

So I poured myself back onto a bus that took me up up up into the hills, and then I mustered the strength to climb the vertical hill and the 10flights of stairs to the romm, where cath and isaac had returned from a swim (jealous), readying themselves for departure.

We were after lunch at the "Anaconda" again thrown into confusion at the incomprehension of being put on seperate simultaneously arriving shuttles. And as per my recent luck it took 5 1/2 hours toping my previous record of 5 to get to San Jose... As we waited for someone to not show up, picked up two really enthusiastic English people who kept tittering and using the words, oh my, dearie and, rightright. and a talker, who talked, talked talked. We then brokedown by the side of the road 10min outside of the town we just left, and waited to switch vehicles. At this point I laughed outright, refused to be dismayed, and kept a ready supply of protein at my side and offered everyone rum if we were there for much longer. I was proud of myself . Though when cath came out to hug me there was some eyerolling and mumbling.

Todays departure didn't quite hit me, that I was actually leaving somewhere going somewhere completely different until we were in the air, and I thought, this is it huh, this is over? Cath left me a lovely note and I took my taxi, wearing the new ring she gave me to replace the one I lost because she's fabulous like that. and off I went, easy as pie. I fished my phone out of my pack as we had to recheck it once we through customs, confronting the officer who said, what is "no. ho", and I refusing to explain that it was an abbreviationm. And I find, generally I get drilled by these guys and am ultimately confused by their questioning. What do you study? me:what?Well you said you did research. me: Oh! I research for a show. Then he says, What?! And its like 20 questions.

I was partly dismayed to only have 3 missed calls. Though convinient. One hangup, another misdial, and an ominous message from my boss. And true to my gut the minute I left work on that random Tuesday, I somehow knew that whatever it was, was over. But still you don't really quite believe, you think you're exaggerating and being paranoid. But I became in one quick blow, a victim of budget cuts, downsizing, and ultimately efficiency, of people getting rid of my redundant ass. And it totally sucks and it was no fun for the boss boss to tell me as I sat in the Dallas airport going, wow, it really happened and it totally still sucks. I had grown to love them and he said it was nothing I did but they couldn't afford me. And bonus I get a couple weeks severence...

And even as I wandered around the Dallas airport for the next 3 hours, looking for salsa and a cowboy hat to buy I kept telling myself, you knew this one was coming, as I'd even saved $ for my bills through January. I guess its weird to have spent a month journeying, thinking then that I was coming back to a life that I'd grown to like, a routine I guess, a settled happy feeling, only to find myself thrust out into a malliable space again. As if whatever road I was on just opened up and changed course. Like oh you thought THIS adventure, this newly flexed intrepidness was over?! Oh contraire! Let's see how much you learned!

Ready?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow. That's even more a word puzzle to read than the emails.

Anonymous said...

Courage. The adventure continues

Anonymous said...

I of course request pictures of the hammock once it is placed. Perhaps a swing in it in exchange for some lemons ;)

So bummed about your job. Although I still think if you can manage to go while other people are there you can use some guilt leverage in help with the search. (And guilt them because you've come back with first had knowledge of sloths and other exotic animals.)

~sarah said...

totally with aa there! guilt away! : ) glad you're back! i would call you and bombard you with greetings and questions and requests to hang out but i don't know if you're ready for that yet. : )