a history of me

After going camping for the holiday weekend, my hometown friends were going to a party in Pawling this weekend and invited me to join them. So yesterday afternoon I caught a train to meet them. Once at Ben's house, his extremely kind mother told me she could tell that I was losing weight. While I have lost a few pounds since improving my diet, I think she was still being kind. After all, we're talking less than 3% of my total body weight.

So drove all the way to Pawling and we didn't get there until it was completely dark. It was at a relatively remote house in the "woods" where neighbors were visible but not close enough to be heard. The house was pretty modestly sized but there was a very large lawn which is where everyone was hanging out. Aside from a firepit and a few candles there was nearly no light at all. I doubt I could identify any of the other partygoers if you told me to pick them out of a police lineup.

The party was a mix of family, friends and total strangers. My sister was there with her boyfriend, Ben and his sister Kate came, as did Dave and Dylan. The biggest surprise was Cydney who was a childhood friend of my sister and Kate. I hadn't seen her in at least three years. We only spoke briefly though, I think I creeped her out; at one point, she was shining a light on herself (remember, it was completely dark out) and shimmying so I jokingly said "Keep dancing" in a guttural tone. She said something to the effect of "That's really creepy coming from you." What did she mean by that? I know was around a lot when she was growing up and hanging around with my little sister, but does that mean it's inappropriate to make an "adult" joke? It's not like I was coming on to her.

We drank and stayed up and Ben grilled steaks which were fabulously marinated in something or other. I overate (the wrong things to boot) and drank and smoke too much. Still, I never gave up and didn't watch the clock either. Eventually it came down to me, Ben, Kate and Dylan as the dawn crept up on us. I started to feel a little queasy so I made my way over towards the edge of the lawn. WHAM, I threw up nearly everything I had consumed. Thankfully it didn't turn into "dry heaves" which really hurt and break all the capillaries in my face, giving me a terrifying purple visage. Remember my Boxing Day experience? I do!

After vomiting I suddenly felt cold. I would later learn that the temperature had dropped below 60 degrees Fahrenheit but I shouldn't have felt so very cold in that weather. Don't forget, I'm a fairly heavy guy and I was wearing clothing, albeit a short-sleeved shirt. I wrapped myself up in a blanket and tried to enjoy myself as best I could. The other three were still drinking and smoking and then they were grilling some chicken. It smelled fabulous but I was in no condition to eat anything. I just sat there and drank water. Lots of water.

Sometime after six AM everyone else got the urge to leave (I'm sure I encouraged them although I didn't nag). The four of us got into Dylan's car and we headed south. I thought we were going back to Croton so I could just hop onto a train (I already have a multi-use ticket from Croton to New York). But the three of them wanted to keep drinking so we went to Dylan's house instead. I asked if he could drop me off at the nearest station so I could get some sleep. He oblidged and I returned to New York, falling asleep around nine AM.

I woke up shortly after two PM. I was in the bathroom when I got a surprise text from Hyde. She invited me to join her on a Circle Line trip around Manhattan. I immediately agreed and rushed into the shower so I could go across town to meet her at the pier at four PM. The walk took a little longer than I expected and the weather was much hotter than I expected as well. Still, the journey around Manhattan was wonderful and Hyde and I had a nice chat along the way. She called it "instant therapy" because it's a great way to relax and just take in this magnificent island. My sinuses seemed to clear up during the trip for the first time in days. Did you know Manhattan is connected to the mainland by twenty different bridges? I didn't know that but we went under (and through) every one of them!

Once docked, Hyde and I walked back across town talking all the way. Okay, she did most of the talking because she has better, longer stories than I do. Once we returned to our neighborhood we had dinner over at Blockheads. I hadn't eaten all day but I managed not to gorge myself. I didn't even chow down on the free chips & salsa. Instead, I went for a nice, big bowl of chili. We each had a few Margaritas and I walked her home. We're planning on taking in a museum this Wednesday. It'll be nice to hang out with her without any chemicals for a change.

Why the despondent title? I don't know, I typed this over a long period of time and I don't remember where I was going with that. I certainly didn't get sick on the boat. If there's any message here, it's that I had a hell of a lot more fun without alcohol in the sun than I did with alcohol in the dark. No disrepect to my friends but I'm starting to wonder if I can afford to keep going up to Westchester every weekend.