08/24/25

It’s ridiculously hot again after being in the mid 60’s all week.

4:38 pm

    I stopped by Asoko before meeting up with J and B in the LES. The space is coming together. N was in the back screwing table legs onto the table tops he constructed prior. The bar he made had been installed the night before and looks beyond. A showed me the tatami and an N64 she’s planning to connect to an old analog TV. I got a tour of the newly installed bathroom and gave my opinion on the correct dimness to the lighting before leaving.

    J and B were sitting outside in a corner seat at Le Dive, the setting sun was beating down upon them. They were sweating. I started to sweat. We started drinking, heavily. 

    Saturday in Dimes Square meant perfect people watching and shit talking. I had about three Gin & Tonics, a glass of natty wine, and topped it off with a Coke on ice with a lemon. A very regular Murray Hill type guy walked up to us and continued whatever conversation he was having with himself with us before apologizing saying he’s had a lot of shrooms and he was just looking for his friends. Time for us to go. Around 7, we got prime seating at Swan Room and continued. I got a Negroni, my first since July. I told all my secrets. B let me have a sip of her Martini and for the first time in my lifeI enjoyed it. I ordered the same and promptly poured the entire sidecar into the glass effectively ruining it.

    E met us at Corner Bar for an 8 pm reservation. We ordered every appetizer and no mains. I was still sipping on my ruined martini. For dessert, a Cantaloupe sorbet covered in salt. I got an order of fries to-go. J and I got into a spat before I left to head back to Asoko, fries in tow.

    I stumbled in to find N, C, A and a few others sat around the newly assembled tables. A and I went to the back and laid on the Tatami mats. She spent a bit of time tinkering with the TV wires trying to get the N64 to work so we could play Pokemon Stadium. I thought about my childhood—Pokemon Snap, Pokemon Stadium, Super Mario 64. My best friends N64…I think it was grey. I dozed off.

    A woke me up and we went to Round K for what felt like the briefest moment before leaving again. Back at Asoko, we played a drinking game which involved choosing from variously sized sake cups and spinning a driedel. Before I knew it, I was asleep on the tatami in the back. It had become a habit, from C’s days at Decible to easily fall asleep with this group. A and friends letting me doze off to my hearts content.

    In the dark Uber home, drifting in and out of sleep, I vaguely remembered something. A night way back during my senior year of high school. Old friends and I driving. We planned to go bowling and began the night getting burgers from Dicks. One of the boys drove a big suburban. The bowling alley we went to wasn’t the one I was familiar with. We drove there on a road with heavy fog. I don’t remember where the bowling alley was and I barely remember being there. After leaving, we drove to the cemetery next to the local football stadium and hopped the fence to walk the grounds. We walked hand in hand through the cemetery, the deep fog made it feel like a dream. I don’t remember when exactly this was and I don’t remember what we did after but I remember the fog and I remember holding hands so tightly.

Playlist

Sweet Love - Junko Ohashi

Silhouette - KANA-BOON

HONEY - L’Arc-en-Ciel

Wonder2 - Perfume

115 Million Kilometer Film - Official HIGE DANdism

Lucky - Riize

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

08/09/25

   When I’m not tired but know I should sleep I put on an eye mask and count down from 1000. I used to count down from 100 but that was too quick, I would still be awake by the time I got to zero. Most days I can lie down, rest my head on the pillow, and fall straight to sleep but lately I haven’t been tired. So I count. On a good night I won’t get past 900, on a bad night I can get down to 600. I never envision sheep jumping over a fence instead I see the numbers falling away as if they’re being torn from a wall hanging calendar or turning over like how the number of gallons on the meter of a gas station pump would turn over. When I wake up I don't remember where I left off.    Nine hundred ninety nine…nine hundred ninety eight…nine hundred ninety seven… 7:05 am    I walked from our apartment and stopped at the coffee truck that’s usually stationed outside the train and next to the bus stop from seven to eleven every morning. I’m friendly wi...
Read more

07/27/25

     I rolled over to turn off the 6am alarm that buzzed loudly against the glass-topped side table. The stiff bed granted me a sound nights sleep despite the drinking I had done during dinner. I laid there for a moment before getting out of bed and ducking my head low to avoid hitting the angled ceiling I had crashed into the night before. The age of the house we had been staying in, though built in the 1800’s, did not show it nor sound like it. The old wooden bedroom door did not creak when I opened it nor did the oddly sized stairs when I descended them. I had risen without a sound.      I have been in the habit of waking up early to go for walks in the morning. I think of them as a meditative practice. Every morning I get up and meander through the park or walk-about the streets of the upper part of Manhattan. Mostly the west side but I sometimes ventured east. I walk for an hour or so. The morning light is different. The noises of the city are differen...
Read more

08/01/24

     I took my time at the gym since I had nowhere to be. When I stepped back out into Soho, the heat was still intense. I deigned to go into the subway. I raced a guy to the last electric Citibike on Lafayette and threw my bag into the basket, acting as if I didn’t see him. We locked eyes and exchanged looks. I hopped on and rode off, turning on East 4th and making my way to the West Side Highway. Flying through the West Village, crossing the highway, and reaching the Hudson, a sight so blinding stopped me. I dismounted to take it in. The sun, glowing hot and looming just above the horizon; the size of it in the sky made the high-rises across the river look like toys. Joggers and bikers continued on their way. The crowds of people basking on every inch of grass looked on.       I rode a bit further. Past the Little Island and past Chelsea Piers, watching the sunset as I went up the bike path. I stopped again when I saw the sun had been dyed red. I wat...
Read more