Exactly one year ago, Mike fired me from Creekside Cafe.
When I filed for unemployment, I was living with my then-girlfriend AJ in Carmichael with two bedrooms and three pets, already scraping the bottom of the bank account as it was, with her commuting to Midtown, Sacramento for a coffee-shop job when she wasn't taking classes at ARC. Without a job, I stopped commuting an hour to Auburn. I stopped worrying about my relationship with AJ, putting our problems on the back-burner while I dealt with unemployment. Within two weeks I'd interviewed and been hired for two coffee-shop jobs. Within a month, I was so tired and sick of working in customer service, so tired and sick of waking up early and making food and getting paid shit and standing on my feet... I remember the day I left Fair Oaks Coffee House and Deli and knew that I had snapped, that something would have to change, and I decided first to break up with AJ and move to Midtown.
In two weeks, it will be a year since I started working at Old Soul.
And the story of that, as well as the breakup with AJ, has been chronicled in nearly 200 posts over the past twelve months. One complete year. This is blowing my fucking mind.
Jenny is asleep on the bed behind me. I'm sitting in my dark bedroom with nothing but the glow of this screen lighting my fast-typing fingertips, writing this, taking full advantage of the first night I can stay up late without worrying about waking for a morning shift in almost a week. Meredith's schedule shifts had me opening so often that I've blurred them all into one long flow from Saturday morning to today, where people weren't leaving the shop to continue their lives, but for costume changes. I served a customer on Saturday with a cold who was healed by Wednesday morning. That's a whole story I watched happen, half-asleep or buzzing on caffeine, looping conversations and forgetting names. Anyway, Jenny is asleep on the bed behind me, my girlfriend, my best friend, a relationship I never saw coming and an evolution of my story in Sacramento that I hadn't anticipated. My post-AJ experience was a totally new and invigorating phase of my life, which I don't regret in the slightest, yet grew tired of precisely at the moment Jenny comes along with a record player and a few French phrases, and suddenly I'm falling in love on the shore of Santa Cruz. That was February, when I fell for the girl sleeping on my bed behind me, who is bound now for Korea in September, who's hand I've been holding since March, who I love so much it makes me laugh.
Now it's May and tomorrow my sister turns 13 (a teenager, already).
The Hump-Day Bonfire just ended. I'd put May 18, 2011 as one of the top bonfires so far, if not only because the rain graciously stopped after two days of downpour, but because it's obvious now that it's working. The bonfires are working. It's an event that's caught hold, something that people plan on and look forward to and share and enjoy. It's a small fire in the middle of Midtown, coupled with beer, the company of strangers, music and a movie. People don't get too drunk or loud, conversation is never hard to come by, and they last an average of three hours. Everyone simply there to mingle. I had hoped from the beginning that people would keep coming back. I had hoped they would invite others along so that it would grow.
And it totally is growing.
Today the layout of things promoted conversation while still incorporating the projector, so we watched Road Runner cartoons and Land Before Time, muted behind the music of Washed Out, Grand National, Pretty Lights and Miike Snow. Iven bought me new speakers with a subwoofer with his Best Buy discount, then wouldn't take money for them. He brought Andy and another couple--Andy being an old face from my Auburn memories, the couple being friendly locals whose names I've already forgotten. Shaun was there with Tony and we three had an odd talk about our days after rapture. Juj came with Murphy and that guy who came last week--still don't know his name. Nick came with Ashley after he finished closing at Old Soul. Lance came by with KFC and sat by the fire for a while. Lily and Bobby, the first guests, her a French teacher and he a middle-school teacher, were super nice and comfortable people--customers--and it was neat that they actually came. Jessica stopped by for a short visit between napping and sleeping. Jenny's friend Mariah, with boyfriend, was happy to join us. Drew came down from his attic. And Daniel, with homemade bread and Symphony chocolate, arrived halfway through the night. I remember being told by a neighbor to turn the music down, finding out that Netflix works outside, hearing the term "budtender" for the first time, talking about super heroes, trying to catch up with Andy, hearing about Jack's encounter with a plugged-up ice machine, and chopping wood with a shovel. Everyone eventually left for home after helping me gather supplies. Same time next week. I'm happy to know they'll be back again soon.
I might end up on Good Day Sacramento because they've been coming around filming things at the Alley a lot lately. I was filmed at the espresso machine pulling shots, tamping, and whipping out some latte art. Never felt any more pressure than the eyes of thousands of viewers.
Tried Ethiopian food with Jenny last night. I approve.
One year ago, I didn't know what I was going to do with my life.
Today I do.
- Left to Fry
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