Wednesday, October 20, 2004
This World
It's 4:00 a.m. in the morning. The world is about to shake itself from its slumber, but as for now, its just me and a few select others. Every few minutes a car drives by, every few minutes a hear some noise. Sprinklers turn on and cats meow, and I'm sitting on my old lady's balcony, smoking and watching the world slip by.Its hard to not fall in love with this time of day.The sun has yet to rise, night it still the king. While I sit here with a cigarette hanging from my mouth, I watch as a man walks by. Hes tall and black. Hes going into his girlfriends apartment. I know they have kids, and that's all I know. The look on his face says hes tired and glad to be home. He opened the door and saw me watching. He pretends not to notice me, but the effort he uses to avoid my gaze indicates he knows.Its almost utterly silent sometimes. The birds haven't come out to sing yet, they won't for three more hours. When I pace back and forth, the only sound I hear is my shoes pounding on the wooden deck. I pitch my smoke off the balcony and head on in.Sleep has possessed me, but it won't win. I'm going to stay awake as long as I can. Sometimes I watch shitty TV, sometimes I look at stuff on the web, sometimes, I watch my lady sleep, and appreciate all shes done for me.She's a hell of a woman, and I'm a lucky bastard.I've always felt the night is the most interesting part of the 24 hour cycle. People are softened and more honest with each other. The darkness allows us a true insight into each other.This time of day was much more entertaining last year than this year.All the lowlifes, crackpots, and nut jobs crept out of the woodwork and made their presence felt. A simple conversation could yield some of the most amazing results from these people.An engineer-writer who hated the president, a drugged-out rich kid who thought he was god, and a guy who shot himself are a few of the many examples of the pesonalities I've come into contact with in my night time journeys.This city has many problems, but lighting sure as fuck isn't one of them.It's incredible the way this place looks in the dead of night. A feast for the eyes for those bold enough to venture out on her streets alone in the early morning. After the party dies and the bars are closed, its the most amazing city in the world.I'm a lucky man to own this city as I do, in my own little way. To have experienced her streets, to have met her addicts. I'm always impressed with it no matter the day. Lucky to live in the city, lucky to walk in the city.
posted by Dan # 11:26 AM 4 comments