Day Fourteen: This is it

The first thing you need to know is what I was wearing. I bought these pants for work. They're like khakis but they don't suck. The pockets feel great. I feel great in them. Kick ass.

I'm wearing a blue t-shirt that's tucked in because Grandma says the restaurant we're going to is really fancy. But my cousins are wearing civilian clothes. It's okay. I like wearing nice clothes when I don't have a reason to. Prom, for example.

We're at this boring brunch buffet. Some cozy name. Stupid woodsy pictures on the wall. Two music school dropouts are playing jazz music in the corner. Some atmosphere attempt. We request that they play the "Farmer in the Dell" and they do, with their jazz twist.

Our waitress has a bad case of the 'muggies' which just means PMS or lack of sleep. So my cousins and I try to cheer her up. There's chocolate fondue and we start sticking sausage and shrimp in it. The shrimp must be really fancy, cause it's served to you on rocks. The sausage tastes store bought.

We dare each other to eat the chocolate covered cuisine. I nibble it and almost feel sick. Chug sour cranberry juice. What, on yer period? This brings the waitress a smile.

Earlier, I found this picture of Hawaii and all day I'm taking a screwdriver to it, trying to screw it up on purpose. I didn't think I would do any art here, but it found me.

We drive out to Laconia, where I lived when I was two and try to find a record store I saw once. It's closed of course. Everything is closed at four on Sunday, except an old antique shop. These places cover New Hampshire like a plague but I've never been inside. We're the only customers. Browsing through this elderly expensive collection. Browsing through the history no one wants.

Matthew gets a brilliant idea. He finds a box full of walking canes for a dollar each. We all buy canes and go strolling down the street like gentlemen. I love downtown Laconia. It's a city in the sense that downtown Flagstaff is a city. Small and crumbling and quaint.

There's an old joke. How many ADHD kids does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Let's go ride bikes! That isn't a joke. I'm caffeine high as hell, in my kickass clothes and we go for a three mile bike ride with our canes, eating cheese and whooping like Indians. (Of course, people don't whoop like Indians anymore. That's not politically correct.)

We fought with the canes while cruising and hit signs and all that. I was exhausted by the time we were done pedaling up a hill. I got my second wind just before we flew back down. No hands, I raised my cane in the air and screamed. I couldn't help thinking, this is it.

This is it.