trotting down the sidewalk. She climbed into the passenger seat.
“Hey,” I said. “Is this your parents’ house?”
“They’re in the deep freeze in the garage,” she said, and laughed.
“That’s horrible!” I said, but I laughed too.
“It’s actually just a rental. I don’t even have a garage,” she said.
Traffic down to the Hike and Bike Trail was hideous, the skyline full of cranes. I counted seven, each one building another towering upscale downtown condo that will soon be packed full of douchebags arriving from San Francisco and LA. Those D-bags may be in search of authenticity or the real America, but they will each contribute to diluting the essence and soul of this town that means everything to me. Oh how I wish I could do one tiny something to preserve this place that I love! When I moaned about it to Artemis, she said she was glad I was transforming my ire into action by making my Lululemon protest signs. I have to agree.
By the time I found a parking place near the trail I was about to get in a mood, but it only took ten minutes walking along the lake with Artemis and Roscoe before my spirits lifted. The trees were gorgeous and the sunlight threw sparkles across the water, where rowers skimmed the surface and stand-up paddleboarders made their way lazily along. Even though it was totally relaxing, I kept thinking about what Artemis had said about her parents being in the deep freeze. “Where do your parents live, anyway?” I asked very casually.
“Don’t worry. I didn’t murder them,” she said. “They’re divorced. My dad lives in Manhattan, so I go visit him sometimes. My mom, she’s here. I don’t see her as much as I should. But she’s all right. She’s a worrier.”
“Totally,” I said. “I get it. My mom too.”
“What does your mom worry about?”
I had the sense Artemis was trying to steer the subject away from her family. “Lately I think she worries about me because I’ve been doing this dead-end job for so long and I’m not making art and I don’t even have a boyfriend. I think parents want one positive talking point about their kid that they can say to their friends to show their kid isn’t a total fuckup. Like, ‘Brenda’s doing great; she works for the Wicked World Bank.’ Or, ‘Suzie was able to catch a man and she’s breeding like crazy.’ Or, ‘Derek is great; he’s saving the world in the Peace Corps’ (which my brother actually is). But right now my mom doesn’t really have a talking point for me, so it makes her worried that something is really wrong with me.” I was going to ask Artemis more about her mom, but just then, we got interrupted by a quick stop-and-chat with Esmeralda Limon, who I went to high school with, and then another one with Ms. Woodall, my elementary school art teacher. I also waved at a few regulars I see down there a lot.
“You know everyone,” Artemis said.
“That’s the great thing about the Hike and Bike Trail,” I said. “You get sun and socializing. Sure, this town may be changing, but the Hike and Bike Trail is always glorious.” I didn’t know how to explain that all that smiling and waving and exercise and endorphin-releasing is that much better because it happens on the edge of the water, which, like the Temperance card in the tarot deck, brings a sense of balance and healing.
By then we’d done a full loop around the lake and had made it almost back to the car. Roscoe looked up at me imploringly, dying for a swim. But I was worried if I let him off his leash, he wouldn’t behave. Artemis encouraged me to let him wade a bit, so I did. I was in such a good mood that the crazy traffic on the way back to Artemis’s house didn’t put me out of sorts. I was going to invite myself in to see her place, but when we pulled up she looked at her watch. “Shit! I’m gonna be late for my aerial yoga class! Thank you for a fun afternoon!” She kissed me on the cheek and jumped out, running lightly up the walk, and then—like the woman of mystery she is—she slipped into her house and was gone.
Curiously,
Roxy
August 21, 2012
Dear Everett,
WHAT A DAY! It’s been a roller coaster of enemies turned (sort of) allies, and other enemies turned worse enemies. First I went into work