rooting for the underdog.

went to meet up with my friend chris last night before we went back to SF. having your best guy friend move to the other side of the country sucks when your friendship is deeply rooted in gossiping like teenage girls. 

chris went to college in syracuse. i've known him since i was like 15 or 16 from shows. we can't really remember when we first met. there was another kid who looked like him vaguely. the two of us were so different in every way, besides liking the same bands, that i have no idea why we were such good friends. 

lost touch after i'd been in dc for years and he moved to ny. rachel and i went to an errortype:11 show at brownies and i saw some dude in an SU jacket. turned out it was chris. we started talking again. 

every time i went down to the city after that visit we made a point to hang out. i drank by then, he still didn't. he got to babysit me during various nights out at beauty bar, barmacy, motor city. bars closed at 2 at home and 4 in the city. i could never make it past 2 during my visits. chris ditched me to go home with cute girls many times, which i never minded because i got to sleep in his bed while he was in theirs. instead of that damn futon in the living room.

now chris is the one who is "visiting" ny. the one who can't make it til 4 because he's so drunk he's getting in arguments with cabbies, during which i walk a safe distance away and pretend that i'm not with him. spanish guys saying "is that your man? you better make sure he doesn't get arrested!" 

danielle, chris' ex that's still a good friend, meets us at the levee. d and i become engrossed in the red sox game. she's from boston and rooting for big papi and her boys. i like the working class ethic of the sox over the elitist yanks any day. since my mets are out of contention, i'll support boston. we devour cheeseballs and twizzlers while watching the sox come from behind to win. 

i realize after our celebratory shots of jameson that i barely talked to chris all night and he's leaving at 7 am. there are always late night phone calls when i realize he's still awake in california to remedy that situation. 

for tarbell. 

all those changes are for the better.

keep livin' the dream!

postscript...

"i've been told decisive isn't helpful 

but sometimes it cures

the slow into resourceful

with reaction as the lure

simple doesn't matter

disguised as the complex

a fraction of disaster 

and we try to forget for too long..."