Wake, Bake and SkateRay Timmins
Wake and bake. That’s what I did. 9:30 AM, I got up, smoked a joint, took a shower, got dressed and strolled on out the door. Got in the car, vroom vroom . . . gone.
Getting up that early was something new. I worked nights. Usually stayed up till 7 AM, went to sleep and got up around 2 or 3 PM. I’d read, or try to put some miserable story or poem together all night when I didn’t have to work. When I worked, I’d do the same except that I’d write when I got home. Things had been getting real dark and lonely. I was living in a Kafka-esque nightmare hell world jerking off blood every night. And I’d drink. Naturally, I had a slight hangover that day but the weed settled that right down.
So I’d decided to get up early and go rollerskating, of all things, with my buddy Kevin and his friends. Kevin’s friends were a married couple who had a couple kids and this was a kids skating session. Kevin had invited me along the day before and I figured that before I went nuts I would get up, no matter what, and go. I wasn’t much of a skater but I needed to get out of the house for a change. Kinda exhilarating to see the little rugrats laughing and having fun every once in a while.
The music in the car was just right, too. Whatever came on was perfect. I thought about getting there. I was in a good mood for a change and I wanted to entertain my friends. Carmen was going to be there. I liked her. She had style. A moxie most women didn’t have and gorgeous eyes. She was also insane. This was simple math: I was attracted to her therefore she must be insane. Always.
I got there and and Kevin was just getting out of his classic Land Cruiser. He had a magnet of Shaggy from Scooby Doo on the inside of the green, rusted vehicle which always reminded me of him. The roof threatened to fly off every time he got that thing above 50 MPH. Madness. I loved riding in it. Few times in my life had I ever felt so free. Carmen was with him, he’d picked her up. She looked good. She always did, though.
Carmen had had a crush on Kevin ever since I’d introduced them. But he was gay. Such luck, huh?
“That figures,” she told me when she’d found out. “Every guy I meet is either gay or psychotic.”
“I’m neither. I don’t think.”
“Oh, really?”
“Well, I’m not gay.”
Oh well.
We walked inside, paid and went to get our skates. The room with the skates immediately struck me as horrific. It reminded me of a barrack in a concentration camp with all the flesh-colored leather skates lined up on shelves, breathing. Damn, was I high. I told Kevin and Carmen.
“Ohmigod, Dell,” she said, “shut up! You’re gonna freak me out!”
“No, no . . . really!” These skates were made from the skins of executed Jews. This place stinks of evil. Those skates on your feet, Kevin. Probably made from the flesh of my executed Great Grandmother, you bastard!”
“Shut-up!” Carmen screamed.
Kevin laughed. So did I.
Then we were skating. Carmen had brought her own skates. They were gliitered silver. Style, like I said. She skated ahead of me. I looked around at all the people—it’s a hobby of mine. There was a scrawny little kid skating awkwardly, his arms slapping around looking like a fish jumping, gasping for breath on a river bank. I sped past him. To my left a little girl in a matching outfit flew past me at warp speed. I contemplated tripping her next time she skated past me. Of course, I didn’t.
The was a man skating with a child, probably his son. The man was no more than 25, just a little older than I. His kid was cute, chubby like a gnome with magical eyes and an innocent, beautiful smile. An angel without wings.
My attention was diverted by a beautiful woman with long brown hair and deep, mysterious eyes. Probably a Scorpio, I thought. She skated with what I presumed to be her husband and daughter. They skated next to each other, smiling. Their daughter then skated ahead of them, leaving them way behind. They continued smiling.
Carmen skated past me. She waved and I waved back. I felt depressed.
The DJ played The Hokey Pokey. I sat that one out.
All those people and their kids. And me. I hoped people didn’t look at me like some weird pervert. But maybe I was, in a way, looking at all those happy skating families and feeling envious. Looking at Carmen, feeling lonely.
The last skate was The Couples Skate. Wonderful! I sat and watched all the couples. Carmen skated with Kevin. Couldn’t blame her. He was a cool guy. If I were gay I’d probably go for him too.
I took off my skates while the couples skated holding hands. I looked back at the rink one last time before entering the skates barrack and spotted Carmen. I smiled slightly then quickly looked away.
We went to Carmen’s, I pulled out a joint and we smoked it.
Kevin had to go.
Carmen and I talked about music, a subject we could both speak extensively upon. I was charmed, as always, but remained civil. I drove her to work. We hugged good-bye.
“Thanks, see ya later, Dell. Thanks again.”
“Yeah, see ya.”
I watched her walk inside and I pulled away. I had to get to work too. I was coming down. The music on the radio began irritating me like it usually did.
