Rock Fever Strikes

I woke up Friday morning, caught the 19 bus at the corner of Paoakalani and Kuhio, and kept going. Now, four days later, I am 6000 miles away, back in Charm City. Back in the home of slightlymadman and anomaly with the evil kittens crawling on me and a gin and tonic close to hand. It is still an hour short of dawn and I am the only one awake in the house, having let myself in with my spare key.

So why am I back here instead of my new hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii? Several reasons. First, I was in a rut--a pleasant rut, but still a rut--back on Oahu. My latest temp job ended a few weeks ago, leaving me with lots of free time and money in the bank. I missed my old friends in Baltimore and there were a few concerts I wanted to go to. And, another few thousand miles down the coast in Florida, my grandmother is dying.

I haven't been the best grandson in the world; I haven't kept in as close touch as I meant to, figuring that there would always be time later to take out of my busy and exciting life. Now, with my father e-mailing me to tell me that she may not live to see Thanksgiving, I have plenty of regrets.

Lucky for me, I also have an unlimited use pass on The Big Gray Dog for this month. So, having come this far, I will go the rest of the way to Palm Beach and see my grandma while there's still a chance.

But for now, worn out from four days of constant travel and excited to be in my old stomping grounds, I'm going to get a good night's sleep and hold off all plans until the morning.

update: Goddammit, I forgot to get an absentee ballot, and it's pretty unlikely that I can make it to the Waikiki Community Center before the polls close. This is the first election I've missed since I was old enough to vote. Goddammit, goddammit, goddammit.