Photo: "...looking like a drowned rat."
![[Photo: wet t-shirt]](drowned_rat.jpg)
Rain and lightning... Good food and unreliable taxis...
1999.03.26 FRI
I was singing "Summertime..." again, marvelling at the strange warm evening air.
A while later, I saw the lightning. It looked far away.
Maybe a minute later, I saw another flash. It didn't look as far away as the previous one.
The next flash was closer yet. I listened for thunder, hoping to compute how far away the lightning was, but the traffic was too loud. I looked around. I was next to a wide street. On the other side were parking lots. Except for the lampposts, I was the tallest thing in my immediate area. I looked at a lamppost, wondering if it was made out of a good electrical conductor.
The next flash was closer. A lull in traffic allowed me to hear the thunder after a few seconds. I realized that I didn't have the speed of sound memorized. I still didn't know how far away the lightning was. But I was sure it was getting closer in a hurry. I didn't want to get hit by lightning. I decided that this might be a good time for dinner. I would duck into...
I looked around. I'd been walking past a seemingly unending stream of Arby's, Wendy's, and Subway. Along with fast food chain restaurants were independent restaurants trying their best to look like chain restaurants. But I appeared to have moved beyond them. Did I want to walk back a block just so I could get to a Subway? A Subway? Oh, ick.
I walked forward. I was on a block of closed shops. The next block was similarly dark--except for a lit sign up ahead. "Cafe Spoleto". Bingo.
Lightning flashed again as I walked through the door without hesitation. Inside, I blinked under the lights. I looked around. This wasn't a Subway clone. This was a real restaurant. I looked around. While no-one was wearing a tuxedo, the clients were looking pretty dressy. I wondered what kind of reception I'd get.
Standing in the entry area of Cafe Spoleto, I looked like someone who'd walked across town. Exposed flesh was under a patina of sweat and dust. My hair, no doubt practicing for a lightning strike, was standing out in all directions. Neither of my shirts were tucked in. I put on my best smile.
Everyone was really nice. And the food was great. I wasn't hungry; I'd picked this place at random; I'd stumbled upon a treasure. I wished I was hungrier. The polenta lasagna special was an explosion of flavor. I had pasta with lots of stuff on it including some pesto which was not too oily.
Outside, lightning flashed. Thunder shook the roof. After a while, it passed. And the rain started pouring down. Hmm.
I ate as much of the pasta as I could. I told the waitress that I wanted to bring the rest home and I wanted a taxicab. She brought me my leftovers in a box, said the cab dispatcher said a cab would be there within 20 minutes. I thanked her.
I sat, looking out the window, watching for a cab. Minutes ticked away. All the place's tables were full. A couple came in. I told the maitre d' that I could free up a table by sitting at the bar. It took a bit of convincing, but he eventually got the idea. I sat at the bar. I watched for a cab. Minutes ticked away.
I watched the parking lot. The waitress offerred me some coffee while I waited. I shook my head. I wanted to sleep as soon as I got back to the hotel. I watched for a cab. Minutes ticked away.
One group of people left, another arrived. The new arrivals had a large vehicle, they'd parked it right outside the window. It was blocking my view of the outside--I wouldn't be able to see when the taxi arrived. I looked at my watch. It had been 20 minutes. The taxi should be along any minute now. I decided to wait for it outside, where I could see. Surely I wouldn't have to wait long.
I ambled outside. There was a little tiny overhang about the entrance. If there hadn't been any wind, that overhang would have kept the rain off of me as I waited. But there was wind, and an awful lot of rain. Minutes ticked away.
I was wet. Still, the minutes ticked.
I was starting to get cold. I was, I realized, shivering.
I looked at my watch. The taxi was at least 15 minutes late. I'd been standing outside in the rain and wind for 15 minutes. I considered my options.
At this point, I was too angry to wait politely and I was already plenty wet. I stomped off into the rain.
Photo: "...looking like a drowned rat."
As in Alamogordo, drivers didn't really know what to do about rain and pedestrians. Or maybe they enjoyed splashing me. A couple of them got me pretty well. I waited a minute before walking down one stretch of sidewalk that was getting splashed especially badly. I walked on, soaked to the skin, feeling my clothes cling to my limbs.
As soon as I could, I turned off of San Mateo onto another main drag--but one with better drainage. At about the same time, the rain started to let off. I guess I got back to the motel about an hour later, looking like a drowned rat.
![[>>]](../../images/next.gif){kind=small}