A Good Night

Last night was a beautiful night.

I am listening to "Falling Slowly" from the Once video...Have you ever listened to music while the camera rolls in your mind, playing parts of the day back, the pictures falling into place as the music is playing? Sort of like your own internal video?

Last night was beautiful, because I saw something shine. I saw strangers who have come to know eachother a little bit, laughing and, crying through the course of the night. Sometimes, misery is beautiful. Sort of a bittersweet telling of stories. It felt like something from a Tarantino movie, but with a little slapstick, and Ozu thrown in. The focus on the ale, not the pitcher, but the glasses of Chardonnay. The brass. The swivel chairs.

What I liked most was the psychology of that night. Things were happening on so many different levels. I am sitting here writing and feel I don't have the words (and clearly, I don't).

On the outside, parts could have looked like a drunken scene, with some of the individuals, but there was so much more going on beneath the surface. In some ways, I felt it was a break-through night for many people. Does that sound strange? but so much happens with the psyche in a bar, at times, and alcohol can be such a burden and problem and yet is a wonderful way to release and enable other, deeper things to come forth.

Sometimes, too much is said while drunk, and other times, it is the only way someone will open up and they don't regret the opportunity.

I've seen fun and sort of pointless partying, and then I've seen really beautiful interactions--yes, like something out of a bawdy camp Western maybe, but still beautiful. Something beautiful that is both individual and communal.

I cannot write about it here--the details. I have already sworn not to say much about people and events. But I will write about it somewhere else, where the details are okay.

"You have suffered enough, and warred with yourself; it's time that you won." (from "Falling Slowly") I think this applies to many of the people there last night. I heard some confessions.

I cannot write about what other people were saying, here, but I'll post a couple of comments that came from me last night.

Someone introduced themself to me, by name, and I answered with, "Hi, I'm The Catch Of The Town." They laughed and then I introduced myself to the other guy the same way. Someone said, "So everyone wants you?" and I said, "Yes. The FBI wants me, the CIA wants me--Everybody wants me." Then a guy said, "What you do you want?" he asked if I'd like another glass of Chardonnay. He asked again, "What do you want?" and someone else made quip about what they wanted. I said, "I want true love." He said he could give that to me and put his hand on my hip. I moved away slightly and said, "True love doesn't come with a hand on the hip...(pause as I didn't even know what was going to come out of my own mouth next)..."True love comes with a machette."

I thought about how this was a very poetic thing to say, surprised by myself.

"True love doesn't come with a hand on the hip,
True love comes with a machette."

It's true. You can read into it however you like. Why machette came to mind I've no idea.

On another note, I met this one guy who is a lawyer who's fought against corporate big dogs and really knows how to be the little guy making the big firm spend $200,000 over something small before realizing how much they'd gone into the hole trying to snow them. He has a lot of very practical knowledge--I think I could learn some things from him.

Anyway, people last night--they kissed, they cried, they laughed, and they got spanked.

Oh, I cannot resisting adding to that last part. One of the guys was going out and got smacked on the bottom, and he turned around, changing his mind, for more. At one point, he held onto this brass coatrack with both hands and this other woman was spanking him as he stood there, going "Oww!" and he's got his teeth recently broken in an assault outside the bar and looks hilarious when he's making these faces. He's a businessman and his temporaries fell out and he has to have them replaced. It's his two front teeth. So this coatrack he grabs is RIGHT next to this table where a very conservative looking group is sitting. The woman looks like she's from Dakota, and is just the apple-pie mom or grandmother you'd think they have out there, and she's wearing a top with little flowers dotted all over it and is overweight with glasses and a pleasant face. So I had full view of her expressions while this was all taking place, and it was priceless. I laughed so hard last night.

Something else, small, but new to me, happened at the bar last night too, but that wasn't part of the "break through" by anymeans. It was just a first and something interesting but which will likely not be repeated. The break throughs were in the conversations taking place, and what was happening in the minds of those who were both speaking and conversing, or sometimes only listening.

It was a good night.