Honorable Discharge

Something electric flickered between them, but he could not move.
He could only stand as if hypnotized and look into the eyes that burned in the face looming over him.
-Nial Kent
"The Divided Path"

Twenty-five years ago today:

June 3, 1984
Sunday

When I woke up on this Sunday morning I quickly showered with my new natural soap that I bought at Piggy Malone’s. I smelled so good.

I telephoned Chris Cordellos who was at ‘mess hall’ this month.
“The best part of my day yesterday was when I called you,” Chris said happily.
I frowned, thinking this present call would probably be the highlight of my day, today.
“Why don’t you come up this weekend?” Chris asked with the hopes of hearing an affirmative.
I don’t know that I will.
“I will call you later in the week and let you know,” I said.
“I threw up last night because Barb and I went to some party and I drank too much beer. I got stoned to top it off,” Chris said all of a sudden.
I was anything but impressed.
“How could you do that?” I asked.
“I’m not going to drink beer anymore,” Chris said to immediately remedy his mistake.
“You know I told you so,” I shouted. “You don’t want a beer belly, do you?”
“I already have one.”
I think he expected me to say he did not have a beer belly, but instead I blatantly asked, “Well, you don’t want to get it worse than it already is, do you?”
I believe he is going to cut down on his beer intake.
“What’s the possibility of you getting that honorable discharge?” I asked.
“It looks good, but my mom asked me where I would live,” Chris replied.
He went on to explain that the supposed Walnut Creek home is still in the process of being built.
“Well, you could stay at my pad until your place is ready,” I reassured him.
Who knows what will happen?

I had a brief bicycle ride today. I also accompanied mom to see Ashley. I took more pictures. By 3:30pm (after the bike outing) I returned home for a nap. I woke up and had dinner and ended up watching “The Dollmaker”, starring Jane Fonda. It was a really good TV-movie with heartwarming true-to-life messages. It was a sad, happy and emotionally charged film.