More Words from the Campfire

Last night, after I had shaved off that itchy goatee and written in my blog, I laid in my tent and thought about my awesome life. Here I was, a few feet from my crackly campfire, and some 100 feet from the roarin and crashin Pacific Ocean. 

In my head, I asked myself, "Simon, can you be any luckier?" and after I thought about it, I could only reply, "no."

This mornin, I headed down to Monterey, old home to another one of my favorite writers, John Steinbeck.  Now, he wrote him some wonderful books, includin this one about a road trip he took with his dog, Charley.  I loved that

book and I love puppies. I even asked Frankie and Bruce if they wanted to come on this adventure with me, but Bruce was too itchy and Frankie's scared of motorcycles. I also asked my cousin Lily to come but she said she couldn't be that far away from her mom. Dang. I guess if I want to take a road trip with a puppy, I'll have to get me a poodle.

Anyways, I walked around the wharf and had me some fishies and an ice cream cone, and I basked in the sunshine.  I thought of a quote in another book I love by John Steinbeck, called Tortilla Flat. No, not the one that says "Here you play in the street, little chicken. Someday an automobile will run over you, and if it kills you, that will be the best thing that can happen. It may only break your leg or your wing. Then all your life you will drag along in misery. Life is too hard for you, little bird." 

When I read that passage the first time, I nearly gave up eatin chicken! But then Mama Rainy cruelly brought home a bucket of KFC, and next thing I knew, I was beggin for a piece. It was dang near involuntary, my cravin for the Colonel's 11 herbs and spices! That was a good supper that night.

Yum!!!!  Wait...is that right?  I'm so confused...

Now, I don't generally imbibe in the pleasures of alcohol, but today I got me one a them "rider bottles" of wine that my mom's friend used to drink on her long drive home from work every day and I wandered around the streets at the wharf like a real paisano.  I felt like I was in one of them John Steinbeck books, and it was wonderful!



Back here at the campfire, the sun is goin down. Back home in Florida, I am imaginin the nightly routine: Mama Rainy comes home first and takes off her pantalones, and then mom comes home and takes off her brassiere. They's gonna have KFC tonight because my writin is gonna make them crave it. Mama Rainy's gonna play her video game where she has to make burgers for a lot of people and my mom is gonna wonder why she don't just go down and work at the McDonald's if she really wants to be that stressed out.  She's gonna turn a light on and Mama Rainy's gonna turn it off.  They's gonna talk about their day and my brothers is gonna play outside til the lightnin starts. Then they's all gonna climb in our big bed and go to sleep.  My moms will both snore, Frankie will get too hot and get on the floor, and Ty Ty will steal Mama Rainy's pillow.  We's all happy at my house.

I will lay here in my tent and listen to the ocean and feel happy to be me. 

Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you my John Steinbeck quote that's not about the chickens! "The afternoon came down as imperceptibly as age comes to a happy man."

Love Simon