Entries this day: Gin_in_St_Nazaire z_meg_abi

Gin in St Nazaire

July 2001

 Subject:    Gin in St Nazaire
    Date:    Thu, 05 Jul 2001 16:49:43 


Greetings Space Creatures!   I am a walk away from the
sea! although i have not laid my eyes upon it yet, the
sky tells me the water is boldly crashing onto the
beach.  It seems like i have been off my trail in
Bretagnè for a month.  I can't really say i have been
lost, since i have never been where i am going, and
the only time i retrace my steps are usually because
of the threatening black berry bushes, and since i
forgot my chapps- it has been only in the darkness of
the night i brave those thorny buggars.  I have spent
the last few days in the Swamp, it has been just like
swamps are for me, beyond sacred and mystic.  I think
of Caddo Lake in East Texas as my Swamp home, but even
without gators i feel at home in most swamps.  I even
had the prividlege of sinking up to my ass in mud
twice yesterday (off of the route and then heading
back too it).  I thought "oh what a familiar feeling,
how many people never get the thrill o! f sinking up
to their torso in mud (and hoping it stops there)". 
When i was human rights observing in the Landcon
jungle in Mexico I volunteered to go the the furthest
village they were sending observers to, and it was 20
miles each way sinking up to my thighs in mud; a
couple of meters yesterday brought back good memories
of me laughing hysterically the whole 20 miles.   I
tell you, it feels like I am at the end of the first
leg of my journey, and although it seems like I have
always been on the Camino, it passed all too quickly. 
It is a happiness that causes me to thank the gods and
the earth and the creatures and all the powers that is
making this possible.  It brings me to my knees the
gratitude i feel.  
   Since my last update i left the beautiful city of
Rennes, one of my favorite inhabited-by-human places
yet and after a few days of doing my usual tour of all
the cardnal directions on the map decided with a
little help of a friendly post master in Plèchatel to
walk along the beautiful Vilaine River (means ugly in
french).   I had not walked the river for 10 minutes
before i had taken off my back pack and shoes and
dived in with all of my high-tech dry-quik clothes on
and decided that if i could figure out how to ask for
an intertube, it would not be contrary to my go to
galicia via self power resolution to float my backpack
down the river rapped in plastic and tie my clothes
line to my big toe and swim to meet the parents of a
friend of mine about 50 miles away.  This river rat
would do it!   I was discouraged by people concerned
by my skin falling off because of the pollution, but
people think the worst, i still might give it a try!
down one of these rivers.  It might start a trend in
France and give the intertubes a break from the road. 
So, there I was, discouraged and my brilliant idea
shot down, taking a nap by the side of the river on a
very sunny afternoon, and this guy on a bike stopped
and asked me if the road ahead lead to Redon (the next
city down the way). Of course i told him i hoped so, i
was headed in that direction, but if it did not i was
by then used to being off course and had a map and a
compass.  He was nice and we spoke about history and
philosophy and spiritual or anti-spiritual matters and
he joined me.  I tried to pick up my tortise pace a
little, and i was on the path with my first fellow
traveler.  Later that night he asked me if he could
join my camp for the night, he said "i feel safer with
you", i thought about the nice compliment and replied
that i felt safe with me too.  We talked late into the
night, into the time that the funeral service for my
good friend "The Birdman" was happening stateside.  We
enjoyed the beautiful cliffs and forests of the
vilaine and visited some megalithic stones and i said
my celtic prayers.  Although we never formally
introduced ourselves, we will know each other and had
a good time down by the river.  For me, the "first"
are always intense, the first leg of the pilgrimage,
the first kiss of a cow, of a horse, the torrential
rain storm, the first night in the house of a stranger
that took me in soaking wet, my first traveling
friend, etc.  He rode his bike and i walked along for
a few days, really pushing it harder than before. 
     We arrived in Redon and I knew I only had a day
or so journey before i was to meet my future (big
stretch of a possibility) mother and father in law. 
yes, that is right, i have told a french man that i
would splice the knot for a few years for
naturalization purposes.  But, regardless of the
reason, what a frightful tradition for me to think
about, i don't even really know this cat, which makes
it a little easier.  But the horrid thought of meeting
a mother and father in law was enough to make me want
to get drunk!  In the best french i could muster i
told them i was walking to their town, and to their
house, of course i had to give up my resolution to be
polite, because there was no rationalizing "NO CARS" 
with these guys.  It was a lovely time, I saw over
2000 pictures in the few days i was there and got the
whole family history.
     The night after i got there we went to a birthday
party of the best friend of the mother.  We first went
to their house and drank rum and juice, then about 9pm
we went to a restarunt completely reserved for the
party.  There were about 60 people.   The french eat
in 6 or 7 courses, and in typical party style have
games and activities between every course.  After the
local cider wine everyone went outside to play games.
Talking about breaking the ice, the first game
involved 2 teams of 20 people, with the teams spilit
into two lines.  It was a relay to see who could
transfer the stick from between the legs and run or
hop or whatever to the other half of the team about 15
feet away and pass it off (between the legs) (SEX).  
The next game was similar except it was with rolls of
toilet paper between the legs and passing them off
onto a big stick between the legs of the opposing
teammate about 15 feet away.   Lots more games, but
those are ones to try at your next party!   During the
dinner the french like to sing songs and have alot of
customs and puppet shows and strip tease and so on. 
In the middle of the 4th course the people at the
elder table (3 tables of younger, older and oldest)
sand a song and apparently darred me to get up and
sing a solo.  Well, I can imagine the look on my face,
i was stupified, really wanted to resist, but of
course i played along.  I stood up and told them, ok
but in spanish.  I sang a rendition of "El Corrido de
Durango" at the top of my lungs.  I think by the end
of the song i was not hitting all the high notes,
possibly because of my suprised state, but they caught
it all on video anyway.  Everyone clapped and in
another french tradition ALL of the men stood up and
came over to give me a kiss- or 4. I am sure I was
beet red, but all the glasses were raised in my
direction.   The party was fantastic, one of the
funniest puppet shows i have ever seen. The last
course was served at half passed one, and then we went
back to the house to have champaigne.  I had 8 kinds
of alchol at the party, too much for even this party
animal.  I say, if we do unlawfully wed, the party
will be french style; and surely the divorce party
will be even bigger. 
       I figured out the next day when the mom and dad
were discussing what a hit i was at the party and mom
said, yea, she would make a good daughter-in-law
(beautiful dayghter directly translated), that this
guy had told them.  I felt at liberty to tell them it
was only a jesture of kindness (3 dutchmen have
offered to marry me for naturalization purposes) and
not at all that i was dreaming of anything romantic
with him, in any way!  They seemed to take it all in,
and seemed very honored to have me stay, it was
afterall a bit as exhausting as i expected in-laws to
be.  So I have had a couple of beautiful days in the
swamp and now i will sign off and head to the bridge. 
A few disclaimers; i have still not got the hang of
the french keyboard- the q's are a's and the ; are ,
and the : are. or something like that.  I tried to put
all the addresses on Bcc, but it didn't work.  I am
not really up on cyber courtesey, but I would like to
try to err on the side of privacy.  So until the next
time, i hope ya'll are having fun being flung through
the universe!  Give yourself a big hug and as my
french is getting better so is my cowish.  Take a deep
breath (stomach deep) and from under the breast bone
and with the mouth closed start a big MOOOO, it starts
slowly and rumbles up through the throat and into the
mouth and open the mouth and feel the frontal and
parietal plates of the skull reverberate.  It feels so
good!  I recommend trying it at least a half-a-dozen
times just to get the hang of it.  Don't hold back,
and try not to be shy if you are at work or in a
public place, i think this might be contagious, it
might be a little acquard at first, but when the whole
office really gets into it, you will be happy you
tried, and remember if you like it...do it again
tomorrow.
      Love and Laughs, gin

z meg abi

11:58pm CDT Thursday 5 July 2001

Tonight I went to Meg and Abi's house, which I had heard a lot about, but had never previously visited. It's not actually their house, they're renting it, and it's not just theirs; there are two other room mates there.

The idea was to play a board game, but instead we hung out in the kitchen a bit, munching chips and guacamole and salsa and Meg's Custom Dip, while talking to their friend Hassan (sp), who was happy with talking, but immediately had to leave when Meg suggested we play a game.

I toured their house, enjoying the college-decor, including Meg's dada bedroom, where every piece of furniture is being used in a way it was not designed. ... except that it was still being used as furniture.

Abi, Meg and I played mental clue; I guessed Meg's choice in 3 tries; she had picked the last items on each list. We had written the possible items on the dry erase board so that we knew for certain from what people/places/things we could choose.

people       places         things
Heather     living room    cat
Alexis      France         lightnet
Sarah       RMC            baby head
Holly V     galapagos      arsenic
David C     beach          air

The list of people is correct, and the others are close to correct. By correct, I mean what was written on the white board.

After the game, at Meg's request, I recited the rules to Silent Football. Abi said it sounded like a fun game to play with some KTRU peeps. That would definitely be fun.

Meg and I talked a lot about YRUU, and when we started going through names and names of people, searching our brains for names that we both knew, Abi began to fall asleep. She went to bed, and Meg and I just talked a lot of YRUU stuff and stories and rumors and such. Tons of fun!!

I told her brief versions of all my Long Jokes, and we talked/gossipped some about KTRU. Also more YRUU talking.

I'm tired; going to bed. Thank you Meg for a lovely evening!