3/12/17,
“Memories”
Los Angeles
International Airport, California (LAX)
It’s funny
how memories work. We rarely remember
past events in complete detail or minute-by-minute. Instead, we remember scenes and images. The things that we do remember instead play
on loop in our mind’s eye when we remember them, rather than than playing
continuously forward. Nor can we recall
memories at will. Instead, they are
triggered by various factors, and it is always interesting what (or where)
triggers our memories, just as it interesting the small things that we remember
and the big things that we forget.
That
was at play at dinner last night, as we recalled events from our distant pasts
and couldn’t always remember the year (or, in the case of my companions, the decade) they occurred, but each memory we recalled had at least one scene that
was in great detail. Various memories
have been coming back to me all weekend, both of the times I met Gene and of
other trips to San Diego. Sitting at the
exact same table this morning where we shared our last meal brought back
memories, as did going to the San Diego Zoo.
That was what was at play today.
After I closed last night, I published and almost fell asleep in the
process of publishing. I woke up all
confused as to what it was, both due to the time zone difference and DST
beginning. It was getting on 11 AM PDT
by the time I got to breakfast, but I had nothing planned for the day, other
than the zoo, and I wanted to tarry at the hotel as much as possible. I was able to arrange for a noon check-out,
which would allow me to have time to eat and get ready before heading to the
smoking area, where I could kill as much time as I wanted.
I had a simple breakfast of a bagel with
cream cheese, steak, eggs, and fried potatoes, along with coffee, much the same
as Gene ate during our last meal, and sitting in the same seat he did that
day. Did I know that that would be the
last time that I saw him? No, but I
expected it would be the case, and I had mentally prepared for that
eventuality, enjoying every minute we had together that day.
After breakfast, I headed back to my room,
got packed and ready, and changed into my suit.
I then headed to the smoking area, lit up an Ardor, and worked on some
stuff. After the pipe, I lit up a
Graycliff and finished up what I was doing before retrieving my car and driving
to the zoo. The drive would be short,
and I wondered if my cigar would be done before I arrived, but I took some
wrong turns and wound up at the parking lot just as I finished my cigar.
The zoo was packed, as I expected it to be on
a Sunday afternoon in March. I was
shocked and almost outraged how expensive the admission was, but this was the
best zoo in the country. I was hungry,
so I went immediately to the first food place I saw, my sticker shock
continuing when I saw the prices they were charging for food. I ordered lightly, just a hot dog with a
variety of toppings, which came with chips, and a soda, forgoing the pizza I
might have also gotten if the prices were more reasonable. Okay, so this could be a two-sentence recounting
or a two-paragraph recounting. Let’s see
how it pans out. I looked at the map and
planned the two hours I had available.
My priority was seeing the primates, since those were a specialty here,
and, if I had time, I would see the big cats.
First I saw an orangutan (“King Louie!”), followed by a gorilla, which
was met with shouts of “Harambe” from everyone there of my age range. No, I will not explain that reference. Next, I found the bonobo chimps, and I
remembered seeing them when I was here five (or maybe seven) years ago during
Comic Con. I also remembered the quests
that my mother and I embarked on along the eastern seaboard in pursuit of
chimps over a decade ago. Those were all
good memories. I lit up an Oliva, not
expecting to be able to smoke the cigar for more than about ten minutes before
someone made me put it out, and took a ceremonial picture with the chimps. Then it was the tiger, and I failed in
finding the python. Anyone who has seen “Jungle
Book” will know what I was doing. I
wanted to see the elephants next, and I saw many other animals along the way,
which I will not recount. I found the
elephants, and that was the end of my “Jungle Book” mission. I saw some lions next, and, after I took my
ceremonial pictures with the lions, my cigar was almost done.
I prepared to take my final puffs, and only
then, after I had smoked the whole cigar, did a zoo employee angrily tell me
that smoking was prohibited. I made a
big gesture of ditching the cigar, which I was about to do anyway, and
continued on. I got some chicken fingers
at the next place, which were, surprisingly, very cheaply priced if you got
them on their own. I then headed out to
the exit, stopping to see the giraffes on the way out. I got my souvenir (a keychain) and went to my
car. I lit up an LFD and was on the
road. It was 5:45 PM, and without traffic,
I would have been at LAX at 7:30 PM.
Google Maps was saying it would be closer to 8 PM. Either way, I was fine, as my flight was at
10:40 PM.
I soon saw the sign for I-5
and Los Angeles. It would be a straight
shot. Well, I hit traffic. A lot of traffic. After the LFD, I lit up a Nub, and it was
after 9 PM by the time I returned my car to Hertz, after 9:30 PM by the time I
got to the terminal. I was getting a
strong sense of deja vu. There was a
long line to check in bags (I had none) and at security (I had TSA
PreCheck). I was at my gate around 9:45
PM, which gave me plenty of time to get some food.
I found a place that had Asian fusion burgers,
and I ordered one. It was quite
good. I then went to my gate, only to
learn that our flight was delayed due to issues with the previous flight
leaving the gate. Oh, the irony. Well, that meant I had time for my
entry. I sat down and proceeded to write
this entry, which I will now close, along with closing out this trip. It will be interesting to see what memories
from this trip remain, just as it was interesting to recall the memories I did
during the trip. Next stop:
Philadelphia.
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