home again

The park manager's father came back from his fishing trip right on time. I had expected it to be my last day. Instead it became an offer to work another month. I didn't really need the money, but having use of the park's pick up made grocery shopping a lot easier. I didn't feel safe driving the truck outside the park, but since the store was open all night I went at midnight. It was pretty empty when I went grocery shopping.

With another month tied to the park on the NC coast, I settled in. I continued my almost daily trips to the pier. I was tempted to rent some tackle and try my hand at fishing. Instead I made myself content with reading while watching the waves. I had agreed to move, if a fisherman happen by who needed a seat. After all they were the real paying customers.

I got my books from the used bookstore. I bought them at half price and traded them back in at quarter price. The books were old and all paperbacks, but I read them for the ideas inside not the trimmings. It was like the bikes I built. I built them for the functionality not the looks.

I had three weeks to go on my job when I finally caught up with my mysterious cyber friend.

"Are you on line?" the message read.

"I am now," I replied.

"Finally we meet."

"Not exactly, I typed."

"Don't be so damned literal."

I began to doubt that it was Mary. I had never heard her use even the mildest curse. "Alright then, finally we meet."

That's better, so what are you up to?"

"I'm getting ready to take a drive through the park. I am the night security officer here."

"Sounds important."

"It isn't. What I am is someone to allow the park manager to sleep at night. I take the complaint calls. People who don't want to call the cops or have maintenance issues call me. Mostly I ride through the park once and come home to watch TV on line."

"Ah anything interesting?"

"There is always something interesting. IF you make a list of all the shows in english It isn't hard to find something worth watching."

"So are you married mystery man?"

"My wife died last winter."

"I'm so sorry. Why are you living at the beach. Don't you have any family back home."

"I have a daughter who is married with a houseful of kids. I wasn't ready to be grandpa just yet."

"So you are on the road."

"Not quite. I'm also not ready to live on what I can get in a backpack. I just wanted to move around a little and see things. You know one last time."

"So you live in a camper, but you don't own a car or truck?"

"No, I don't own a car or truck. As long as I can drive, I can rent a truck to move the camper around. Besides if my Doctor found out I was driving he would call the highway patrol and have my license pulled. I'm not really all that safe driving."

"Ah then when I see you driving in the park I should lock my door?"

She had let it slip that she was in the park. In which case it could only be Mary. "If I were you, I would lock the door and move to the center of the house and stand in a doorway. Me and a truck could be equal to the force of a tornado."

"So how long are you going to stay around."

"I agreed to do the park thing for another three weeks. After that I will begin to look around. Just check out my options. Just like in Midnight cowboy, I might need to move to where the weather suits my clothes."

"Or just buy some warmer clothes?"

"I guess that is an option. It might not work since the camper never did have a heating system installed."

"You could always find somewhere else to live."

"Na, I like the camper just fine. Besides that was the whole point in taking it on the lamb. Being able to pick up and move when ever the spirit moved me."

Suddenly the message window closed. I waited a few minutes to see if it was an accident or if she was pissed. After ten minutes I decided that I has said something she didn't want to hear. I also decided that Mary was a little nuts. That made her a little more interesting. I do love a crazy broad.