Tree Leaning (Friday)

It’s Friday night, and it’s time to get back to basics. After a short shopping spree and a most disappointing meal at Outback Steakhouse, I run to the city for the used to be usual Beirut pre-game at C+C’s (and sometime G’s). The three of them are there along with mini-C, his friend, Chaz and a Chilean buddy of his who’s brought an almost goth looking Swiss chick. How many fair-skinned black haired Swiss chicks have you met? I’m up to one now.

We get the game on, followed by the new rage of liar’s dice and chase that with a cab ride out to the Marina where we start at City Tavern (like that’s anything new). We’re met there by X and her friend Sara, but we’ve been split by the cab ride so we head over to Bar None to regroup.

On the way there, I light spliff one and run into the woman from the Cage. I think most of you know who I’m talking about. Her brother is also out and about.

At Bar None, the world splits into a confusing dichotomy of city people that I hide my face from vs. drunk ass Hillsborough people that I know. I’m talking the bar has been turned into Crystal/Crocker North. You’ve got mini-Loesche, Doc’s Daughter, Chaz, Adam Smith, K. Buck, our original crew, J. Har, and numerous others. Nick insists on boozing me up by buying me drinks and making me double fist. I pass off what I can’t drink to the other Adam and watch as X makes a hypocrite of herself by sparking a cigarette.

This is where everything gets interesting. I wander over to the Beirut tables in the back and find Chaz and ChengJ engaged in mortal combat with two randoms. K. Buck and her friend KG are playing some other fools. I ask K. Buck about her marital status and am surprised to find out that despite the fact that she acts more single than most girls I know, K. Buck has been dating Emmott for like three years. I’m shocked. Shocked. Well, maybe not that shocked (Futurama)…

Over on the table, not only are Chaz and ChengJ getting whopped up on by these guys, as a friendly token, they’re furnishing the two of them with Jaeger bombs. During the course of the game, I watch Chaz pour down at least three…

We stagger into the street, smoking. I give Maurod a call, but he’s out of the area, on his way. I tell them, we’ll wait, this is all good. For the first time ever, Maurod doesn’t come through. We’re waiting, getting gradually more stoned, and no Maurod. X and Sara start to get pissed and want to get a cab. I try Maurod a few more times to no avail, we get in a cab, and I can only hope that this transgression hasn’t gotten me on Maurod’s blacklist for life.

We’re in the cab five minutes and Chaz needs to pull over. The two smokes, Jaeger bombs, beer and several mixed drinks combined with the rocking and swaying motion of the cab that’s not unlike a boat at this point, sends him over the edge. He gets out of the car, wandering around. I get out with him. He tells me, “This might be awhile…just leave me, I’ll get a cab back to C+Cs” Yea, I’m gonna leave him in the middle of nowhere in the Marina to find his own cab back.

X and Sara take the cab to take Sara home. X returns, at which point I’ve made another video (Dancing in the Street video to come this week, I absolutely promise), and Chaz’s stomach has been brought under control.

In the cab five minutes, Chaz needs to stop again. This time he’s all over the sidewalk and hanging onto a tree for dear life. He vows to never drink Jaeger again. As he drops us off, I say to the cabdriver, trying to be nice, “Wasn’t it good that he didn’t throw up in your cab?”

Cab driver is not amused. He drives away and the night fades to black.