Chapter 2

The alarm was beeping repetitively in the most obnoxious pitch. Rolling over I smacked it into silence while relishing the last bit of comfortable warmth. Since I was more of a morning person John was still sleeping soundly beside me. Slipping from the cozy warmth and comfort I padded in my sleep shirt around the bed to the door. Before exiting I did my morning ritual, two kisses on my husband's sleeping temples singing a silly little song.

"Gray hair, gray hair, come back when he doesn't care."

It was a circular trip to the shower, first a brief stop to potty then into the kitchen to start the coffee, back to the steaming shower. John was the one that always sung in the shower while I preferred to enjoy the quiet sounds of water hitting tile. Washing my shoulder length mousey brown hair and leaving conditioner in I turned to shaving my legs. Why is it that every other day one must shave to avoid looking like an ape? As the razor moved easily I pondered the hair follicles. They did not even really serve much purpose in this day and age; really they should just die off. Next I turned my razor to my underarms and thought the same thing with each swish of the pink bladed plastic.

Rinsing off I realized my arms were not even tired from the work out yesterday. Looking at my right bicep I flexed it and was shocked to see the skin move and tighten. Perhaps all I needed to do was stick with it and I could change. Hidden inside me was an attractive woman who could make her husband interested in her. I could feel her tapping on my skin, trying to break out. While I dried off I vowed to do just that.

Clad in my extra large eggplant colored towel I ventured back into the bedroom to get dressed. Since it was May it was warm in the afternoons but still chilly in the morning so I picked a simple cotton dress with a matching knit sweater. The dress lacked any type of shaping and simply hung from my shoulders and large breasts down to my calves. It was several years out of date but since I only wore this style in spring it was in good condition. Stepping into sandals I tried to get John motivated.

"Come on dear, its 7:45 already. I need to be at the station by 8."

I left him grumbling to fix my lunch and coffee. Rather than a heaping Tupperware full of leftovers I put in a can of veggies and peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I could grab an apple at work if this wasn't enough. Soon I had our travel cups ready and my bag slung over my shoulder, new pattern, skein of yarn and needles beside my lunch sack. With barely a minute to spare John hustled down the stairs damp headed. He always drove me to the train station on his way to work, that way we did not have to pay for parking and since it was only about two miles from home we could get there quickly.

For the first time in years we exchanged a brief kiss at the station, after wishing each other a nice day. Smiling to myself I joined the rest of the crowd on the platform. Public transportation was a perk and a burden. The daily commute was long but the train with its frequent stops made it feel longer. At least it ran at convenient times.

Half an hour passed as I started a new sweater pattern. I had not been quite ready to start this but since the shawl was finished it was up already. A young man, undoubtedly on his way to college, sat down beside me on the aisle seat. Glancing up at him I smiled even though he had that sullen angry look. Too many kids today seemed to wear that as a mask and I thought he would be pretty cute if his acne would clear up. Of course I did not say this to him but thought girls would flock to him if his pores would just stay clean. He watched me knit for a while before striking up conversation.

"Wow lady, you can really do that fast."

Since I was pretty sure this guy did nothing fast I simply smiled. Kids today did not even know what knitting was let alone had seen anyone do it.

"Its all about muscle memory, once your hands know how to knit, they can simply do it while you don't even think about it." I told him.

He nodded his pimply face and cocked his head to one side, apparently trying to see what the woven yarn was going to become.

"What's it gonna be?"

Looking down at my lap I realized if I said sweater, he would ask for whom and by now I hade enough rows for it to fit an elephant. Feeling slightly freaked out I simply finished the current row and began packing up for my stop.

"It's a blanket."