Chapter 40

Friday night passed with me sitting on the computer watching the a season of Project Runway. Totally by accident I found that I could watch a full season at once, and not be lost at all. It was by far the best way for me to watch TV. I could handle the daily news, but for entertainment, all at once on line was ideal. I might watch the same show over and over but so what, it was alway new to me.

I awoke on Saturday morning with enough memory to check the schedule on my computer. That is how I found out about the party at Jason and Marie's house. It didn't begin until 10PM that's part of how I knew that it wasn't your typical wine tasting event.

I found out again that morning that my background memory was coming back. I could always hope that my brain made even more new connections to tap into it's own filing system.

Meanwhile I read my journal entry from the day before, and rediscovered that I was out of business. Since I bored easily before the boat ramp incident, it was no surprise that it was even worse after. I read a little of my bike trip blog to discover that I was really quite adventurous. I guess I did get a few things from my dad after all.

On a whim I decided to go fishing. Once my memory got tweaked, I remembered that they sold licenses at the marina. They also charged a fee to fish there, but I didn't care. I spent my morning at Walmart buying equipment, since it was on the way to the lake.

For the next four hours I pretended to fish. It was very therapeutic. I watched the float bob up and down while I just relaxed and tried not to think about all those empty days ahead of me. All my days had really been empty since my rented car went into the river. I would really like for that to change, I thought.

I finally got hungry enough to pack up the fishing equipment and head home. I stopped at the downtown cafe for a meal of soup and a cheese sandwich. It was one of my favorite meals. Since I was too screwed up to know how often I had it, I ordered the soup an sandwich for lunch most every day I'm sure.

I passed the variety store belonging to my host for the evening, so I stopped in to browse and to verify the evening plan. "Well hello there, remember me?" I asked.

"Of course," Marie said. "So are you coming to the party tonight?"

"I am, if the invitation is still good," I replied.

"It most definitely is. Try to get to the house between 9 and 10 if you can. It is easier if everyone shows up around the same time." Marie suggested.

I had no idea why that would be important but I said, "If the car shows up on time, I will be there no problem."

"Would you like for me to have one of the other guests stop by for you?" she asked.

"That won't be necessary, but thanks for the offer. Since I am here, I think I will brows, if that is okay?" I said.

"Of course, it's how you become a customer. First you look then you buy," she said smiling. "If you are a real bargain hunter, the proceeds of an estate sale just came in the back door. Go on back and have a look. Anything you buy before we sort it, is half price."

"Of course you decide what the price is," I suggested. "But I trust you to do the right thing."

What I found in the boxes, which I helped to unpack, was a very old cook book of sorts. It was from American's colonial days. It was hand written and really just a bundle of papers. Still I found it of interest, not as a collector thing, but as something I might want to try. I could imagine a dish made from a two hundred and fifty year old recipe.

"So how much?" I asked.

"How about a dollar?" she asked.

"That sounds totally fair to me," I said handing her the money.

When I arrived home, I found the hand written pages fascinating. I stopped reading only long enough to microwave a frozen pot pie. Otherwise I read the recipes and the little stories that went along with each.

Among all the food recipes there were four very detailed recipes for making brandy from fruit and liquor from corn. I used the computer and google to check out the recipes and the equipment mentioned.

"Hello," I said into the phone.

"It's me Michael and I'm downstairs in the lobby." the voice said.

"Michael I will be down in a minute," I replied. I had gotten lost in the book. I made a quick note to myself and then an entry into the index before I rushed down the stairs.

"Hello there Lucy, I have really missed driving you around," he said.

"That's nice to hear. I'm headed to this address," I said handing him the note with the William's address.

"Won't take more than ten minutes," Michael said. "You know even after all that you and Jane went through, she still got three years for possession with intent."

"I'm sorry to hear that Michael. It could have been worse though," I said that even though I had no idea what he was talking about, and I didn't want to waste time looking it up.

When we arrived at the brick two story house, I gave Michale twenty dollars for the ride and a five dollar tip. He seemed satisfied, so I left the car in a good mood.

When I rang the bell, Jason answered dressed in a track suit. "Come on in Lucy the party is just getting started. I do hope you are as adventuresome and I have heard."

"Oh really and who has been talking about me?" I asked.

"Okay your clerk Sam said we should invite you to a party. You did know that we are swingers?" he asked.

"No, but that's okay," I said it as I went into the entry hallway. I also pulled out my cell phone to find out that swinging meant casual sex, with people other than your life partner. I figured I could do that well enough.

In the very large family room I saw exactly a dozen people wandering around. It was not six couples I decided since there were more men than women. I had no idea how that was going to work out. There were seven men and only five women not counting me. The one extra man would be interesting I was quite sure.