I like watching the puddles gather rain....

It's been awhile since I last wrote. Nothing too eventful has been going on except the financial collapse of our markets...but other than that, that's pretty much it.

Since we're all facing economic hardships, last night I decided to go on craigslist.com to find a couch for my place and of course, stimulate the economy by spending some money. I'd been looking for one for a few months and last night i figured that i'd take a chance and look again. Finally...after a few scrolls down the list of prospective peices of furniture, I was seriously in love with a pastel green, slightly faded, comfy looking chair. It was perfect. I figured it would be a perfect match for my avacado green colored walls and of course...my days of wonderous lounging. It looked ultra comfy and so inexpensive...you can't beat a measley $50 right?

I got to the owners house...ALL THE WAY out to West LA...passed the 405. I figured I'd be stuck in traffic, but for some reason I flew and made it from Boyle Heights in under 30 minutes. When I got to the house, I was slightly frightened by some barking coming from the home...then I realized it wasn't a dog, but some guy on the other side of the door asking me who it was...I was like..."it's me?" (as if he could possibly know who "me" is)

A girl finally came to the door and said...sorry about that...the dogs are going crazy...(right)

She led me through a small house and finally to the "chair." I was impressed. Considering how unruly the house that I was in looked, the chair didn't seem too bad. I wanted to take it...but how would I take it back to my place...? 1) I was 13+/- miles away from my house...which in LA times is an eternity 2) I drive a VW Beetle convertible and finally 3) It looks as if there will be a down pour from the looks of the dark clouds above me.

Some background about craigslist...if the stuff is good, it will sell...so it's absolutely necessary to not only be aggressive, but also impulsive. I confirmed with the owner by stating "50 right?" = SOLD!!!

I ran to the ATM down the road, pulled out some cash and drove back to the home, where I pulled in in reverse. Prior to pulling into the long drive way...i pushed the necessary button to start pulling back the top of the convertible. Not only did I notice some really dark clouds above my head, but for some reason my damn convertible top was not going down correctly. I didn't have time to fix it...I had to get the chair.

It took what seemed like hundreds of minutes and constant switchbacks to finally making it to the door where the chair would be brought out. The "boyfriend" came out and looked at my car and must of thought..."this girl is crazy" He gave me a look of disbelief...not at all thinking that I could put that chair in the back of my two seat backseat. I looked at him with a gaze that said..."I don't know how the hell I'm going to get it clear across the city, with no rope to tie the chair down, but I'm going to do it" look. He was seriously concerned asking, "you're not taking the freeway are you...?" Of course not...

I drove off...

Now...I'm pulling on to Olympic Blvd and head east. It will clearly take me back to Boyle Heights...but I was clearly west of the 405 and in my mind I kept thinking...how the heck am i going to get home? I stayed calm, turned down the radio and tried to ignore the stares from ongoing traffic. As I drove 15...20....25 minutes...i realized that things weren't so bad. At about Robertson Blvd, I noticed drops of rain...but figured they were just figments of my imagination. Eventually...about 40 minutes later, I saw the LA skyline and the sign pointing out that Staples Center was straight ahead. I gave a sigh of relief.

As I'm crossing Figueroa....i feel drops of rain fall onto my head...hand...steering wheel and now my chair. I kind of begin to freak out, but I try to calm down...breathing in and out....then without really thinking and remembering...i completely forgot that Olympic stops for a bit near and around skid row and so i'm now thinking damn...i gotta turn left. LUCKILY there is no traffic because as I'm heading North...completely preoccupied with getting home asap and dry, I run a damn red light!!!! At this point I'm so freaked out...not only am I driving in my convertible Beetle, with the top down, carrying this gigantic chair in the rain...but I'm obviously putting my life in danger.

I finally get to 7th street, make a right....try to miss all the red lights and finally see the 7th street bridge to take me into Boyle Heights...IT BEGINS TO POUR!!! I haul ass....driving up and down the bridge and as I'm doing this, I notice someone on my right screaming at me.... "you need to put a trash bag over that" I know that you fool!!! It's not like i'm doing this for fun. As i'm driving...I'm yelling at this guy "i live nearby!" which wasn't true, because I still had several blocks....anyway...i'm beginning to get soaked...saved by a few underpasses who intercept whatever rain drop that is on its way down....and then finally...FINALLY, i drive into my driveway and with the amount of adrenaline I had, I scooped my chair out of my car and into my tiny little house, where it sits tonight in my living room...perfectly.

Some will say that this was utterly ridiculous...however, I find it to have been adventurous. Well...now I do. At the time it was an utter mess :)