12 hrs in big D

(ladies room ad in Memphis)


I had a wonderful time in Memphis! Dave and Paul performed at TN Comedy... it was a Thursday night (ladies night!) and a small crowd... but considering the size of the crowd, I think they got a good response... but I'm not a comedian, and shouldn't say anything... but i thought their sets were hilarious... so, THERE!

Afterwards I went out with Paul, and a couple (both locals and both comedians).... I had a really great time... One thing I didn't realize about Memphis was how segregated it is... The bar we went to, is in the same building as another bar... the entrance doors have only a few feet or less between them.... the bar we were in, was the "hipster" (forgive me if that's the wrong term, I'm sooo not down with the lingo, and only pretend to be cool... most of the time), the bar next door would have been categorized by tobacco companies as a "menthol" account. But it was also a tranny bar.... I went to check it out with the girl I was hanging out with... i was shocked... i couldn't believe these two venues were both full... and completely different worlds! I'm not sure if I've seen anything like that before.

This morning before I left Memphis, I talked to DL for a while.... I was so nervous about returning to TX... nauseous, even... but I was grouping every hurtful memory in one lump sum, rather than just looking at each event separately... which wouldn't have been bad at all if the circumstances were different... So, I was able to re-center myself (as much as possible) and drive to Dallas....

This pic is from the same ladies room... it also sums up what my motivational book on CD has taught me NOT to say to myself:

I wasn't sure if I was going to stay the night or not... I kinda just planned on breezing through and dropping stuff off at my storage unit... but I got caught in traffic on 40... in Memphis... bad traffic... 4-miles-in-2-hours bad. I also didn't want to make a big deal of my visit... because it's not a visit... it's a layover... there are so many people I want to see... and I didn't even get a chance to let some of the most important people, on my "want to see" list, know... I just need more time... or a clone... so I can be two places at once... or, better yet... a clone of me, who LIKES to talk on the phone... yes... I need a phone-clone.

So, I called last minute and stayed last minute here in Dallas.... I got in LATE.... I'll leave early for Midland... I got to see the Slack play at Barley... At first I was overwhelmed, and it felt noisy and crowded like Vegas (I've been in the mountains for 4 months...)... but I was so glad to see my dear friends. I missed them... a lot... I've cried a lot the last few days... but these were good tears...

I really was touched by the love and support I received tonight... I really am so blessed to have those wonderful friends... thank you (you know who you are)....

I cried some more and laughed some more... I felt love instead of judgement... the majority of the "judgement" has been ryann-on-ryann crime. Not anymore... at least I'll try my best...

love.
r