FARIES WEAR BOOTS and a FRIDAY FABLE

If you are not a true Black Sabbath fan, you won't realize the title of my today's post is the title of the song the boys are singing up there.  I'm afraid that's the only place in this post that you will find fairies in boots.

Although I can tell you my favorite true fairy tale!  Yay!

The fairies names were Lance and Michael Boom-Boom (I kid you not!) and they were flamers!  They were also Bliss's friends in the way back machine of Miss Bliss' life.

This was the month of November  (Lord help me) 

and the place was smack dab in the middle of California.  November 16, 1971 to be precise.  Allow me to take you there.

Cue in on the state and turn the knob until you can see a big red turn of the century two story house that was called The Big Red Barn on Peralta Way.  This is the home of one delicious Miss Bliss who is... if you dial that knob a bit more... sitting her pretty little ass in the middle of the stair case waiting.  She is sitting there singing this song:

It is the only song that Miss Bliss can carry off... because she can't sing on key to save her lost soul.

Her soul was tarnished at this time as evidenced by the red eyes of a dedicated pot head birthday girl.  Can you see them?  She is like many California babes in those days dressed in hippy trippy clothes, clogs and of course the required seed bead necklaces en mass.  Big silver hoops hang from her ears and tickle her neck amid dark longish natural curls. 

Miss Bliss is excited.  A knock comes on the door... it's Tye-dye, Lance and his too young to be legal lover, Michael Boom-Boom.   As a favor, the Medusa has agreed to remain upstairs and out of their hair... this favor cost two joints.

Tye-dye is wearing the fabulous antique Chinese robe and dress that was handed down in her family.  She is tall and has Peggy Lipton style long blond hair.  Miss Bliss thinks that she is stunningly gorgeous in this get up.  Lance, a lanky redhead is dressed in flirtatious hip hugging bell bottoms, a silk shirt and completes his outfit with a woven sash tied at the side of his hip.

Michael Boom-Boom... and yes we called hm the whole three names...is something to see.  He is short and stocky.  His blond hair is cut like the Dutch Boy you see hanging out on paint cans.  He has Neil Young mutton chops that are brown.  His nails are painted bright red.  He's wearing a flowery blouse... probably his mother's... a leather and medallion choker on his neck and snug jeans.  Clogs peak out from under his pants and heavy chest hair burbles out the neck of his blouse.  His face is made up like Freddie's when Queen was into glam.

 Gee... I never really thought about it before but Michael Boom-Boom looked like a blond Freddie!

They eat a lovely Chinese food diner at the lion footed table that lil' Miss Bliss used to hide under for comfort... and drink enough saki to add a good buzzz

to the grass glow.  None of them have one fully functioning brain cell between them but they are happy and in a great mood to celebrate the profound event of Miss Bliss turning 17.

Lance is the oldest.  Somewhere close to 25.  Tye-dye and Michael Boom-Boom are both 16.  They have a surprise for Miss Bliss... a secret mission!  Yippie!

Off they trot to the car and mysterious location.  Before take-off Lance and Michael Boom-Boom kiss.

Miss Bliss giggles at the thought: Love The One You're With, then looks at Tye-Dye and immediately cancels that idea.  But it makes her laugh harder.  Hey... pot really does make you stupid.

Bliss watches life on the main streets... the cars and people walking around.  In those days, you could smoke a joint in the open and not get into trouble, but paranoia made you hide them anyway if you saw a cop or if a car slowed down.  Bliss giggled at a group of college aged kids doing that very thing as the car turned into a suspiciously middle class suburbia.  Who did they know who lived in this area?

They curbed the car next to a normal looking house.  Warm lights glowed in the windows and several other cars were parked around.  Miss Bliss was very curious now.  What did we have here?  She listened for music and heard none.  Not a party then... hummm.

Inside the house a normal enough looking living room for the seventies... gold shag carpet, avocado tones, big bottomed amber lamps and lots of people...

a notably mostly white crowd.  This was a Buddhist meeting.  Too freaking much!  Bliss tried hard to keep her plastic smile from cracking into chuckles.

The meeting began and a man pulled out a guitar.  He strummed it and began to sing... and please forgive my spelling on this...

"There's a meeting here tonight, there's a meeting here tonight, Rama, Shaka, bukoo there's a meeting here tonight!"  He then quickly pointed his guitar neck at a girl and said "What has Buddha done for you today?"

The girl wiggled with joy and popped to her feet.  She was in fact, the only Asian person present.  

"Well this is so great!  I wanted to go to this concert but I didn't have the money and so I chanted on it and I got a $50 tip!"

Yay!  Yay!  Yay!  Everyone is mighty impressed and the man with the guitar starts his little song again and points to another fellow who shared a similar story of good fortune after his daily chant for some material thing.

Bliss loses herself in the absurdity.  I mean... didn't Buddha give up his worldly goods on his search for enlightenment?  WTF?

A brief lesson on chanting followed.  It sounded something like this:  "nommohoranggaykeeoh" with a humming undertone.

A new man stepped forward when the guitar and testimonials ended.  He looked like somebody's dad.

This was the evening's speaker.  Bliss and her birthday buddies were all seated on a long orange sofa.  The man looked straight at them and asked this simple question:

"How do you know that the sofa you are sitting on is really THERE?"

Miss Bliss, Tye-Dye, Lance and Michael Boom-Boom all looked down to be sure that the sofa was indeed THERE under their collective fannies.  The room erupted in laughter.

"Thank you." said the man, "For making my point."  He  then launched into a "What is reality" sort of lecture.  Too much big thought for Miss Bliss's head.

Afterward the birthday party was moved to end the evening with dancing at a gay bar.  No one bothered to card them.  And though it was an odd experience, Bliss and Tye-Dye danced together... since it was unlikely that any straight guys would belly up and offer and they had a strange but fun time.  It remains one of Miss Bliss's very favorite birthday memories... albeit, a foggy one.  Tye-Dye, feel free to correct me on any issue.  Just an episode in the theater of the bizarre that often entered into Miss Bliss's life.

So today's question should you care to answer it:

What was a favorite bizarro memory of something that occurred in your life?

WINDS OF CHANGE

Once upon a time there was a girl called Miss Bliss...


Somewhere in time she fell right out of existence. I was not aware when it happened. I was surprised by it when I looked up from a jigsaw puzzle one day and
was forced to admit that she was gone.



I looked up at Max, who must have been nine or ten. His face lit with a childish delight that had long since left me behind. He was striped with dirt. His shirt was torn in at least two places. Neither of his shoes were tied. There was a hole in his cheek that was at least two inches long and deep enough to gape. It was peppered with debris from the woods. He grinned his best cheesy smile and said "I had the best day!"



It hit me then that I no longer had those days. The ones where junk happens and you let it roll off because nothing can touch the feeling of falling out of a cedar tree, crashing through its limbs and surviving to tell the tale.


I was stunned by this.



My son skipped to the bathroom mirror. I heard him say "Coooool..." about his face. I no longer understood how exciting a great scar can be even though I could still recall not wearing a bandage on my stitches in fifth grade so that everyone could admire them.




Miss Bliss would have understood it. But she was little more than a limp shirt that I folded up and put away. No fanfare. No teary good-byes. That was a part of life that had passed by. Bye-bye Bliss!




My life has altered so much of late. As I was gearing up for my long weekend last week I glanced into the mirror and was shocked to see that Miss Bliss was back.


Interesting people have entered my life. Not just Larry... though yep... that's been a major interest. My children have grown into interesting people and when I once feared that I was losing them, I now know that I've gained something wonderful from their adult lives that I never expected beside grand children.


Squeaky is pretty much on his own these days with Lorn to help out. He does not need me and amazingly enough... I am feeling very good about that. Not long ago I worried over what I'd do with myself after he went to college. Now I'm wondering what I'll do with myself after he goes with antisipation, not anxiety.


How odd that I find Miss Bliss smiling back at me from the mirror with that same sparkle and feeling of expectation that something wonderful waits around the corner. I walked outside tonight and a very warm Chinook wind caressed me, the song below popped into my head and I began to think about all these changes and marveled that what I thought I feared was really what I want.

TIME KEEPS ON MOVING AND HERE I AM ALMOST BACK TO WHERE I WAS A BAZILLION YEARS AGO. . .

FRIDAY FABLES / THE COSMOGONY OF BLISS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mb3iPP-tHdA

Once long, long ago… when Miss Bliss was still a tiny soul waiting for her turn on earth, she joined the long line of ripe souls waiting to receive the gifts that Himself bestowed upon them as they passed from ester into solid form. She whiled away the time amusing her active mind with the colors that swirled around her. (This was a delightful pastime she would later revisit on earth, finding it familiar and entertaining to no end.)

At last the moment came where she lowered her eyes to avoid the Face of God, bowing her head in preparation to accept her gift. Before her, The Great One rummaged in his vast denim duffle bag (that had inspired no less than the U.S. Navy to use it’s design as a staple of naval luggage). Himself muttered, pulled out a pair of breasts, shook his head and tossed them back to the bottom of the bag, muttering about a promise he’d made to Valerie Perrine not to give that model out anymore. Next he examined a lovely ass, peered down at the nervous little soul, shook his head again and threw it back as well. He wanted to save that one for Brittany Daniel.

Stretching his infinite arm as deep as the duffle bag would allow, he groped and felt until his fingers found something vaguely soft and cylindrical. He pulled it out, examined it closely, called the wind to puff the dust away and looked down at the little soul with the modestly bowed head. He thought it looked timid and somewhat gullible. He cleared his mighty throat and handed the thing to the tiny soul.

The soul of Miss Bliss looked at it in wonder. “What is it?” she asked.

“It’s a neck. What does it look like? Sheesh…” said the Almighty.

The little soul made a pouty face. “Oh. What does it do?”

“Oh for My sake… it holds your head up!” Boomed the thunder voice, making the little soul tremble. The Great Deity immediately felt compassion for it. He sighed and took the neck back into his hands and played with it, molding it into a slightly different shape. He grinned before handing it back.

“There! Go ahead… take it. You’ll find it has a certain quality that you will enjoy… eventually.” The thunder voice chuckled. The little soul of Miss Bliss smiled, even though it did not understand The Master’s good humor. Behind her, as she walked over to the “Get Ready For The Big Squeeze!” line, Thunder rolled once more as Himself said:

“Man I crack myself up.” His laughter shook the skies.

When the line ended at last and the little soul stood at the threshold flanked by two angels, she held the neck out to their waiting hands. The angels looked at each other and laughed until they snorted, waving the small soul past.

*

The little soul was born into a big family and quickly learned that she who talks the loudest and fastest gets heard. As a little bitty, her father often kissed the nape of her neck and tiny Bliss giggled and squealed. In no time at all she was loud and chatty. Her mother dressed her in pinafores and silly slips full of ruffles, but she was a tumble tomboy, ready to fight or wrestle. If her panties showed, who cared?

Third grade concert time. The dance number was her favorite. She held hands with the cutest boy and got to slide, slide, slide! At the end, Miss Bliss and the Toy Soldier said their solo lines and left Hatty Mae Hammet Hall greatly relieved that the show was over. Outside she began a game of tag with some of the boys. RR, who had been her dance partner, was hot on her heels. He reached out and caught her by the neck with one hand. He stopped short and looked at Bliss as if he had never seen her before… which caused Bliss to raise her eyebrows and wonder what was wrong with that boy. R R leaned over, kissed her just behind the ear and ran away.

“Eeewwww!” Bliss yelled after him. When RR moved away the following week, Bliss felt a great relief. There would be no more of that crazy neck kissing crap!

*

The first ever school dance, seventh grade in the gym/ auditorium of Alexander Hamilton Jr. High. Miss Bliss was dressed up for the occasion. Her first pair of low heels and a nice new dress. Her sister had spent an hour making her hair just right. For most of the evening the girls all hovered against one wall and the boys across the room on the other. Only the popular kids seemed to be dancing.

“Oh this is stupid.” Said Suz. “Let’s just go grab one and dance.” The other girls looked at each other and giggled. No one moved. Bliss scanned the faces on the other side and stopped on the face of an older RR. What was he doing here? His eyes met hers and smiled. Bliss smiled back and gave a little wave.

“Oh my gosh… is that RR?” said Suz and all the girls followed her pointing finger. RR smiled his wide, perfect smile and the girls all giggled. RR took out his comb and pulled it through his oiled hair, typical of Mexican Americans of that time. He wore a starched white shirt, Beattle boots and a pair of tight polyester pants that pulled across his crotch. Bliss blushed when she noticed that. RR crossed the room quickly and pulled Bliss onto the dance floor. They danced the last verse of “I'm a Believer” by the The Monkees. The next song began. Procol Harum’s "A Whiter Shade of Pale".

The Monkees - I'm a Believer [official music video]

Bliss had never danced a slow dance with a boy before and wasn’t very clear where to put her hands, so she copied the people next to her. You could say it was sort of a staggering hug. Half way into the song, RR began to nibble and lick his way from behind her right ear down her neck. Bliss’s eyes bugged out. She looked at her friends, who now were covering their mouths, jabbing and poking and pointing. Bliss was not a whiter shade of pale. She was a brighter shade of red! When her eyes found the boys, who were making kissy faces, Bliss bolted for the girls restroom, where she set up camp until her father came to take her home.

It should be noted that Bliss’s father was never on time. Not once. Not ever. It was in fact, a guarantee that the very last car to arrive to pick up a student would be none other than Papa Bliss. Many times Bliss had refused the kind offers of other parents to allow them to give her a ride home. This time, her father held true to that axiom and for a change, Bliss was grateful to leave unobserved. When he asked how the dance had gone, she said simply “Fine”. Bliss never attended another Jr. High dance.

*

Tenth grade arrived with the first high school dance. Bliss’s friends begged and cajoled until she agreed to go. This time the girls and boys gathered in bunches. Bliss stood in the middle where it seemed safe. Several songs ended before an exchange student from Saudi Arabia asked Bliss if she would be willing to dance with him. Bliss sighed and agreed. Halfway through the song, the exchange student began to suck on Bliss’s neck. This was not the relatively more pleasant nibbling of RR. This was a mind blowing Hoover suck that was resulting in a big ugly hickey.

Elton John - Your Song: Red Piano Show - Live in Las Vegas

Music video by Elton John performing Your Song: Red Piano Show - Live in Las Vegas
with David Mallet [Video Director], Not Applicable [Video Producer]
(C) 2007 Mercury Records Limited

Bliss freaked out and headed for the girl’s restroom. If there was one rule that Papa Bliss had that he stood by ferociously… it was that there would be no hickeys on the necks of his daughters. He considered it mutilation, like pierced ears and tattoos. The mark of a slut! Aaaagggghhhh! Bliss looked at the hickey in the mirror. Crap! She was sure it would glow in the dark and give her away when her father finally showed up to take her home. In a panic, she turned to a friend for assistance. The friend knew exactly what to do. She left and returned with a smiling boy.

“Hi. I’m Calvin… I’m your boyfriend. I’ll walk you home.”

Calvin was actually her friend’s boyfriend. He would one day be bitten by her insane Manx cat in the middle of a meeting in her living room. It would bleed like there was no tomorrow. Calvin walked her home and she hurried past her parents and up the stairs to her room. It took a pound and a half of cover-up to keep the hickey safely hidden. Bliss gave up on school dances.

*

By now you are thinking what the hey? This is not the Bliss we’ve come to expect. Our Miss Bliss is not shy! But she was at this point. She did not become bold until she was 16. She did not go insane until the following year when her mother gave her permission to do so. Bliss was an obedient child.

When Bliss had indeed gone around that wide bend… she and TyeDye accompanied the Blisses to the wonderful city of Jackson, California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. A fun loving gold rush country town. Earlier that day they had gone in search of mind altering chemicals. Not able to locate any from usual sources, they walked sadly back toward Bliss’ home past the college.

They neared an old frat house that had been converted to rooms for let. Through an open window and young man leaned out and said the magic words.

“Youwannabuyasomeacid?” Prices were quoted and a purchase was made. Note: Do not buy drugs from strangers! Better note: DO NOT BUY DRUGS… PERIOD! It could have been a fatal error. It wasn’t obviously. But it sure could have been.

The drive to Jackson was ho-hum. They wanted to wait for a better time to “drop”. They checked into the hotel and ate together in the restaurant. When the folks were not looking they tipped their little green pills into their mouths and drank them down with soda. Then the gals took a stroll down the wooden side walks through the tourist traps and gift shops. Bliss bought a candle that looked exactly like a granny smith apple. It even smelled like one.

Hotel California (Eagles)

Hotel California - Eagles. From the album Hell Freezes Over - Live Concert

Back at the hotel, they settled into chairs on the upstairs balcony off of their room. It looked down on the main street of town and the wandering lookie- loos. As the moon in their eyes began to rise with the effect of the drug, they chatted and giggled and pointed at people below. Suddenly two men climbed into their balcony. WTF? They screamed with delight! What a magic trick! It was so not possible, yet there these guys were. Where did they come from?

It did not matter. There was a bit of flirting and an invitation to go get drunk… yeah, as if they needed more insanity. But a knock on the room door and the arrival of Papa Bliss chased the young men back from whence they came in all due haste. No young turk looking for a lay wants to meet a dad. Wise boys, though Papa Bliss probably would have laughed, excused himself and gone away wishing them all a good time.

As luck would have it Papa Bliss had an alternative plan. They would all drive to near by Mokelumne Hill, California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. There was a tavern there that he was sure would allow the girls to drink and dance despite their ages. Sure enough this was exactly the case. The foursome gathered around a table and bloody marys were served to all. A gentleman who happened to be of ethnic decent, asked Bliss to dance. Bliss, no longer so shy and nervous agreed, leaving poor tripping TyeDye alone with the Blisses. Poor TyeDye.

By now you get how this story goes. The blessing or curse on Bliss’s neck set into motion. Like his most recent predecessor, this one also decided to give hickeys. Bliss firmly held him at arm’s length and told him NO. He agreed. Then as soon as he was close to her neck, the sucking began anew. Now, when you are tripping as Bliss was, simple tasks seem way more difficult than they should be. She continued to repeat the threat to stop dancing as if it was a new idea. The “gentleman” was having none of that nonsense. He wanted to chew on Bliss. When Bliss did managed to push him off and get back to the table, her father was off getting more drinks.

Bliss told her mother and Tye Dye what had occurred and they all had a good laugh. It was funny. When her father returned, they repeated the story to him. He asked which guy it was. Bliss pointed him out. The sucker was perched at the bar between a couple of his buddies. The buddies, who were obviously more alert, saw the finger pointing and hustled their buddy out of the bar to the sidewalk… where he fell flat on his face in the gutter. His pals looked both ways, stepped over his prone body and crossed the street leaving the passed out lover boy behind. Everyone at the table burst out laughing. So much for Romeo, who was still in the gutter when they left.

Yes siree, Bliss and her blessed neck could really attract the doozies!

Back at the hotel, the reason that you should never buy drugs from someone you don’t know, manifested in the form of hellatious diarrhea. It was likely that the drug was cut with strychnine. The high was not very good either. More poison and less drug or so it seemed.

The Great One was right. Eventually Bliss decided that having an irresistible neck had its uses… with the right person(s) who were welcome to nibble. But it still made her giggle and squirm in a delighted sort of way. But dang… it took a long time and had a rocky road to get to that point. The moral to this story is : You have to wait for the blessings and accept the crap that comes before. Be patient. Be kind. Believe.

A MAN OF MANY COLORS / FRIDAY FABLES

Once upon a time when they were too foolish to understand that they personally could truly die or suffer in any serious way…

Miss Bliss and TyeDye were bored. The parental Blisses were out of town for the night, leaving Bliss’s wicked older sister, Medusa in charge. The ladies wanted to get high, but calls for pot went unanswered. At last, Fred offered a different diversion. He had mescaline. The gals talked it over, they had the money and Fred was not far. They could hop on their bikes and pedal over to pick it up quickly. Done and done.

This was a first for Miss Bliss and probably for TyeDye too. (Memory on that point is somewhat foggy.) Having been terribly impressed with the movie… they decided that it would be fun to take the mescaline in a cup of wine like the communion scene in Easy Rider. Once purchased and the return trip made, they went immediately to the kitchen and poured the wine. Bliss carefully emptied the capsules into the small glasses.

The ladies grinned at each other and clinked a toast, then downed the wine in a few gulps.

This is where things began to go amok. It’s funny how the sane mind works to protect the delicate systems in the brain. Miss Bliss heard what she believed was a line of events that began and ran this way…

1)The front door opened and slammed shut, setting the bells on the door curtain ringing.

2) Heavy foot steps pounded across the living room floor…

3) Something…(the small antique rocker) was knocked over on it’s side with a soft

thump.

4) The heavy foot steps stomped on up the stairs.

These four things happened in the space of time it took for Miss Bliss to finish her laced wine and lower the goblet from her lips. She set the goblet on the counter and looked at TyeDye.

“Must be Beezer” she said, meaning her older brother.

She called his name out loud. When Beezer failed to answer, she walked slowly to the landing at the bottom of the stairs and up the three steps. The elevated position gave her a clear view of the living room. The bells were still swinging slightly. The rocker was on its side. But something was itching at the back of her head.

Behind her TyeDye is shaking her head back and forth. Meaning: Not Beezer. Miss Bliss eyed the bells and the rocker for positive conformation. Then she glanced up the stairs and called her brother’s name one last time. Defeated, she had to accept what her brain had tried so hard to push away. Here is the proper order of events… and please note that this occurred prior to the mescaline’s ability to take affect. This was the desperate act of a sane brain.

1) Heavy footsteps pounded down the stairs.

2) Something jumped from the landing to the living room floor… knocking over the small antique rocker.

3) Heavy footsteps continued to the front door.

4) The front door was thrown wide, setting off the tiny curtain bells.

5) The heavy footsteps passed through the door and it was slammed shut, giving more zing to the bells’ ring.

A very large problem had manifested. Someone had been inside the house. Well crap.

Together they searched the house. Nothing seemed to be missing. That was good. But what did that person want? Was it some neighbor kid just poking around? A thief? A rapist? Well, none of those thoughts were okay.

The front door opened and in walked Medusa. She was in a good mood. Being in charge made the Medusa happy. It created an atmosphere that allowed a plethora of abuses to heap on Miss Bliss’s head. It gave Medusa power. She grinned wide as the two trippers told their story. Her chin jutted forward and her eyes glowed with glee. They had gifted her with a legitimate reason to call the police and report a real crime. It was of course her job as the responsible person. Little did she know that her glee was about to increase.

“You can’t call the police…” Bliss begged. She cajoled. She whined.

“God what are you high?” sneered the Medusa. Then her eyes went wide and she laughed her deepest laugh, turned on her heel and marched to the breakfast room to use the phone.

Bliss and TyeDye clucked like nervous hens. TyeDye’s hands fluttered as she spoke. Bliss twisted her hair. This was not good, no, no, no. Not good at all. But… there was a sliver lining.

“We’ll be okay. Fred said it takes an hour or two before it hits.” TyeDye wisely reminded the panicked Bliss.

The Medusa, who was sure that they had been talking about being high on pot, came back to the room and sat down in the big leather chair. The dad chair. Judgments and punishments were handed down from this throne. She crossed her legs, wiggled the top one and smiled her most evil smile at Bliss.

“They’re sending a patrolman over.” She purred.

Bliss and TyeDye sat down on the little loveseat to wait. The sun began its lazy trip down the back of the sky. The old mantle clock ticked loudly. The sun dropped lower and lower until it was twilight. When Miss Bliss saw that the shadows were jumping time, she abandoned hope that the cop would arrive before the mescaline took. Too late, the mescaline high was crawling up her spine.

Both TyeDye and Bliss jumped when the policeman knocked on the door. Medusa hurried down from the stairwell and hissed at them to let her do the talking. Bliss had a momentary hope that Medusa would step outside and speak to the man on the porch. No such luck. Medusa opened the door and beckoned the policeman inside.

Bliss nodded at the man as she was introduced. A handsome white male smiled back. When she looked down at her hands, folded neatly in her lap, she saw that her fingers were now velvet. It was cool for a moment, then worrisome. Velvet hands would not seem normal to the policeman. She slid them under her legs out of view.

The god of fools cast down a bit of luck. The policeman appealed to Medusa and she was working her hardest to sound important and knowledgeable enough to impress him. She told the story and answered all the questions. Bliss could not believe that this was her sister. Never had the Medusa passed up a situation that might get Bliss deep into trouble with their parents. This was a sibling that kept an actual notebook of dirt on Bliss and Beezer for the purpose of blackmail. Medusa was ruthless. That was fact.

It may have been the drug talking, but at that moment the Medusa seemed almost human and she glowed slightly with the golden light of benevolence. Bliss tried not to look at it directly. Medusa was smiling at the now Mexican American policeman. How did he manage that? Bliss glanced away.

TyeDye was sitting on the floor in front of the loveseat, moving her hand in a circle on top of the coffee table. It took Bliss several minutes to figure out if she was really doing this. She leaned over and whispered to TyeDye.

“It’s a water mark.” TyeDye mouthed back.

Oh. That explained it. As you may recall, my mother is a clean freak extreme, totally obsessed with her home and everything being perfect at all times. If TyeDye left a ring on mother’s table… well, it was unthinkable. My mother was a lovely person in all other ways, but in this she was irrational. I don’t have the words to show how fanatical she was. But think of TyeDye frantically trying to rub that ring out. Her focus was intense. Her movements quick and sure. Desperation beetled her brows.

It looked ridiculously suspicious. Bliss was certain they were about to be caught and broke out in a thin sweat. She glanced up at the policeman who had yet again shifted ethnicity and become Asian.

TyeDye continued to mutter to herself and rub. Things were taking on auras and Bliss was starting to trip hard as sound began to bend. The policeman walked like a tin wind-up doll toward the door. He was now a very large African American. Bliss accepted this and exhaled in relief, then marveled that she had been holding her breath and began to wonder when she had started to hold her breath. Was she out of breath? The policeman had left her mind.

By the front door Medusa’s voice faded and grew in an airplane drone. Bliss was thinking how odd it was that a voice could do these things when the policeman suddenly whipped out his flash light and shown it on the wall directly above her head. Both Bliss and TyeDye jumped. There may have been squeaks too. Bliss found her heart pounding its way up her throat.

“Who collects bottles?” the policeman asked. He was no longer an African American policeman, but a Native American.

Bliss looked at TyeDye. Her eyes were the size of the moon. TyeDye looked away quickly to avoid laughing and returned to her task of rubbing out that darned water ring.

Bliss put all her effort into getting her lungs to work correctly again. For a moment she feared that she was having an asthma attack which would require a trip to the hospital, but the moment of fear passed when she decided that her skin was breathing for her and it was okay. When she looked up again, the policeman was outside with her sister.

“I can’t get it out.” TyeDye said sadly.

“Fuck the ring. Let’s go upstairs.” Bliss replied.

The interesting thing about this story is that Miss Bliss was not alone in seeing the cop change his ethnicity. TyeDye saw it too. Cue the Twilight Zone music…

1200 Micrograms - Mescaline

Excelent Mescaline video is the Live Act of 1200 Micrograms. I hope you to like it.

I hope you enjoyed our Friday Fable. Have a safe and happy weekend.... See ya around.

*