Saturday 18 October 2003
2:37am, late Saturday night/early Sunday morning. Nothing positive to say, no personal triumph to share. Thursday night I gave Crystal a gift as a going-away present, something to remind her of me after I move. She's kidded around with me in the past about being the sexiest bartender in the state of Wisconsin, and I bought a tank top and had it embroidered proclaiming just that. The night I gave it to her she asked to come back the following evening.
Friday night I stopped by for two beers, a pizza, and a coke. Crystal was wearing the top, proudly telling everyone in the bar I was the one who gave it to her. It was fairly busy that evening, but she took time to stand by me and talk. Her soon-to-be-ex-husband upped the schedule and had moved out that day. She'd been sleeping on the couch over the past week and last night was to be her first night sleeping in her own bed... alone. I knew it was going to be a rough night for her and was as supportive as I could be. I'm happy for her for getting out of a bad situation,
worried about her because I know what she's going through, and hopeful for her because she's too beautiful a person... I know she will be happy in the long run.
Cheri, one of the other bartenders, was there with her husband last night as well. I suspected the reason Crystal asked me to come was because she was going to wear her "Wisconsin's Sexiest Bartender" top and wanted me to see it on her, so I brought a camera with me. I asked Crystal to pose for a picture and Cheri took one of both of us.
I had only one picture left after that, so this morning I walked over to Wal-Mart to have the roll developed. I had the good fortune of running into three former students at the skate park along the way and had time for conversation with them. You already know this, but I can't state enough how much I miss teaching. I took my last shot of them and wandered on my way for one-hour developing.