1. Rise from office floor at 7:15a.m.

2. Look groggily about the place. Decide you have time for a shower.

3. Remember it is last day of trial gym membership.

4. Appreciate yourself for small victory.

5. Drive to 24 Hour Fitness, locate free parking.

6. Note especially crisp morning air, its sharp contrast to yesterday’s swelter.

7. Work out.

8. Revel in liberty of free, accessible hot shower; soon you won’t appreciate it so much anymore.

9. Dry off. Always do this after a shower; walking around the office dripping wet only draws attention to oneself. Have some respect for yourself, this is America.

10. Recite Pledge of Allegiance under your breath while opening locker.

11. Ignore the guy next to you. He’s Persian and may not harbor the same feelings for this great country as your patriotic self.

12. Leave gym.

13. Check your work schedule for the day as you leave.

14. Be reminded that you have scheduled yourself for a mechanic appointment today; you do not have to go in to the office.

15. Display bemused grin.

16. Remember mechanic is in Long Beach.

17. Remember that is where Shani lives.

18. Remember that you have loved.

19. Forget that the fundamental principal of love, as you have known it, is the unconditional cooperation of trusting, vulnerable souls, of shared passion and ecstatic discovery, of compounded certainty in faith of one another to support the individual as well as the whole despite consequence and reticence and, most of all, fear.

20. Question whether or not you have really loved.

21. Arrive at the mechanic’s shop. (You have been driving.)

22. Exchange pleasantries, key with mechanic.

23. Linger here. Mechanic is kind. We all need to share kindness.

24. Walk to nearby coffee shop to fulfill light work duties, such as email correspondence.

25. Field unexpected call from Rob.

26. Listen to Rob complain about neighbor who dented his luxury sport utility vehicle.

27. Explain to Rob that you understand and sympathize with his pain, but are not responsible for the damage to his vehicle.

28. Acknowledge pause in conversation.

29. Wonder if there has been a misunderstanding.

30. Nope, it’s cool, Rob just dropped the phone. But he will be out of the apartment by tomorrow morning. Or evening. Or…

31. Ask Rob to just give you notice as soon as he can.

32. Hear him agree.

33. Hang up the phone.

34. Mutter, “Fucking Rob,” under your breath.

35. Notice that balding man with turtleneck and circular eyeglasses is looking at you.

36. Smile politely in apology.

37. The rest of the day will go a little something like this.

(… to be continued.)

– TOH