Living in the “Chosen place,” as Luther Burbank put it, is like living in Oz. The morning may be dreary with drizzle and fog and then turns surprisingly into a magical colorful day. When the light from the sun hits just right, life is in technicolor in the wine country.
Oh yes, there are days that do not brighten up, but they are few and even a rainy day can be beautiful. But there is something about this county, green and blue – the blend of the sea and the redwoods, the smooth rolling hills, the appellations, the winds coming up the river… the wild life all around, and the eagerness of the plants to grow. When Spring hits, you can barely keep yourself from staying outside all day.
The people are friendly here. It is a place where you feel as if everyone you meet could be a friend, someone you went to college with, someone you worked with… a neighbor. Most people here feel like your neighbor. You want to join in conversation, buy them a drink, or send them over a small plate of fried shrimp heads at the local sushi restaurant!
Jack was always doing that for a joke. They had a favorite sushi restaurant where they would go every Friday night for over a decade. They were both working, the kids were grown and moved out. They would eat sushi for at least three hours each week, savoring each morsel of the delicate fish and rice.
Kristie knew she was in for it, when Jack whispered to her on this particular occasion. “Hey, heh, heh… see that couple over there gettin’ all lovey dovey?” He said in his best diabolical “Darth Vader” voice referring to the young innocent love birds in the third booth, “Let’s send them some pickled garlic and a couple of orders of Uni… heh, heh, heh.”
There was no point in arguing with him when he got like this. But Kristie was used to it anyway. Jack was a giving sort of man. He would help out anyone he could, but he was a bit of a jester and a tease, harmless and funny, with just a hint of mean. Kristie wondered how that pickled garlic was going to enhance the young couple’s lovemaking… if they got that far.
On the other side of town there was a place they liked to go “hide out.” They didn’t know anyone there. They sat in the bar in a dark corner booth with worn leather upholstery. The springs in the seats were so blown out that Kristie’s butt sank into the pre-formed potholes making it almost impossible to get up once she’d had a couple of drinks and a long meal.
“You do realize no one knows us here,” Jack commented over their first drink and a basket of chips and salsa. He surveyed the room.
Kristie looked around, “Yes, isn’t it nice? …and let’s keep it that way… on the down low.” She took a sip of her Margarita savoring the salty lime taste. She couldn’t be sure what he was thinking. She was afraid it was going to be the big nacho cheese plate for the lone guy without-a-chance-in-hell sitting at the other end of the bar.
She could hear the theme song from Death Proof in her head as Jack said to the waitron, “Hey Missy, I’d like to order a not-your-cheez plate, and whatever he’s drinkin’ for that guy at the end of the bar.”
Kristie was amused. The poor forlorn guy at the bar nodded his head in “Thanks” when the waitress brought him the huge plate of chips, salsa, cheese, and guacamole. “Whose cheese is it?” she playfully asked Jack.
He fell right into it, “It’s not your cheese, Honey.”
“I don’t want honey on mine,” she smiled letting the banter continue.
“Well, you ain’t gonna get none, ” he closed the deal. But Kristie knew she could get whatever she wanted from Jack. She already had it. She was living with The Wizard in Oz itself! He pulled her up from the depths of the booth seat and gave her a quick kiss as they prepared to leave. It would be another beautiful clear green and blue day tomorrow.
(First published 3/24/13)
