Monday, July 28, 2008

The Break-up in Pietrasanta

On the second night of our stay in Pietrasanta, my friends and I decided on a pizzeria near the main town square. (Pietrasanta is such a small town that we had walked the entire length of the commercial area and seen the menus of every restaurant possible.)

Halfway through dinner, we all became antsy for the nutella pizza dessert we pre-ordered. However, Tara turned our attention to a couple that was sitting at the table next to us. They were too far to hear but too close to look away.

The girl was looking intently at the guy who was concentrating on smoking his cigarette. She barely moved while he did not turn to face her once in the first ten minutes we watched them.

We came up with two possible scenarios:
A: She cheated on him, and she desperately wanted his forgiveness. Being disgusted with her infidelity, he could not bring himself to look at her.

B: He found a new woman. He wanted to end the relationship and move on to someone younger and less intense. He lost interest in this girl, but she would do anything to get him back. His mind fantasizing about his new squeeze, he could not bring himself to look at the pathetic girl in his presence.

For twenty minutes more, we saw their lips move. We saw her move in closer. He kept smoking cigarettes like he was alone on his Italian stoop. Neither of them seemed to interact with their waitress. At the end of their dinner, their lips pecked. His expression never changed. We fell in love with Nutella pizza.

To this day, that evening in Italia stands out to me. The number of people in our world astounds me. I constantly find myself writing a story in my mind about random people who catch my attention. I'm naturally curious about other people's lives. We encounter hundreds of strangers on a daily basis. I wonder how many people we leave an imprint on.

The Most Writing I've Done Since I Returned From Italy

Yesterday i saw a spider in my bathtub. Aware of the wax coating that prevents a spider to die from drowning, I proceeded to turn the water on full blast and force the asshole down the drain. 2 minutes after the water emptied, the spider had climbed up out of the drain once again. I repeated the act twice more before being over it. The spider looked half limp as the legs on one side of his body were flat against the tub. He was struggling to move. Perhaps his legs were sleeping. Since the water wouldn't kill him, I thought maybe heat would. I turned on my hair dryer and tried to blast the shit out of him. Then i realized i might've just helped in his recovery.

I left my bathroom. When I came back the same night, he was gone.

I'm afraid of retaliation. I tried to explain to the spider beforehand that I wasn't trying to kill him. I just wanted him to leave me alone. I'm not sure if he understood though. Now I sleep with one eye open.

I should've learned my lesson from the nursery rhyme.