The Crooked
by Darkjade
Part II – Negative Ions
All these years and I’ve never actually been to the carnival on the Santa Monica Pier…
…or, if I have, I don’t remember it
I always wanted to live in Santa Monica actually… I love the air
Sometimes I come down here to soak up the Negative Ions, listen to the soft sounds of the crashing waves, and the laughter of a child in the distance
I love the beach…
The ocean has always been my greatest love…
…though I fear swimming in it
I just feel it’s so powerful, it can just pull you under
I respect it
And though I boogey boarded and jumped into the waves a bit as a boy, there was a particular time when I got knocked under and couldn’t figure out bottom from top
Partly because I don’t open my eyes under water
But, on the shore, I’m not sure that would have helped with all the sand in the water
I’ve never been someone that opens their eyes under water though, I’ve tried it in pools, hated it
I actually had a woman hold me under to try to force me to open them once, so I did, but that trauma coupled with the boogey board incident made me fear swimming in the ocean more
And one other incident where a stranger at a public pool held me under unless I’d kiss her, which I didn’t
Three water traumas, and yet water and more particularly the ocean, is my favorite thing in the world
And so I sat this day, trying to let a new story idea float into my mind…
…in the end, I just grabbed some snacks and had my own picnic
‘Beautiful day,’ suddenly a young woman’s voice carried in my direction from behind me
Young meaning in her 30’s
She had dark hair and dark eyes, couldn’t tell if they were green or brown…
…it didn’t matter, she was talking to me
Then her husband appeared just as I was about to reply
‘Ready to go?’ she smiled at him, nodded, then smiled and waved at me as she walked away, dragging her feet through the sand, head down, feeling the warmth as she went
She might have been maybe 11 at that moment
I feel like we pop in and out of different ages all the time
I remember my mom always saying 28 was her favorite age, and so she felt 28 into her 40’s…
Ironically, I also felt 28 until my 40’s
Then she liked 50 something i think
I’ve loved the 50’s, though this and the end of last year has been a bit rough
My health is getting stronger, and I hope to get back to full health at some point…
…who knows
We’ll see
As the sun set my brother and his kids came out of the water, and we decided to head to a restaurant on the water, somewhere they’d allow beached out kids…
…it was a good night
Not a fruitful one Writing wise
But a good one none the less
The Written Word 