Dead Robot The space between gay and straight, stupid and smart.

Forgetting Yourself

A story from our recent camping trip:

We had packed up the car on the last day of camping and said our goodbyes to the three women across from our site, offering up our remaining wood for them to use. We get into the car and start to drive away.

We almost got to the campground's front gate when SharkBoy remembers the clothesline still hanging between some trees back at the site. How he did an inventory in his head of the car's contents while he drove to the exit is a mystery to me. But it came to him in a flash and I had to jump out and hike back to our spot. It was quicker than trying to turn the behemoth of a car around and obeying the 3mph speed limit through the trailer park, crawling past glaring tenants who think you're doing 4mph.

Back at the site, the women are deep in animated conversation and without comment I head straight to the trees to start untying the rope.

I'm considering using my teeth on one particular high up knot, concentrating all my will to get it to release itself and without thought, I fart.

Sometimes the only time you notice a noise is when it stops. I'm not talking about the fart, no. The lesbians had stopped talking abruptly.

Don't turn around. Keep working that knot. Wind up the rope. Keep your eyes down. Get back to the car...