Saturday, February 10, 2007

more bumps

I got up from my chair. My head hurt, of course. My stomach was empty, but all I could find was a bag of oatmeal. It's all there was. I should've known, but couldn't remember, why it was just the bag. There was no label. There were also no ants, so I was happy enough. I couldn't remember if it was instant or not, so I ate it dry.

I vaguely remembered being rejected, again. I'm getting good at that. Vaguely remembering. I don't need to practice getting rejected: I seem to have an innate skill.

Ah, paper's the same as always. Bad news from around the world. I'm all for globalization, but...sometimes it makes me feel like God. Aware of all the bad things all at once. It must've been nice before. Back then, a million people could die, but you'd never know. Life was better. Except if you were dead. And lots of people were.

Hmm. Another heartrending piece about fatherless families and the lost potential of young soldiers. Neighbors killing neighbors. The blind killing the weak. Shame.

I passed by the phone, and noticed there was a message on it. No new messages, but more messages than I had before....
Oh yeah! Last night.

"Dr. Livingstone, I presume? Haha. An harmless joke for a very lost man." The guy's accent was a little strange - I couldn't tell where he was from, though it sounded a bit foreign.
"If you don't mind, I will call you Dr. Livingstone. You are a doctor of sorts, and all doctors are explorers - of knowledge, anyway." He spoke very evenly, clearly, and moderately. His was a very professional voice - smooth and polished, like an upscale sportscar. I wondered if it was possible to take it for a joyride. When he was a broken-hinge-voiced teen, that's probably what it sounded like. Joyridden.

"But that's not why I'm calling. You have a very interesting idea, even if your choice of venue was a bit unusual. We request that you find time to meet us; if you consent, and we think you have reason to do so, please come to the main library's parking garage at 2 tomorrow afternoon. You will be compensated, as is usual. If you are unable to meet tomorrow, a meeting can still be arranged - though the process will need to start again. This number will remain active until 5 o'clock tomorrow. Good day, Doctor."

That was one of the stranger messages I'd ever received.