HomeComing

It’s strange, being home after such a long time of being away. I feel completely at ease, just myself again, surrounded by everything I’ve known my whole life. Most of it is nearly exactly the same as when I left. There are a few more stores that have opened, a few that have closed. This economy has kept a lot of the town stagnant… still the same the small town. But Subway has moved across the street.

I walked into Save Mart today, the store I have spent more time in than any other public space besides Disneyland. Which is saying a lot. There are more people I don’t recognize, and who don’t recognize me, than I remember. Of course, their strange looks probably stemmed from the skin tight black lame (lam-ay) covering my legs. I guess that look hasn’t hit Tehachapi yet. Or I look like an idiot.

The girl who checked us out went to school with me when I was little. I’ve known her since I was five. I haven’t liked her since I was six, and she refused to play kittens with us anymore at lunch. She was a year older, so obviously I should have known she was too cool for that. She is, in fact, so cool that she works as a check out girl at Save Mart, in Tehachapi. I don’t mean to belittle that… I know almost everyone who works there and there are mostly very wonderful people… but it just strikes me as sad that her whole life is ahead of her and this is what she’s doing with it. I must be very lucky. On the bright side, she’s been promoted since last summer. Way to go, Kaci!

I saw one of my dearest friends’ cousins today. He also works at Save Mart. He’s very friendly and about a billion feet tall. I remember one time we all, the three of us, went to Disneyland together. That was a strange day, but he was very funny. I’m glad he’s still nice to me. I miss some things, sometimes, but life changes. Save Mart, fortunately for my sense of comfort, hasn’t. Much.