Pay the phone bill.

Raton's cute. I got a text message from Mark about a week ago, telling me he interviewed someone from Raton in his office. I didn't quite know her, but as it goes with people from Raton, I knew of her. Anyway, I get a message on facebook from her yesterday telling me about meeting Mark and that she went for another interview at the tech company I worked for when I started high school. Whaaaat? Congratulations New Mexico, you've done it again.

Speaking of, headed home tomorrow. Flood the Sun's releasing a CD and kicking off a tour tomorrow night, I'm working at the Rey on Saturday and somewhere in there, I need to burlesque a bit with Sarebear. Quick trip, but a necessary one.

Oklahoma's still treating me well. The sun FINALLY came out yesterday; the first time I'd seen it for longer than five minutes since I moved. I've located a Bank of America, a Walgreens, a Target, a gas station, a liquor store and a Taco Bell. All in my neighborhood. You know, the basics. No jobs yet, but Chelsey's still nailing it.

I miss desert air.

In my world, they do.

Classic Big Head Bedard!

Interweb, welcome Landon Leclerc into this bold world. My cousin Mike and his wife Kristen who live in North Carolina became parents on Sunday, making this great-grandchild number 2 for Grandpa Emile. Us Bedard's don't have babies too often (at least babies in America) so it's pretty exciting. And cheers to the new parents, new grandma Colette, Grandpa John and new Auntie Gina (who will spoil that child rotten. ROTTEN!) Only the best for our expanding family.

I went to Raton yesterday, hoping that talking with former bosses and former teachers would give me some kind of career insight. I didn't get too much, but I sure had fun. I learned at APD had an unofficial rule in the 70's where if you went on a domestic violence call and if after 10 minutes, you wanted to slap the lady too, the guy got away with it. Visits to Raton are nothing if not educational.

But it was great to sit down and drive/listen to music for 6 hours yesterday, especially after standing up all weekend. Last week drained my soul, I'm hoping this week will be better. But, I'm working the exact same amount, so I sort of doubt it. YAWN.

However, after today, I only have 20 days of work left at the job I can't blog about. Scary, right? Well, not that scary. I'll get paid til January. No, really.

The way it looks outside today is exactly how it looked when I left Niagara Falls for Quebec. This blows my mind.

Gas at the Chevron on Candelaria and Edith is $2.77 a gallon.

Andy = Little, Russian Woman!

First real chaos of the trip happened today. My poor friend Andy, who always seems to find himself in the dumbest situations possible, fell at the Trinidad skatepark, knocking out a good centimeter of skin. Me, Mike, and Cody spent about an hour at the Raton Hospital Emergency Room, waiting for Andy to get sewn up. 3 whole stitches.

Before we got him to the emergency room, we made him wear my bandana as a kerchief, in a desperate attempt to stop him from bleeding all over.



Here is Andy being a Russian woman.



And here is the Emergency waiting room.



These boys truly are Raton’s gems. They are the reason Raton’s so great. Small towns breed amazing people. They have no time to be cliquey, or to be caught up in ridiculous trends. It doesn’t matter here. Everyone oozes character, sometimes very negative character. But, sometimes you stumble upon the ones who made it out okay. I’d rather spend my night driving around in a car with them with “nothing” to do over drinking at an Albuquerque bar anyday.

Raton is the kind of place that’s easy to hate. But, then you remember what made it pretty okay for a few years.

Tomorrow, I am off for Denver to see another precious stone, Sarah. In two days, I’ll be 23. Cue Jimmy Eat World, please.

Wolverine bringing the hardcore.

Location: Angie’s High School Bedroom, Raton NM
Miles Logged: 241

Destination Number One is down, I’m in Raton. I can’t think of a more appropriate place to start all of this than Raton. I have such a love/hate relationship with this town. I love its intimacy, its laid back persona, its clean air. But I hate how nosey it is, all the bitter memories of middle school it still brings up, and how I feel like I regress a little when I’m here.

It’s the basic relationship I think 90% of the population that comes from small town America to the big city has with their homebase. In a word: bittersweet. But, regardless, this town has 9 years of my life, almost all of my puberty, and a decent chunk of my heart.

When my creative writing teachers gave lectures about place, Raton was almost always my example, just because of the level of memories I have associated with it. Angie and I drove around tonight, looking at all the houses, all the businesses, and reminisced about who lived where. “That’ll always be SoAndSo’s house, no matter who lives there.” Each little, location is like a Cat locker of some kind of moment burned into my brain, no matter how painful or ridiculous.

So, being here is like looking at myself at 16. It makes me feel ancient and young all at the same time.

I’m looking forward to seeing some old and very dear friends, eating at El Matador, and having at least one late night at Dennys. I’m staying with my favorite teacher from high school, whose daughter just happens to be one of my best friends. She and her mother made me laugh quite a lot tonight, something I desperately needed.

My mood is good. I’m feeling excited, there seems to be endless possibilities, not obstacles. I think I might still be in shock, I’m expecting a relapse of “I miss Albuquerque” in a few days when I’m not in such a comfortable environment.

Photos? I thought so.



I drove through Galestio, a place I really associate with Cat’s development with art, as retarded as it sounds. I remember driving through the town, on my constant trips between Raton and Edgewood and seeing this impossibly long line of mailboxes and wanting, desperately, to take a picture of them.



Of all things to encounter, I drove through the remits of a massive hail storm, it looked like snow.



Also, New Mexico was pissed that I left.