'Both of us searching for some perfect world we know we'll never find...'
I like to ring in the New Year with a giant round of house cleaning. It always seems as though the house is perpetually messy - living in a giant house where 1 out of 2 people have subpar cleaning standards will do that for you. As the Thompson Twins begged for some girl to hold them, and I finished up the last of the mopping, I took a look at the last few days and thought, 'Y'know, I think this'll be a great year.'
That's not to say that 2005 sucked; it just reeked of mediocrity. I'm still at my current job, and even though I've got a whole schwackload of new friends, I spent much of the year fighting debt, attached to a lady on the odd occasion; they just never stuck around long enough to turn into one of those relationship things.
New Year's Eve, 2005. I'd made plans to hang out with some good friends for the evening, but their house wasn't gonna be lit up until later on in the evening. I was sitting in front of my screen, trying to chop some footage for the cooking show when my cell started buzzing.
'Great, another text message. When will Telus stop trying to get me to buy their stuff?'
Jonny: 7.30, Gate A, pink handbag - Sheena
I'd been the unwitting victim of a misdirected text message a few days before, asking me to show up at a local club to meet her; she'd be in the spandex pants. After I phoned back and told her that I wasn't who she was looking for, we made plans to hang out until she got sidetracked and decided to go on a road trip. For what? Who knows, but I've had a history with women and airports, but this time I was going to meet someone there, instead of sending someone off.
I thought it strange that she was flying into Calgary after driving out, but seeing as I had nothing planned for the next couple of hours, I figured it wouldn't hurt to have a look. If she tried anything out of the ordinary, she'd have a pack of angry airport security guards with whistles and flashlights on both of our asses.
I booked it out of the house, hoping to catch a stray cab. Getting one anywhere, at any time is virtually unheard of on New Year’s Eve; you could keep your eyes peeled and arm at the ready for hours before you saw a pair of headlights and the ‘for hire’ light lit up. As soon as I got to the main road, up went the left hand and lo and behold, a Checker was stopped at the red light. 'Buddy! Where y'headin?'
'Airport! On the double!'
'Hop in!'
'Alright! So far we're lucky!'
I got to the terminal with a couple of minutes to spare. The place was a little on the dead side, but when I thought about it, who'd be flying around on New Year’s Eve? I got a cup of coffee and headed to the gate, wondering who would be on the other side.
Sure enough, there was a girl with a pink handbag. A hot girl. With a hot pink handbag.
'Holy shit! More luck! Please tell me this is her final destination.'
I stood, momentarily stunned, and when she looked up at me she was equally taken aback.
’Fuck...what is it this time?'
'Are you Jonny?'
'That depends on who's asking.'
'I'm Sheena. Nice to meet you.'
'Likewise...hungry?'
We headed to the onsite watering hole slash restaurant. As we neared the entrance, she grabbed my arm and quietly asked, '...Umm...you're not that guy on LJ with the screwy love life and cooking show, are you?'
'I wonder if luck, like death, comes in threes...at least this explains some of that mysterious Calgary traffic I've been getting...'
'Well Sheena, something tells me conversation won't be a problem tonight.'