Tonymobile Day #3
I woke up super early that morning, coming out of a brief nightmare. I'd been dreaming that Kristin was walking me past a huge Victorian house, saying she'd been hired to DJ some parties there. I climbed up the hill it was built into, and down into a back balcony before I realized it was a house from an old recurring dream of mine.
In those dreams, I am a temporary boarder, sometimes with others and sometimes by myself. The house was always well-furnished, bright, and airy. I'd always gotten the feel from my room that some other presence shared the space with me, but I could never get it to manifest.
This time though, things were different. It had been abandoned-- the walls were dirty, the floorboards sagged, and the wallpaper was peeling. It seemed like a long time had passed since anyone had lived there. As I walked past the balcony entrace to my old room, I heard... something strange. It was like a jumbled radio transmission, all static and hiss, with a clear human voice layered on top. She harshly whispered, "Paul..." The noise cut off completely and suddenly as I passed the doorway and entered the next one over. I was frightened, but felt compelled to walk through the house and make my way out through the main entrance. I just hoped that the house would remember me and not do anything harmful.
The farther down I went, the darker it got. The last set of stairs ended in complete darkness. I had paused halfway down, wondering if I'd be able to find my way to the door by touch alone.
Then my alarm clock went off. Whew.
---
We started the day in Mill Creek. The Albertson's we were stationed at had apparently bought an old Kellogg's costume from a company rep at some point, so they had a volunteer from their store outside with me. The Keebler Elf and I spent most of the day in companionable competition, vying for the attention of the kidlings. It made the time go by faster. There's only so much interpretive dance you can do to "You Are My Sunshine" in a single day. My uncle showed up towards the end of the shift and took some photos. :) I'll share if I can get ahold of some.
We made the move to Mountlake Terrace at lunchtime. Holy hell. It was warm and sunny... great weather, but horrible when you're trapped in a big, overly padded fursuit. Luckily, I'd thought to stop in at Gart's beforehand and bought a sweatband. It saved my ass. Time seemed to slow to a crawl while I sweltered. I can't even begin to imagine what it would have been like if the entrance hadn't been busy. The highlight of my day came when I recognized a friend from high school exiting the store. I chased her down, grabbed her in a big hug, and hissed her name. The look on the poor girl's face was priceless. I had to whisper my name twice before she heard it, but when she did, she started laughing so hard I thought she was going to rupture something. Good times.
In those dreams, I am a temporary boarder, sometimes with others and sometimes by myself. The house was always well-furnished, bright, and airy. I'd always gotten the feel from my room that some other presence shared the space with me, but I could never get it to manifest.
This time though, things were different. It had been abandoned-- the walls were dirty, the floorboards sagged, and the wallpaper was peeling. It seemed like a long time had passed since anyone had lived there. As I walked past the balcony entrace to my old room, I heard... something strange. It was like a jumbled radio transmission, all static and hiss, with a clear human voice layered on top. She harshly whispered, "Paul..." The noise cut off completely and suddenly as I passed the doorway and entered the next one over. I was frightened, but felt compelled to walk through the house and make my way out through the main entrance. I just hoped that the house would remember me and not do anything harmful.
The farther down I went, the darker it got. The last set of stairs ended in complete darkness. I had paused halfway down, wondering if I'd be able to find my way to the door by touch alone.
Then my alarm clock went off. Whew.
---
We started the day in Mill Creek. The Albertson's we were stationed at had apparently bought an old Kellogg's costume from a company rep at some point, so they had a volunteer from their store outside with me. The Keebler Elf and I spent most of the day in companionable competition, vying for the attention of the kidlings. It made the time go by faster. There's only so much interpretive dance you can do to "You Are My Sunshine" in a single day. My uncle showed up towards the end of the shift and took some photos. :) I'll share if I can get ahold of some.
We made the move to Mountlake Terrace at lunchtime. Holy hell. It was warm and sunny... great weather, but horrible when you're trapped in a big, overly padded fursuit. Luckily, I'd thought to stop in at Gart's beforehand and bought a sweatband. It saved my ass. Time seemed to slow to a crawl while I sweltered. I can't even begin to imagine what it would have been like if the entrance hadn't been busy. The highlight of my day came when I recognized a friend from high school exiting the store. I chased her down, grabbed her in a big hug, and hissed her name. The look on the poor girl's face was priceless. I had to whisper my name twice before she heard it, but when she did, she started laughing so hard I thought she was going to rupture something. Good times.