hyenahell

i always feel like an asshole when i update without responding to the folks who commented on my previous journal entry.

back in New Orleans and in the process of packing.

my place was pretty much as we'd left it. no damage except to the shed in the back, but we already knew that. we were able to save a lot of the tools, although some got water damaged pretty badly, from the holes in the caved-in roof. but all the stuff inside the house seems okay. we even still have internet and cable and TiVo and electricity at the apartment. we don't have gas, however (so no hot water, and no stove), and we cannot use the fridge, for obvious reasons.

we do have lots of rats. one of them lives in the couch. i could hear him scritch-scatching in there last night when i was watching Law And Order. i kept kicking the couch to try and scare it off, with no luck. Rhys lamented that he had failed me yet again. "What the fuck do you mean?" i asked, eying the couch nervously. i was afraid that any second the rat would crawl out from between the cushions and into my lap. "I failed to protect you from vermin!" he said, then thought, and added, "If a rat actually touches you, then i promise..." i interupted, "I should get a settlement." he assured me he would give me some sort of settlement. "You can even have Lefty the basset hound, and you wouldn't even have to marry me."*

* brief backstory- i grew up with basset hounds, and want one desperately. actually, i want an indeterminable number of additional dogs, but that's beside the point. i have told Rhys that i would only ever marry him if he, instead of an engagement ring, got me a basset hound puppy named Lefty. because i like the song "Poncho and Lefty" a lot. Rhys has agreed to this condition.*

me:"okay!" Rhys:"But it has to be a significant touch." me:"Like a bite?" Rhys: "Yes." me: "I am going to rub food all over my body so rats will come and bite me." Rhys: "There are other ways to get that basset hound, you know." me: "Like what?" Rhys: "You could marry me," i thought about this for a moment, and responded, "No, I'd rather get bitten by rats."

later, Rhys apparently was able to trap one of the rats in a garbage bag. i do not know how he managed this, as i did not witness it personally. he just came in and woke me up, and said, "I caught a rat! I caught it in a trash bag and threw it outside. There are many, many more in the closet..."

fun. they don't really bother me as much as you'd think. except that they're very, very loud. they knock things over. they sound like fucking people in the house. it's a bit creepy. no ammount of yelling or kicking or noise-making seems to scare them away. they are fearless. it's unnerving.

anyway.

all vermin aside, things are going okay. packing is a daunting task, and we've kind of been slacking on it. i have gotten most of the breakable things packed up, though. i used more bubble wrap than god. i think i've got most of the books, too. there might be one more box worth. most of the tools are packed, as well. we haven't even started on art and art supplies. or electronics, of which we have more than anyone should. seriously. we have three t.v.s... one for every room except the laundry, kitchen, and bathroom. it's terribly unnecessary. once we get back to Greenville, we will own five t.v.s... fucking five.

i have been eating well, as i promised. and i did go have fun and get horribly drunk on Friday night. and i got to ride around on Andrew's motorcycle. it was my first time ever on a motorcycle. after about five minutes i didn't even have to hold on, really. i don't think i could drive one, but i am a class-A rider. and i've gotten to see lots of friends. the curfew is fucked up, though sometimes the cops let the bars stay open. seeing the national guard drive through your neighborhood in a hummer with assault rifles is also fucked up.

um... that's about it for now. i have to do more packing.
i'll be in touch.
love, all.
-Hyena.