Arrival

With a turn of the key the engine quiets. He sees the pacific through the windshield, sun approaching the horizon line. Driving all day, then all night, then all day again. Muscle fatigue set in, glycogen stores depleting. Stale air, recycled air-conditioning, comforted him at first, and now left his stomach sick. As the car rests, he begins to hear the rhythmic coming and going of the waves. His eyes roam to the rearview: pale brown mountain range hiding everything behind them.

No. 086

Showing Up

“I was up late last night working. Yes, this project is a nightmare, but that wasn’t the whole story. So one of my friends had a dog that died last night, and I went over to her apartment and spent 5 hours with her. I should’ve put up stronger boundaries with this friend—she does this kind of thing all the time. We’ve been friends since college; she doesn’t have family here. I got home after midnight and had to validate all the files until 3 in the morning. Yeah. I know. Then I was up at 7 to touch base with the team again. That's all I’ve been doing today. If I had just told my friend to deal with it herself, I wouldn’t be so tired.”

No. 071