Memories From Spokane-Funny Story # 8

I was a Friday night and all the regulars were hanging out again. Truth be told, without these people I wouldn't have been nearly as ambitious to follow through with crazy ideas.

We couldn't help but stay outside. It was a cool, crisp evening and the promise of fall was coming to us. Around 8 or 9 pm I think it was Josh who said, "We should sleep outside tonight." Going out of the area to find a campsite at that hour was kinda out of question. It would take forever to get everything together to arrange a spur of the moment trip. But one thing we did have, well two things: the will to do it and the land at our footsteps.

Asking the Kisman's if it would be okay if we slept outside under the stars inbetween their house and the Shuppe's place was the next thing to get okayed. They said we could as long as we faced the church parking lot because if anyone drove by on the street and saw us it was like were were basically asking to get messed with. If we slept facing the church parking lot there was a fence that prevented any drivers from seeing beyond it.

There were I think 8 of us the first time. We all borrowed blankets from the Kismans so we wouldn't have to go home and they had some tarps for us to put on the grass so we wouldn't feel like bugs were on us- it helped with the dew factor too.

Around midnight we called Pizza Pipeline- your line to pizza 24 hours a day in Spokane. It's that nasty greasy pizza you really miss when you don't have it around anymore. We aksed them to deliver to the Kisman's address and then we said, "And could you take it around back to the parking lot?" "To the parking lot?!?" the pizza guy said suspiciously as if were were drug dealers that just happened to get hungry and willing to wait around long enough for gross pizza.

About 40 minutes later, sure enough a little kia drove to the back of the church and flahed their lights in our eyes. Derek got up to go get the pizza from the delivery guy. The delivery kid said, "Hey I get off in 2 hours, room for one more?" We said "Sure!" But he never came back. Pizza guy, if you are reading this, We wish you would have come back.

That night we laid there, looking at the stars and talking until all hours of the night. It was still that time of year that it was cold at night but hot during the day. I was one of the last ones to wake up. As I turned my head upward, toward the sun, I felt the heat of the day on my face and felt like I was in a sauna. My head was previously burried face down under the sleeping bag and in a pillow so I didn't get a chance to wake up from the sun. So when I rolled over I woke up from the bright light. I was wearing socks and sweat pants and a long sleeved T and a sweatshirt and a hat.

I looked around trying to remember where I was (like when you sleep somewhere new for the first time and you have to get your barrings). I stretched out my legs and arms as far as I could and while I rubbed my eyes I looked around and I realized I was right next to Derek who was also asleep. Everyone else was already up! I looked at my watch and it was 11am! I got up and gathered my blankets calling to Derek to wake up and when I looked out into the parking lot there was everyone, showered and just hangin' out side. I went inside and I showered as well. Then Derek finally woke up and then we all watched a movie and hung out at the park.

Looking back at life as a student in Spokane, it was just so enjoyable and relaxed. No agendas, no real cliques to speak of, just friendship and what seemed like all the time in the world. I long for people to be silly and open and agenda-less with again. I long for falls that last and I long for Spokane.