Wandering around Denver without a plan, he was wondering if others leave so much to chance when traveling. But he had not learned yet to question his decisions so harshly, and he had not yet learned that when you act, others will question it, and he certainly was then unaware that when life is left to unfold, unscheduled, that interesting things happen, and interesting people are drawn to you, or vice versa.
Once the skis were ticketed cheaply on a bus up to Steamboat, he allowed his circle to widen away from the bus depot downtown. Not yet of age, he went into a tavern anyway. Here he met people telling him various options for getting up to the ski areas in Summit County, but no, Steamboat was too far off the worn path. So he concentrated on picking songs on the juke box with the two bucks the stuffed shirted tie guy gave him, “make us cry kid”, he yelled over his shoulder.
After a fair amount of walking he returned to the same tavern, only to find a completely different crowd. A backpack often generates interest from those relegated to living vicariously through others, particularly young vagabonds. This couple though had good questions and even better answers. He had the happy hour buzz, the free happy hour food, and a happy few hours listening to stories of the past, volleyed between these two newlyweds.
He woke up in their basement on the couch. Up in the kitchen he found breakfast, a map, and a note of good luck, and he imagined good riddance. Standing on the sidewalk in front of this suburban home in a rambling overbuilt subdivision, he stared down at the map. With one way making as much sense as another, he was off, slowly, due to two nights in a row of crazy.
Not far down the sidewalk he felt the draw of something strong, perhaps alien. As he crossed the road diagonally, he literally was walking like a zombie with his arms straight out. It was a sound that beckoned, and as he drew closer he could hear the clashing of steel , voices, and pounding percussion. He stood staring at a garage, one like every other one. His legs weakened and he sat down on the walk and listened closely.
It was a garage band inside playing an incredible version of Cinnamon Girl by Neil Young. He just laid back on his pack and listened for two hours. Why not?
