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Home
On my way back to the campsite I was searching
for a shop to buy some greeting cards to send home. When I entered the first gift
shop I came across, my first impression was ´deserted´
and no trace of greeting cards. I
turned to exit the shop when she came out of the blue. A very tall, slender
girl of my age was standing between me and my way-out. She welcomed me like I was
the first customer since days. The girl was probably bored and I was the distraction
she desperately needed. With anxious eyes and a pleasurable voice she asked ´Can
I help you Sir?´ When
I told her I only needed some greeting cards she lectured me, with a wink,
´Selecting
a greeting card is not as simple as you picture it, sir. A badly chosen card can
have disastrous consequences. Which type of card depends on the three r’s;
relation with, reason why and reference of. You certainly need some competent
advice.´ The
next moment she escorted me to the right end corner of the shop were all
cards were displayed. She told me that before she could give me a
good advice she had to ask a lot of personal questions. She!
She! She! She!, yes you’re right there was no way to escape from her
attention and to be honest, I had no problem with it. No, I liked
it! Her
name was Karin and she started her “interrogation” with asking if the card was
for a loved one. I tried to put the importance of the card in perspective by
saying that it just was a greeting card for my parents but she gave me a corrective
look. ´Are
you for a few days holiday in Fort Lauderdale or for a longer period´ was her next
question. I told
her I just started a cycling trip across America with as goal the west coast.
The intention of the card was to give “home” a sign of life. I saw
her thinking, East, West. ´You’re
kidding me or you are trying to impress me´, she answered. To convince her I produced
a map of America out of my pocket with the route of my trip all the way to San
Diego and I showed her a picture of me and Coco. Because no other customers were
entering the store we talked for hours. Karin
came from the North, having a job here during the winter months to escape from
the strong winter up there. Her parents came from Germany. It
was already ten o’clock when she told me it was closing-time. She asked me to wait
outside so we could have a drink in a pub a few hundred meters from here. It
was a nice cosy pub where you could sit with a certain amount of privacy. It
was overwhelmingly pleasant to talk and to be with her and in a subtle way she
was flirting with me. During
the evening she became more open about herself and told me she was disappointed
about her work and about the people in Fort Lauderdale. ´It
seems impossible to get in contact with young people of my age here in Fort Lauderdale´,
she told me. ´Next
week I’ll decide whether I’ll stay here or go back to my hometown in the North.´ …after a
deep sigh she whispered ´I know
that back home it is cold outside but at least the people are warm inside´. There
were a number of moments like this, during the evening, the expression on her
face suddenly changed from soft and friendly to hard, cold, angry and
discontented but within seconds she had grip on herself again. It slipped my
mind that those temper changes were probably the real reason that people kept at
arm’s length from her. Me,
myself became a little uncomfortable, cautious and alert. Was she a ticking
time bomb? Probably not but that overwhelming feeling from early that evening was
gone! Around
midnight we left the pub and she asked me to escort her to her home. It was
only a 10 minutes walk and in front of her apartment she invited me in a very
tempted way to stay with her for the night. During
our walk to her apartment my inner-me told me to say goodbye as soon as possible
but I am not particularly proud of the way how I twisted the truth into
a cheap excuse. It was
not acting when I looked sad and serious at Karin. I explained to her that I
had been raised in a warm loving Christian family with God and the Bible as our
guides in life. I told her that, in spite of what my body wanted me to do, the Bible
told me to say goodnight. Yes I
know, bullshit, but the best excuse I could come up with. After
a few very unpleasant minutes I was on my way to the campsite. Relieved but
with a mind full of guilt I entered my tent. A
few minutes later I went to the bathroom and took a long shower to wash all the
guilt away. Those last minutes in front of her apartment ensured me I escaped
from some serious problems. I had
a fairly good night but in spite of the spray the mosquitoes still used one of
my feet as supply point for their needs. Dear Note, My forehead
is already getting to look like a tomato so I urgently need to buy a hat or cap
to protect it. My goal for today is Holiday Inn Traveller Park in West Palm Beach.
I will close you now and prepare myself for my second cycling day.
Thanks,
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