Marco Returns
The History of the World
This weekend: I went to Colorado, down to Cortez, for the weekend. My intention (successful, by the by) was to register my car and look into getting another vanity plate to replace the one I was losing by registering in Colorado. The cost is not a great deal more than what I paid in New Hampshire.
My intention was to go down early Friday morning, get there in the morning hours, take care of what needed to be taken care of, then go and see Denton (he owns a used bookstore) and then make my way to the property where I would be sleeping and doing you know whatever.
I was supposed to be reading Hamlet this weekend and, for whatever reason, didnt.
Friday I got up and hit snooze about a dozen times and then got up and packed my bag and, in the process, talked to J.D. for a while before he took off and then I took off. I think I left Springville somewhere around 9:30 a.m. rather than 8 a.m. or 6 a.m. I got to Cortez around 2:30, had the VIN Inspection (the place that did it didnt charge and didnt actually look at the VIN on my car) and then registered the car.
First objective (and principle reason for going) check.
The second objective was to see Denton and talk about potentially acquiring some pulp novels. Denton really isnt the best source for these. I think I knew that in advance of my driving down. The reason he is not the best source is because he is an academic that spent his professional career teaching English and working as the Dean of his English department. He knows literature and poetry (it seems to me that most professors revert to poetry as a means of achieving some notoriety) but has never been great at discussing really popular (read cheap and easy) fiction. When I tried discussing some scifi with him, his suggestions were good, literarily, but lacked when it came to the raw grit I was actually looking for.
He wasnt at his shop. He and his wife were not at home. They, from what I understand, had a water main break in their home and are now staying in a motel until it is fixed. Mom said they were in Phoenix for the week and I ran into Dentons wife in church on Sunday. She asked why I hadnt come by to pick up more books (they generally give me as many as I buy when I go in).
When I couldnt get a hold of Denton, I decided, on a lark, to drive over to Durango and look into the used bookstore there. I said to the guy, I am looking for old pulp fiction, specifically science fiction and fantasy, but also old mystery pulps.
He said, Ive got thousands. I dont have them here. Next time youre in town call me 24 hours in advance and I will bring some over.
So, I found someone with pulp novels and pulp magazines and the next time I go south I will probably be purchasing some of them.
Part of the weekend was spent just talking to the parents, independent of each other. Mom and I talked about family and the struggles associated with various members of the family (and my thinking of writing stuff that deals with it with the intent to publish) and with dad we discussed pulps and art and the possibly next direction in my life.
I went to church with both parents and got to say, hi, to several people and then we had lunch, watched a movie, and got into our different cars to head out. Mom and dad to Wellington, UT and me home. I got home around 11:00 p.m. after leaving them in Wellington.
Midway through Price I realized that a weird vibration and noise had gotten worse and I stopped to check things out. What Id discovered is that two of the four lugs on my right front tire had come off and the other two were loose. The noise was the two lugs bouncing around inside the hub cap. I put them back on, retightened everything down, and was back on my way.
It was a little harrowing to realize that, had I not stopped when I did, I wouldve lost that tire while driving along the winding roads either leading up to Soldier Summit or down into Spanish Fork from Soldier Summit. In short, off the road and dead seemed to leap to mind.
Regardless, got home safe, took the daily quiz on Hamlet and did well, and got back my paper on short stories with a nearly perfect grade (woo-hoo). I is doing better, thank you very much.