Almost like thinking...

Random thoughts, random observations, disconnected from meaning or purpose, floating weightless in the black inky void of infinity:

*Blenheim Ginger Ale- I've been searching for this stuff for a few months now. Fresh Market used to carry it, but the local branch seems to no longer keep the potent beverage on its shelves. Finally found it where I least expected, at the Piggly Wiggly in everloving Mullins, SC, which is just a short drive from THE MIDDLE OF EFFING NOWHERE!!! Anyway, I picked up a six-pack of it, and I have been drinking it very slowly over the past week. Drinking it slowly, because the stuff has a kick to it. When you take a swallow, your initial impression is that the ginger ale is particular crisp and flavorful, without the tangy aftertaste of corn syrup sweeteners. Then, after a moment, you begin to notice a growing heat in your throat, a heat as from Tabasco or mild peppers. By the time you finish the bottle, your scalp is sweating and your nose is running and you really need a cold drink. The mixologist in me can't help but wonder what Blenheim and Dickel would taste like together- call the drink Ginger George, serve it on ice garnished with ginger skewered on a swizzle stick. Could be the next mojito. Or at least the next appletini.

*Wa Wa Spa- Along 76/301 between Florence and Mullins, South Carolina, just off the highway, is a cluster of single-wide trailers which comprise the Wa Wa Spa Oriental Massage Parlor. You may note, as you zip by in your wife's quiet Japanese sedan, the attempts by the proprietors to add Asian architectural details to what are obviously square metal sheds (I mean, let's be honest- there's no way you can turn a single-wide into a Buddhist temple, now matter how many coats of red paint you throw on). You may also note the hand-written signs in the yard in front of the enclave advertising fresh collard greens for sale, and see that one of the Asia-fied trailers has been converted to an ad hoc roadside vegetable stand. Yes, that's right, you apparently can buy farm-fresh produce at the massage parlor. Where's a camera when you need one?

*Holiday Inn Express shampoo and soap- Open the shampoo bottle and take a whiff. What's that scent, cinnamon? And what else...vanilla? Unwrap the soap. Hmm, smells like cinnamon and vanilla, too. Hop in the shower, lather up, get yourself clean. Hop out, dry off, get dressed. Hey, I'm hungry, let's check out the spread in the breakfast room. For some reason, I have a craving for...cinnamon rolls! Hey, look, Holiday Inn Express has 2 trays of hot cinnamon rolls, just waiting to jump into my mouth and send me into insulin shock.