Day 15 -- Friday, May 15

Another lesson of the road learned the hard way: Nothing in the world is as perfect as a pretty girl you'll never meet in a strange town you'll likely never see again. Last night, I fell deeply, passionately in love - 25 or 30 times. I know full well that had I spoken with most of these young women for even five minutes, the spell would have been broken but...

I knew this night would come. Although I was intent upon undertaking this journey alone and have enjoyed, to date, my solitude and the unencumbered freedom of movement it provides, I was feeling pretty lonely and blue last night. I was in Commerce, Ga., having set up my tent (for the very first time; I was quite pleased with myself) at the KOA there. It was a cool night, the moon was nearly full and I was feeling rather mellow, thinking I would just hole up in the tent for the night. It wasn't long, though, before I began to crave a little human contact. Commerce is 23 miles north of Athens, a town noted for its music scene (REM, the B-52s, Indigo Girls and, more recently, Uncle Green hail from there). Passing through town on the way to Commerce earlier, I had learned that David Trucks, a 12-year-old slide guitar whiz, was playing with a good local band, Victims of Love, as openers. I decided to go check it out.

I hit town a few minutes before showtime, so I wandered around the downtown area a bit. This is where most of the clubs and restaurants are and the sidewalks were teeming. I stopped in a spot that sold pizza-by-the-slice and ordered a slice and a Killian's Red. The place was really crowded and here is where I fell in love - the first 15 or 20 times, that is. There were lots of attractive girls in the joint. Perky sorority types in preppy attire, neo-hippie natural beauties in tees and shorts, wholesome small-town homecoming queens - they all looked great.

One slice led to another, which led to another and pretty soon, I'd spent enough on pizza that attending the concert was out. Instead I strolled about, enjoying the night air and suffering further hits from Cupid's arrows. Being out among people was of some benefit in conquering my loneliness but my contact with others was minimal. In any case, I felt much better the next day. I suspect that, somewhere down the road, I'll again feel a bit lonesome. Hopefully, when I do, a little patience and a good night's sleep will once again do the trick.


Continue on the American Odyssey.
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