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i am somewhere in randolph. it's so dark outside, i couldn't tell you where i am even if i wanted to. moths bombard the screen windows, drawn to the lights inside the house. i am in brooke's apartment in the middle of the woods, the area is silent (not even crickets chirp here) except for the stereo playing non-stop 80's music. i am here not to play but to work, helping brooke redesign the website for her company.

my day started with a long list of errands. i had to get the house ready for my departure, locking all the windows, do all the dirty dishes, wash a load of laundry, water the plants. i returned the motorcycle to my father since i wouldn't be using it for a few days, taking the opportunity to get something to eat (creme cheese bagel) and get some fresh basil. i came back home, packed my bags, gave bruce the key to susan and dennis' saab, then headed out to porter square, getting some money from the atm. i took the t all the way to the south station bus depot.

it was my first time riding the bus to anywhere. sure, i've taken the chinatown bus to new york city many times, but this was my first time riding a professionally managed bus service. it was kind of exciting, like being at the airport, felt like i was going on a vacation. my destination was randolph, vermont, but the ticket i bought was for white river junction, the reason being the bus fare would be 50% cheaper. even though i got to the gate an hour early, i decided to make one last bathroom trip before boarding, and when i got back, there was already a line, so i ended up being one of the last people on the bus, which meant i'd get the crappiest seat in the house, which in my case was literally true, as i sat directly opposite the bathroom. i breathed shallow throughout the whole trip. behind me sat two frat guys talking sports and great places to go skiing. i sat next to a frat guy as well, neither of us spoke to each other, he put his head against the window and went to sleep as soon as we left boston. in front of me sat a gorgeous blonde woman who sat next to this bandanna wearing long-haired backpacker (think willy nelson) and they seemed to have struck it off, talking animately throughout the whole trip. i tried to sleep but my seat wouldn't tilt back, so i slept vertically, snapping awake everytime i actually fell unconscious, resulting in very little actual sleep. the bus briefly stopped in hanover, which i found out was the hometown of dartmouth college, before reaching white river junction, this little middle of nowhere place boasting a chinese restaurant, a gas station, and a macdonalds.

the bus itself was actually going to continue to burlington and then montreal, but everyone had to get off as the bus got serviced. i got my bags and called brooke, telling her i'd be waiting at the neighboring macdonald's. there was a woman ahead of me in line who was raising a big stink because they didn't have vinegar for her fries (she was obviously going back to godforsaken montreal). the staff treated her in that extra nice sarcastic way they treat all rude customers. i stood behind her, rolling my eyes, waving my $5. once i got my order and was ready to sit down to relax and eat my unhealthy junk food meal, brooke called me, saying she was already at white water junction, and told me to get her a sundae before coming out. i did what was instructed, and met her outside for the very first time, climbing aboard her diesel volvo. in the back of her car was a stack of the latest weekly town newspaper with a spotlight piece on her artwork.

vermont is called the green mountain state for a reason, because there are a lot of green mountains. when we got to brooke's place, from the backyard i could see such namesakes, something i just don't see living in cambridge. the most i can hope to see is maybe a densely populated hill.

i was put to work immediately, first order of business transcribing brochure copy to actual text for inclusion in the newly revised website. brooke left me to my own devices a few times as she went out to run errands. thankfully the place has internet access (via satellite) and a wireless network. it felt like business as usual, except i was in vermont. my cellphone still worked but vermont is a dead zone for at&t wireless service, all calls are roam calls, which means something like $1/minute. by nightfall i was getting hungry and i asked brooke about dinner, a little detail that she had nearly forgotten about. we drove out to randolph center ("oh, that was randolph center?") to get some groceries from the shaw's supermarket. i picked up some more items for the thai red curry i'll be making for brooke and her friends tomorrow night, and brooke got some ingredients to make some quesadillas, which was what we had when we got back to her place.

after dinner, brooke started working on her brochure (the print deadline is tomorrow morning), while i started to build a mock of her new website. i stopped working after midnight to steal some time to write tonight's entry, but brooke is already asking me to help her fix some photoshop documents. some vacation!