July 13th, 1995

## Carrie

\*\*\*Posted July 14th, 1995

**7/13/95**By the time Britt and I got back to the Spot two nights ago, the tension of the day had given way to nervous laughter. We started joking about what a hairy behemoth Hank is and that he probably opened up a bookstore as an excuse for his subscriptions to all those girlie magazines.

My spotmates weren't as amused.

Tara told me I should quit immediately and press charges. Michelle took it a little too personally, Jeff was characteristically unemotional and Lon, if "he wasn't a pacifist" said he would have "punished Hank for his sins" himself.

I arrived at work this morning fully intending to quit, when I discovered a bandaged and bruised Hank. He sat on a stool behind the counter with an ice pack on his elbow and his face looking like an exploded box of crayons.

"I'm sorry, Carrie."

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"I understand the way he reacted and I really am sorry I hurt you."

"The way who... what happened?"

"I sinned, Carrie and I was punished."

"What!? Are you okay?"

"Well, I've got fractures where I didn't know I had bones, but it only hurts when I laugh."

I looked at this pathetic excuse for a man, with his cuts and scrapes, and felt pity and disgust. I wanted to barrage him with obscenities and spit on his shoes. And do you want to know what I did?

"Can I get you anything?" I asked.

"Just your forgiveness."

"Hank ... I gotta go."

I left the store and went back to the Spot. Lon was hanging out and I told him what happened to Hank. Lon said to me, "Well, I'm glad I'm not the one who had to do it, but like I told you before he deserved to be punished for his sins."

That's when it hit me. "Lon," I started. "I understand why you did, what you did, and I appreciate you caring about me. But I don't think trashing Hank was the right thing to do."

Lon was quiet a moment and then started laughing, "He deserved it ... but I told you, Carrie, I would never do that."

I tried for an hour to get Lon to fess up. He wouldn't. I think he went too far. It actually kind of frightens me that Lon could be capable of such pure violence.

I do feel terrible for Hank. He was an absolute mess and I walked out on him. I'm going to apologize to him tomorrow, right before I quit.

July 13th, 1995
## Michelle

\*\*\*Posted July 14th, 1995

**7/13**Steven took me out to lunch today. He's done this before, but this was a really fancy place in Beverly Hills. We ordered a bottle of wine, and they let him smell the cork!

This habit we have started innocently enough. We started having lunch together every so often at the traditional office hangout restaurants, and Steve would pick up the tab. Nice enough. He does make about a bizzilion dollars more than me a year. At first I protested. After a while, the protests were more for show than anything else, and no -- it is just expected. I often go to lunch with him without any money in my pocket!

I feel a little strange now, because the lunches are getting expensive. Steven usually orders appetizers. I have anywhere from 3 to 5 glasses of wine. Sometimes we get dessert. And these restaurants ain't exactly Taco Bell. The important thing is that we are having fun. If he weren't paying the tab, I would still want to spend time and eat with him, just somewhere else. I'll wait it out and see what happens.

We are going to the library together to look up some "Janet Rose"-related items this weekend. Should prove insightful.

And yes, we probably will have lunch together.

July 13th, 1995
## Tara

\*\*\*Posted July 14th, 1995

**13 July 1995**I have found my calling:
I'm not meant to be some famous director,

or anything so lofty and ambitious.

You know what they call us: Generation X, Generation Next, whatever. They've written movies about this sort of thing, branded us with titles and labels, and all my life, I've been fighting this. I was planning a hostile takeover of America's youth .... but now it's all over.

I want to do nothing for the rest of my life. I want to be a SLACKER!!

Alright, I'm prone to extremes. I know realistically I'd probably kill myself within the first few weeks of actually being an irresponsible, unmotivated lazy 20-something. But it sure would be a nice change for a little while. So for the moment, I'm living the slacker fantasy. Living off cheese puffs, pizza and wine coolers ..... maybe I'll even call my old friends from high school.

Had a gorgeous day hanging out at the house, catching up with these strangers that I live with. Jeff and Michelle weren't around, but Lon and Carrie were both at home. It's rare that even that many of us are home at once. Lon must have missed me, because he took Spotnik and I out for ice cream .... and he treated! I think our dog is a good influence on him ... he's starting to behave like a human being (wait, that makes no sense. Maybe I'll give up making sense too). He quit his job and is on his way to enlightenment. Just joking; I'm not sure what he's gonna do, but I'll bet you it won't be waiting tables. Carrie seems like she's going through something heavy. Occasionally she'll open up to me, but not today. Maybe she's the type of person who only confides in one person (that being Britt these days) or maybe she just needs to get used to me again. I haven't been that available to her recently and she's so hard to read .... We hung out in her room for a bit. I braided her hair, and tried to find out what was up with her. No dice. She at least seemed happy to just hang out together.

Jeff came with me to get my plane ticket to Paris yesterday. First of all, you guys know that Jeff does NOT like to participate in anything. I'm pretty sure he doesn't like people. So when I asked him to come with me to the travel agent, I was just being friendly. I didn't even expect an audible response. Don't get the wrong idea here, it's not like conversation was flowing once he actually accepted. I think we both just felt sort of strange, especially out of our common territory. We were two people who were suddenly forced to admit we were hanging out by CHOICE. No good excuses, like living in the same house.

The travel agency was next to a greenhouse. I've never seen Jeff smile until I saw him look at all that plant life. Some people, like Carrie, get that look in their eyes when they enter into a bookstore; it's like their own personal paradise. I mentioned this to Jeff and all he said was that hadn't stepped foot in a book store in nearly two years. Apparently he prefers the library.

I told him I'd meet him in ten minutes, and left him in rapture with the Creeping Charlies and Spider plants. Very cute in a quirky way. My plane ticket was more expensive than the ad in the LA Weekly advertised. I should have known. But I just got this brand new Visa card in the mail, and being the irresponsible slacker that I am, I bought it any way. Come July 22, I'll be a virtual Spotmate, via France, but a very well connected one. Or maybe I'll just slack off.

**July 13th, 1995**
## External links

* Carrie's entry
* Michelle's entry
* Tara's entry