Beginnings and Endings

I love beginnings and endings. I am rushing towards one now, so I have come back to this place to share banal things with you, internet. I know you are almost at capacity , but just like the people who give you pictures and pictures of cats, I don't care. It's not about you.

I found this entry that I made on the first day I was in the United States of America. I was young, skinny, and full of hope. Now I am youngish, fatish and full of complaints about the world.

After about 30 hours of travelling I have arrived at our hotel. My first impression of Miami is that its like Durban except cars come at you from your blind spot (left-hand side) and they seem bigger than usual. There is a giant American flag flying at the top of a giant flagpole across the street from my window. 

I just had a bottomless soup and salad for $7 at a place called "Chilli's" in Bayside Market Place. The first helping could have fed a small family for 2 days. The fat could have fuelled a small car from Bloemfontein to Thaba Nchu.  

This morning when I ordered coffee from Starbucks (like in the movies), after asking for a small coffee, the lady behind the counter repeated my order to me as "tall coffee". "Excuse me ma'am," I excused myself (a little bleary from the long flight) "I ordered a small coffee". 

"Sir, our small is our tall" she shot back.

I'm supposed to share my hotel room with someone. I hope he is hot and gay, but either would be fine.

This has nothing to do with anything I wrote

Looking back at this moment, it is clear that this woman, having detected the sureness of a foreigner with a too-fast metabolism, tried to warn me about the fatsplosion that was to visit my then dainty hips. Alas, I did not hear her. There are also hints in here about the rest of my stay - giant American flags, hotties, gays, bottomless (or bottomful) things, etc. For later posts.