I mentioned I met three interesting people. I'll wait to write about them until I get out this about #4. He is not interesting at all actually, he is quite lonely and awkward. I'm sitting at the only cafe I can find in the airport after exiting security accidentally, waiting for my ride to the farm. I'm really only sitting in here for the power outlet next to me. There is a TV in here and he is watching it: Regis and Kelly. They're talking about the earthquake that hit Haiti sometime during my journey. Kelly begins to say "It's so sad and I always think when things like this happen, and maybe I'm wrong..." "You're wrong!" he shouts, "You're an android," he finishes confident he's figured her out. This outburst comes after a few shouts while reading the newspaper, as well as one while watching the news previous to Regis and Kelly. After each outburst he looks around for approval, for some minuscule agreement, but the crowd doesn't take. They avoid his looks in a fashion almost as awkward as his shouting. I feel a negative ick being around him and I want to leave...78% charged. He's gross.

The first interesting person isn't really all that interesting anymore, but he was a good character and sold musical instruments.

The second interesting person was a self described "LA born Jewish-American Princess." She was going to Oahu to visit her son and she noted the size of my bag and asked what I was going to do with "all that stuff, and that bag, my god!" For being LA born, she had the perfect New York accent. I told her I'd be camping for a bit and she said she wasn't interested. She had no idea how anyone could do that shit she says. She went on to tell me about all the herbs and medications she was on for her bursitis. She could never sleep on the ground in her condition. Good thing I wasn't asking her to. She went on to show me the shoes she packed in her bag, "aren't they cute? And functional too!" She assumed I was a lot younger than I am, which all the people I've ran into have, and decided then to take on a motherly role for the rest of our time together. She waited for me to get in line first to board the plane, asked me what seat I was in, etc. What was most interesting though, is when she asked me for relationship advice. Our encounter had started by her finishing a phone call which caught my interest. "We can work together only if we're together together, like married," she told her boyfriend. She hung up and then we stared talking. Her boyfriend is a 57 year old native-american sun dancer. "We're total opposites," she said, "I'm not interested in that stuff." She was convinced that his frequent trips to South Dakota to dance in numerous festivals was beyond "roughing it." "I'm not staying in any motels, do you think they even have motels in South Dakota?" She asked. "I'm going to visit my son who just moved to Oahu. At least he moved somewhere nice, not somewhere like Duluth." I told her Duluth could be quite enjoyable and she was surprised I even knew where it was. I explained I was from Minnesota and she apologized for somewhat insulting my state. I didn't much care and told her not to worry. Anyway, she told me that she knew her boyfriend for 15 years now, but they've only been an "item" for 2 years. "The question is now, how do I get him to want to marry me?" she asked as we walked down the breezeway. I could think of 5 or 6 self-help books that would point her in the right direction (ie, not wanting to pressure him to change) but decided that wasn't the best approach. She seemed interested in homeopathic remedies, but I didn't know of any potion to make said sun dancer want to "settle down." They lived 40 minutes apart, he traveled often, she did as well. If I were a 57 year old man, this would probably seem like the perfect situation. "He can't commit," she sighed. I'm not sure what I said, I probably said something stupid like "it takes time." A 56 year old woman probably doesn't want to hear that, especially after 15 years of trying to bag this man. I wanted to think that he was this jerk that probably didn't want to commit, who had her just how he wanted her, strung her along, when he wanted to spend time with her, he could. But then I wondered, what if he is this wonderful man? What if he is as intensely interesting as she describes and he does want to get married, just maybe not to her, or he's perfectly content to not need marriage and maybe she can't communicate effectively how important it is to her? Any way I didn't have much advice for her, but I desperately wished I did. Oh well.