Simon's; 31 December through 1 January
Skinheads arrive at 11:45 p.m. They file onto a raised platform, which I recognize as the V.I.P. area, and start partying harder than everyone else. They dance with entire bottles of champagne. Soon, they take over the bar and start serving themselves.
The Countdown to Midnight is shouted at different intervals on either side of my head. In my left ear I hear 7! 6! 5! 4!, while in my right 6! 5! 4! 3! At midnight, I can't stop laughing.
A band of hippies we know plays "Benny & the Jets," but no one realizes until the chorus. The singer wears a Desert Places t-shirt. Ashley says, "So, is this, like, music or what?" The singer comes to say hello to us after playing the song. I tell him, "Nice shirt," to which he replies, "I know! It's the only shirt I have!" I offer him another at no cost and take down his address with color and size preferences. I learn that his name was changed from some ethnic trifecta -- Dominic (something something; sounded Spanish) -- to Josh Robinson when he was aged 7. His adoptive parents just told him to stop writing Dominic at the top of his school papers.
A ghost floats nearby. His right front tooth is missing and his hair sticks out like straw from underneath his cap, which looks like a propeller cap without the propeller. The Owner of the bar says hello to some people I'm sitting with that he knows. He wears a Red Wings sweatshirt. No one claps for the band. The Owner orders a private round of Jagerbombs. His hot bitch gives me one.
Different people we know play music on stage. Ashley leans over to me and says, "I probably shouldn't tell you this, but this song was inspired by you." I find a pair of earplugs in my purse. As I fumble, a woman mistakes me for someone she thought she knew and mumbles something I don't understand. I look up and she learns, then introduces herself.
Taped to the arcade bowling game is a hand-written sign that says, "High score over 245 - Bartender buys you a drink."
