Friday

It took me a few days to get settled in the new flat. New Haven, Connecticut, is almost in a separate dimension from New York City, but the mellow pace suits me well to heal. Every last item was now in place courtesy of my mates, after they all agreed on Vodka and thin crust sun-dried tomato, spinach and chicken pizza to come and help me unpack. Feed them and they will come.

That afternoon at my office I casually turned up Amanda Blank’s new explicit single, “Might Like You Better”, and the old habit of searching for casual sex online resurfaced. I was still a human being, eh? The naughty geek in me went home and played online “hunting” games with the trollops for a couple of (wasted) hours and by 8:00 P.M., I was bored enough to take a train into the City.

When I arrived at my favourite sushi restaurant I waved casually at Bill, my bartender. That boy sashays more than any skier in Aspen and he always turns up his nose at anyone he thinks I should not be dating, let alone shagging. He is a critic I respect in such matters, and I notice when he does this.

So, without even ordering it, he brought me my usual drink: The Long Beach Iced Tea. This monstrous elixir is renamed after using a tropical juice or some schnapps instead of a dash of Coke, which gives the original Iced Tea a bit of a bite. The more tropical taste made me wish I were in Ibiza or Mykonos with my mates. Bill always asks me pointedly if anyone is joining me when I arrive by myself. This time, he knew not to ask from the look on my face. It is amazing what being a frequent diner for three years can do.

After abusing the alcohol a bit and devouring a fantastic yellowtail sashimi combo to dip in the house’s signature citrus soy sauce, I asked for my check and when Bill brought it over I got up and hugged him. I made one of my arms rest on his lower back and then pulled his hips closer to mine. This made him speechless for about a second flat and then he pulled away. When I left, he walked out to wave at me and shouted, “Good night, TEASE!” I enjoy his bartending and unrequited desire so much.

2:00 A.M. I was a bit trashed and of course, I called my friend Jolene to ask if she was awake at that hour. We both know she suffers from insomnia, and I always enjoy our conversations about the patients at the plastic surgery clinic she works in a few days a week for some laughs. Yes, she was awake and I did not want to pay for a hotel room or take a cab. Sure, I could come over and crash.

As I walked in the night chill toward her apartment building, I saw across the street an androgynous figure wearing black patent leather Chelsea boots, boot-cut skinny blue jeans and what looked like a large black Duchess satin poncho. Karlie wore something like that when we visited the Aztec ruins in Perú three years ago on a whim.

When it came to travel and fashion, we never were practical beings and I know we both imagined big editorial photo-shoots in exotic locations, much like those Diana Vreeland art-directed for American Vogue featuring Veruschka. We shared visions of everyday life dressed like our idols in the magazines…

I stopped to hold back a sigh. One day, I will be over you.

rogue diary