Notes for tomorrow:

Had a great time at Emma's birthday gathering. Irish car bombs were involved.

I was entrusted to take care of dogs at friend's house. I took duties seriously. 3 am found me driving deep into Ahwatukee to feed and water said dogs.

There were no other cars on the dark, winding street when my car died.

I coasted as far as I could and then jumped out. Metal met clavicle, and I pushed my car (I was barefoot, once again) into a Fry's grocery store parking lot. I used to come to this Fry's to buy food for my developmentally disabled clients. DC worked here at that time. It's good to see one of us has gotten far, far away.

I popped the hood and checked what I could. Everything seemed normal. I yanked out the dipstick to check the oil. I ran two of my least-used fingers along the burning metal blade and took the levels. It read normal. I pondered.

I know my car. It is acting like it doesn't have enough oil. I'll be damned if I'll
listen to a stupid burning metal blade to tell me what's wrong with my car.

I grabbed the quart of oil I keep under my seat. I never leave home without a quart of oil. I dumped it in the engine and tried the car again. It started fine and I made my way to my goal without interruption.

Until I got there.

The front door of the house was locked. In all my years of coming to this house for fun and business, the door has never been locked. Stranger still, no dogs barked. Odd.

I pondered again. I shouldered my overnight pack and walked around to the side of the house. The wall was the same height, which meant I could still climb over it. I did so.

I tried to open the back door. It too was locked. Again, this has never happened to me before.

I gambled my last chip and tried the tiny doorway to the master bedroom. It opened. Dogs came pouring out. More dogs than I remembered. I froze as they yapped and licked at me.. I sensed rather than saw a person...no, two people. People breathe differently or something, I'm not sure what it is that makes them stand out in darkness. I called out "Hello? This is Guillermo..."

My pupils flared to adjust to the darkness. I heard a voice that sounded familiar but not familiar enough.

"Guillermo?"

It was the daughter of the owners of the house. Her fiance' was with her. It seems that they too were entrusted with the safekeeping of the dogs and had chosen to spend the night, as I would have done.

So we chatted. I explained why I was there, and they, they didn't shoot me in the chest. It was a pleasant time. Having fulfilled my promise, I left the house knowing the pets were taken care of.

On my way back, a scantily clad woman flagged me down. She was also barefoot. I stopped, asked her if she was all right. She said her boyfriend had beaten her, stolen her truck, and was trying to get to a nearby gas station.

Mama didn't raise no fool. I offered to call 911 immediately. She declined. I conversed politely after that, quite wary and traveling at a higher than normal speed (because for you non-paranoids out there, if someone in the passenger seat is going to take you out they'll wait until you're at a low speed to avoid a deadly crash).

So it went until we got to a gas station. I pulled up the front door and she stepped out. As the door swung shut, I leaned towards her. "Just so you know, I don't believe most of what you've told me."

A broad smile cracked the thick layer of her makeup. "Why's that?"

I shifted into reverse and checked my rearview mirror. No one was behind me. "Just be careful." I stepped on the gas and drove off.

Now I'm home safe.

Times like these I admit that I don't know what I am, just that in dangerous times, I could end up being very useful.