Odd

The past 24 hours of my life have been weird enough to warrant a blog entry.

One of my old college friends is in town visiting. I hadn't seen her in over six years. We decided to have a movie night. First we watched the perennial bad-movie favorite, Troll 2. I'll probably write more about Troll 2 later, as it is a very weird but very important part of my life. We also watched Gozu, which left a bad taste in my mouth. It was Japanese and billed as a horror movie, and though it was horrific, it was clearly not horror. It was a gangster movie with lot of lactation. Like, a lot. And weird genitalia. And...a soup ladle used in a way I don't care to write about. It was disturbing and gross. And I like wacky disturbing Japanese horror movies. I found my mind wandering through most of Gozu because I've had trouble focusing lately. That's a different story, though.

It snowed in Seattle today. It's the end of March. It's spring! I've lived here 12 years, and never seen it snow this time of year. The snow makes the next part of my weird day even weirder.

I have a cute little pet rat named Roman. He's my baby. Look at him. Isn't he cute?


Unfortunately, Roman (like many rats his age) is very prone to skin problems including abscesses. Because of this, I've been spending a lot of time at the vet's office lately. He also has chronic respiratory problems (specifically mycoplasmosis, which is a common ailment among geriatric rats). Roman has been on several antibiotics and I've had to have his abscesses lanced and flushed twice now. I was on my way to the vet today, when I had a coffee craving. I was early, so I thought I'd hit the nearest espresso stand.

Believe it or not, it took me a while to find an espresso stand. Usually in Seattle, you can't even spit without hitting a barista, so why on earth could I not find an espresso stand today? I drove for several minutes up a major stretch in North Seattle, until I finally came across a drive-through espresso stand. Excellent. The sign said "Chicka Latte" and the logo was a '50s-style pinup girl.

I pulled up in my car, and the barista was leaning against the window while wearing a naughty soldier girl outfit and thigh-high fishnet stockings. It was essentially skanky lingerie. Do I need to remind you that it was snowing? The other barista was wearing a halter-top/camisole type thing and a very short pleated skirt. I think she was supposed to be a schoolgirl.

I was a little thrown off by this. I just wanted coffee. I'm not offended by girls dressed in lingerie, but I want to be prepared to be around the scantily clad. I think that the store logo should have been more provocative in order to foreshadow things to come. I kept staring straight ahead because I felt like it was rude of me to look directly at them. This espresso stand is in the parking lot of an auto supply store. Very strange. I got my drink, handed over my money while looking at the girls as little as possible. I hope they make good tips, but it seems like they'd make more money at Hooters. Also, I think Hooters is less degrading than being forced to dress up like a naughty schoolgirl at work. Not much less degrading, but a little!

So, gangster movie with lactation, rat abscesses, random springtime snow, and nearly naked baristas. Um, yeah.

~Zoe Doom