☆ STARSAILOR ☆

TODAY IS FEBRUARY 24TH

. . .which is a very important day to me for three very important reasons:

IT IS INDEPENDENCE DAY IN ESTONIA

And as everyone knows: Estonia is the greatest country on Earth. Thank God for Estonia!

Last night at the karaoke bar, Elina and I met an American from Southern California. I told him I had lived in Oakland and said Elina was from Estonia. Elina said to the guy: “Ryan collects us.” I became a little shy. But she is correct . . . I love Estonia and Estonians. I can’t help it!

I’m finally going to Estonia soon. OK?? I’m going to film it and everything. So calm down!

IT IS ALSO MY FRIEND CAROLINE’S BIRTHDAY

I met Caroline in my hometown during the pandemic at a coffeeshop where she worked. I went in every single day during the time I was trapped there simply to have something to do. That same coffeeshop had been a different store many years prior . . . and I had worked in that store when I was still in college.

After weeks of exchanging pleasantries at the counter, one day I finally told her this, that long ago I had stood where she now stood, and I believe she regarded this information with a sort of indifference. And yet she did not dismiss my words as merely the wistful ramblings of some melancholy guy in his 30s . . . she kept asking me about myself. We got to talking about sunscreen because we’re both pale. We agreed SPF 50 is the sweet spot. I told her I use the mineral stuff. That other stuff, I said, gets into your bloodstream . . .

I asked Caroline if she wanted to go for a walk sometime. This was the first Covid Winter and everyone was pretty lonely. I had not met someone from my hometown in probably fifteen years . . . I thought it would be nice to make a friend in a place where we’d both grown up. She said yes, of course, and asked me to come back around closing time and I could just walk her home, so I did.

I returned after the sun had set. I believe there was still snow on the sidewalks. She locked the front door to the coffeeshop and finished cleaning up. I helped her sweep and take out the trash. Then we went outside and took our masks off. I’d been talking to this person for a while, multiple times a week, and we’d never seen each other’s faces until that very moment. It was a real Human Moment in the middle of a strange and dark winter.

We went for a long walk around the little old town area. Sometimes we’d sit down, and when we started to get cold again, we’d keep going. Eventually I walked her home to her street and said goodbye. We ended up going on walks pretty frequently after that. Sometimes I’d be on a walk at night and run into her, and then we’d walk together. It was nice!

Caroline introduced me to her family and every time I visit home they welcome me in. I even spent Thanksgiving with them a few years ago when I was back in the US and had no place else to go. Everyone was so nice to me and they even had vegetarian stuff for me. That’s what the picture of us above is from.

Anyway: Happy birthday, my friend. Thank you for always being a good and loyal friend to me even though I was just some weird guy at the coffeeshop. I love you!

FINALLY: IT IS, OF COURSE, TWIN PEAKS DAY

I already got the first episode up on my TV. And usually I get pie and coffee . . . but I slept in too late today and now there might not be enough time! I’ll see what I can do. Berlin is a Midnight City, after all . . .

I checked the mail and saw Nora had sent me a letter as well as a postcard. Upon the postcard I saw my own words— the same ones I had said to her a while back when she was going through a Dark Time. Now she was holding up a mirror to my face. There was a strange comfort in that.

Wow! What a day!! I love it . . .

TODAY IS FEBRUARY 24TH

IT IS INDEPENDENCE DAY IN ESTONIA

IT IS ALSO MY FRIEND CAROLINE’S BIRTHDAY

FINALLY: IT IS, OF COURSE, TWIN PEAKS DAY

ACHTUNG . . .

AND!

OK!!