Fourth of July: I woke up at 4 p.m. and immediately drove to a theater in NW Portland to see ‘The Neon Demon.’ I am not going to apologize for this movie, and I 100% understand someone not liking it.

. . . though hell, I sure did have a good time!!

Later, at home, I drank some coffee and wallowed in misery until my buddy Fiona invited me over to her house for a bonfire. I went. My buddies Stevie and Ella and Shannon were there. Man, talk about a god darn sausage fest otherwise. And, unsurprisingly, every dude there was indistinguishable from the other. It was basically like seven identical copies of one boring dude were hanging out together (this is a big problem in this city). Stevie and Ella and I hung back, away from the fire, and ate virtually all the food that was on the patio table. When everyone started talking about celebrities in that weird way where it sounds like they’re friends with them, I hit the eject button and left right away.

Came home, hid from the explosions outside, sat on my bed with my cat, drank a bunch of tea in the near-dark, thought about some shit~

I managed to go all day without seeing a single firework. It was fine. I have seen a lot of fireworks in my life. It’s OK if I don’t see them every year.

Did you know that in Oakland, the Fourth of July is a month-long event? For a whole month people blow stuff up. It’s total anarchy, man. It’s kind of scary actually. You’ll hear a huge explosion go off every fifteen seconds, almost like a carbomb or something. I don’t know where those guys get that stuff, but it’s intense as hell. You know what, I kind of missed it! Portland was so tame. It’s tame in every way, every day. It is aloof and indifferent and emotionless, really, when you get down to it.

Last year I stood on the rocks near the Emeryville Marina and watched fireworks over the entire Bay. It was real good. My friends were there. I miss those guys a lot. Man. Oh well.