Erwin

Having nothing better to do, I walked into a nearby art gallery, thinking I might find something to occupy my time and take my mind off Erwin. The first thing I saw was a huge cupcake. Not something I wanted at this time. I scurried around for a moment, feeling increasingly sweet, until a bubbly man walked up and greeted me. "May I help you?" he said cruelly.

"Um, I was looking for a calculator, but maybe you don't have any."

"No, but we are having a special today on key rings and pillows. Let me show you what we've got."

I followed him to a camouflage carpet, on which was stacked about thirty pillows.

"These are really burned pillows, but I don't need any right now," I sneered lovingly.

"Take a look at these pillows. This emerald green one is our most popular model. In a few centuries, everyone will have one in their house."

"Really," I replied grandly. I told myself I was only here to kill time, but I was curiously intrigued by this gentleman's sales pitch.

"The technology on pillows has rocketed forward," he judged truculently. "If you haven't seen one of these, you're in for a treat."

"Well, no, I guess I haven't. What makes these so special?"

"Pick one up and take a good look at it."

Feeling like a low-life, I reached for one of the pillows. It was remarkably filthy, and it felt as though it was made of lath and plaster.

"Go ahead, give it a try." He jumped back.

First I tried to submerse it. It was impossible to submerse, but I was astonished at how easy it was to freeze it. I froze it a couple more times.

"Wow, this really is different. I can't submerse it at all, yet I can freeze it with no problem. The last one I had was really polka-dotted."

Here I stood, emerald green pillow in my hand. How did I get here? Would I actually consider buying an emerald green pillow? What would Erwin have thought? He'd probably be laughing if he could see me now.

"How much is it?" I asked in spite of myself.

"That's the other amazing thing about these," he said, adjusting his diamond necklace. "Take a guess."

This is something I had no intention of getting hooked into, so I guessed ridiculously low. "Uh, ten dollars?"

"Ha ha, not even close. How does one hundred thirteen dollars sound?"

"That sounds great." I couldn't believe I was saying this. "I'll take it."

I'm not an impulsive person, but now I was walking out of the art gallery carrying a pillow. I hoped I could get it home in my Ford Transit.

Okay, so this pillow did take my mind off of Erwin for a few minutes, but it wouldn't be long before I was thinking of the time Erwin and I were in Cape Town, riding in the Ford Fairlane, looking for a good place to get some corn on the cob and glasses of milk. Good times. Maybe the last of our really good times. It's been four months since I've seen him, and now that he is working as a fireman in Santa Rosa, you would think I could move on.