everywhereman

[photo by kaplan harris]


Is there a guy you see walking all around Washington, wherever you go, and whenever you go there? Is he dressed in a coat but no tie? Does he have dark hair, is he "swarthy" in regard to his stubbly face, does he limp a bit, or stumble? Do you see him hopping off the bus right outside of your apartment building, outside the coffee shop with the newspaper under his arm, at the bar at the Tabard Inn, where a group of television journalists greet him with raised glasses? And I'm not talking about Blelvis, either, the Black Elvis. Maybe it's this --- maybe *you* are the person *he* sees all around town. Crossing the street, coming out of the Circle, bending down to tie your shoe. Hoisting a beer, buying a movie ticket, opening an umbrella in the rain. Is he The Aimless or are we The Aimless? Do we know ourselves anymore or do we lead secret lives, so secret, we don't even know them ourselves?

For the answer to those and other questions, join us for the next edition of Drink & Walk. By the end of the night, as some of you already know, the guy you see walking all around Washington usually turns up, at the Black Cat, for a beer. Even though he doesn't attend Drink & Walk, he does attend Drink & Walk, and it raises the question of whether we are attending our own gathering, or not. Confused? Beer helps. Tequila helps. Scotch helps. As does a Long Republican Winter Kit, which includes a set of earplugs, a flask of fermented beverage, a blindfold, a last meal request form, a pencil, a pair of chocolate undershorts, and assorted perverse diagrams.



[first posted 17 january 2006]