Long lost love
September 15, 2001i call it the Long Lost Love because i have held a torch for it since we first met four years ago: in the hot, crowded loft of the saucebox. i developed a serious crush, fast and hard, and could not stop thinking about it.
four years later, and i could not stop thinking about it.
who develops crushes on cocktails? i do. gin, lemon-lime and mint is the secret passageway to my heart.
i could not stop thinking about it, and i could not stop talking about it, and i am sure everyone thought (thinks) i was (am) crazy. “they call it The Best Drink,” i’d tell people, “and it’s sparkly, with mint and gin and i don’t know what else.”
that sounds like a mint julep, some told me. that sounds like a mojito, others said. i don’t care what it is, i thought, i just want to have it again.
in a fit of passion monday afternoon, i broke down. i called the bar. i called the bartender, but he wasn’t around so i left a message. “this is going to sound crazy, but i was wondering if you could help me out,” i said. “i had the best drink when i was there and i need to know what’s in it. i lived there four years ago and now i’m in los angeles but i can’t stop thinking about it. i am craving it.”
i didn’t think he’d call. i thought it would be funny if he did, but i didn’t think he would.
four days later, he did. he left step-by-step instructions on my voicemail on how to make this cocktail. i never want to delete that message; it’s like an old boyfriend’s t-shirt or mixed tape.
so last night, i rekindled the flame with my long lost love. we mixed drinks and dipped chips and played gin rummy. old ladies’ night, i called it. i was tired by midnight.
outside, planes circled los angeles. twenty five minutes to get from here to there and back around again. where are they going? what are they trying to find? what is going on?
it is the little things that you notice, about the way things have already changed in less than a week. it is the little things that don’t make you outright cry or leap back in fear, but simply chip away at your peace of mind. anything can happen. nobody knows what’s next. i am glad she was with me, because everyone else is so far away.