(Untitled post) - Draft**

**Nope, this is not a draft.

I was browsing through my 'Posts' list and I saw this one, lonely draft. "(Untitled post)", it said. Now I've never made a draft of anything I write here. Up to this point, this blog has basically served as my journal wherein I purge my pent up negativity (i promise to change this hahaha). The posts here are born from the emotions and thoughts I had at that moment. They're not something I prepare ahead of time, revise, review the next day, then revise all over again. I'm not really writing anything literary here (yet. hopefully). It's just not how I've worked till now.

With that said, it was weird for me to see a draft in my list. It doesn't even have a title. Hmm, let's see what this post was supposed to be about.

*click*

It was a blank draft. An empty, clean slate. Well, that doesn't help. But I think I have an idea on what happened here. I wanted to write something, wasn't sure of it, erased it, wrote again, didn't feel right, erased, wrote again, got frustrated, erased, "I'll do this later", didn't come back.

I'm certain I wanted to say something but wasn't able to express it, and this lonely draft is all that remained of it.

I'm sure you have one, too.

So on that same, lonely, untitled draft, I write this entry.

Here's to all of our "unfinished drafts"! 

To all the things we couldn't say or express;

All the things we didn't have the courage to articulate;

All the words we should have told them, him or her;

All the moments we held back, got scared, wussed out, got too embarrassed or nervous;

All the blog posts marked as "Draft";

All the letters we didn't give or even finish writing;

All the unfinished artwork stored in the basement;

All the texts that fill up the draft folder, waiting to be sent;

All the flowers that inevitably wilted without even gracing her presence;

All of the original songs that we keep singing in our heads but never in front of the one its for;

All the feelings we choose to keep inside even though we know we have to let them be known.

May we compose ourselves enough to finish them, 

have the courage to publish them, 

or whenever applicable, 

have the will to finally delete them.

Cheers!

Scatterbrain 1

There's a bunch of things (or I'd like to think so) on my mind and spamming them on Twitter would be very rude of me. So TA-DA! I'll spam them here on mah blog! Yehey! Let's make things a bit informal on this one (as if my other posts were that formal). And I just realized that this entry would be the very first post that adheres to this blog's title "Scatterbrain". Oooh, I better entitle it with something more appropriate. *changes title* There. "Scatterbrain 1". Added "1" to it to remind me that this is just the first one and I should make more of these semi-stream of consciousness type of posts. Ok, you ready? Go!

1. I just enrolled in a theater class that will run every Saturday (and sometimes Sunday) of every week till December 2. We're just two days in. One day if you'll only count today as the start of us doing something theater-y. Yesterday was just us introducing ourselves and going to a known university to watch their local theater organization's show. Cool cool show.

2. I had this urge to write something about the classes since it's something I don't normally do. But on my way home, I can't think of a general topic or theme to my would-be entry. I know I learned a lot of things today but I can't seem to roll them into one, bloggable topic. (Yes, bloggable is a thing.) That's when I realized what I needed to do. I have to step back and really immerse myself in the experience first. Let the workshop finish before I start spouting words about it. What I need is time to digest all of that. That way it'd be more meaningful and insightful. Burst blogging about it every time will just yield under-cooked pastry. I'll let it bake for a while in my head (and soul, awwyeah!) until it's golden brown and clean to poke.

3. PLEASE LET ME GET MORE UNITS ON THIS BATCH RUN PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!

4. Super duper looking forward to tomorrow (or later, whatever). Gonna meet up with some friends and hang with them for a while. I'll be giving the "Voca-bank", as I've named it, that I downloaded for a whole semester to my friend. It's really ironic.

5. There are some pretty ladies on my theater class. I'm a happy boy.

6. For those of you have kept track (or even heard) of the International Saimoe League, they're currently holding the Finals match. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, vote for Eucliwood Hellscythe!!! Kanade's cool and all. Its just that...she's not much of a character! Not worth the tiara. Vote here : www.internationalsaimoe.com

7. I got to copy (scribble) a recipe while watching one of the shows from Asia Food Channel. I think it was Molten Cake. See, I'm not even sure of the name of the food! It's a dessert, in case you haven't picked that up yet. I'm more of a dessert and bread guy. I'm not gonna say chef or cook or baker and stuff cause I'm not any of those. I don't wanna take up such a name since I'm not equipped to be called as such. I just like putting together sweet stuff that I see on recipe books and TV shows like this. Food knowledge is not something I have as of the moment, but is something I would really love to have in the future.

8. There hasn't been a warm day for me lately. This is such an obvious sign that CHRISTMASTIME IS COMING! WOO-HOO!!!! I love Christmastime. Really love. I won't deny that part of the reason are the gifts I receive. I feel loved when I get presents (and I get new stuff hihihi). Very shallow of me yes, but the hell do you care? Just kidding! I love you guys too! During the Christmas season, everyone seems to be in a jolly mood. Everyone's happy and stuff, one way or another. People are pulled in to one unified mood, a happy and joyous mood. The festive aura can be felt and seen wherever you go. Love, in all its forms, is apparent in everyone's actions. For a few weeks, people make an effort to make their immediate space happy and beautiful. I really wish everyone can extend that kind of thinking to the whole year.

9. I haven't gotten my voter's ID, demmit! I better get one of those or I'll surely be mocked because of it. A pretty shallow and insincere reason of doing so, I know.

10. FINAL ONE! I'll look up what Carpal Tunnel is. Heard it's pretty common to people who type a lot. I think it's some kind of strain on the hands or wrist or both. There's this cramping feeling on my wrist that I can't shake away. Hope I'm just tired.

Oh well, that does it for today. Just wanna flush down some random thoughts so that I'll sleep soundly tonight. Gooooodniiiight!

...Then You Get The Morning After

Ok, since I woke up really late today, it's technically the "afternoon" after for me.

You remember the surge of emotions that you went through the night before. All the things you said (or screamed), all the walls you tried to punch down and the embarrassing squeal you made when the wall decided not to crumble like you've imagined comes back to you after you wake up. Everything you did that night seemed...appropriate at the time. Now that you've rested, a question quickly passes your mind,

"Why the hell did I do all that?"

Embarrassment fills up your chest. You feel embarrassed for all the vile thoughts that you consciously permitted to run through your head. Your body doesn't even have an ounce of alcohol in it, but the rush you felt last night exceeds anything alcohol can offer. The rush of seriously not giving a single fck. But like any kind of rush, a sudden crash came shortly after. That night, you realized that you were tired of being strong all the time, or at least of acting strong. You wanted to be the weak one for a change; the one taken care of. Quickly, a lesson from experience hits you : no one's there to be strong for you when you decide to be weak.

Thank goodness. This time, you were wrong.

This time, you were saved.

You remember all the things you told her and how many times you've tried to repeat your point. How vulnerable you must have seemed. But you remember feeling okay.

"It must have been a huge trouble for her hearing me out."

This thought makes you want to grab your phone and text a long chain of apology. Then you remember you've already said sorry a number of times. Or did you? You double check. In the end, you trust that she got what you want to say and you thank her for the nth time in your head.

You can't really lie in bed forever since the thought of food compels you to get up. You thought pancakes would be nice, so you go ahead and make some.

You still feel a sting on your chest but now you acknowledge it as a natural occurrence. A phase everyone has to face. A hurdle you know you'll be able to overcome. So you accept the pain and let it make you stronger. You then continue making your pancakes.

It was chilling cold last night. But the morning after seems to be a little bit warmer.

I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I made such a discovery today (just a few minutes back, really) and now I can't contain myself! I knew it! I knew it!!!

I had my doubts.

I HAD MY DOUBTS!!!

But this....THIS...THIS THING, it eradicates all of those! This trumps it all! Finally, some evidence!

I can't believe how perfect it all fits. Just a few clicks, searches, and backreading was all it took. It was so simple! I should've done this long long long long long long long ago!!!

You should let him know, seriously!

My cheeks hurt so much right now. FROM ALL THE SMILING AND LAUGHING OF COURSE!

You should have seen my face when I found out. I had to grip my face so hard to prevent it from ripping because I was laughing so much.

It feels so good! To be free from assumptions and from doubts! From the uneasiness of maybe's and what if's.

This discovery is amazing! It's like a drug that forces your face muscles to smile and your diaphragm to laugh. The kind of drug that you take when you're irreparably broken. The kind that numbs you with laughter while it eats you up swiftly, silently.

Chronicles of a Walking Man 5

(If you've read from the first 'Chronicle' all the way up to his one, you're a weird person. Just kidding. Thank you, I guess. This is the last one. Not that it'd be any different from the other 'Chronicles' nor from my other posts. It just feels cool stating the fact that this is the "last one". Hurrhurrhurr, forgive me shallowness.)

   Walking the stretch from the church to the main school is not such a familiar experience for me, even though I spent 4 years of my life in that school. Like I've said in my previous post, I took the school bus back then and it usually goes around and comes in from the other side of the school. The rocky side of the school. That's why I rarely take the cemented road going to in, which I find odd considering that it's the "proper" or "main" way to go inside. The only times that I remember going through here are when I have to go to school during a weekend when there's no school bus available, whenever I wake up late, miss the bus and have to take the tricycle to school, and during the 3 commencement exercises and graduation. All of those times, I'm too preoccupied to  notice the things around me, all for different reasons.

   I see through the windows a room full of worshipers. They were having some sort of meeting, though I can't hear them through my earphones. Not that I wanted to eavesdrop anyway. I continue walking until I reached the parking lot that divides the church from the school. It's usually filled with cars and school buses, but tonight, it's as empty as everything else. I've seen the new facade of the school before so I didn't bother looking at it again. More importantly, I scoped if someone was looking at me from the guard house. I don't want to be surprised nor chased out by anyone. Nope. No one seems to be alarmed of my presence. A black dog a few meters away was sleeping. Even he was not alarmed. I sat at one of the islands that acted like huge pots for the trees. I'm sure there's a term for them that I don't know. Relaxing. Sip of coffee float. 

Ahhh. Breathe in. Breath out. Ahhh.

"GRR!! RARFRARF!"

   The sudden loud bark took my by surprise. It was that black dog that was sleeping earlier. For some reason, he woke up and that reason is probably me. Now, I don't usually understand what a dog, or any animal, wants to say when they bark, but this time, I understand perfectly what he wanted to lay across.

"And who the hell do you think you are?"

"I'm--"

"I dun care! You ain't gotta be here on mah turf, so you get yo skinny ass outta here!"

"Well, I jus--"

"You wanna take me on, foo? You wanna go? Huh?!", he moved closer.

"Ok, fine. Sheesh."

"Yeah, you better be walkin' outta here! Shoo! Shoo!"

   He kept barking at me as I walked out. I wasn't done looking around and I'm not gonna let some dog order me around, so I made my way to the church's "front door". I'm not really sure if it's the front door. It just seems like it. It had that huge two-door entrance and a large open area with a fountain in the middle. I've never visited this part of the church (since I rarely go to church), so I was pretty excited. Fountain in the night. Kinda romantic. The few light posts that were up coupled with the bright half moon shining above illuminates the area. 

"Now this, THIS, is nice."

   A knee-high divider separates the elevated part from the rest of the open space. Needless to say, I had to sit on the divider. I placed my coffee float on the base of the mini pillar beside me. I flailed around my legs, amused that it's not touching the ground no matter what I do. I look around and no one was there, except for the eagerly bright half moon above me. I stared at it for some time and eventually, I got tired of looking up. That's when I had an idea. I looked back at the guard house for a quick check. No one was looking. Nobody's around.

"Yeah, it'll work." I confirmed to myself. I moved the coffee float further away from me, pulled my feet up and positioned myself on to the thin, slightly curved "bed". Slowly, I laid my head back, trying to maintain my balance, my hands gripping on both sides of the ledge so that I won't fall off disastrously. Eventually, my neck hits something. The base of the mini pillar my coffee float used to be in. It made a perfect pillow on my make shift bed! Straight in my view is the bright half moon.

"Best. Idea. Ever."

   With time, I got used to lying down the thin stone divider so I let go of the ledge and placed my hands neatly on my stomach. I basked on the sight of the moon and the starry night sky it was in. Cold wind brushes from my side, passing through my whole body. I increased the volume of my music player and closed my eyes. I was lost in the waves of music and wind. Two songs went by in a flash while I had my eyes shut, but I got scared that I might fall asleep if I continue. I opened my eyes and immediately turned to the guard house. Ok, I'm good. I didn't go back to taking a nap, but I continued lying there. I couldn't care less what time it was already.

   Along with the clear, dark sky, my mind cleared up as well. There was nothing that disturbed me, nothing at all. Everything was calm and steady. For the first time in a long time, I was at peace. I've been through a lot of stress lately, mainly because of my own useless thoughts. I blamed it all to me being home alone for such a long time without anyone to talk to. Negativity swirled around and around my head. It was like a rat running around and I couldn't catch it, let alone kill it. I used to love the feeling of solitude, of some alone time, but lately, I felt like it destroyed me even more.

   Turns out, the peace of mind I was yearning for can't be found inside the walls of my house and in front of the computer. I had to go out, somewhere further away, to find real solitude, real peace. Where the darkness is a friend. Where your thoughts can get carried away by the chilling wind and scattered about the boundless expanse of the land. Where the scale of the universe is not scary and where being alone doesn't mean being lonely. We all have that place somewhere in this world. Sometimes, we may already be in it, but we can't be in it until we change our perspective. Other times, we have to take the long way back, brave through dark and scary tunnels, face the terror of an unknown future, mourn for a shattered past and stand firm in the reality of the present. If you keep walking, tirelessly until your soles hurt, I'm sure you'll eventually reach that place. Then for just a few moments, you can stop walking. You can rest and you'll realize that this, this is the meaning of it all. And it was worth it. As for me, that place was back there, in front of my Alma Mater's church and under the blessing of the bright half moon's light.

Chronicles of a Walking Man 4

   Anyone can see clearly the interior of McDonalds. I'm pretty sure that's just how they want it. I read somewhere before that food establishments actually invite people to simply "hangout" at their place to make it seem like there's a lot of people inside and some passing customer will be pulled in by the bandwagon. Pretty clever.

   I immediately notice a couple talking intimately on the tables outside. They were the only ones there, as if they owned the place. I saw a door on the side but I chose not to go through it. I want to go inside from the front door. It felt like the right thing to do since it's my first time visiting the store. As I go around to the front, something big catches my attention. I back up a bit to see the big sign at the top of the post.

"Southwoods Center"

"Deeeeeym!"

   For some reason, the signage itself was oozing of badassery. I imagine a few years from now, it'd be welcoming everyone that wants to go to the "Southwoods Center"! And right below it? A bright and bubbly McDonalds that seems to extend its arms to a hug. Perfect!

   They also started putting up barriers and islands on the wide intersection. It used to be a huge intersection of death where one can feel the thrill of running from one safe side to the other. I bet they're preparing for the increase of vehicles that will through this intersection in the near future. It'll surely paint a bad image if people keep dying in there.

   Anyway, I was done looking around so I head straight for the front door.

"Wooooooooow." I thought to myself.

   I'm used to going to McDonalds, even late at night with very few customers like this one, but I can't help being mesmerized by this one. It looks so wide and clean and organized. A top level branch. They have a separate bar for the McCafe which I find pretty classy. I remembered the conversation I had on the phone with my friend. She mentioned how she loved McDonald's Coffee Float and how she made her mom have some and how she liked it even though she rarely drinks floats.

"How about I get myself one of those. It's not like I came here specifically for that. Yeah. It's just that there's a McDonalds here. And coffee float. Right, right."

   I scanned through the menu flashed, looking for the coffee float. Coffee float...coffee float. There! Apparently, you can buy it as a separate drink or as an upgrade to a meal. It says,

"Upgrade from a meal".

   I'm not quite sure how that "upgrade" works since I rarely say yes when the cashier asks, "With fries? Upsize the coke? Any additional order, sir?" Like I've always done when I'm about to do something for the first time, I practiced how to order on my head. Word per word. Then a cashier calls my attention.

"This counter, sir." Signalling at me with a smile on her face.

"Yeah. Uhm, for the coffee float, does the 'upgrade from a meal', uhm...a(ctivate), no ugh, hmm...."

   I can't remember what I rehearsed! The cashier looks at me, baffled as I fumble for the right word.

"Does it, uhh...take effect, with the McSaver Meals?"

   Really? Take. Effect?

"Uhm, what is that again, sir?"

   Now she's making me repeat it!

"I mean, I can, like upgrade to a coffee float from the McSaver Meals, right?"

   Somehow, I got the message across.

"Ah, yes sir."

"Ok, I'll be having a...ahm, let's see...Crispy Chicken Fillet with rice. Then upgrade the drink to a coffee float."

   She confirmed my order, I pay the bill and she prepares my meal.

"Apply! Dammit! That was the word I was looking for!" I snap as the realization came to me.

"Order's complete. Enjoy your meal." She pushes the tray towards me. I smile in response.

   I didn't know where to sit, inside the store or outside. I wanted to eat outside and stare the night sky some more while eating, then I remembered the couple that's being lovey dovey outside. No way I'm eating there. So I pull a nearby chair and ate there. Their chicken was bigger than what I usually eat. Hallelujah! But it wasn't the center of my attention. It was the coffee float, of course.

"Hmmm..." I stirred the ice cream a bit, pulled out the straw and licked the ones that stuck. "Mmmm." Stir, stir stir. I took a sip. "Hmmmm...." I was getting something, but I knew I haven't reached the peak of its taste. Stir, stir, stir. Sip. "Not yet." I pull out the straw once more and licked the ice that didn't come off. "Mmmm." Stir, stir, stir. When the ice cream was completely dissolved in the coffee, that's when I took a sip.

...

"Damn, that's good." I immediately texted my friend. "You were right, the coffee float is really good! (translated from the original text)".

   Stir, stir, stir. Sip, sip, sip.

   After finishing my meal, I pulled my leg up and curled to a ball in the comfy chair. It seemed like I was feeling really at home, but whatever. The girl from the table across is doing it, so I'm just going with the flow. She looked kind of familiar. I took glances of her. Not the ohh-she-looks-hot kind of glance. I wanted to see if I know her from somewhere without anyone noticing.

   Stir, stir, stir. Sip, sip, sip.

   Yeah, I don't know her. Meh. I looked outside to check if the couple was still there. They were. Tsk. I really wanted to try sitting outside but the...you know what, I don't care. I went out and sat as far away as possible. I look up.

   Stir, stir, stir. Sip, sip, sip.

   I wasn't wrong. The night sky enveloped me li--ok seriously, the thought of having a couple fawning at each other just 3 tables away just ruins the moment. I head out of the store. Just across the road from McDonalds was my high school. To be precise, it's the church, then behind it is my high school.

10:33pm.

"Just for a few minutes", I thought to myself while sipping some more coffee float. The chocolate syrup's still pretty overpowering, but just a few more stirs.

   Stir, stir, stir. Sip, sip, sip.

"Ahhhh....yeah, that hits the spot."

   Sip, sip, sip. Sip, sip, sip.

Chronicles of a Walking Man 3

10:00pm.

   I decided NOT to write the songs that have been playing for the duration of my walk. I looked straight ahead and saw the people chatting inside 7-11, which I've only been to once before. I had a tiny urge to go inside and check it out, but I brush it aside. I just wanna grab some food at McDonalds and go back home to blog.

   As I walk past the arc, I notice something...bright. The spot it's on used to be a construction site that I thought was never gonna finish. Now, it's fully finished, bright as the heavens...

Caltex gas station.

"Wooooow."

   I was sure they were building something else when I first saw the construction site months and months back. I thought maybe some kind of commercial building of sorts. But no. A gas station. Not that I'm undermining the establishment. I do think it's a pretty good idea to put up a gas station that's NEARER to civilization. You see, just on the next corner, there's another gas station. That one got built way before the Caltex one and back then I thought, "That's a good idea." It wasn't. It didn't even take a month and the gas station was already dead. I asked around about what happened. Some said it got robbed. Some said it just didn't get enough revenue. Yada yada. Bottomline, it crashed and burned (not literally, oh god). As far as I'm concerned, it's now a constant reminder never to put up an establishment in the middle of nowhere if you haven't thought things through.

   I continued walking ahead while my eyes were still locked on the Caltex station. It looked so clean and new and shiny and pretty. When my neck got too twisted, I stopped and faced the station properly. That's when I noticed something. Something else. The building behind it, where the 7-11 earlier was. It had a rooftop bar now! I'm not even sure if it was that high before. I'm pretty sure it was just around 3 floors, but now it has 5. I don't know what got to me, but I stared at the building for quite some time. Shortly after the smell of smoke grabs my attention away from the rooftop bar. Not the bad kind of smoke. The good kind, like the ones coming from stone stoves powered by charcoal. I followed the trail and checked my suspicion. I was right! Bibingka! Like a native rice cake. (Why am I bothering to explain what it is?) It's usually pretty seasonal and comes up only when it Christmastime is near. Except for the few random Christmas lights, this is the first hint of Christmas coming on this side of the road. I didn't buy one, though. But the thought of Christmas coming really soon was enough to perk me up.

   The now dead gasoline station marked the start of a wide spread of nothingness. Like the Scary Half, there's not a light post in sight. It's as if the darkness of the night sky spilled over and covered the ground as well. But unlike the Scary Half, I didn't mind the darkness. It was calming. Coupled with the cold wind blowing, I savored every step. I tucked my hands to my jacket's pockets and continued on. In a nearby corner, I notice a new construction site, one that I've never seen before. It had around 7 or 8 light bulbs scattered about the site and it barely illuminates the area.

"Hmmm...."

"I'm not in any rush, anyway." With that in mind, I head for the site to take a look.

   It had a tarpaulin put up in the front but it was too dark to read what was written. It had a picture of the would-be building so I'm pretty sure it says what it's gonna be. As I get closer, I noticed a car parked near the site. It had it's back lights and dashboard light on, yet I can't see if there was anyone inside.

"Are there people having sex in there? Or maybe murder!"

   I didn't want to check. But if I were to get close to the site, I had to pass through the car. I had no choice. I walked hurriedly to the tarpaulin, taking glimpses of the car, just in case someone comes out and jumps at me. Though if he were to try and chase me, I won't be able to escape. I mean, he's got a car and all. So basically, the moment I walked towards the site was the start of my (would-be) demise. I stopped when I reached the front of the site. If he wanted to kill me, he'd do it now. I take a last glimpse.

No change.

...

"Nah, he's not gonna kill me."

   Even though I was practically in front of the tarpaulin, I can barely read what was written. At that same instant, a bright flash of light beamed at the tarpaulin! I looked back and saw a car from afar flashing his head lights directly in front of me. I don't know if he saw me trying to read the tarpaulin and decided to help or if he just happened to have his head lights on while making the turn, but I gestured a thank you to him. I hope he noticed. I snapped back to reading the tarpaulin.

"Unihealth Southwoods Hospital and Medical Center"

   Just as I finished reading, the lights go off. It's like he's right there beside me. I couldn't help smiling. A hospital, huh? I counted the floors it would have. It had six if I remember correctly. Who knew we'd have a hospital in the middle of nowhere. That's when I felt that things are really changing. Months will pass and that hospital will be finished. By then, who knows what else would have changed. There's A LOT of vacant space around. I'm sure someone would think of something.

   Then I remembered, someone already did.

   I read a few months back that some corporation signed a huge ass project to turn this empty expanse of land into...something big. A "BPO center and IT Park" in their own words.

"Oh yeah, they did say there was gonna be a hospital here. So it's this one, huh?"

   I was ecstatic when I first read that article. Now that I'm looking at  it's birth, it's first bricks and foundations, I felt like I was looking at history in the making. That years from now, I'd be standing in the same spot in front of that hospital, saying, "I saw you when you were just a pile of stone and cement."

   But speaking of history in the making, an even more prominent evidence of the change that has swept the area shimmers like a jewel in a dark cave.

   McDonalds was in sight.

   The darkness of the area simply intensified the brightness of their lights in my eyes. Like an oasis in the desert. It wasn't as dark as it used to be anymore. For one thing, I can see the road I'm walking on now.

   But the serenity of the night remained.

   I looked up to the night sky. There seem to be more stars than it used to. No, that's probably not it. I must have just been too accustomed to the night sky in the city. Where the view of a starry sky can only be seen in patches. Sky lines cover the smoke filled sky. The stars weren't particularly bright. But there were lots of them. Lots. Spread out on the black blanket enveloping the land. I'm not one to be too sentimental about the difference between the city and province since our place is technically part of the metropolis, or at least very close to it. But this time, it felt different. I've passed through the same expanse countless of times before and I've looked at the night sky more times than I can remember, but I don't remember seeing it being this huge. This overpowering; belittling. I tried sizing up the night sky, looking at it from end to end. But it's as if the edge of the dark sky melded to the edge of ground, where their division blurred and the two worlds became one. And in the middle of this dark dome of peace?

   A shining, shimmering McDonalds.

10:18pm.

   I've reached my destination.

   But I haven't reached the end.