|
by Scott Normandin
Sometimes
you're better off with the way nature works.
If you could find a way to cheat the inevitable,
would you? Or do you fear the unknown so
much to wish to embrace this world no matter
what horrors it may hold?
Alex pondered
the same questions all the time. Tonight
at dinner he dined alone at a new exotic
restaurant. He was always a fan of exotic
oriental food and this was one he had never
been to before. His friends knew him as
quite the connoisseur of this type of cuisine.
Even though the place looked authentic and
exquisite, he had to be sure, so he always
dined at new places alone first, so that
he could receive the praises of his friends
later for always being able to find the
places for the most perfect culinary treat.
He always felt the need to feel superior
around his aquaintances.
It had
to be done right, too. He made a big production
of his first dining experience at a new
venue, pulling out all the stops. His fine
Italian pinstripe suit adorned with just
the proper lapel flower. His shoes were
always freshly shined, and his hair, combed
ever so perfect. He kept his head tilted
up ever so slightly during the meal to make
himself seem like a dignitary and he clapped
his hands loudly above his head as he barked
out orders to the staff. He knew that they
always seemed to think he might be a food
critic, or high-class investor with money
to burn, but it didn't matter to him that
it wasn't true. It made him feel good.
This restaurant
had excellent cuisine, and the atmosphere
was perfect. It seemed almost authentically
ancient in the middle of the big city, like
walking through a time and space portal
to the very heart of first century Asia.
The workers here had a strange dialect.
It was obvious a family owned business from
an area of the east the he was not familiar
with. That didn't matter either. They bought
his big-shot act and were pandering to him
and the food was divine.
|
