Drifting Through the North Star

Driving is a spectacular form of amnesia. Everything is to be discovered, everything to be obliterated. - Jean Baudrillard

Driving Into a Bookstore

It's no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense. – Mark Twain.

She headed west and drove into a bookstore. The simple allegory of her journey raced through Kelli's head as she waited for the interview. Nestled in a very cozy and quiet corner of the store, she could only wonder what the hell led her here.

Yesterday she finished what ended up being a three-day vacation in Chicago. That city surprised her, especially since she had recently wandered from another big city. The spectra of museums, great restaurants, and the dynamic entertainment were all rather exciting, yet the deepest solace came from the walking paths along the lakefront, accenting a skyline that offered a stunning snapshot for the mind. The general feel of liveliness and community in this city was compelling to say the least.

Chicago let her feel again. The first sign of spiritual awakening happened at the art museum. A simple Monet of two people at the top of the cliff overlooking sailboats in the ocean flooded a heart that usually felt nothing from such a display. She remembered back long ago as a child when life was simpler and pleasurable; when times were innocent and one could actually find intense beauty in such an uncomplicated scene. Heck, she was thrilled she found intense beauty in anything anymore.

"I don't give a damn what you think." The words came from a voice hovering over her, thus breaking her deep reflection. "One day I'll prove it. Yeah, later."

The young man speaking those words abruptly closed the cell in his right hand. "Did you know that Buddy Holly survived his plane crash and wrote a number one country song in 1974?"

"What was the name of the song?" She asked completely unfazed by the question.

"I don't remember. I'll have to get back to you with that. Anyway, I’m Joe, the store manager." He reached out his hand offering the customary greeting.

Kelli got up to accept his gesture. "Please, sit down," he directed. Joe was a young man, late 20’s, average height and build, with sandy blonde hair spiked at the top. He was clean cut wearing a casual shirt and tie and sporting a gorgeous smile that openly reflected his affable demeanor.

He casually sat back in the chair next to Kelli and started to glance over the application in his hand. “Ah, I see you aren’t from around here. Have you ever been to Minnesota before now?”

“No.”

“What do you know about Minnesota?”

“That is it here.”

He actually liked that answer for now she had opened the door for some commentary. “Okay, well I need to warn you about a few things if you are going to live here. This is pretty important stuff, so pay attention. I have lived here my whole life, so I know what I’m talking about. First, it is illegal to wear a chicken on your head while entering the state of Wisconsin. That is an actual law. Look it up. Be very careful about that. Also, you aren’t allowed to cross into any state with a duck on your head.”

“Gotcha, I will avoid all birds and water foul while crossing state lines just to prevent confusion.”

He continued, “Also, this is the Land of 10,000 Lakes, but Wisconsin next door has 14,000 lakes and Alaska has around 3,000,000, so don’t really be impressed with the 10,000 lakes thing. We are just small potatoes. However, about 1 in 6 Minnesotans have a boat or other type of watercraft. Do you go boating at all?”

“Not really,” she replied.

“Well, you might have a little trouble fitting in then, so I suggest you learn. How about hockey, do you follow it at all?”

“I went to a game once.”

“That will be okay then. Many people come here not even hearing of the sport. You might be able to blend after all.”

Joe paused to study more of the application. He got very puzzled by some sections that the piece of paper offered. “I notice you listed no work experience or references. Have you been living in a cave the last 32 years?”'

“I chose to list only relevant work experience, which would indicate there isn’t any. Anything I have done does not involve retail except for maybe that part time McDonald’s job back in my teen years. Nobody likes to list that humiliation on an application though. Don’t worry, I’m not a hired killer or drug dealer.”

“Despite the fact that I have lived here my entire life, nothing could really shock me. I have seen many strange things. You aren’t in trouble with the law, are you? Running from something?”

“No trouble with the law. Run my name with local law enforcement. I’ll check out. Anything else you don’t need to know.”

“That doesn’t mean you aren’t running from something.”

“I’d like to think I’m running toward something.” She delivered her deflection with an optimistic smile.

“What a slick line. So full of bullshit.” Joe amusingly decided to move on. “However, you don't seem dangerous to me, more like the intensely private type. It’s human nature to like mysteries, so I'll continue for now."

The interview went on for well beyond an hour, and not once did they actually talk any further about qualifications or job skills. Kelli learned what the state flower was (pink and white lady’s slipper), the state bird (the common loon), the state song (Hail Minnesota), and even the state insect (monarch butterfly).

After absorbing so much info about the state of Minnesota that her head was ready to explode, they went onto other irreverent topics. “Working in a bookstore, there is great access to a variety of information.” Joe said. “You can learn just about any topic here, but it is amazing how so few people take advantage of the wealth of knowledge offered. My preferences are the inane and unusual as I have always been a bit of an offbeat thinker. So, now that you know this about me, do you want to know how much I know about cats?”

She sat there smiling, realizing just how much she liked this guy. “Let me guess, they go ‘meow’?”

“Okay, no knowledge of cats. I can see I have some work to do. I bet you didn’t know that cats have over 100 vocal sounds while dogs only have 10. I don’t get where people think the dog is superior. Anyway, I can educate you on a variety of topics. Mostly useless trivia, but still fun. What do you know about the US presidents?”

“There have been over 40 of them.”

“Okay, we will work on that too. Did you know John Quincy Adams regularly swam nude in the Potomac?”

"No, I don't remember such a fact coming up in my high school history lessons."

"They also had to replace the White House bathtub in 1909 because President Taft was too fat and got stuck in it.”

“Nope, missed that one too.” Kelli grabbed her forehead with her left hand and chuckled profusely. She was a sucker for cheeky humor and wasn't expecting it here. Not in a job interview. Not in stories about presidents.

Joe gave pause to allow Kelli to compose herself then went on. "Then there is my true specialty, the true meaning of words. Did you know that the Sanskrit word for "war" means ‘desire for more cows’? Next time you hear about a war somewhere you can blame cows for not reproducing fast enough.”

Kelli quickly answered, “Yes and human greed.”

“Yeah, you got me there, human greed does tend to play a part. Okay, so when can you start?”

“Today.”

“We have today covered, so enjoy the rest of it. We can see you first thing tomorrow.”

With that rather quick job offer they shook hands and went their separate ways.

Kelli started the short walk across the busy street to the local motel that was for the meantime her residence. The place was cheap yet quiet. It was a source of a lot of local history; the kind of history towns like this only bring up during the morning coffee gossip by the local housewives.

She stood at the outside entrance to her room and took a full circle glance of this quaint small town while basic questions ran through her mind. How the hell did I end up here? Why didn't I stay in Chicago?

Even though she asked the question, the answer was obvious. The hectic life and noise of the big city wasn’t what she was looking for. While a great place to visit, she couldn’t live there. After Chicago she headed north into Wisconsin because the thought of more flat open land prevented her from going farther west at that point. Ohio and Indiana already gave her a decent fix of that.

She had heard Wisconsin was beautiful, and it was. Open land with stunning characteristics that motivated any tired spirit from its empty shell. The rolling hills, the high bluffs standing in the middle of nowhere, the vast meadows, and the occasional limestone cliff all offered charming qualities to a state that primarily housed livestock. Life stood still here. Too many cows though. The cheese was good though, so she stocked up.

Eventually, she found herself leaving Wisconsin and crossing the border into Minnesota. She had never been to this part of the country before, so the splendid river valley below that divided the two states floored her. Such grandiose scenery appeared to have come out the sky. Perhaps this valley would be a symbol of her journey? She left someplace monotonous and simple and when she least expected it crossed the river into someplace picturesque and spiritually fulfilling. Maybe she was putting too much stock into a natural episode that happened over thousands of years, but she had to see signs somewhere.

All paths somehow led to this small town well south of Minneapolis. ‘Welcome to Sidney. If you lived here, you would be home now.’ How many hokey little towns in America were using that slogan? This was not the first time she saw the motto, but yet somehow it was charming here. The warmness and general feel surrounding this town was unlike any other she had seen. She discovered a strange spiritual connection that she could not shake or explain. Bad weather, lots of water, hills, scenery, and a general laid back attitude. The people seemed to welcome strangers, which was a switch from the ‘now go home’ attitude she came from. She felt compelled to stay here at least for a few days and see what made this town tick. Deep inside she truly believed there was something in this place waiting for her.

So how did she end up in the bookstore? She tried to remember the circumstances leading to that moment. She got settled into the motel and after acknowledging its quaint décor she stepped outside to admire the patio style view of Main Street. In a flash, there it was. The building stood apart from other surroundings in this town. It was a new and modern offering that in its pleasantness stuck out from the more run down and aging dwellings that enveloped it. Still, its unique enhancement wasn’t what drew her to it. There are moments in life where sometimes only simple divinity can be credited. She felt with every fiber of her being that she had to go into that store. A piece of the puzzle was there and she needed go see where it fit.

The store exuded calm and serenity the moment she stepped foot inside. People weren’t rushing around and showing disrespect to others because it interfered with the busy agenda. Everyone was quiet and losing themselves in the moment. Classical music was on the radio, and everyone acted like they were in a library. Kelli spent a couple of hours walking from aisle to aisle picking up whatever book or other piece of information sparked her interest. She was able to let her mind go of all that had been weighing on it in recent times.

Eventually, she bought a copy of Oliver Twist and an Entertainment Weekly. While at the checkout, she noticed the sign ‘Help Wanted’. In a fit of compulsion she asked the clerk for an application and filled it out immediately. The cheerful clerk gave her a huge smile in response to her submission. “You seem like a nice person. I’ll give this application to Joe and I’ll put in a good word for you.”

“Thank you, Charlene,” she said reading the name on her nametag. “That is very kind of you”.

“Please to meet you, Kelli,” Charlene replied, looking at the name on the application. "I hope to see you soon.”

So here she stands, now an official bookstore employee in a strange town miles from where she came from. She would call this twist unexpected, if she really had any expectations to start with. So far this trip was turning out to be predictably unpredictable.