Just wanted to make sure that anyone and everyone living on the East Coast is doing all right. I currently have power thanks to that generator, and my family and friends are safe. It's worse than Irene, no doubt about that, and from what I hear it might take even longer to get everything back up and running. My college is cancelled for the entire week due to the roads being a mess and the generators there breaking. I saw how Atlantic City and many places closer to the shore got completely totalled, and my prayers go out for those who live there.
The weirdest thing is that many images of the storm's aftermath in the more damanged areas look far too similar to what Catherine drew.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Happy Birthday, Catherine
Today is Catherine's 22nd birthday. I thought that maybe she would be found by this time, but obviously that didn't happen. I am a broken record by this point, but I miss her and want her found. So bad.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
The Downward Spiral part 1
This won't be easy to write. I made it this far, so I might as well.
A day after she had shown me the menu, I found Catherine sitting inside the library, pouring over a large, old book as far away from the wide windows as possible. In reaching distance there were two others waiting to be read, She looked more than just a little spooked, very unnerved at something. I immediately pulled out a chair and sat across from her.
"Hey, Catherine. Jeez, you look like hell. Are you alright?"
She bit her lower lip, thinking about her response. "I, ah...I had a really bad nightmare last night. Actually, a whole series of nightmares. One after another. All of them were horrific and so realistic. Then I had an insane bout of sleep paralysis that scared the living crap out of me. I couldn't sleep after that."
It explained her looking like a ghost, but I got nervous. "Do you remember them at all?"
"I kind of do. One had me walking on a forest path in the middle of the night. There were candles lighting the way, but they didn't help at all. If anything it made everything more creepy. Even worse, every step I took I knew that someone was following me. It was one of those dreams where you want to run and scream, but you can't. Another one was me just staring down a hallway in some sort of giant castle or palace. I could see large pictures on the walls that spanned the entire length down. I couldn't make out what they were of, though. But the whole time I was just so uncomfortable. Like I was seeing something forboding and wrong."
I nodded slowly, looking at the books that she had next to her. A voice in the back of my head screamed out 'it's starting again'. "What do you have there, Cathie?" I said, motioning at the other books.
She closed the book she was reading and showed me the title: Celtic Monsters and Myths. She slid over the other two books, which were about the hidden meanings of dreams.
I smiled and tried to make light of it, saying, "So...did you learn anything?"
The books were put off to the side and she continued, "Nothing you don't already know: the forest represents the unconscious, life, fertility, change in one's psyche. Candles mean illumination. And if you dream about a dark shape staring at you while you sleep, it means a dark shape is staring at you while you sleep."
We both chuckled at that little quip, but for me the mirth quickly died. "Wait. Something was staring at you? Like, an actual something in your room."
She let out a long sigh and nodded. "Yeah. I didn't really see it, per se...but I felt it.I knew it was there." Catherine checked her cell for the time. "I should head out now. I have an appointment with Dr. Frey. I'll tell him about all this and see what he has to say."
"Please do. You know how much I worry. Do you want me to walk you to your car, just in case?"
"Absolutely."
As we left for her car, she didn't seem to want to talk about anything. Even when I tried to strick up a conversation about dinner or the weather, she nodded silently and kept close by. We finally got to her car, and to my horror I heard her let out a wet cough. Not a good sign in the slightest. I tried to reason with it, telling myself that allergy season was kicking and she might be getting a cold. "Are you alright?"
She responded, "I'll get back to you on that."
My gut instinct told me that things were wrong...very wrong. I didn't want her to get into that car and drive off, lest something bad happen while I wasn't there. But my fears on that proved to be for nought: Catherine drove safely there and drove safely home. The second she was in her room the texted and then called me, saying that she felt bad for getting me worried, and that she told him everything. He was as surprise and shocked as we were, she said. He recommended that she steer away from any sort of over the counter medication, saying that most of the side effects for such drugs typically undermined the benefits, especially in her case. He wanted her to take teas, keeping with his preference for the natural.
"Say, you want to get something to eat tomorrow? That 'No Joe's About It' place is amazing." she said offhandedly.
And so plans were made for a delicious lunch and walk.
A day after she had shown me the menu, I found Catherine sitting inside the library, pouring over a large, old book as far away from the wide windows as possible. In reaching distance there were two others waiting to be read, She looked more than just a little spooked, very unnerved at something. I immediately pulled out a chair and sat across from her.
"Hey, Catherine. Jeez, you look like hell. Are you alright?"
She bit her lower lip, thinking about her response. "I, ah...I had a really bad nightmare last night. Actually, a whole series of nightmares. One after another. All of them were horrific and so realistic. Then I had an insane bout of sleep paralysis that scared the living crap out of me. I couldn't sleep after that."
It explained her looking like a ghost, but I got nervous. "Do you remember them at all?"
"I kind of do. One had me walking on a forest path in the middle of the night. There were candles lighting the way, but they didn't help at all. If anything it made everything more creepy. Even worse, every step I took I knew that someone was following me. It was one of those dreams where you want to run and scream, but you can't. Another one was me just staring down a hallway in some sort of giant castle or palace. I could see large pictures on the walls that spanned the entire length down. I couldn't make out what they were of, though. But the whole time I was just so uncomfortable. Like I was seeing something forboding and wrong."
I nodded slowly, looking at the books that she had next to her. A voice in the back of my head screamed out 'it's starting again'. "What do you have there, Cathie?" I said, motioning at the other books.
She closed the book she was reading and showed me the title: Celtic Monsters and Myths. She slid over the other two books, which were about the hidden meanings of dreams.
I smiled and tried to make light of it, saying, "So...did you learn anything?"
The books were put off to the side and she continued, "Nothing you don't already know: the forest represents the unconscious, life, fertility, change in one's psyche. Candles mean illumination. And if you dream about a dark shape staring at you while you sleep, it means a dark shape is staring at you while you sleep."
We both chuckled at that little quip, but for me the mirth quickly died. "Wait. Something was staring at you? Like, an actual something in your room."
She let out a long sigh and nodded. "Yeah. I didn't really see it, per se...but I felt it.I knew it was there." Catherine checked her cell for the time. "I should head out now. I have an appointment with Dr. Frey. I'll tell him about all this and see what he has to say."
"Please do. You know how much I worry. Do you want me to walk you to your car, just in case?"
"Absolutely."
As we left for her car, she didn't seem to want to talk about anything. Even when I tried to strick up a conversation about dinner or the weather, she nodded silently and kept close by. We finally got to her car, and to my horror I heard her let out a wet cough. Not a good sign in the slightest. I tried to reason with it, telling myself that allergy season was kicking and she might be getting a cold. "Are you alright?"
She responded, "I'll get back to you on that."
My gut instinct told me that things were wrong...very wrong. I didn't want her to get into that car and drive off, lest something bad happen while I wasn't there. But my fears on that proved to be for nought: Catherine drove safely there and drove safely home. The second she was in her room the texted and then called me, saying that she felt bad for getting me worried, and that she told him everything. He was as surprise and shocked as we were, she said. He recommended that she steer away from any sort of over the counter medication, saying that most of the side effects for such drugs typically undermined the benefits, especially in her case. He wanted her to take teas, keeping with his preference for the natural.
"Say, you want to get something to eat tomorrow? That 'No Joe's About It' place is amazing." she said offhandedly.
And so plans were made for a delicious lunch and walk.
Friday, October 5, 2012
One Year
One year ago today, Catherine disappeared from my life and hasn't been seen since. Goddamnit, she was getting better. What happened? I know that the police have done all they could in trying to track her down, but they can only do so much. I will elaborate more on how it went down, but right now I can't. I feel nauseous and depressed.
Please, Catherine. Come back to me.
Please, Catherine. Come back to me.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Lights
And then, finally, the lights came back on. I was outside, laying on the grass with Lunagirl snuggled close to me when I heard my father scream out "Yes!"
I rushed into the house and saw--much to my delight--all the lights in the house back on. I experimentally flicked a lamp on and off just to make sure it worked, and thankfully it did. My phone practically blew up with messages from my girls all praising the gods of electricity. It was so nice to finally put away the flashlights and candles and get back to light bulbs. Because of that week long incident my parents invested in a generator, so in the event a monster storm of any kind it, we would be safe. Three cheers for having power!
School started back up a few days later, my schedule consisting of computers, math and another anthropology class, continuing from last semester. Life was getting back to its usual routine: wake up, go to school, hang out, do homework, do chores, sleep. Repeat until winter break.
Catherine, God bless her, recieved a lot of extra help to assist her with passing her classes. She was getting better, academically and emotionally. Her cought started to go away, too. She didn't talk about the white tree we found, nor did she want to. Naomi mentioned how she wished that we took a picture so she could draw it or show her art teacher. Personally that tree gave me the creeps. I had never seen a tree quite like it, nor do I think I ever will again, and for that I am glad.
For our anniversary, we ate a wholesome dinner of chicken and sweet potatos by candle light at her house. It was very sweet and very romantic, and best of all, my Cathie was acting like herself again.
Some time during the middle of September, Catherine came over for a study session and a dinner. She went over her math and I read my anthropology textbook. It was an interesting chapter on the development of superstitions and folklore. She and I talked through the while, occasionally making observations about the other's subject. When the both of us had finished our work, we began to make preperations for dinner: for tonight, fettuccini alfredo.
Catherine insisted that I relax and allow her the honors, but after I insisted ad nauseum, she allowed me to cook the pasta as she made the sauce.
It was these quiet, peaceful moments that made the evening for us. No words were spoken, but none needed to be; we could understand each other perfectly without them. We set the table and ate slowly, enjoying the moment and each other.
"I feel that I can move past all that and focus on the future." she said. "My restaurant, our marriage. It's going to be great. Oh, I made a menu for the reception if you want to see later on."
"Sounds like a plan." I replied.
After we cleaned the plates she showed me a rough draft of her idea: shrimp scampi, swiss steak and jambalaya where some of the few dishes she wanted to have. The menu had an absolutely delicious range of flavors, all of which I couldn't wait to share with the rest of my family.
Eventually she had to return home. I walked Cathie to her car, we kissed goodbye, and I waved to her as she drove away.
Before I walked back inside, out of the corner of my eye, I could have sworn I saw someone in black under the streetlight.
I rushed into the house and saw--much to my delight--all the lights in the house back on. I experimentally flicked a lamp on and off just to make sure it worked, and thankfully it did. My phone practically blew up with messages from my girls all praising the gods of electricity. It was so nice to finally put away the flashlights and candles and get back to light bulbs. Because of that week long incident my parents invested in a generator, so in the event a monster storm of any kind it, we would be safe. Three cheers for having power!
School started back up a few days later, my schedule consisting of computers, math and another anthropology class, continuing from last semester. Life was getting back to its usual routine: wake up, go to school, hang out, do homework, do chores, sleep. Repeat until winter break.
Catherine, God bless her, recieved a lot of extra help to assist her with passing her classes. She was getting better, academically and emotionally. Her cought started to go away, too. She didn't talk about the white tree we found, nor did she want to. Naomi mentioned how she wished that we took a picture so she could draw it or show her art teacher. Personally that tree gave me the creeps. I had never seen a tree quite like it, nor do I think I ever will again, and for that I am glad.
For our anniversary, we ate a wholesome dinner of chicken and sweet potatos by candle light at her house. It was very sweet and very romantic, and best of all, my Cathie was acting like herself again.
Some time during the middle of September, Catherine came over for a study session and a dinner. She went over her math and I read my anthropology textbook. It was an interesting chapter on the development of superstitions and folklore. She and I talked through the while, occasionally making observations about the other's subject. When the both of us had finished our work, we began to make preperations for dinner: for tonight, fettuccini alfredo.
Catherine insisted that I relax and allow her the honors, but after I insisted ad nauseum, she allowed me to cook the pasta as she made the sauce.
It was these quiet, peaceful moments that made the evening for us. No words were spoken, but none needed to be; we could understand each other perfectly without them. We set the table and ate slowly, enjoying the moment and each other.
"I feel that I can move past all that and focus on the future." she said. "My restaurant, our marriage. It's going to be great. Oh, I made a menu for the reception if you want to see later on."
"Sounds like a plan." I replied.
After we cleaned the plates she showed me a rough draft of her idea: shrimp scampi, swiss steak and jambalaya where some of the few dishes she wanted to have. The menu had an absolutely delicious range of flavors, all of which I couldn't wait to share with the rest of my family.
Eventually she had to return home. I walked Cathie to her car, we kissed goodbye, and I waved to her as she drove away.
Before I walked back inside, out of the corner of my eye, I could have sworn I saw someone in black under the streetlight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)