The Meeting
She moves ahead trying to be here, now, by watching every step on the urban trail avidly surveying the trash-lined edges. Taking in every person, place, and thing, and then letting it slide by.
A foot-level flash of. a white crescent moon and a trailing blur of translucent light grabs her rightaway . Am I flashing? She wonders, straining to get a closer look. It has been months since the Terrible-Awful, but flashbacks are not atypical, she knows.
Her eyes follow the cosmic blue gym trainers with the crescent moon motif, up the side length of clean blue jeans, onto a blue and yellow patterned flannelled flank, an Adam’s apple neck, and a sandy hatch of hair on top of smiling male face, glowing eyes pitched onto the Famous Landmark rising above
Famous Landmark. She didn’t even notice. She was in Optima Spectral Distance from Famous Landmark.
His cosmic blue eyes move from the landmark to her. She smiles, as if she couldn’t even help it, her mouth stretches wider; how weird, how strange, she recalled that this was her smileyfaceasana, her smiling pose.
She is amused by the glinting stubble on his face, as if the lower half of his face is covered in grains of demarara sugar. She continues smiling as she overtakes him.
It feels good to feel good. Obviously this is true, but for the first time in a long time she feels hopeful, more than hopeful, anticipatory. Like she is about to be served a meal which has the potential to be great, sublime even. She’s hungry, really hungry. She couldn’t remember the last time she had a good meal of positive vibes and great energy, let alone an actual dish of real flavor.
She pauses at the corner, waiting for the light to change, his eyes settle on her auburn hair and the way that it curls over her collar.
“You old enough to remember the Real One?” He asks turning to face her as he reaches the corner eyes darting up at the famous landmark.
“Haha” She answers sarcastically, but is still smiling. “I have a few recollections”
“I was nostalgic for it even when I was a kid, like I always knew that this moment was coming”
“This very moment?” She asks cheekily, calling him on his cringe. WTF Bish, chatty, much? Did she really want to enter into an IRL interlude with this rando?
“Yeah, totally. I dreamt it, this corner between Deep Vibes Confections and Rox Chox,” he indicates to the colorful sweet treat filled glass cube on the other side of the street.
“How ‘bout it?” he raises his chin in the direction of the glass cube containing rows of chic sweet treats and exquisite chocolate fantasies.
“I’m on a sweet-free sadhana” she countered, with a bit of brattitude.
“That does sound sad.” He says with his mouth downturned for effect. ”I think if you agreed to a FluffaStuffa bar you’d be a happy Hannah.” Following up with an open smile.
Who is this person? This dude, with twinkling ocean eyes? And corny Dad lines.”
“Ya think?” It had been a bare and bony time for her for so long, she isn’t quite sure how to receive this warm, sweet, and fluffy IRL interlude. “
“Strong coffee and a sweet treat, how ‘bout it?” His bright energy was refreshing-to-bracing, like sticking her head out of a fast-moving vehicle and being suffocated by the glut of full-frontal fresh air.
She stared at him, unable to think of anything good to say.
“What’s your name?….I’m Maxim,” he says with some formality “my friends and family call me Max” his eyes twinkle in a way she had only read about in real-life books.
“My name is Bish. Short for Beatrice”
“Bish? I like that. It’s like kiss, ya know? Same kind of mouth feel. Biiish-Kiiiss” he modelled the extended iiish sound.
Definitely different., she registers.
“Listen Max, I can’t do a Fluffastuffa right now. But you can find me @SaltieBish with any effort.
Everyone knows and has nostalgia for the MisoSaltie Bars, but they’re super expensive and I have to make my own kind of entertainment now. It’s a basic layer bar, easy to make on a camping stove and a toaster oven that is my kitchen corner in the attic. The layered salty snack food is cheap and easy to procure at your local bodega, supermarket, or big box store. The condensed milk binds it all together and provides sweet contrast. Bake it for 20-25 minutes and it will be soft on the inside and crunchy on top, another perfect contrast. You can make it vegan. But not sugar or salt free. This is not virtuous health food, this is trash to be consumed with black coffee, or matcha , or a batch of shroom hot choc.
SaltieBish Bars
1 sleeve Ritz-type crackers (I cup crushed)
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 -1 cups semi seet choc chips
1 cup crushed ridged potato chips
1 cup crushed retzel sticks
1 can condensed milk
1 tablespoon of butter
1/2-1 tsp vanilla
Preheat oven to 350F.
Spray and line an 8x8 baking pan.
Spread cracker crumbs on bottom of pan, pour melted butter over it. Pat down with a spatula or spoon.
Add chocolate chips evenly over crumbs. Top with crushed potato chips, and then repeat with crushed pretzels.
Empty condensed milk into a pan, heat gently, stirring often until it loosens up. Add butter and vanilla, heat until it bubbles around edges.
Pour evenly over crumb pan, place in oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool. If you want a harder texture store in fridge, if you like it chewier leave at room temperature.
