Lost in the Supermarket

I needed something sweet a couple nights ago. We had nothing but healthy stuff in the house, so I had to take a trip down to Winn Dixie, something I try to avoid, but when the sweets hit you late at night, sometimes you just gotta give in.

I’m standing in line waiting to buy my treats and this guy comes behind me with his wife and kids. He’s about my age and has almost completely grey hair. He’s also wearing an old Circle Jerks T-shirt.

“Hey, I used to have that same shirt.”

”Oh yeah? Man, they were a great band.”

“Yeah, I was actually listening to Group Sex in the car a couple weeks ago.”

”Yeah, that album’s gotta be in anybody’s top ten.”

“Growing up, I lived close to St. Pete, and I swear they played like every summer. Actually, they played the first show I ever saw, back in like ’85. After seeing them it was pretty much all over for me and I knew I was gonna be a punk rocker for life.”

”Yeah, they used to play Virginia constantly when I lived there back in the ‘80s. Even on those later tours when Keith Morris was all grumpy and would preach for 10 minutes before singing a song, it would still be a good time.”

“Heh, I remember those shows. Well, take care.”

“Yeah, see you later.”

I started up my car and started thinking (which was pretty hard, since I had “Paid Vacation” and “Live Fast, Die Young” now stuck in my head in an endless loop.

Who knows where I’d be right now if I hadn’t gone to that Circle Jerks show back in 1985? For one thing, instead of a wall of CDs, I’d probably have a bunch of real CDs in a bank earning interest for my golden years. Hell, I might be a doctor or lawyer right now instead of some chump driving to Winn Dixie for a box of Cocoa Pebbles in the middle of the night.