The Park

On the first warm day of the year the local park always gets filled up. 

There's a year round farmers market in the southeast corner, where the park juts out and the street curves to follow. They block the parking on Saturday mornings to let the farmers set up.

It gets pretty bare in the winter but even on the coldest day there'll be at least, like, the family that sells flowers. 

On really nice days the definition of what constitutes farm produce expands to include home-made arts and crafts, books, junk that passes for antiques, and random consumer products that got picked up wholesale or otherwise off the truck.

The definition of a really nice day also expands after long periods of shitty days. Especially when it comes to weather. 

So it was barely north of 50 degrees and there were so many people in the park on Saturday afternoon. Spring was still several weeks away.

When the sun is more intense that helps bring people out too. There's too many of them. 

-Some of them are paid extras, I explained to my friend Moe. He was one of those people who came out on the first warm day of the year and I went with him because it was a Saturday and I enjoyed the farmers market. 

But it was so crowded. 

-Look at the sun. It makes everything look like 4K.

-These are just the neighbors, you know?

I know that. But it feels that way sometimes. You deal with it with humor. 

-Yeah, I know. 

It would be too expensive for the government to hire all these extras just to make it too crowded and the technology's not there to, like, project all of them. 

But the sun is so bright even though the wind brings a chill when it blows. 

Sometimes I like to get flowers at the farmers market for my apartment. It never occured to me until one winter Saturday they were the only vendors there so I bought some even though I didn't have anyone to give them to. 

There were a lot more vendors on this Saturday, the non-farmers too. 

The park was named after one of the founding fathers of the country. He wasn't from this city but he had passed it on his way when he was supposed to sign the declaration of independence or something like that. 

He fell off his horse where the park was built so they named it after him. 

There was a statue along one of the walking paths, of the revolutionary war hero, though I don't think he actually served, he just roused other people to, at the moment just before he fell off the horse. 

He spent a month recovering in a home across the street from the park.

He had the unfortunate surname of Villan. It was a really wholesome park but the name brought connotations to people who had not seen the park first for it to make an impression on them. 

So we just called it the park. 

-If they were our neighbors they wouldn't call it Villan Park, man, I pointed out as we strolled through the park, catching bits and pieces of disparate conversations. Interlopers.

"...not a big deal but it's going to be, that's how it works..."

"... flopping around like a dying fish..."

"...something's wrong with him, you just keep walking in those..."

"...used to be the roaches everywhere but now I see rats all over..."

"What's with all the dog poop in Villan Park?"

Further up I saw the dog mess the interloper must've seen that got her asking the question. I stepped to the side and avoided it. 

-They're new neighbors. 

-Yeah man, interlopers, exactly. 

-What's wrong with your pockets? Moe asked me, picking up a crumpled dollar bill that had fallen out of one of mine. 

-Maybe I need a purse, I laughed. 

-Just get a wallet. 

-Then I'd lose the whole wallet, I said as I stuffed the dollar bill back into one of my cargo pants pockets. 

I lose things. They get away from me. 

Just then we heard some yelling up the path where the statue of the horseman was. 

I'M GONNA KILL YOU!

I slowed down but Moe picked up his pace to see what was happening.

There was ReadyI'm, bracing himself while someone held a chair. Skull.

-Look it's gonna be fine, cool down, ReadyI'm was telling Skull, trying to calm him down as he typed something away on his phone.

-Yeah it will, Skull screamed at him as he got closer to ReadyI'm and grabbed his phone from his hand. It's your fault!

-My phone!

-Where's my phone at??? Skull yelled, swinging the chair again. 

-I don't know but that one's mine, ReadyI'm yelled back, trying to grab the phone from Skull. 

Skull tossed the chair aside and started to run, holding his pants up. ReadyI'm went chasing after. 

I noticed Kairos at a bench down the path, watching and laughing. Moe had gone up to one of our friends to find out what had happened.

I could tell in the distance ReadyI'm wasn't going to catch up with Skull. He'd already left the park and ReadyI'm was still in it and catching his breath. 

I didn't care and, besides, I'd heard they had a camera at the base of the statue. I didn't want to be anywhere near that. 

I went by myself to go get flowers. Moe could catch up with me later.