alley life.

chicago has alleys. i am kind of enamored with the alley culture and am pleased that my little coach house is on the alley and not on the street. there are lots of telephone wires and i like telephone wires. i've made peace with the guy who runs the guerrilla garage out of the alley because he also chases off the hypes. oh, what's a hype? well, if you remember my lovely landlord (said with sincerity, he's genuinely lovely) is a cop. he likes cop terminology. so i've learned that a hype is someone who has scored some drugs and is looking for a quiet place to enjoy their contraband in peace. i learned all this with my father standing next to me and dad was none too pleased to hear about the hypes. he would like me to live in a convent far up on a mountain with good cell reception so he can know i am safe and occasionally check in to confirm it.

anyway, alley life is grand. but last night was very, very windy. the garage across the alley has a motion sensor light that is about equal with my head when i am in bed. so every minute or so the wind would shake the ivy, the ivy would trigger the light, the light would startle me awake, and then go out. repeat. i'd think, this is going to happen again, i will not be surprised. and then, boom, my eyes would pop open. i felt like pavlov's little pooch.