Meeting November 25, 2009

November 25, 2009

It was 27 ½ weeks into our wait. It had been a long time since the end of the second season and we were feeling the effects of our separation. Some of us, like me, were watching the first season. Others were contenting themselves with the second season, in various forms and in various ways. Others were doing “B” and still others were simply waiting. News was thin on the ground and we felt pretty wrung out.

As I walked into the meeting room we’d used as refugees with Rene (yes, our forum was off line temporarily again, and hopefully it would not be that long again)I felt somewhat better. When you are a junkie, you feel as though you are not alone, a little less freakish, when you could be with others like you. Still, I sometimes wondered what the aims of the group were, were we supposed to be getting better? Somehow I got the impression that none of us were being cured of our addictions. The room was as we had left it that last time, and just as I had done when we returned to our old familiar space, I picked up bits of paper and straightened our circle of chairs. A quick call to the lead counselor assured us that we would be welcome in the old refugee space.

Iluvtheviking was bringing the coffee and I had whipped up a gingerbread cake with rum nut sugar drizzle to pour over it. I busily cut the cake into slices and began setting it out on plates, drizzling some, leaving others. Eric Lover and Dude were waiting for the coffee to be ready and God Speed was setting out big fat cinnamon rolls, still warm and fragrant.

Minnie, Nia, and Vi came into the room, the smell of the cold air on their clothes. Westexan came in, her belly before her, her hand at the small of her back. She looked a little tired as she sat down. I brought her a slice of gingerbread cake and a hot cup of decaf.

“Thank you Aslinn,” she said, putting down her purse and settling in the chair as comfortably as she could.
“Is it getting colder?” I asked.
“It is,” she said. “Any colder and you could have snow.” I loved cold weather. I was one of those strange people who liked summer and spring well enough, but really perked up with fall and winter. I was looking forward to the cold blustery weather that made you huddle in closer, drink hot cider, and sing Christmas carols under your breath.

Hoyt and Burke and Lina and Linzy hurried in, excitedly talking about the Yule trip to the Myrtles with the counselors. I was still shopping for the counselors, and I had ordered some things and I was waiting anxiously for the things to come in. I hoped I had chosen well, that they would like. I knew that many of the folks in the group were having trouble finding things.

Liz, Mel and Raki came in, and finally, as they were getting seated, the lights went out except for the panel lights in the center, and our discussions came to a halt.
“I think we should discuss how each of you is doing over the hiatus. We still have quite a ways to go before summer and our adventures begin again,” said the lead counselor.

Liz began. Our poor Liz, so many things happening at once, her world far too busy for the number of hours in her day began to speak. She looked tired, but she was there with us, a sign of true junkie-dom.

“Well, I have been very busy, as some of you know. But there is something about knowing this place is always here for me, a place of refuge. Our forum and our refugee places when we need them, and the things we talk about keep my spirits up and makes me want to go on,” she said. “I listen to the soundtrack when I am in my car, going to work or running errands or just when I have a few minutes to myself in the bathroom while I take a hot soak at the end of the day,” she looked a little sad. “But I miss the adventures and the chatter about it and the activity.”

“Mel, dearest, what about you?” asked the lead counselor.
“I am so busy that I never have time to miss the adventures, but there are times when I find myself thinking about something I have seen and read. Then, there are the technical aspects of the forum to deal with,” she said, mumbling what thought was her mantra ‘computers are our friends, computers are our friends’ as she rubbed her tired eyes. “But hopefully this will be short lived, shorter lived than the last time we had to refugee.”

“Nia, how about you, are you hanging there?” asked the southern counselor in his low voice.
“I am not doing so well, I miss our forum so much,” she said.
“You do not refugee with the others?” asked the lead counselor.
“No, not really, it isn’t like the other place, with its lovely places devoted to my most favorite Vampire in the whole world,” she said, that look of fervent devotion on her face. Eric Lover gave me a sly look. You could tell Nia had been indulging in her drug of choice and was a little spaced out.
“There is no place for you to express your devotion?” asked the southern counselor.
“There is,” said Rene. "Aslinn and I were just in there this morning for our morning admiration time,” she said.
“There you are Sweet heart, a safe place for you to go and be with other devotees,” said the soft voice of our counselor.

“What have you been doing Linzy, to ease your hunger?” asked the lead counselor.
“I just indulge myself. GK, True Blood, any bit of news and gossip going on, “B”, anything to get my fix of hard Viking,” she said. Eric Lover was nodding at the observations Linzy was making, as was Lina. All of them are Viking users, and they are known to be reckless in their mixing of substances.

“And you Aslinn, what do you do to stave off your desires?” asked the lead counselor.
I was in trouble. Though I was devoted to Bill, I found myself like Sookie, sometimes turning my gaze in the direction of the handsome sheriff of area five. There was everything to like about him, his ruthlessness was even attractive. But I did not want to confess that here on the forum floor. The only one I could truly confess this to was my counselor, which I did during my personal counseling session with him on his couch, in front of his fire, whispering into his ear as he held me….and then, later…but I jarred myself awake from my reveries.

“Well, I have of course been working on the forum, both our forum and the place where we are refugees, then I have been doing crossword puzzles and search word puzzles…” I said.
“But you have finished the puzzles for all the books,” said Eric Lover.
“Now I am doing them for each of the episodes. You know, I thought the puzzles would be quite small, but they are actually bigger than the puzzles I did for the books,” I said. “And I have been hosting Thorsday Nights and trawling for news and posting things just for interest’s sake.”
“You are busy,” said my counselor.
“No one works harder than a junkie,” I said. “But as always, I miss our forum, and all our lovely friends who gather there everyday.”
“Don’t worry, dearest, you will be back there soon,” said the lead counselor.