Nick memory

I heard part of a song that made me think of Nick this morning. I believe he put the song on a CD for me, and I think it was a CD he sent me shortly before I visited him in Florida, when he lived there. Hearing the song today got me thinking about that trip. It was a great one.

I was job searching at the time, and had a phone interview while we were driving a couple of hours (we split our time between the Tampa/Sarasota and Orlando areas). Nick and his parents had all been through a protocol that once my phone call came in, they would all sit quietly in the car as I talked to my interviewer.

This was awkward, as I do not generally enjoy an audience while on the phone, particularly when doing an interview. But it was OK, and when we arrived at a manatee reserve they all got out of the car while I stayed behind to finish up my call.

When I was done, Nick walked back over to the manatees with me, for a delayed, private tour.

It was one of those Bailey/Nick times where we are both very peaceful, as I remember it. We're not usually crazy hyper together (except when we're imitating the dance in the Sensa commercial), but we're often sarcastic. We're also often serious, but sometimes we're just...together. At peace, as friends who have been friends for a long time, and know how to be in each other's presence the way old friends do.

This past December we had come home from a bar, or something, and talked quietly in the kitchen about church. I was drinking white wine. Then we went in the bathroom, and got ready for bed, continuing to talk about stuff that was on our minds.

The next morning Nick described it to his roommate as one of our most serious conversations, noting the irony, I think, that we had it in the bathroom, or maybe because we were voluntarily up so late, as we generally don't like to stay up past 12.

Later during that visit we were walking home from the grocery store, arm in arm, and he turned on an Andrea Bocelli Christmas song on his phone. He held it out in the air, our little private stereo system. We giggled as we walked, with the sidewalk to ourselves.

In Florida, as we looked at the manatees, Nick said, calmly, "They kind of look like potatoes."

I've always remembered that.