I had a little difficulty manipulating in the traffic. There were two lanes going seventy miles per hour and the white sand beaches were loaded with women in bikinis. I wondered if any of the little beaverettes from the Gold Nugget were out there sunning but then realized they were probably in American History class reading about Benjamin Franklin. I wondered what he would have thought about all that shit, women running around nearly naked and all. I passed the Gold Nugget, which was on the ocean side of the road. It looked deserted, empty, boarded up. lt was only eleven a.m., though. I started to pull in and then I said Naaaaaaa. I went on down the road until I got to the harbor, where gulls were flying, and masts were sticking up everywhere. I parked as close as I could and got out. The sun was burning down, and the beer started running out of me. I didn’t know how many I’d had the night before. It must have been some kind of ungodly amount, judging from the stuff that was pouring out of me. I couldn’t hardly see for the sweat in my eyes.

I started walking down the dock, checking everything out. I didn’t know which section I was in. I knew I had to get to the right section, but I didn’t know if I was in it or not. There were some neat sport fishermen lined up smartly along the dock with names like Judy and Becca and Mama’s Dinghy. I kept walking and looking.

I was wanting a cold beer. I could feel the weight of all that expectation on me. I knew something bad must have happened to my friend, and I didn’t feel real good about it. I didn’t know how I’d be able to explain it to his wife and all. It had all started out so innocently anyway. We were just going to go down there and goof off a few days, make a shrimp run. Be back at work on Monday. There it was Monday and I didn’t have shit to show for it. I knew they’d can me. The job I had wasn’t worth a damn anyway, just putting washers in little holes. It wasn’t anything that made me feel real fulfilled.