Diary #11

 Lola. Age 12.

June 26, 1994

Dear Book,

Hi, Well a lot has happened since 5th grade. Now the boys I thought were cute, are totally ugly. I even played "Spin the bottle." Believe me I love 6th grade.

Love ya,
Lola

And so this entry officially marks when I became absolutely intolerable as a human. I blame the raging hormones and the public school system.

Some things to note about this entry:
- I definitely put "spin the bottle" in quotes.
- The O in "Love ya" was in the shape of a heart.
- Believe me? Believe me?? You're a diary. It's all lies. 6th grade was the worst.

Adventures.

Exploring the city is extra exciting as of late. Contributing factors: bike riding and having excellent partners in crime. I cannot stress the importance of having a good partner in crime who is down for whatever. (dfw) Bonus points for texts that says "what you doing? get here." And "here" is awesome.

In a recent adventure, we discovered Uncle Barry's. Great beer selection. Really nice, hilarious bartenders. Outdoor space! Also, they played Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul last night, which sealed the deal in my heart. Uncle Barry's is my new favorite. I'll be there again this week to solidify my status as a regular.

Walk on by...

omfg

About a Bee.

There was a dead bee on the subway this morning.
A tiny little corpse on the center seat,
with its microscopic legs in the air.

Normally I run from bees.
But I sat down next to it and wondered how he got there.
And I wondered how the bee took the F train during rush hour.

(before work. before morning coffee. before the newspaper. before we ctl+alt+del into our hourly identities.)

Maybe the bee was a stowaway,
temporarily affixed to someone’s backpack

Maybe he took all the wrong trains instead of the right ones,
and just gave up.

Maybe he was simply tired of flying and laid down for a rest,
only to break down.

But you can’t ask a dead thing where it went wrong
Or what it could have done differently.
Or what you could have done to help.

So I got up and went to work.

This.

Diary #10

Lola. Age 13.

May 26, 1995

Dear Book,

Yesterday was one of the weirdest days. First Name Redacted and I started going out. And then during gym there was an earthquake. I really wasn't that scared though. Then I got my period. Anyway, I love Name Redacted. I will never dump him.

Lola


Yikes, this entry is filled to the brim with serious business. I got my first boyfriend, experienced an earthquake, and joined womankind. All in one day, apparently, as I do not fuck around. Also, way to say "never." In a few journal entries, I break up with poor Name Redacted for a drummer in the school band.

“What is feminism? Simply the belief that women should be as free as men, however nuts, dim, deluded, badly dressed, fat, receding, lazy and smug they might be. Are you a feminist? Hahaha. Of course you are.”
― Caitlin Moran, How to Be a Woman