Tom Ray

There used to be these trading cards for the video game Pac-man.

Most trading cards just had pictures and a stick of gum. The crappy kind that they would put in them that only seemed to be available in card packs.

A lot of the card packs, if you collected enough, the backs of them would create a picture of some kind. Like a puzzle that you would put together to make one giant picture.

During the heyday of video games in arcades, Nintendo trading cards came out. The most popular one to me being Pac-man.

They weren’t the same as the others. They even had a sort of lottery card like element added to them. Basically, one card would look like a grid from the pacman game, and you would scratch off some of the larger “pellets” on it to see what was behind it.

On top of that, all the artwork was just really cool. Me and all my friends thought that the new 8-bit graphics that these arcade games had were just genius. We tried to emulate those particular styles in our own drawings and artwork.

The reason I bring all this up is because I was thinking today about these cards. It occurred to me that it was the first, and only time, that I can remember I ever stole something.

I’ve by no means been an angel my entire life. But I recalled the one time I stole a pack of these cards and how I really felt bad about it.

There was a convenience store that me and my friends would hang out in front of. Kind of the same way Jay & Silent Bob hang out in front of the convenience store in the movie Clerks.

We would spend the entire day there, to the point where we had made friends with the teenage girl that worked behind the counter.

One day, I wanted to get another pack of cards. Now, I don’t remember if I didn’t have the money or if I was just dared to do this, but I went into the convenience store and put a pack of those cards into my shirt.

Not only was this a dumb thing to do– I was really bad at it. Why would I stuff them in my shirt instead of putting them in my pocket? They’re cards?!

So as I’m walking out of the store, trying to act all nonchalant, the girl behind the counter was looking at me and I started to get nervous and felt guilty. I think she could tell by the look on my face that something was up, but didn’t know what.

Then karma decided to kick in. As I almost made it out the door, the cards that I loosely placed inside of my shirt just fell out.

The girl behind the counter couldn’t believe that I tried to do this. I had never felt so ridiculous. All I could think about was what was the point of doing this? Why did I even do it? The thrill of it was there at first I’m sure, but I don’t remember that. I do remember the feeling of getting caught.

I could never show my face there again. The rest of the summer we hung out in front of a store in another part of the neighborhood.

Still really dig those cards though.

Now I’m not talking about names like Edith or Hortense or Ulysses.

I’m talking ridiculous names, like the kind they had in the 1940’s B-movie serials. Names like “Speed” or “Flash” or “Hoot”. Essentially names that sounded like a verb.

I like to watch those old 1940’s movies. There’s a bunch on Amazon. And it’s just so silly when they actually refer to the person by their, what I’m calling, “verb” name.

I miss half the movie because I’m trying to understand, going over in my head thinking:

“did their parents actually name them that? Or is it just a ridiculous nickname that somebody gave them?”

And if it’s true, if that was actually a name someone gave them when they were born. Why did it stop? At what point in human existence did people just eventually stop naming their children that?

Or was it just a ridiculous naming convention created by writers?

I’d love to know the etymology of that particular trend.

I’ve never really been good at typing. But I’ve gotten better over the years.

Well… Let’s just say I’m faster at it these days, but I still need to look at the keyboard while I’m doing it. Less than I used to though.

I don’t know what it is. I’ve tried different learning methods and followed tutorials but I just can’t get it.

Typing on my phone however, I’ve become increasingly good at.

Case in point; ever since I started this blog, just to test that theory I’ve done the entire thing on my phone. I feel like I can do it faster, and with less distractions. I also feel like I can really get my groove on when I type on the phone.

There’s just something about it. I can tell when I read it back. What I say sounds more natural.

Jack White does something interesting that I read about. When he plays live, he sets his instruments and gear further apart and in different places each time. That way he never gets too settled and lazy. Keeps him from falling into a pattern or just going through the motions.

I guess what I’m trying to say is whatever medium I work in I should just find the tool that helps use it best.

And then, after a while try to expand from that. Learn what I originally set out to do when it becomes too comfortable.

I like to get in my car and take little mini vacations. They used to be much longer vacations but now they’re just mini ones because of work and marriage.

The concept is: I would get in my car, pick a direction, and drive. I would just continue to go, not knowing where I was.

Sometimes these little adventures would actually take me as far as another state. One time it even consisted of staying in a new town for an entire week. Meeting people.

Can’t really do that anymore. But I still, when the mood hits me, get in my car and just go.

I think it’s been awhile since I did that.

The feeling struck me today. Maybe it was a mixture of how quickly and grey the sky became with clouds, mixed with summer foliage turning into colorful fall.

I was on my lunch break and just drove straight, not really caring.

The best part about these adventures is that even though you’re not far from home everything still looks new.

Today I found myself in a small town to cities over. One that I’ve never been to, even though I’ve lived here my whole life.

The main drawback about all this is that it’s way too easy to find your way back, what with GPS maps on our phones these days and all. What seemed like driving forever, turns out to only be a short distance from where I was originally going. The country roads just went the long way around.

Had a dream last night I was just brushing my teeth while I was doing whatever else was going on in it. Like really just trying to clean the molars in the back of my mouth.

I want to say I was so invested in it that the characters that were showing up in the dream spent most of their time trying to get my attention. As if they were feeling neglected. like, “Hey! I’m trying to put on a show here!?”

But I just kept slowly moving the toothbrush from the top of my gums down the tooth in the back of my mouth.

I mentioned that to someone today and they looked it up. Supposedly it means I feel underappreciated, feeling I need to move on from what I’ve been doing.

I wouldn’t say I need to move on from what I do, maybe just how I do it. I’ve pulled the trigger on some plans. Picking up client work and expanding what I do creatively with music. But I do want more.

On the other hand it was just a dream. Why do we take so much stock in what we see there?

Although it wasn’t really off the mark.