It's been a few days since I got back from Richmond, VA. Still have TMBG songs stuck in my head, though a little Massive Attack and some Oingo Boingo have popped up, so I think the effects of the concert are wearing off. I may be 'normal' soon.
After I checked out of the hotel I made my way to Short Pump, VA, and the mall there. Nice two-story open-air place. There was still a lingering dampness in the air from the rain the night before, the air was cool, but not cold. Was a nice afternoon. Hit up a Coldstone Creamery, and enjoyed a little sweet cream. I don't do fancy for ice cream, simple makes me happy.
After I left I started thinking about something a friend said to me. I've been dealing with a fair amount of neck pain lately. More than usual. Mostly the hazards of being a tall person in a 'normal' person's world. Well, I've been lamenting the lack of anyone to rub my neck or shoulders... of course, it's not like people ever really have done that for me with any regularity. Makes me wonder why I did it for others for so long with no reciprocation. I was sitting in my car in the parking lot of the mall and decided on a whim to run the word massage through Google on my phone and see if there was anything close by.
I have never had a professional massage before, or one at all in a very long time. I've been on a 'go with it' thing for a while, seeing where the world takes me when I just let it all happen... well after a few dead ends, I found a place a few minutes away with a very low first-time customer rate and an opening in a few hours. So I arrange for that and then take a little drive. Found my way to the local cemetery, because that's where I end up when I don't know where I'm going. Totally not intentional, but it never is.
So I spend some time walking the grounds and took a few pictures. Lovely place, calm. Never have been sure why I end up at burial sites when I go wandering, I think if I should ever understand that I'll know far more about the me I'm told I don't see.
Making my way back to keep my appointment it sinks in that for the first time in two years someone will touch me intentionally. Sure I've had a few hugs and such over the years, but I'm talking about direct skin-to-skin. Furthermore, it will be more than just my hands; it will be the majority of my body. I shake it off, and try to not think about how after two years the first person to touch me will be a total stranger; someone I'll likely never see again. Head in, fill out some 'new customer' questionnaire, and meet the person who'll be in charge of how I feel for the next hour.
The whole thing went more or less how I expected it to. Was weird, but relaxing. Found it interesting that with only minor exceptions the motions she made were the same as those I've always used when massaging other people. Not sure what to make of it, if anything, just think it's interesting how I with no training came to using the same techniques as someone who does it for a living.
Still feel a little strange that the only person to intentionally touch my skin, touch my body, in the last two years was a total stranger. Otherwise, it wasn't a bad experience. I may try to find someplace locally that I can go to every so often. I try to keep my muscles happy, but most of what I know to do I can't do to myself as it just causes strain on other parts of me because of the way I have to contort myself to do it.
Other than that, nothing much to comment on at the moment. Something is coming, something important. Just not sure what it is yet.
