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Jul. 17th, 2021 09:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morgue_n Went out last night with Anita, Deal, and Tom. They're some of my greatest friends here, and some of my best friends in the world.
Anita is the vibrant child of West African immigrants, born in Chicago, and she went to school in the UK. She speaks with a slight accent and calls absolutely everybody baby. She's got a head full of thick braids. Her fashion sense is made for the stage, and she's got a laugh and smile big enough to fill a stadium.
She seems to know everyone in town from her side gig spinning brit-pop, motown, funk, and soul. She rules Spectres-- the late-night counterculture bar-- like the queen of the underworld. The clientele of her favorite bar is comprised of goths, neon punks, trans Asians, and foreigners who have seen some shit. It's a smoky, crusty place, a sea of dyed hair, jaded eyes, and tattoos, and in its heyday, it was a place where people did uppers off of urinals. It's a vampire den, and Anita rules them.
Deal's dad is a black actor from NYC and his mom is a white German immigrant. Deal stands tall and his trademark flattop sits on his head like an Egyptian headdress. He favors loud, colorful African print shirts, and he wears them well. He's a man of charisma, a social chameleon, and he's able to talk effortlessly with nerds, drug festival types, Europeans and expats of all walk of life. It's no wonder that women tend to find him irresistible, but while he doesn't like being tied down, he always manages to remain on friendly terms with them after because Deal's a feminist.
My favorite thing about Deal is his humor. He's a goofy motherfucker with a rubbery face-- like what if a handsome Will Smith type had the facial elasticity and goofiness of Jim Carrey. He sputters, he cackles, he screams when he laughs. He bends like a palm tree in the wind when a joke catches him off guard. He nods in approval and unabashedly adores corny dad jokes. He cackles and falls over at lewd sexual jokes. Especially when blurted. Especially when something that doesn't need to be sexualized is done so suddenly. I called him a bukkake jockey the other day and he died. But the thing that makes him laugh the absolute most-- something we both cherish-- is when crude or low humor is mixed with something cerebral, cultured, educated, and elegant.
Tom's a newer friend-- I only got to know him this year through Deal. He's an Irish guy from Cork-- turf-turnin' country-- and he's a charmer who is always smiling and down for whatever's happening. He laughs easily and hard. He's quick to join in on any inside joke. He says everything with a wink and a grin, and he reaches into his pocket to pass you his secret flask in social situations when the prices seem high. He wants everyone to be safe, comfortable, and having fun. I really value people like that.
I've been hanging a lot with all three of these because of the band, but this summer, I've been seeing them for social outings more frequently. We saw an rnb cover band last night and got the party started by singing the choruses and dancing like fools. I had a fucking blast.
The night ended with me riding on the back of Anita's scooter through the dark and empty streets of downtown Shanghai. This city, despite the sheer numbers of its population-- one of the largest megopolises in the world-- sleeps at night. I love these moments. I love its surreality. I love the people I have met here. I'm going to miss it.
Anita is the vibrant child of West African immigrants, born in Chicago, and she went to school in the UK. She speaks with a slight accent and calls absolutely everybody baby. She's got a head full of thick braids. Her fashion sense is made for the stage, and she's got a laugh and smile big enough to fill a stadium.
She seems to know everyone in town from her side gig spinning brit-pop, motown, funk, and soul. She rules Spectres-- the late-night counterculture bar-- like the queen of the underworld. The clientele of her favorite bar is comprised of goths, neon punks, trans Asians, and foreigners who have seen some shit. It's a smoky, crusty place, a sea of dyed hair, jaded eyes, and tattoos, and in its heyday, it was a place where people did uppers off of urinals. It's a vampire den, and Anita rules them.
Deal's dad is a black actor from NYC and his mom is a white German immigrant. Deal stands tall and his trademark flattop sits on his head like an Egyptian headdress. He favors loud, colorful African print shirts, and he wears them well. He's a man of charisma, a social chameleon, and he's able to talk effortlessly with nerds, drug festival types, Europeans and expats of all walk of life. It's no wonder that women tend to find him irresistible, but while he doesn't like being tied down, he always manages to remain on friendly terms with them after because Deal's a feminist.
My favorite thing about Deal is his humor. He's a goofy motherfucker with a rubbery face-- like what if a handsome Will Smith type had the facial elasticity and goofiness of Jim Carrey. He sputters, he cackles, he screams when he laughs. He bends like a palm tree in the wind when a joke catches him off guard. He nods in approval and unabashedly adores corny dad jokes. He cackles and falls over at lewd sexual jokes. Especially when blurted. Especially when something that doesn't need to be sexualized is done so suddenly. I called him a bukkake jockey the other day and he died. But the thing that makes him laugh the absolute most-- something we both cherish-- is when crude or low humor is mixed with something cerebral, cultured, educated, and elegant.
Tom's a newer friend-- I only got to know him this year through Deal. He's an Irish guy from Cork-- turf-turnin' country-- and he's a charmer who is always smiling and down for whatever's happening. He laughs easily and hard. He's quick to join in on any inside joke. He says everything with a wink and a grin, and he reaches into his pocket to pass you his secret flask in social situations when the prices seem high. He wants everyone to be safe, comfortable, and having fun. I really value people like that.
I've been hanging a lot with all three of these because of the band, but this summer, I've been seeing them for social outings more frequently. We saw an rnb cover band last night and got the party started by singing the choruses and dancing like fools. I had a fucking blast.
The night ended with me riding on the back of Anita's scooter through the dark and empty streets of downtown Shanghai. This city, despite the sheer numbers of its population-- one of the largest megopolises in the world-- sleeps at night. I love these moments. I love its surreality. I love the people I have met here. I'm going to miss it.
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