A Trip to Athens

The insomnia is coming back. 

How can I not sleep?

Seriously.

I'm currently listening to Radiohead's album "King of Limbs" and I'm thinking of when I lived in Athens. Earlier today I was listening to Smashing Pumpkin's "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" and it transported me back to middle school. I love how music has the ability to act as the soundtrack to my memories- even conjuring them. Most of my soundtracks are sad though because I had a tendency to listen to music excessively when I was depressed. I was listening to The Velvet Teen's song "Red, Like Roses" in bed the other night and I was brought back to high school and listening to that song in this same room when it was my parents'. I remembered the Sony mp3 cd player I had and the headphones that were plugged into my ears as I was curled on the edge of my parents' queen bed, crying. 

But right now I'm in Athens with Radiohead. And I'm driving the loop around town. It's night time and I can see the black silky silhouettes of trees in the moonlight. I'm driving fast- passing exits before settling on Exit 8. I turn by the movie theater and drive past the fancy new student neighborhood.  Past Publix and the gym and the crappy Asian restaurant that's open until 4am even on weeknights. I'm on Cedar Shoals, passing the high school and driving into the darkest stretch of the drive, turning onto Highland Park Drive and then up into my driveway. I pull in under the tree that leaves sap on my car during the summer. I forgot to turn on the porch light before I left so all I have is the dim orange glow of the street light by the bus stop.

I turn off the car.