Louie + Nicki

Swimming was fabulous. I came home and walked ROMEO downtown. My body felt electric. Wearing my white and black horizontal striped dress today, with my straw hat. The dress I have five identical ones of from when I saw a bargain rack of them at JOB LOT three years ago. Crazy but true. I read once in Georgia O'Keefe's biography that she only wore black and white. I get it. Wearing color can be distracting for a painter. Normally I wear black or gray. Black is not a color, graphic designers will tell you.

On my morning walk with Romeo I met an adorable mother-son team on Social Street. The young boy loved Romeo. He kneeled down to pet him at eye level.

He loves dogs, we have a husky, the mom said. The boy stood up and began pointing at the cars. He loves identifying license plates, the mom explained.

Me too! I said. Let's see who's out here driving. I see Rhode Island, and there's a Massachusetts. Oh there goes a New Jersey! Sometimes there's no front plate, like Florida.

We kept looking. I asked him, Can you identify car logos too?

Honda . . . Toyota . . . Chevrolet . . . Ford, he said as they passed.

I joined in. Kia . . . Jeep.

He started jumping up and down and screamed Ford . . . Chevrolet . . . Honda . . . Toyota!

He paused. What's that? he asked.

The three shields? Buick!

And what's that? he asked, pointing to a Subaru.

The stars. Pleiades, Subaru, I said.

He kept at it. Hundai . . . Kia . . . Jeep . . . Honda . . . Toyota . . . Chevrolet . . . Ford . . . Buick . . .

He learns fast! I said, looking at his mom. She was smiling.

Audi! he yelled, jumping and screaming.

I love this game too, I told him. Does your mom call you eagle eyes?

Miss Dano and Miss Rosen do.

You're going to be a detective! Or a graphic designer!

I wanna be a teacher!

Even better. What's your name? 

Louie.

Hi Louie, nice to meet you. I'm Emily.

And I'm Nicki, the mom said, smiling.

Nice to meet you. 

My dad works at Cheesecake! Louie said.

Does he give you a taste?

Sometimes.  

Do you go to Harris School?

He's in preschool, Nicki said.

Nicki was tall and slender. She had light brown tips on her dark brown dreadlocks, colorful cartoon characters on her T-shirt, squeezy black leggings and pale pink toenail polish on her long slender toes. Louie had a colorful shirt matching his mom's, navy shorts, and a haircut with shaved sides and a high squared off top. A rectangular Afro. Adorable.

Anytime you wanna play the license plate or car logo game, I'm ready. See you around, I said.

Bye!

Bye!