The Salt Block House
Another, A.D.Banyan dream.
We drove onto the lawn, no lawn, the dirt, in front of the house, and parked next to the other cars. We just sat in the car for a few minutes, watched the guests, and studied the really strange property surrounding us.
We had drove for miles seeing nothing but a narrow country road, telephone poles, and the most beautiful sunset I had seen since Virgin Gorda. A few times, we were going to turn around because we couldn’t imagine anyone having a #party, much less, living out here in the nothing. I noticed there was no vegetation. It looked like freshly grated soil for as far as you could see with this HUGE, #salt block style home and a salt block style barn sitting in the middle of it.
It was all just rolling fields except the northern field. It had an unusual drop off of about 50 feet, with a straight top edge and an un-natural incline graded at a 45-degree angle. The absence of vegetation puzzled me. The home and barn were obviously very old and the wires and the telephone poles were equally as old? Yet, the ground appeared to have been graded with laser accuracy right to the pole?
“Hey! Are you guys going to sit in that car all evening or join the party”? Came a voice from the porch. It was a friend of Aryn’s that she knew from the office.
“That’s why we are here” Aryn jumped out of the car, threw a hand into the air, ran up the steps, and hugged her friend. I walked cautiously slower looking out at the fields as I walked.
Aryn introduced me and we went into the house where there were dozens of friendly, loud, people I didn’t know, talking and joking about things I didn’t know about. After being introduced as Aryn’s husband Alex, I was accepted into the group and directed to the kitchen where the food went the entire length of the west wall.
While waiting for the man in front of me to finish loading his paper plate, I was amazed at the old barn I could see out of the kitchen window. It must have been built at the same time as the house. They both were built on tall foundations of stone and concrete. The house had a stairway that went onto the front porch, and the #barn had a concrete ramp that went up to the large barn door. Both were constructed of a dark red/brown brick with contrasting chiseled white stone window sashes and headers.
Being a #builder myself, I noticed the obvious masonry skill that had been required on this property. Perfectly straight walls with no optical variation in the least.
“Just as perfect as the landscaping?”
“What ya say there Alex? I couldn’t hear ya with all that cackling in the front room!” “Ya get all them female type bookkeepers in the same room and we aint got a chance!” Said Bill loudly.
“Ohhhh… just admiring the sunset.” I said to avoid further conversation.
“Hey Albert…why don’t we take our food outside and get some quiet!”
“Good idea,” I said, “and it’s ALEX!”
We sat on the front steps as a cool breeze blew my napkin off my knee. I watched it move gracefully across the dirt and finally, far enough south that it disappeared over the ridge into the dark shadows of the, Bottom 40.
I took my empty plate into the kitchen. I peaked around the doorway of the dining room until Aryn spotted me and smiled as she looked away from a talking host. I gave her the OK gesture with a look of question. She gave me the zero elevation signal, from helping me shoot elevations, which meant she was fine. I refilled my #drink with mostly Captain and a little Coke, and slipped out the back door before Bill found me.
The sun had almost completely set, with lingering rays of gold and magenta on the horizon and cold clear blue still lighting up the upper #atmosphere. I walked to the left and back toward the road.
I leaned against the car for a few minutes and studied the incline. Another sip of Captain Morgan, and I walked toward the ridge. I stood staring, impressed at how the sunset made a shadow on the lower property. It seemed to have no bottom.
Voices broke my concentration as the party was breaking up and moving out onto the front porch.
I turned and looked toward the house, and my eyes were drawn to a reflection in the sky. I could see a commercial #airliner heading northwest. It was clear enough that I could even make out a logo on the tail that was mostly red. I saw another reflection, and further away flying northeast was another commercial airliner that appeared to have the same markings. It was further away so I can’t be sure, as I stood with my hands on my forehead?
“What you doing?” yelled Aryn.
“Come here, look at these planes!” I pointed to the north.
Suddenly the #planes both jumped as if #choreographed in exact unison. The left wing tip of both planes rose up to show both planes at a 45deg. angle.
I looked at Aryn. “LOOK!” as I continued to point.
When I looked back at the planes they were no longer at 45deg. Angles. They were flat again. NO! They are upside down. They are both upside down with the tail on the bottom!
“LOOK!” I yelled again. Most of the people didn’t know what I was talking about because standing on the south side of the house, the house, was blocking their view.
Aryn continued to walk toward me with a serious look on her face.
At that moment, the closest plane inverted 180 deg. to a level position, and pulled straight up, continuing to roll backward. I didn’t see the second plane but I assumed that it was doing the same. Then I saw a blinding brightness of the #landing lights on the plane.
“Oh shit!” I whispered.
I looked at the house and noticed that there were short shovels leaning against the porch.
“Aryn, get the shovels, HURRY!”
She knew that I was serious and ran to the porch, grabbed the three shovels and ran back to me. I was moving toward the incline. She dropped the shovels at the edge of the incline and I immediately grabbed one and threw it back to her.
“Come with me, NOW!”
We slid over the edge and got stopped about 15 feet down. She looked up and saw the plane and the landing lights headed straight for this area. There was no further communication necessary. She was digging as fast as me. If we could dig even the smallest hole back into the bank it might shield us from the #explosion. I heard another odd sound and paused for a second to look at the sky.
Wwwhhheeewww! Wwwwhhheeewww!
“#Meteor Shower, thousands!”
The plane got closer and closer. The ground was bright as day. The engines were #screaming like they were trying to stop in midair. The meteors streaked to the #Earth.
I woke up… and rolled over in the bed.
“Whoo!” I wiped the perspiration from my forehead.
“Aryn, wake up. I had another one.”
“We were driving down this #country road to a #party.”
(Dreamed this about 2004)
