...

"Ladies, it's been a pleasure."
I looked up from my beach chair and shaded my eyes. Our new friend John was standing over us.
"Likewise," Kathleen said from her own chair.
"Yeah," I chimed in. "Are you going to be hanging around Houston for a while? Did the guys give you our numbers?"
"I'm not sure, and yes. I'm sure I'll be coming back through here at some point."
"Be safe."
We waved at John as he shouldered his backpack and headed down the beach. I closed my eyes against the sun and thought about this new, interesting person I'd just met. The thought of traveling around and just living like a gypsy seemed both exhilarating and unnerving. And what made John more interesting was that he didn't seem like you're typical gypsy type. Just a guy going around being really friendly to people all over the country. And I got the impression that every new place he stayed for any length of time just added more links of friendship to what was probably a very long chain.
"So...."Kathleen said in her charicteristically cynical tone. "Do we think this guy's crazy, or what?"
"No way!" Maria said, with a wave of her hand. "He's just por completo de la vida, full of life. Not like SOME people I could mention."
I rolled my eyes. We all knew she meant Grant, and we all knew whatever fight-of-the-week they were having had nothing to do with not being spontaneous.
"Well, I agree with Maria. About John anyway," I said. "He may be different, but he's not crazy."