No help

Saturday I received a pleasant surprise: Brian called up to say he was in Eugene for the day. Even more pleasant? The fact that he somehow found his way to my apartment without me having to get in my car to drive and meet him somewhere. Truly world class, that chap is.

However, I now realize that he is, much like myself, someone you don't want around if you need a voice of common sense and reason on your side. There was a man at the almost entirely hippie-run Eugene Market with a sign that said "Free Hugs" on it. Deciding I badly needed to hug a complete stranger, I set off in pursuit, with Brian goading me on. This must be what it is like to hang out with me sometimes, as I'm known to push people into doing very questionable things.

The strangest part was that I had to barter with this guy to get the advertised price on the hug. Here is how the exchange went:

Andy (A): Hey, how much are those hugs going for?
Free Hug Guy (FHG): 5 dollars.
A: Really? How about I give you a high five and call it good?
FHG: Actually, high fives costs a nickel.
A: Damnit.
FHG: Hey, we go a long way back, though...remember that time we did that stuff!
A: Yeah, it was awesome.
FHG: For you? You can have it for free.
A: Come here you.