On the agenda tonight we have a plan to go out and rally the individuals we know in this little part of the world. My friends and I, we've got terms. We reach out and touch base with all the usuals, attempting to gain the affirmative from each (thus bringing them into the circle), binding them with guilt, and gaining momentum. The emails and/or phone calls begin "who's ready?" and end with "I'm in!" as though we were volunteering for a fun, but intense activity, such as mucking horse stalls or holiday carol singing.

We plan with the fury of dragon-slayers, but when it gets right down to it, what we want is an evening without firmly-laid plans. Why? There are too many options. Who knows where we might end up...who we might meet out...what sort of moods we will be in.

In this ever-distracting world, I have met many interesting people, some of whom have become my close friends. At 26-years old, I can say I've made a place for myself in the world, here in North Carolina.

But I don't have school, or some other circular cycle to guide me to my next steps. Since college, I've quit every job that ceased being interesting. Without a plan, I'd fumble through somewhat empty days (one period of note consisted of obsessively making clear blue and green soap in the shapes of turtles and frogs) until something would come along.

There is a lot of waiting and deliberating. I've heard many of my friends wonder out loud what the next step should be. Graduate school? Getting married? But in the interim - which is, technically, all the time - there have been some very good stories. Regarding the nights with no agenda, the unexpected romances, the morning walks with the dog, or the chance meetings that happen every day I must confess that a lot is going on, already.

I've always enjoyed the every-day instances, anyway. It is there, unexpectedly, I think, that the most fascinating happenings occur.