Last Sunday, Stef and I decided to take a drive along PCH to Malibu to enjoy the California sun. Instead of listening to the radio, we jammed out on a KORG Monotron and Bebot on my iPhone the whole way. I could barely contain the necessity to keep my eyes on the road, getting distracted by Ferraris, motorcycles, crashing waves, and surfers. Stuck in sightseer traffic, we noticed strange things, like two people selling quarts of their gourmet basil lemonade on the sidewalk out of a cooler and a large sombrero-wearing Mexican statue holding a boat(?) that graces the roof of La Salsa.
After passing many seafood joints, we made it to our destination at Malibu Seafood. This shack is a tiny building nestled right at the foot of the Santa Monica Mountain Reserve, proving popular with its long line and filled parking spaces. Fish and chips were on our minds, but looking at their menu, we couldn't hold off on that day's special of grilled yellowtail, so we compromised and shared fish and chips along with the grilled yellowtail. That was the best idea ever.
There's only outdoor seating and the benches were made to accommodate large parties. The two of us took over a large bench (it was the only seat open) and felt bad that we were taking up so much space. Luckily, another couple came by and asked if they could share the space.
They were your "normal," "rich" couple: Prada purse, overdressed for a nice lunch right by the coast at a shacky seafood place, designer sunglasses, and I only assume they drove up in their black luxury automobile. Not to mention, miserable. Their interaction with each other was so stoic, so empty. The wife presented herself so horrendously, coming off as a controlling, needy wife that only enjoys her husband for his money. The husband seemed like a gentle soul, tending to his wife's needs to be nice, that I almost felt bad for him.
As soon as they sat down, the wife couldn't stop peering over at Stef and me. It was strange. Was she judging us? Was our apparent happiness radiating invading her personal space, causing her to sneer? We were having fun joking around and savoring our food on a lovely day. We talked about driving more up the coast to this biker hangout to grab a couple of cold ones. We were enjoying each other's company immensely.
Husband walks away from the bench to get condiments.
"Honey, can you get me some ketchup? Some ketchup honey. Ketchup please. I need some ketchup." Says the wife in a quiet, monotone voice.
He comes back with three tiny containers filled with ketchup.
"Why did you get so much ketchup?"
Us, in our heads, "Because you kept hollering your need for ketchup, you bitch!"
In the middle of the wife complaining about her food, the husband tries to relieve tension by saying something nice.
"We should get a boat, and sail along the ocean."
"Ugh, and where are we going to get a boat?"
"We can borrow my friend's. I don't know honey, we should just get away."
"Ugh."
In the mean time, she still kept peering over in our direction. She must have been looking at us because there was only a wall beyond us. We left, enjoying our whole experience eating some of the best fish and chips on a day we couldn't ask for more perfect weather.
Stef asked, "Was she looking at us?"
"YES." I said.
"What was up with her? Was she judging us? She kept complaining about her food, did you notice that?"
"I don't know. I'm sorry she was dissatisfied, I thought it was great. Did we bother her with our gleaming faces? Maybe it's so apparent that we're happy together that it bothered her because she looked miserable."
We walked to our car and continued our adventure along the Malibu coast.
