*(dc) two spiral cement truck citings

although i have no photographic evidence, i have seen two spiral cement trucks here in dc recently. the first was while sitting at breakfast with devon last week. busboys and poets is right next to a construction site so there are always lots o' cement trucks, which makes this my favorite breakfast spot. this truck had an honest-to-goodness spiral-painted drum, but it wasn't a tight spiral. very loose, more like curved stripes, blue and black. i ran wildly through the restaurant trying to get my camera to come on and get a photo, but...as usual...camera too slow.

the second was yesterday walking home from work. of course, i'd forgotten my phone, so there was no wild running-down-the-street-chasing-traffic-and-fiddling-with-handheld-device scene. but this one was the coolest i've seen. it was an old faded yellow drum with a slightly darker yellow spiral that looked like it had been painted by hand or maybe less faded where a huge spiral sticker had once been - sort of how it might look if i went out one night to vandalize cement trucks. i loved it. and this one was spinning. it was perfect and beautiful. without the stress of having to take a photo, i just admired it as it drove by and watched it as it spun.

and afterwards i closed my eyes and thought of my friend's dad. i never knew him, but cement trucks will now always hold a twinge of sadness alongside the joy.