darnkess falls. like some primitive call, bass beats pound the air at the watering hole. all the apes, some more naked than others, line up for their fix. ice flashes, teeth glisten bare as males guard their mates. in the only species where the female is more decorated than the male, there is often more ornament than garment.

still the bass thuds through the night air, calling all those who are swayed by its lure.

little pieces of paper are passed back and forth, and entrance is gained. for some it is a sacred shrine. for some it is a fleeting visit. you enter and you smell it. the smell of alcohol, of skin, of smoke, of sex, of money, of dior and gucci, of puke, of pepsi. it makes your head spinn.

you push your way through. bodies gyrate like a million places around the world. the scene at any nightclub on the planet. the floor is packed with girls trying hard to rub against anyone, and boys trying hard not to rub anyone the wrong way. you keep your hands behind your back and fight your way to the bar. one beer is all you ask, if the bartender will be so kind.

"...she's crazy bout her daddy..." and you taste the cold beer. you hit the floor, and if you're good it shows. if you're not, well, thank god it's so crowded.

practice your meanest stare, if your mate is with you. learn to fight. bar brawls are not only for movies. drunk people are easily provoked. luckily they are more easily felled. your beer bottle is useful long after it is empty.

still the bass filters through every pore of your body. your heart is one with the beat.

"...and now for the last track of the night..." but it's only eleven. And then you remember. When you first came. When you entered free because you knew everyone. Or just the bouncer. When you had to hide so that you didn't spend the whole night saying hi to your friends. When the music was hot and new. When it was an every weekend thing. When the place seemed like a class reunion, or a private party. When you stumbled out at 3 in the morning, too tired, and the party was going on, and you wanted to go to The Club and get on hardcore trance. When you came home at 7 am after a whole night out. When you were younger...

"dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room"