Rainbow Noise After Midnight
I still remember the very first time I heard Bjork. It was on a winter night and I was up all night studying for a further mathematics exam. The heater was never switched on, so I had to bundle up in a heap of sweaters and made hot coffee every half an hour or so. The marble table felt painfully cold. The carpet was like sandpaper. All I could hear was the tapping sounds of my calculator and the beastly snorefest my roommate cooks up every night. There were also the occasional voice in my head repeating, "There is no such thing as ghosts, there is no such thing as ghosts, there is no such thing as ghosts". I was afraid of being alone in the dark, and I still am.
At around 3 in the morning I heard the door downstairs squeak open. It was Maddy and Bridget. They tiptoed up the stairs and said, "Aren't you suppose to be sleeping, you nut". They giggled and skipped to the kitchen with a packet of marshmallows in their hands. I secretly smiled thinking how sexy Bridget looks in her pajamas and dove back down into triple integration and imaginary numbers and a little bit of Bridget. In between the girls' giggles, the tapping calculator, and that voice saying "Chucky is not going to slice your tendon from under the table", I heard something coming from downstairs. It was a strange noise. A beautiful, strange noise.
I shoved my books aside, went downstairs and replayed the cassette over and over and over again. Her music felt otherworldly, like nothing I've ever heard of. I remember saying to myself, "What nonsense is this!". And I meant it in the best possible way. It was pure genius. It was complete bollocks. It was like a circus of faeries on crack. It was amazing.
I joined Maddy and Bridget afterwards. We talked about Bjork while cooking marshmallows over the fire stove. And I can still remember how hot Bridget looked like in those pajamas.
(7.45pm, 9th December 2007)
