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I Fought The Law the Bobby Fuller Four

Tuesday, December 20th, 2011

It’s a day off after four days of eleven hour shifts and it’s a welcome day off. Last night when I came home my legs felt like lead and I wasn’t that communicative walking through the door. Bill was understanding and sympathetic and gave me my space as I wordlessly got out of my suit and tie and into something a little more comfortable like track pants and a sweat shirt.

I sat at the computer much like I am now and added the pics and whatnot to last night’s entry. After a little while Bill went to bed after a generous hug and kiss while I stayed up watching whatever it was that I was watching. I slept really well and once again woke up to Bill kissing me good bye for the day. I am so grateful that Bill is my spouse, forever in my life.

He told me he loved me and how sweet I looked and I mumbled and went back to slumber once he left. I slept a lot later than I expected to and eventually got up and did my morning shuffle. After just one cup of coffee I headed out, walking to the library to return the Ahmet Ertegun biography (spoiler alert: Ahmet died).

It was an enjoyable book, he certainly was a character. And there was one brief mention of Arif Mardin in the book, calling him ‘arranger extraordinaire’. That was it. Tom Dowd was mentioned as was Jerry Wexler. I guess Arif came onto the Atlantic scene later in the story where Jerry Wexler was there almost at the beginning and Tom Dowd shortly thereafter.

I ran into Mike C from up the block at the library where he does some volunteer work. We chatted for a while as I picked up Green Lantern which was really bad. Mike recommended X-Men First Class saying it was much better than Green Lantern. I hope he is right. I also picked up the first season of Community which is really a funny show and now in limbo on broadcast TV.

Tony’s chair was occupied at Mr. L’s so I came home after running to the supermarket and had some breakfast. I went out again, a little while after that and Tony’s chair was now free. I walked in and Tony was happy to see me. Once he again he did a very good job, cutting my hair and trimming my goatee while telling me about how he is going to see a nerve specialist in Paramus to look at his arm which he injured a while ago.

Tony is in his 70’s and not mending as much as he used to. He’s worried that if he gets an operation done on his left arm he won’t be able to use it anymore and then no more haircutting for him. After that I headed back home before taking a stroll around Hoboken, stopping by the Guitar Bar where I saw darling Lily and her father Mr. Wonderful.

I mainly talked to Lily as Jim was conducting business on the phone. She looks great and is enjoying college life. I told her I was enjoying her radio show on the college station and she got a big kick out of that. After that I was going to go to the post office but I neglected to bring my Netflix DVD as well as any holiday cards.

It didn’t matter about the holiday cards since I am still not sure about sending any out this year. I have a feeling some will be sent out, and some will be received late. But they are holiday cards so it really doesn’t matter since they’re not specific as to what holiday I am sending a greeting about.


05 Save It For Later

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I Feel So

Tuesday, December 13th, 2011

Cookie’s email. Claire’s return.
Shooting video of Bill’s jazz combo Thursday night

Just some reminders of what I could write about tonight. I could also write about how Jerry Vale and I have stopped communicating after his hissy fit on Sunday morning. An apology is what is expected and an apology is not forthcoming. So I guess for the next two and a half hours we won’t be speaking.

I will be busying myself with various mundane tasks and he will stand there with his hands in his pockets, staring out the window like a dog in a puppy mill. It’s funny since the night before, Saturday night, Jerry Vale and I were talking about work and Thomas and Bradley. I told him that when I’ve butted heads with Thomas I would always apologize for being a bitch and Thomas would generally apologize for being a bitch as well.

But like I wrote, no apology seems to be forthcoming and that’s cool. That means I do not have to listen to him talking about how excited he is for the upcoming ski season, or how he is getting a secured credit card and best of all I do not have to lend him money anymore when he is skint.

So, Cookie’s email. I have a cousin whom I’ll call Cookie. She’s sweet and her family and mine were once really close. But with the passing of time and life interfering we’ve gone our separate ways. I have to admit that I think she is a member of the tea party and every now and then she sends out emails about this and that, how “they’re” taking away the right to say the Pledge of Allegiance or some sort of nonsense.

The most recent alarming email from Cookie was how the new dollar coins wil not have In God We Trust on it and how that is a sure sign about how things in this country are going down the toilet. I almost always read her email, check with snopes.com and send her what I find, which is generally telling her that she’s been hoodwinked.

And once again I did that with regards to the dollar coins. She did respond in kind, thanking me for the information as well as explaining that snopes.com is blocked where she works so she just sends out the email rumors and whatnot regardless if it’s true or false. And like I said, they’re almost always (99.9%) false. Still I love Cookie very much and don’t mind letting her know what’s what.

Last night after a run to the grocery store I ran into neighbor Claire. She seems to be back, things did not work out out in Montauk where it is perhaps too cold for surfing. We ran into each other on the street, both of us expressing our hopes that 2012 simply has to be better than 2011. I guess we’ve both had bad years but I am not holding out much hope for the new year. I sense more stress and strife and lately being hopeful has only sunk me into deep depths of depression.

One good thing I have to look forward to is the fact that I am shooting a video for my beloved Bill when he plays with his combo on Thursday night. It should be fun and there will be food and drink and I will be able to spend time with the one I love as well as his band. It’s a good thing that I am off on Thursday. Oh I forgot about the cigar shack computer…I guess I will write about that tomorrow.




Electronic – Idiot Country

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I Feel Like Dancin’

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011

I can’t help but wonder if someone toasted me with ‘May you live in interesting times’. For these are interesting times. The nap after breakfast thing that worked so well yesterday did not so shit today. I was so sure that it would.

After breakfast, after the shower, after checking emails I figured I had enough time for a quick nap before getting on with my day, but it turned out that it was impossible, even with the optimum circumstances of it pouring rain outside. So with nothing better to do and more time to kill I surfed the net, took out the trash and recyclables and then got dressed.

A stop at the dry cleaners was afforded by my extra time and after that, en route to the bus stop a all too brief chat with Bill. He was inundated with work much earlier than anticipated. I stood near the bus stop, enjoying a cigar under the canopy of an antique store which is only open three days a week. I guess the shop owner, also owns the building.

Despite my being early I did not count on being stuck in the Lincoln Tunnel in bumper to bumper traffic. It wasn’t so bad, since I was above ground I was able to text Zack to let him know that I would probably be late. No response and of course I had no choice but to continue on my not so merry way to work.

And of course when I got to the platform it was crowded which meant no trains had come through in a while. The a capella guys were there with their stand up bassist doing their usual credible job but really I wasn’t in the mood for them nor did I have any money to toss into the hat. And that is something I don’t do so much anymore, no money for my once fellow buskers.

Work was alright, somewhere to go, something to do, and something to smoke. Just Bradley and Zack and me today and it wasn’t so bad. Bradley’s been really great lately and Zack as I wrote a few weeks ago is expecting a child with his wife. So he’s in a good mood. Nothing hormonal on his end. And now I am in the final hour, dregs of bourgeois society clamber on through the area, dragging their feet and falling off their wet heels.

The Sugarcubes are on, Bjork singing Birthday. It beats the New Orleans holiday dirges that play on endless loop in this shopping area. With each trumpet blare I loathe Wynton Marsalis a little bit more. A little over twenty minutes left in the cigar shack and I am very glad to be off work tomorrow.

It’s been a while since I’d seen Jimmy Seltzer which means he will probably be in tomorrow when I am not. He did have good advice as well, reminding me that I am a good worker. True I don’t like my job but I still come in every day and do a good job, I am a team player, well regarded by the customers mostly. Or at least by Jimmy Seltzer.




08 Hey, Snow White

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I Dread The Night

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

Man do I work with some bitches or what? Today it was working with Othello and Iago. Overall it was sort of like working alone. The man cave was available to smoke in again and sure enough it was crowded. I’m not sure tweaking the nipple of a neighbor who has been complaining is the right thing to do but what do I know?

I’m not management material. That would be Othello’s position with Iago his loyal lieutenant. Last night wasn’t so bad, I was working alone, leaving Iago to close the shop. Working with him is like working alone. We only speak to each other when we have to. And lately Othello speaks only to Iago.

I’m fine with that, I just putter along, doing my job and doing whatever is asked of me. I offer no input, no suggestion that annoying the complaining neighbor is a bad idea. No I just watch them build their house of cards, hopefully being far away enough when those cards come falling down.

The lawyers are getting paid so that’s good I guess. It is not that comfortable working like this but it is certainly manageable. I’m practically enjoying it, since it certainly gives me plenty to write about. Tomorrow Iago won’t be in and since I am off both Thursday and Friday it will seem like three days off.

And another good thing is the fact that Thomas will be in so it will be good to have someone to talk to during the day. I am nearly certain that Othello will do his best to keep us from conversing but things have gotten so familiar that a nod or a wink is just as good to a blind horse.

I slept really well again last night and got up at my own speed, no more hustling about in the morning. It works out fine, moving at an easy pace. I was on the street a little after 10:00 and as I talked with the hubby on the phone I walked up to the bus stop. It was a bit nippy but not too bad. Once again I waited for my 10:30 bus, enjoying a free cigar a salesman blessed me with.

At the next stop, neighbor Deborah and her boyfriend Kevin boarded and we had a nice chat. Deborah is very supportive of me and so is Kevin. She’s trying to get me a gig at her firm and according to her it looks promising. She reckons that something might happen in December so if that is so and things work out, then I might just drop out of the retail scene and move back into the private sector.

It doesn’t seem like there is any reason to give notice and who knows if the cigar shack will even be in existence in January? Of course it is all speculation and there would be ripples in the pool. But worrying about bitches is not my problem, I have my life to attend to and it would be paramount to move on to the next level.

So if Othello or Iago is reading this, there you have it.

Exactly.





02 Kiss Kiss Kiss

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I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

A dismal and wet Wednesday. The day started out with Bill leaving a few hours later than usual, and I got up out of bed as he kissed me goodbye and headed out the door with his words of encouragement.

He’s a very good man and I am quite lucky to have him. I made some coffee, poured some cereal and jumped into the shower as usual. Not an exciting life but at least it’s a life.

I walked up to Washington Street, stopping by Hoboken Daily News and said hello to Andy and his grumpy brother. Then it was a wait for the bus.

At the next stop I expected to see neighbor Deborah and saw a woman with her hairstyle but this woman was a bit on the heavy side which was a surprise when I saw her board the bus.

I’ve been listening to Bjork a lot lately so I had that all cued up as I walked from the bus to the subway. The usual creeps and cops were around, some of the cops are regulars at the cigar shack and they generally give me a nod as I walk by.

By the time I got to the vicinity of the cigar shack it was starting to rain and even though I was early, I preferred to wait outside rather than deal with Frank Burns who has gone back to being a real schmuck again, all goodwill from last week seems to have fallen by the wayside.

Thomas was in already and he mentioned that it was his turn to close tonight. I told him that it didn’t matter, that I would close. It really doesn’t matter since even if I do leave early I spent my time exasperated on the subway platform waiting for a downtown train which gets there just at almost the exact same time it would be if I was closing the cigar shack.

Frank Burns certainly didn’t care, or didn’t even know since he was sequestered in the humidor rearranging things which is what a faux assistant manager is supposed to do. Zack was out today which gave Frank Burns the nerve to play it as he was in charge.

I suppose Thomas and I humor him as much as we could but we spent a lot more time and energy just trying to avoid him. If he’s in the humidor- we’re on the floor. If he’s on the floor we’re not.

It’s been about a year since Ron flew the coop, just in time to avoid the extra hours that accompany holiday drama. Already in the cigar shack neighborhood, stars and holiday decorations are up already. The giant crystal was hung at 57th and Fifth Avenue yesterday and will probably still be hanging until February.

Now there is an hour left in the work day or thereabouts. The cigar shack closes at 9:00 but since I will be closing I probably won’t be out until 9:15 if all the numbers match up and so far they do.


12 I Don’t Want To Spoil The Party

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I Don’t Want To Be A Bride

Monday, November 7th, 2011

Yes yesterday was a day off and yes it was good. I slept in of course, and got up an hour later since I changed every clock except for the alarm clock which is probably the most important clock to set. It didn’t matter much since I figured out what had happened or did not happen and went back to sleep for another hour.

Still I was up earlier than I anticipated and proceeded to get my day started. A trip to the supermarket and soon I was home having breakfast and reading the papers. Bill was driving a bus for the first time in two months.

A trip to Nanuet then to Sylvia’s Restaurant in Harlem and finally a ride to see Sister Act on Broadway. Yesterday was the Artists Studio Tour in Hoboken and I had arranged to take off and attend, to visit some good friends.

I walked up to Maxwells where Rand and Lisa were hosting the Kirby Enthusiasm event. Chaz Charas was there so it was good to see all three. Not much of a turn out while I was there I’m afraid. Mike Cecchini arrived to relieve Rand and Lisa who were off to the Biergarten in Hoboken. I made tentative plans to meet up with Mike tomorrow on my day off again.

From Maxwells I went to Neumann Leather where Tim Daly was working and his wife Sheilah Scully was there too. Some catching up with them and a visit to other artists in the building. A phone call to Annemarie then a walk to the first building I lived in at 201 Madison Street where I saw Hiro Takeshita. He was a bit under the weather so I did not stay long.

A short break at home to upload photos I had taken and then I was out again, this time to the Monroe Art Center where Lois was performing and my neighbor Deborah was supposed to be singing. But Monroe Art Center is a big old industrial building and it’s very easy to get lost in there.

I wound up hanging out with Lois and she played the violin and I played some guitar and a little bit of piano. I said my goodbyes after about an hour and walked on home to a nice dinner. Then it was watching TV and surfing the net. Bill expected to be home around 11:00 but was home at 9:00 in time to watch Boardwalk Empire.

Then he went to sleep and I stayed up for a few hours more, watching Pan Am and then the news and then a documentary on A Tribe Called Quest. I haven’t finsihed it yet and I understand Q-Tip did not want to have anything to to do with the finished result.

I don’t see why since he comes off as quite intelligent and reasonable. Phife Dog, not so much but Ali Shaheed Mohammed is crazy cute. I intend to finish watching it tonight when I get home.

And now I am home, poor Bill. My baby is so exhausted. He never rests. And after a few weeks of that he crashes hard. And that is what he is doing right now. A day off for me tomorrow which is nice. I’m looking forward to it. And today wasn’t so bad.







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