June | 2006 | johnozed

Last night I downloaded a remix of ‘Situation’ by Yaz. Despite the fact that I sometimes try to communicate with Bill vis a vis music, I was not trying to tell Bill something with the ‘move out’ refrain. Just wanted to clear the air. It was a decent remix, nothing to write home about, but disconcerting with that playing and Bill sitting a foot or two behind me. And I don’t want him to move out.

Yesterday morning Bill mentioned going to Arthur’s Steakhouse for dinner. Sounded like a good idea. Then he went off and did what he did, came home and crashed. I came home from cycling and found him asleep in the bed. He woke up around 9:00 and didn’t say anything about dinner. I brought it up, asking if he said something about going out to Arthur’s. He said he did, and then he didn’t say much else. Now it was 9:30, and I was hungry.

Finally as I mentioned that I was going out to get some food, he mentioned that we could go. I reckoned that by the time we get there, wait for a table, and sit down and eat it would be too late. So I went out and got some chicken from the Chicken and Rib Crib. Came home, and me being a nice guy offered him some of my dinner. He ate as we watched some telly, not really taking about anything. I did mention that I might not be able to make it to next Friday’s session since I had something to do with work. Something like going to Coney Island on an office outing. I have to call Phillip to reschedule. Either that, or its week number three without going to our couples counseling.

Today was a day at the beach. Julio, Stine and I all talked about it briefly last night and there we were, on the sand before noon. We were joined by Julio’s sister Maria and her fiancé, Paul. Bill was driving somewhere, and he knows that if the weather is permitting a trip to the beach is usually in order. Bill has his passion, which is driving buses. Mine is being at the beach with good friends.

I was very happy that the iPod adapter I got Julio for his car is working phenomenally well. I love playing the DJ.

It was very windy and the water was cold. Too cold to go in, 60-65 degrees with a way too cool breeze. We didn’t go to Sandy Hook, we didn’t go to Monmouth beach, we went to Sea Bright, which left Julio and I aghast with the amount of people. Stine and Maria preferred public facilities, Julio, Paul and myself, being men could pee anywhere. Rather than risk Sandy Hook being overcrowded, we heeded Paul’s suggestion and wound up in Sea Bright.

As the hours passed it was getting more and more crowded. We guessed that Sandy Hook had reached capacity and Sea Bright being the next public beach, was soon filled with people on line, headed out to the street about 100 yards in the sun waiting to pay seven dollars a head to get in.

The beach was definitely family oriented so jazz cigarettes were not to be enjoyed. That was a drag, or rather it wasn’t. We had a few beers and watched umbrellas fly down the shoreline due to the fact that they weren’t anchored properly. The flying umbrella could be a dangerous thing if you’re not paying attention.

We wound up leaving earlier than we usually do. We left at 3:00. Julio couldn’t deal with the crowds and they kept straggling in. We got back to Hoboken around 4:30 and went our separate ways. I jumped in the shower and decided to head into the city to Folsom East. It was crazy hot in the city as I walked the Chelsea border of 23rd street.

I ran into Tony, someone I knew (not biblically) in the nineties. Similar interests you see. He’s had a hard time the past few months and today was his first outing since his partner died in October. Alas he was heading back to Jersey City and I was headed to a bunch of leather queens. I wandered around, looking good I must say, but not seeing anyone I knew. Still awfully hard to met men, even if they are wearing a leather harness and a leather jackass, erm, jock strap.

I had a La Gloria Cubana and strolled around, excusing myself if I had to brush past some hairy back. It went unheard, courtesy and politeness just aren’t done at leather functions. It was humorous to see some men dressed totally from head to toe in leather and it’s in the nineties, the sun beaming and no breeze or flying umbrellas in sight. I saw a few online contacts that are not much bigger than their thumbnail photographs or otherwise way too tall and creepy in real life.

I walked back to the Path train and was home at 8:00. All in all a pretty good day.

It didn’t start out that way though. At some point last night as I was turning over in my sleep I elbowed Bill right on the nose. I woke up instantly as I heard Bill say, ‘Ouch! That hurt!’ Immediately I said, ‘Sorry Dad!’ I guess I was dreaming about my father.

It was Father’s Day after all.

and now, a turtle crossing the street in Rumson.

Last night, had a few beers at the office and met up with a few of them afterwards at the Cub Room. Not my thing to do, hang out with the office crowd, but a really nice person was leaving and it was her last day and she asked me personally to go. After work I walked over and joined the crowd who are generally nice excepting one or two snobby types. I was congenial and chatted with some of the nice ones.

I do know this crowd can party long and hard into the wee hours and it could be disastrous if it’s on the company tab, and it was. After about three Corona’s at work, I switched up to Stella Artois at the Cub Room. I had one pint before I made me excuses to leave, and I needed one. I told them the Bill was cooking dinner and I better get home before he burns the kitchen down. It was a partial untruth. Bill was cooking dinner, albeit for himself. And he doesn’t burn the place down. He keeps things under control. But we don’t cook for each other.

I said my good byes and left with Natasha a sweet young thing from Russia and a recent graduate of the School for Visual Arts. She lives in Jersey City, or at least trying to. She’s on the lookout for a new apartment, preferably in Chilltown, so if you hear or know of anything, let me know and I’ll forward. She’s looking in the Grove Street area.

Also yesterday I ran into my old friend Martha Griffin. Martha and I go way back to when I used to bar back for her and she used to bartend at McSwells. She’s a beautiful and inspiring woman. Always saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself. She’s a movie producer now. You can IMDB her. She’s there. Very impressive resume if you ask me. And she was also in Bruce Springsteen’s Glory Days video, directed by John Sayles. Martha still looked great. She and another woman were outside of the building where I work waiting for something film related I’m sure. It was a brief rendezvous and it was good to see her.

Came home last night and wrote the blog. Didn’t do much else, Bill and I watched the telly, and I crashed a little after midnight. Woke up this morning, got some bagels. Bill was off to see his father and celebrate Father’s Day a day early. He’s driving tomorrow. I’m going down the shore with the Lopez’s. I was toying with the idea of going to Folsom East before beach talk came up and I tried weighing the two ideas. One was something I thought long and hard about for a long time. Hell, I thought both of the ideas for a long time. I last attended the Folsom thing with Bill maybe three years ago, I would be going alone this year, which was fine because there was the chance I’d meeting guys I had been chatting with. Or I wouldn’t and would walk around dejected and leave quite bitter.

The beach would be good for the mind, body and soul. Period. Who wants to be in Manhattan on a Sunday when it’s supposed to be 95 degrees out? Not me that’s for sure. I’m 99% certain that I would have a great time with the Mr. and Mrs. That’s it, my mind is made up. Actually it’s been made up since Thursday, just ask Juan.

Ok, I did it. Things went according to plan. I rode the bike over to the Ninth Street Light Rail station and took an elevator to Union City. That was fun. I rode up Palisade Avenue, then over to Hudson via Dodd Street where I rode past my old neighborhood in Weehawken. Somethings have changed but it’s still a quiet as a tomb neighborhood. I continued up Hudson to Broadway through Braddock Park (named for the Cinderella Man) through Cliffside Park, Palisades Park and Fort Lee, where I rode onto the George Washington Bridge. Over the Manhattan side, to Central Park where I heard Teddy Thompson sing a very nice set. No skate circle so it was to the World Train Center Path train for a ride home.

Very nice ride today, meditative, even when you’re riding with other people you’re really alone and have to pay attention to everything that’s going on around you. I was definitely in the zone, so to speak. 31 miles of it.

And here are some pictures.