Oh what a beautiful day it was yesterday. I hooked up with Rey around Astor Place in the East Village, our plan was to see an old friend of ours Excer, play in his salsa band, Conjunto Imagen. Work was slow, not too busy and I got through the day without much effort. Rey got to the city somewhat earlier than expected and he wound up at Farfetched where another old friend was working, Harpy. It’s funny but I’ve known these guys for almost twenty years, back from when we all worked for Rupert Murdoch at 2 Park Avenue and then in Secaucus, NJ.

Somehow we all wound up working together on a failed precursor for the Internet. Seems that Rupert wanted to compile a Hotel Database for hotels, motels, inns and bed and breakfasts from around the world. I believe the plan was to gather as much information and pictures of various establishments and sell them to travel agencies. It was Rey, Excer and my job to look at brochures all day and select whatever photographs we liked, edit them and send them off to Harpy to have them converted into slides for inclusion in the database. It was a great job, paid 10 dollars an hour, and we were freelance so we made our own hours.

The first time I met Excer was with Rey. We were both working late at 2 Park Avenue and went outside to Excer’s red Honda and shared a jazz cigarette. Amidst the coughing we saw two femme guys walking up Park Avenue and Excer made a comment about them. I showed my uncomfortable ness, by handing the jazz cigarette back and getting out of the car. I found out that Rey took it upon himself to admonish Excer for saying stuff like that considering that I was gay and more than likely offended by what he said. They were, and are good looking men and I was more than likely the only gay man that never hit on them or made it obvious that they were so sexually enticing.

Time passed, Excer saw the light and we all became good friends. So it was a treat to meet up with them again. Excer looked fly in his baby blue Guyabera, and I thought to myself that I was glad to be wearing my gray Guyabera and not the baby blue one I came thisclose to wearing. Rey and I just hung out on the pier at the South Street Seaport, he regaling me with tales of being a Corrections Officer at Riker’s Island while plying me with beer. I just drank and gave an occasional look of horror. The show ended and Excer and his girlfriend gave us a ride back to the Village where Rey and I proceeded to drink some more.

Rey just moved to upstate New York after living in New York City for 38 years. Being in Manhattan he realized how much he missed being able to hang out in a variety of situations all within the space of a mile or two. We sat in Phoebe’s around the corner from CBGB’s. I was gripped by the idea of calling my sister. I owed her a phone call, but I’m sure she didn’t expect and I sure as hell didn’t expect to drunk dial her. Oh but I did. Don’t know what I said but I’m sure it wasn’t so bad.

I only had about four hours of sleep and didn’t feel so good when I woke up. I did make it in to work, but after a few hours of that, not feeling any better I left early and took the Path train back home. I passed Patti Smith on the street and said hello. Then I came home and slept for five hours. Crazy dreams. All better now. Rey just called and he had a similar experience today except that he’s on vacation.