Sleeping in on a Saturday morning is such a nice feeling. Nothing much to do, you’re able to take your time mostly. A nice unhurried way to start the day. Bill was in Yardley, PA at his cousin Hiram’s house. Bill had a photo shoot for some unnamed company. I had the big ole bed to myself and I was reluctant to get out of bed but it was 8:30, and I couldn’t sleep anymore. Made some coffee and jumped into the shower. Checked email after that and had a cuppa before I went out hunting for bagels and other foodstuffs.

It was bright and sunny and crisp out as I brought some clothes to the dry cleaners on the corner. Outside the building I ran into Mr. and Mrs. Lopez who were getting ready to clean out an apartment up in West New York. Julio inherited the building and had to evict someone who hadn’t paid their rent in a few months. So now it needed to be cleaned out and fixed up before in can go back in the rental market. Nice to Stine replacing me in the helping out department. I would help Julio out if he asked but I’m really not the volunteering on a beautiful Saturday afternoon type of guy.

Had too many experiences growing up doing that. Back then my father would announce on a Friday night that my brother Brian and I better not have any plans for Saturday because there was to be done around the house. It didn’t matter if we had plans because we would have to cancel them. Then my parents would go out to the VFW and have a few drinks, coming home long after I had gone to sleep.

The next morning would be quiet due to the fact that my father would more than likely be hung over which meant that we would be walking around on pins and needles, trying not to wake him up. Brian and I would sit around the house, not knowing what chores our father had in store for us. Late afternoon was when we generally started, after my father sat around in his underwear, reading the papers. We’d get started with Brian and I cursing under our breaths. Luckily I was thought of as retarded and played the role of the gopher as my father and brother would struggle for alpha male status with my father generally winning and Brian storming off in a huff with my mother trying to calm things down.

Another dreaded thing on Saturday afternoons would be going to the hardware store. I find those places to be so numbing to me. So much wasted time I spent going to the hardware store and staring at dusty boxes filled with strange pipes and fittings. I’m obviously not the handyman type, Julio is though. He loves to chip in. Usually he insists that he fix whatever is broken in the apartment since he knows it would take him much less time that it would for Bill and myself.

I’m supposed to go down and visit the Lopez’s, just awaiting the call.