It’s Thursday and the temperature is dropping fast. Last week I was basically out cold. I threw up and didn’t leave the apartment for fear of not being near the toilet. But that was then and now it’s a week later and I’m 100% better. Not even a smidge of temperature. Kept hearing from former coworkers. From Wanker Banker as well as McMann and Tate. That was nice. Karol, the Polish dude from Wanker Banker found the blog and emailed me about it. Nothing bad was ever written about him. He’s a good guy and plays on my team. I wish him only the best. Also heard from Vincenzo the IT guy who was in the San Francisco office of Wanker Banker. That was nice. I asked him to pass my greetings along to Katja, Jenn and Bonnie, the lovely lasses by the bay.

Heard from Miguel from McMann and Tate. He started a few weeks before I left. Great guy, handsome, has a lovely girlfriend. Chatted with him a lot through gmail today. Told Miguel about the blog and he immediately jumped into it, asking me who was who. I told him to guess. I gave in and explained to him who Felicia actually was. He was on the cusp of figuring it out anyhow. It was good to chat with him though and it was fun to talk about the blog.

I also heard from Amiable Alan who I’m going to hook up with on Wednesday. Just a tete a tete, probably wander around downtown afterwork catching up. That should be fun and of course it depends on the weather. But hook up we shall! I heard from my brother Frank who called me when I had gotten off the bus and buying celery. He too has read the blog and mentioned my mention of seeing Janet Wygal on the bus the other night. He had a suggestion for a conversation topic, of course it was too late and too pointed a topic. Who the hell wants to talk about a DNA cup anyway?

More blasts from the past. Yesterday at work I was playing the Ram album by Paul McCartney. It’s really a good record, but when I hear it, all I can think about is a conversation between two of my neighbors when growing up. Donna Foglio and Terry Savio and I were waiting across the street from my house waiting for the school bus to pick us up. Terry was talking to Donna about hanging out at the Public Library the night before listening to the Ram album. Why do I retain this?

Another thing, at work, a lot of the data entry I’ve been doing is inputting nothing but names, names, names on various resumes. And some of those names are similar to other names from the past. Pete de Bene. He worked the loading dock at the book publisher I used to work at ages ago. He had an affair with Debbie Costa, who was married to some mob type. I used to flirt with Debbie’s brother, Tony. I knew what I was doing, but I don’t think Tony knew. Nothing transpired.

Illegal dress.

Humpty humpty hump day! Everybody do the humpty dance yeah! I did not win the lottery again. Now it’s up to 43 million dollars I think. I’d settled for a quarter of that and be quite happy with it. I got out of bed with the hope that I won the lottery. I usually do. I’ve settled into work for sure. But with my luck it would be a winning lottery akin to Shirley Jackson and her Lottery. Look it up, go ahead, I’ll wait. Bill was out of the apartment mere moments before I got out of bed.

Shower, coffee, cereal, email all while getting dressed. Such a routine. It works for me at least. I wore an impressive black pinstriped suit that I bought a few years ago back in the Wanker Banker days. I enjoy being able to dress up and go to work. This phenomenon started only after my father passed away. I passed on his suits. Just wasn’t feeling them then. Lot’s of polyester I think and I’m a wool man myself. Still I would have liked to have my parents see me dressed up so nicely in a suit and tie. I didn’t wear one for their funerals. Didn’t see the point, though I was dressed presentably anyhow.

It was cold out for sure but not as cold as it’s been so I went without the hat. Actually Bill’s Triple Five baseball cat that Julio and Stine got for him a few years ago and like most things that Bill gets as presents, he doesn’t use it. Is that what a lot of people do? I guess I’m guilty of that as well. I have some presents from friends, books and cd’s that I haven’t read or played yet and they are getting old as well. Either way I am the one wearing the Triple Five baseball cap. But just not today.

Two people were out at work today, Clara was ill and Syreeta was en route to India for her brother’s wedding. It didn’t make much difference really. Applicants still came in, some humbled, some arrogant. Some at the peak of health and others in recovery from illness and ailments. I help them all, though not equally. The wounded get special help and attention from me, the arrogant ones are given the drill with an air of indifference. It’s a tedious job, boring and monotonous and that’s just how I wanted it.

President Naomi was ruling the roost with Wally being Wally right behind her. He seems to be warming up to me and that’s fine. I don’t need any stress like at the last job. Speaking of the last job, Amiable Alan called but I was unable to talk. I tried calling him later but he was unavailable. I did talk to Andrea who was fired from McMann and Tate in May or so of last year in San Francisco. She moved on and got another job in old San Fran when McMann and Tate offered her the position of office manager in the New York office. I of course, was not considered for the job.

I thought it odd how someone who could get fired so abruptly when they closed the San Francisco office, could believe in that same company when offered to uproot her life and move to New York where she doesn’t have much of a safety net. But that is what she did. Good luck. She was manning the phones since they still had not gotten anyone to replace me. I thought for a split second about actually going back, but I’ve been re-reading the entries from the past year or so and I had to smack myself in the face. Would I go back to McMann and Tate?

No Fucking Way. Though I do miss the salad bar around the block. No way about the job. Too damned depressing. The spot where I’m at now, well…that’s where I’m at.