Monthly Archives: August 2011

I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down

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Well we just had a flurry of commerce in the cigar shack after a few hours of not much going on at all. It’s the first weekend in August and not many people are buying cigars and accessories today. I guess it could be expected. I don’t recall it being too busy at this time last year. Bradley just sang a song ‘He’s the coolest guy/I’ve ever seen/yeah yeah yeah’.

Bradley is prone to writing songs on the spot and their usually somewhat violent though this one wasn’t, though his percussive drumming on the register counter could be construed as such. The Psychedelic Furs are on right now, The Ghost in You. Late period Furs.

Now it’s the B-52’s, Dry County from Cosmic Thing. Their comeback. Lot’s of memories from 22 years ago. Did I see them at the Palladium? Was it a dream? Was that Ann Louise I was hanging with? I seem to remember a great show.

Have to set a reminder to myself to remind Calvin to pay me for last Sunday’s trip to the rifle range. Better stay on top of that. I don’t want to go over his head and write directly to the person in charge of payroll. I do expect headaches all around. No word on my reimbursement and I expect headaches about that too. Better invest in Advil.

Such a bleeding long day here today. Not much a happening and probably less and less will be happening later on. Now Romeo Void is on with Never Say Never. Yes it’s that kind of day where I am merely writing down the titles of songs that are playing. No one attractive coming in or walking by the cigar shop either which makes for an even more dismal day.

Three more words. Well now it is an hour or so later. Not much has picked up. Bradley is gone for the day and now it’s me and Thomas who is being profane. For humor’s sake I suppose. I just yelled at him to stop being so rambunctious. And he has stopped if only for a little while.

I just cleaned out the man cave, and vacuumed the cigar shack. No one is around really. It’s raining out and that is what could be keeping people away, but I think a lot of people are out of town and with the crap economic news the past few days no one is spending much money.

Once again I am befuddled by the luck of the draw. I take 2 customers into the humidor, one buys a cigar the other just stands there, doesn’t want a cigar. Thomas gets the next customer and they buy several cigars adding up to a nice sum. It’s really all about luck.

Someone wants a cigar, they know what they want and they want nothing else. I get methed out hillbilly types and he gets the son of an ambassador. Just so bloody typical. Well it took most of the day but I finally broke a grand.

And now Thomas is sulking since he had Labor Day plans that me be washed out. And my feeble attempt at reassuring him has been shrugged off. It’s been a weird day all around for most all concerned. Now Bjork is singing Army of Me.

I am home again 12 hours after leaving. It sure is good to be home. Took the first train in the station which brought me to the Path train where I stood from 33rd Street to Hoboken. Knee started acting up again, probably from being jostled about by the trains movement.

Tomorrow is a day off from the cigar shack and this here blog. Not expecting to relax since there are a few things that must be taken care of. I will be glad to sleep later than usual.





I Can’t Stand It

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Another decent day at the cigar shack. Does this mean tomorrow won’t be? I can’t say. It’s been fun working with Thomas once again. We bust each other’s chops all day long. Tomorrow Bradley will be in the mix therefore changing whatever chemistry exists between Thomas and myself. Maybe. It’s all speculation.

It’s been a long day nonetheless. I slept really well last night and have been getting up earlier than I had been. Slept too late earlier in the week and had to rush around, which I would rather not do. 15 minutes makes all the difference. Thomas has headed home for the day, after getting his craft beer.

Now it’s me and Jerry Vale doing his Maria Eftimiades imitation. Actually he isn’t. I just wanted to throw her name in the mix since it popped into my head the other day. She was an editor at People magazine when I worked there in the late 1990’s. She playfully smacked me on the arm when she overheard me talking to Pedro on the phone, talking about chicks.

She was shocked to hear that. She is probably in deep shock now that the word chicks is being used everywhere, even by women. When she playfully smacked me, I told her to consider the alternatives. No harm was intended by the use of the word and of course, no chicks were harmed in the writing of such a line.

It’s a summer evening on a Friday, the area of the cigar shack is quiet now. Not much foot traffic. Not much of anything actually. One hour to go for me, then I’ll go home, sleep for a few hours and then come back for some more. It’s OK. It’s a job, not an adventure.

Jimmy Seltzer graciously invited me and Bill out to the Hamptons. It doesn’t seem likely with our schedules being all over the place. I told that to Jimmy and he said it would be fine if I went out there by myself on a weekday.Mr & Mrs Seltzer wouldn’t be there and I could have the place to myself. That is an extremely gracious offer from Jimmy Seltzer and I would love to take him up on it. I’ve never been out to the Hamptons anyhow.

Less than an hour to go now. I might as well do something rather than stare at the few stragglers passing by the cigar shack. And now I’m home again, back on the mainland. It was a fast hour at the shop, Jerry Vale regaling me with stories about seeing Led Zeppelin in Chicago in the 1970’s. He’s only 7 years older than I am and seems much older.

He’s trying to keep his head above water while working part time in the cigar shack. He doesn’t know how to deal with Thomas and myself and since Bradley acts like he’s the boss, Jerry Vale falls in line with whatever it is Bradley has to say.

I am just glad to be home. One more day until a day off. Hooray for me.