Monthly Archives: August 2011

I Choose You

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It’s Tuesday. I forgot about that this morning as I waited for the bus, I sent as a Facebook status update, TGIW. I thought it was Wednesday you see, and it wasn’t. Of course I fixed that later on when I finally got to the cigar shack.

I was in a pretty good mood, slept really well and woke up refreshed. Bill had kissed me goodbye once again a couple of hours before I left. He came home last night pretty tired but still had that air of being rambunctious. So much so that I realized that he’s a big kid. Really, no fooling around. It’s charming though last night I was too tired to appreciate it.

Today is Tuesday but it is my Friday since I am off the next two days. Wednesday I am seeing Bill in Destinations once again, and I might take some pictures when I am there. Then Thursday I have to take my old computer to Rand to see if he could salvage the 20,000 songs that were there before it died.

I hadn’t used it in a while and when it’s hot outside it would start up and quickly shut down. Now it won’t even turn on. Help me Rand Kenobi, you’re my only hope.

So now it’s 45 minutes before I can split. Thomas is closing tonight, allowing me to leave a little after 9:00 which to me is a nice start for my ‘weekend’. Right now we’re listening to I Want You (She’s So Heavy) from Abbey Road.

There was an earthquake today in Virginia and it was felt all the way up, and into Vermont and Ontario as well. I felt something happening under my feet but didn’t pay much attention. Who would think an earthquake would happen (or be felt) in Manhattan?

And with me working near a big glass enclosed shopping mall I have to say it was a bit unnerving as I walked by it after the quake. I kept an eye on the doorways should an aftershock occur. Now I am home, letting the ‘weekend’ begin.

I should mention that the other day I got in touch with a classmate from my grammar school, St. Francis de Sales. Stephen Ohocinski was happy to hear from me and told me that Jimmy Murray who I previous reported as dead, was very much alive which was good to know.

Stephen was upset when he read about Jimmy dying since he and Jimmy were tight for a few years before Jimmy went to public school.

It was definitely good to hear from Stephen who was quite complimentary with regards to my writing, going so far as to ask whether or not I had written any books. I certainly have read a fair amount of books, but writing one, no not yet.

Last time I saw Stephen he was running a magic shop in the basement of the Bergen Mall and that must have been in the early 1980’s. Now he seems to be a performer, a magician perhaps a hypnotist as well.






And the shackmaster_76 thinks I should embrace more training since I consistently under perform sales wise. I rarely post that I have top sales often enough, though not a consistent black Friday situation. I’m not one to gloat or lord it over my co-workers, labelling them as under performing.

Perhaps if the shackmaster_76 reads this blog often enough they would realize what I had written time and time again, that it’s mainly the luck of the draw, getting a customer that walks through the door and drops a wad of cash on items or getting a big sales (like yesterday) by merely answering the phone.

It’s funny that people like this can’t be upfront, then again I suppose I get my share of tea baggers and the like that merely skim and don’t get past the shallow end of things. I guess the photograph posted wasn’t enough.

I Cheat the Hangman

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Forgive the language, but today has been a mother fucker. Such a dumb ass day. It started at 6:00 this morning, with Bill kissing me goodbye and making sure I was getting out of bed. I had to get up early since Calvin had scheduled a re-certification class for tobacconists in NYC.

Now last year in June 2010 I had to go to Inwood on Long Island and sit in a room with gas station attendants and learn how to check identification cards. Today was scheduled for the same thing. I got there early enough, on time actually and saw Calvin as well as Ralph the tobacconist certification guy.

Ralph mentioned that it had been three years since the test was taken. I spoke up and said that I had done it last year and Ralph said then there was no need for me to be there. I looked at Calvin, and the supreme dumbass said ‘Well you’re here already anyhow, ha ha ha…’ Oh right then and there I wanted to throttle him.

I had to get up early for something that I didn’t have to. Stupid ass apparently forgot about my test last June. In fact he forgot about it last June, calling me up while I was online at Penn Station wondering where I was, how come I wasn’t at work. I reminded him then that I was headed out to take the test that he and Marcus had set up.

Luckily Thomas was there to diffuse my tension and after 90 minutes of a power point presentation as well as a test where most of the answers were letter ‘D’, both Thomas and I were on the street off to get our shoes shined. Thomas had the day off and they insisted he come in to take this stupid test.

Bradley was supposed to be there but he spaced and that was just alright with dumbass Calvin. Oh I’ve been carrying around this bitterness all day, on my sister’s birthday as well as Jerode’s birthday, a nice guy and nearby shop assistant. To offset the bitterness I am playing the Clash’s first album.

Yesterday was Joe Strummer’s birthday and I played Sandinista and Joe Strummer and the Mescalero’s Global A Go Go. Calvin left about an hour ago and Bradley left 30 minutes ago. Yesterday was cool with Thomas and Jerry Vale, today it was Dumb and Dumber. I didn’t care about the sales, I didn’t care about much of anything really.

My day was shot at 8:00 this morning and it was all downhill from there. Things being what they are, surprisingly I did alright on the sales front, maybe it was because I did not give a damn. Of course it was the luck of the draw, or in my case, whomever answred the phone. In this case I answered the phone. Someone from Beverly Hills wanted to buy a humidor and two boxes of cigars to send to New Orleans.

It was done over the phone and I have to admit, initially I did not think the sale would go through. But it did after a few games of phone tag.

Now I am home, and quite happy to be here. I don’t think I will have trouble sleeping tonight, having been up since 6:00AM. Sleep should be no problem, but having written that… Rest in Peace Jerry Leiber and Nick Ashford. Anyway, happy birthday to my sister Annemarie, the richest gal in Northern California!

Hard to believe it was only seven years ago Bill and I flew out to San Francisco to wish her a happy birthday on her fiftieth! Oops, maybe I shouldn’t have written that!