February | 2012 | johnozed

Back from work after a day off yesterday. It was quite a busy day, I hit the ground running. Thomas was in the midst of a big sale which caused his tide to lift all of the other boats. It took a few hours for the sale to be completed for Thomas which put things in a weird situation. Was this guy going to come back or was he going to leave Thomas in the lurch.

I busied myself with the usual mundane things. It was Bradley and Thomas and myself today and we all got along quite well. Some interesting discussions were had, especially one which was about the different types of gay bars. That came about since I mentioned that I might be going to cigar night at the Eagle, a leather bar in Chelsea, to drum up business for the cigar shack.

It was a funny chat which turned into a chat about ‘pride’. Why was there a gay pride parade? Why is Black pride so important? Why is there no white pride? Why is there no heterosexual pride days? I explained that every friggin’ day was white, heterosexual pride day and to his credit, Bradley explained that whites have not been marginalized like gays and blacks have been.

And also the concept of ‘white pride’ has some awfully nasty white supremacist connotations. It was a fun and interesting talk which actually does happen from time to time until a customer walks in.

On the home front, last night I had a funny phone call with my former roommate Kevin. I hadn’t laughed like that in quite a while. He’s always been a funny guy with a humorous view of things. And he is quite a gossip too. He always has been. After an hour I had to get off the phone though since Bill was off his conference call.

Today Bill had an appointment with his doctor and the word is that he is a borderline diabetic. I am concerned and not that surprised since he makes me look like a top shelf nutritionist when compared to what he eats. So he has to revamp his life, change his diet. He has always hated drinking water and now that is going to have to become his main staple as far as liquids go.

I do wonder can a diabetic or a borderline diabetic still enjoy a pint of Guinness every now and then? I guess we will find out soon enough. Bill will get the results from his blood test on Monday so we should find out more. He just went to bed with my prodding.

He’s understandably nervous and stayed up till I came home so he can unload. I listened and reassured him that whatever happens we will manage. We have good people around us, our friends and family who would be more than willing to share advice with us on matters such as this. We’re not in it alone.

I guess it does take a village, not just to raise a child but to get through life. Unless you’re a hermit or a recluse, in which case you turn your back on the village and go it alone which I guess is cool for some people. On the other hand, we will take whatever we can get.

05 The Great Pretender

It has been a nice day off and it was as I expected, pleasant and productive. Bill was still getting out of bed, several times during the night. I was up late watching All The President’s Men. I originally saw that with my parents at the dollar movies in 1976.

My brother Frank saw it first and told me that the movie starts off with a drunk and suicidal Robert Redford as Bob Woodward, drinking with a rifle nearby when the phone rings. The caller telling him of a break in at the Watergate Hotel. Of course that is not how the movie starts but I have to admit it was a good start.

I was a precocious 13 year old and my parents who both voted for Nixon took me to see it. I admit a lot went over my head then but I think it did inspire me to write. So last night had some memories but since the movie is over 2 hours long I couldn’t stay up to watch the whole thing, but I did save it on the DVR. Nixon emerges unscathed, right?

Bill and I had an interesting chat while he was taking a break from his bathroom break. He ran into Bobby Risotto the other day and Bobby told him about how he felt bad that I didn’t get the job that he offered me. It was nice to know and I guess hearing it from Bill was good.

Basically it was a temp to perm position and that if I left the cigar shack job for the new position, I could be dismissed at any time for any reason and that would more than likely jeopardize any unemployment benefits that I might need. I didn’t know it was temp to perm but I did know it more than likely had a probationary position.

After that chat Bill went off to bed in between pee breaks. I woke up, Bill was gone for the day- to work and more visits to the urologist and other doctors. After a couple of cups of coffee I headed off to the dry cleaners and the supermarket. When I got back home I was eating breakfast and then doing laundry.

The plan to meet up with my niece Corinne was delayed about an hour. She decided to drive to Hoboken instead of taking the train and ran into traffic on Route 3. I was waiting at the train station when I found out she was driving, and was a little upset. Still, when I saw her that was all forgotten.

We rode the Path to 14th Street and had a nice adult chat about relationships. We waited for a few minutes on the line to see the Doug Wheeler show (which closes on Saturday) before deciding to check out other galleries rather than stand on line. Hard to believe it was less crowded the week after it was written up in the New York Times than it was a few weeks later with a queue outside with each attempted visit.

We did see a few other shows which were good but not necessarily overwhelming. It was great to hang out with Corinne though. She enjoys my company and I enjoy hers. It was something different for her, for both of us really. Just walking around the city on a really nice, 60 degree afternoon and seeing the work of various artists. I explained some art works to her, telling Corinne who Keith Haring and Jean Michel Basquiat were. I think she enjoyed it.

We were back in Hoboken after a stop at Payless where I was able to finally get a pair of Airwalks. Slim choices but I bought a pair just like the sneakers I had on. I was worried for Corinne’s car since parking in Hoboken can be difficult and did not want her to get a ticket, or worse, a boot or a tow.

The car was alright though and we had a late lunch or early supper at the Malibu Diner where we enjoyed each other’s company some more before she headed back to the suburbs. We made plans to meet up again when our schedules permit. She’s a good kid and a smart and pretty woman.