Author Archives: johnozed

About johnozed

I'm 50+ years old, 210-ish#, 6'2", reddish blonde, blue eyes with glasses (and without) masculine, funny, relatively intelligent, enjoy the company of assorted friends and family especially sordid friends and family. I love music, reading, writing, conversing, laughing, going to films, shows, concerts and smoking cigars. And I also enjoy looking nice in a suit and tie. Looking more like Lewis Lapham than Tom Wolfe. I'm sure there is more, but we'll just have to find out when I write about it. In a lifetime relationship with partner Bill Vila.

Shapes of Things

Leave a reply

It’s another hot day today, but not as hot as it was yesterday. Last night after writing I went for a Hoboken stroll with Julio. He certainly talks a lot, no getting words in edgewise for me.

I suppose that what friends are for, providing a forum just to listen. And that’s what I did. He has many things on his mind and can’t wait to hug Alexander again.

It will be about 2 weeks until he gets to do that again when Julio flies off to Copenhagen to reunite with Stine and Alexander, then it’s off to Spain for a week. Perhaps this weekend Julio and I will be able to make it the the beach.

Last week was a wash out, plus he had to attend a wake. Hopefully the weather will be cooperative and there won’t be any viewings to attend.

Came home Bill was watching I don’t know what on TV. It wasn’t Lawn Hors d’œuvre that much I know. He’s accused me on monopolizing the TV which I guess I do since I’m here more than he is, and I tend to watch other things besides Lawn Hors d’œuvre.

So to avoid the stepping on of toes I asked if we could watch Weeds & Nurse Jackie. He was fine with it and how could he not be? He watches and enjoys the shows as well.

Weeds was good, Andy was great as usual. It’s getting weird though and the bodies keep piling up in Nancy’s wake. Of course things were given away when they showed the preview for next week.

Nurse Jackie was good, but how long can she keep those plates spinning in the air? 2 shows about women with double lives and how they affect their families. Both top shelf, totally engrossing. Perfect for a summer night’s television viewing.

After the news and the Simpsons we watched a documentary on NYC in the summer of 1977. Son of Sam! Studio 54! Hip Hop in the Boogie down Bronx and punk rock at CBGB’s! I went to bed midway through, waking up an hour later to find Bill still awake and watching it.

I slept in today, waking up around 10:00. It was nice. I checked my voice mail, Greg Stevens was wondering where I was. I called him and told him I would stop by around 1:30.

I figured I would be later than that but of course I was early. There is nothing for me to do in the office anymore. Viveka who replaced me is handling things.

Not in a good way either. She’s overwhelmed, Vivek is losing his mind. I asked him how his wife was doing and he said it was a nightmare. She’s due to drop a baby any day now. He’ll be out of the office for a few weeks.

Viveka has a Sunday job working retail and she goes back to school in September. Who knows how that will work out? She doesn’t, I asked.

I’m going to help Greg out with a project that should take a few hours. I told him I will be in tomorrow, early so as to avoid Vivek. Greg said he would pay me for my time so that’s nice.

Pieces of What

6 Replies

It’s a Monday and it’s been a gorgeous day as well. That hardly ever happens, a pleasant Monday. I guess not going in to work might help.

Last night Bill and I watched Lawn Hors d’œuvre: Criminal Malcontent which was good. Bravo has back to back episodes and Bill has a thing for Chris Noth.

It was enjoyable. I try to ween myself off the Lawn Hors d’œuvre franchise but Bill loves to watch it so I indulge.

After that was True Blood which was most excellent. So excellent that when something was revealed at the end I stomped my feet in approval which surprised Bill somewhat. Oh it was just so good. Things are getting more intense and getting bloodier too.

Hung was good but I didn’t really play that much attention. Same with Entourage but I did pay a little bit more attention. Bill and I stayed up later than usual since he’s off of work this week and me, I’m unemployed.

I plan on going in to the office tomorrow just to check in with Greg Stevens, letting him know what’s going on. I have no phone for me, no desk computer so what is the point? I figure I’ll make more of an impact with my absence.

Today was a busy day for me on Facebook. Some former classmates from St. Francis de Sales grammar school started a Facebook group and I joined. Suddenly I was inundated by these former classmates.

It was good to see who was up to what. A few divorces, and I was surprised by the fact that a few of them were Republicans. Still they are just Facebook friends now.

There are a few I’d like to meet again, and a few I would be wary about. The ones I would be wary about are the ones who went to the same high school as me, Paramus Catholic Boys Prep School.

When we all meet up again in September 1976 we were all assigned different home rooms and I basically never hung out with my grammar school classmates again. I found other friends, whereas they all basically hung out together those years of high school.

They were mostly from the other side of Lodi anyhow. I did meet 2 of them at the awful reunion I attended in 2000. I was talking to one of them, Jimmy B, who then called the other one over, Santo M. Santo’s first thing out of his mouth was ‘Who said I was gay?’

To prove he wasn’t gay he motioned over to his wife with the big chest. I was pretty much wired and stood near the bar, drinking nips of Heineken and being the only one tipping at an open bar, leaving the other customers to wonder why they weren’t getting the service I was getting.

It was good to make contact with most of these grammar school friends. Some of them still live in Lodi with their kids. No overtures about meeting up so far. I’m sure someone will suggest meeting up at the Crow’s Nest or somewhere out there.

I just wonder whatever happened to Jim Carley from Harrington Park and John Nesselt of Glen Rock and Kevin Wagner of Saddle Brook NJ & Orlando FL. Those were the 3 guys that I hung out with each semester. After graduation from high school they seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth.

I did work with Kevin at HBJ. He was hurt that I didn’t tell him I was gay, we drifted apart from that moment.

Their names never come up on Facebook or Google, and I’ve searched a few times throughout the years. I’m sure if I was looking for Mrs. Talamini I’d have no problem digging her up.

***Jim Carley died of a heart attack in 1997 while jogging. John Nesselt still does not want to be found, and neither does Kevin Wagner.***

Miss Gaudio's class Grade 4A 1971-72

Miss Gaudio's class Grade 4A 1971-72


Miss Vendermere's 5th grade class 1972-73

Miss Vendermere's 5th grade class 1972-73