It was a day like any other, following a not so easy night of sleep. Sleep was elusive and hard to grasp. I woke up 20 minutes before the alarm and then spent those 20 minutes trying to sleep some more. The alarm went off and the clock said 7:20 which was an hour later than expected though in the real world it was 6:20. I have no idea how the time jumped forward digitally and then back to where it was supposed to be in my analog life.

I don’t know if I prefer the sun being out when I go home or it being dark out. I know I prefer the sun being up when I wake up in the morning. Getting up when it is dark out is not inspiring at all. It’s up to me to adapt to the time, time is not going to change for me.

It is Tuesday. Bill is in the Smoky Mountains. Mike is in Chilltown and I am at my desk at the fruit stand. Some higher ups are floating around like vitreous floaters. Sometimes you see them and then you blink and they are gone. They don’t disappear in the blink of an eye though. They stick around making most everyone nervous and uptight.

I went to Wendy’s for lunch, actually to pick up my lunch. There is sometimes a very handsome sexy man holding the door. He does it for change. And he has quite a sexy voice oh Lord. I’ve told Mike about him and it is a running joke now between the two of us

Usually I give a dollar so who’s ever doing something like that and this guy is so sexy I give him two. Last time he called me family. That was nice to hear especially in that voice of his. Today he was not there and I had $2 in my pocket all set to give, so I gave the guy that was there today $1. He simply was not as sexy as the other guy.

I just had a fun chat with Jordan and Yasmin, two nice audio engineers that work nearby. I skirted the issue of things being so much better when I was their age but they basically said that it was better in my day. We talked about bands we loved but didn’t love the first time we saw them, for me it was REM. Bands we wished would get back together, like XTC.

The three of us had DJ’d at some points in our lives, theirs was recent, mine was ancient history from the 20th century. $30 and a hamburger was what I was paid when I was spinning at Maxwell’s, not counting the holiday party or New Year’s Eve. Those were the days and that was a simpler time. It was enjoyable enough, perhaps it would make for a podcast somewhere down the line. I wouldn’t mind.

I’m the grand old man, the dinosaur, the relic from a time they only heard about.

I just had a realization. There’s a young woman whom I worked alongside and we seemed to get along fine. She cried on my shoulder when she was having boyfriend problems. Lately she’s been distant, not interacting like before. She works with the pretzel woman, and I think pretzel woman poisoned the well. Which is expected of her, I suppose. They are both closer to high school than I am, after all.

I will just keep working my side of the street, and Pretzel Woman and my former friend can work theirs.

At the fruit stand today, after a not very interesting weekend. Bill hit the road. Mike was supposed to come over but his parole officer had other ideas. Mike was housebound once more. He was not too happy about that, but now he was WiFi and able to entertain himself. A friend of his who is still incarcerated threw some cold water in his face.

Basically telling him if he doesn’t like it, he could always go back behind bars. There are dozens of men in prison who would be more than willing to trade places; overall while Mike’s situation is not ideal, it is still better than the alternative. It was so simple to figure that out, but it was not taken into consideration until Mike’s buddy set him straight, so to speak.

The weekend was not so bad. It went as expected, just with fewer people around. My time outside the apartment was usually spent going to and from the supermarket. Sunday’s visit was mainly to get things I had forgotten to purchase on Saturday. I spent more money on Sunday than I had spent on Saturday.

The people who were at Bill’s cabaret on Thursday, reminded me of characters from Woody Allen’s Broadway Danny Rose. I tried telling Bill that. Not that these people were without talent, just seemed like people who have toiled away on the fringes of New York City showbiz. I wound up purchasing Broadway Danny Rose for future reference. It does have a Thanksgiving element to it, so we could always watch that then.

And thanksgiving this year won’t be like last year. Last year, Bill and I brought Mike along to Garfield for dinner. Elaine was very welcoming and had the three of us back for Christmas dinner. Mike was humbled by Elaine’s welcome. The first visit was a handshake, really. The second was a hug. Who knows what this year will offer. Elaine mentioned we could go there Thanksgiving Saturday.

It’s all up in the air, and anything could happen. Wednesday I will be in the belly of the fruit stand again. In August, Yancy mentioned my visits to the belly of the fruit stand would be reduced. It seems that I have been going to the fruit stand at least once a week. Not a real reduction if you ask me.

I just got off the phone with Yancy, and I asked him about this Wednesday, and he replied it would be good since he has errands to run that day and an extra set of hands could only help. I have gotten better at accepting the visits to the belly of the fruit stand, though overall I would rather be where I am most of the time.

I definitely need to get an eye exam because I really need a new pair of glasses. It’s getting bad. The damned Warby Parker spectacles have been scratched through no fault of my own. I need to make the time because what I am going through is somewhat maddening.