Category Archives: Hopelessly banal with a slathering of ennui

Worry Naked

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A full night of uninterrupted sleep. A dream where I was at Rockaway Beach, where I had never been before. It resembled Orchard Beach where I had been once. Walking a distance from the blanket where I think my family was, situated to the ocean.

It involved a lot of walking past lagoons and tidal pools where other people were recreating, I walked under a highway overpass just looking for the ocean which could not be found. Eventually, I turned back and got lost trying to find out where I was.

Nothing was familiar and it seemed like a town down the shore that I had dreamt of a few weeks ago. It started to get more and more urban as I walked, the greenery turning into a city of sorts. The dream might have had a subplot where my brother was writing his version of a Dick Tracy comic strip which ran parallel to another Dick Tracy comic strip, offering two perspectives of the same story.

Then I woke up with Bill telling me the boil water advisory had been lifted which was very good news to wake up to. We had been boiling water since Monday and today was Friday. It had been stressful and humid with four pots of water boiling the day away. So things are back to normal.

There was news yesterday about how L’Orange Merde and his ilk were cutting the victim compensation fund which was the main part of working at Bratty McGrotty. If that really happens that might mean the whole raison d’etre for Bratty McGrotty will probably clean house since there would be no more claims processed, no more clients to sign up, and therefore no reason to have 200 millennials to work for Bratty McGrotty. I just texted Daisy who was told things would be delayed.

That was the other day. Yesterday was spent hanging out with Mike at his crib. Bill was off to the city to do things and I had nothing to do. Mike was lonely, I was lonely so we spent time together. It was different than previous times but it was still good. I came home in time to make dinner for Bill and myself.

It was good though I was home before Bill and kept holding back on making the food until he showed up. Mainly letting the water boil and then cool off since he wasn’t home yet. It wasn’t the best dinner but it wasn’t the worst either.

A little while after that, I got a phone call from Mike who was in pain due to a bad wisdom tooth. I told him a list of easy methods to ease the pain. He didn’t have anything in his flat except for some booze so he trekked off to the corner stores and got what he could.

I called him a few times after that but there was no answer. I was worried and I finally spoke to him this morning. A Tylenol PM knocked him out and when I expressed my worry he was annoyed telling me that I carry my emotions on my shoulders. I will try not to make that mistake again.

When a friend calls me telling me that they’re in pain, I’ll just let it go and speak with them the next time if there is a next time. What’s the point of worrying?

Mike is expected over today, to hang out with me and Bill. Earlier than usual but I am not worried. Being concerned is a waste of time. I did have an odd dream this morning. I was with Karyn Kuhl and Charlie Nieland and members of the Clash. The Clash were doing a show at the Meadowlands, with a reanimated Joe Strummer. Every conversation was whispered.

I walked with Charlie to the guest list area, where the guy holding the list couldn’t be bothered so he gave us the list to see if we were on it. Charlie was, I wasn’t so I slinked off. I wandered through the crowd losing bits of my clothing as I tried to call a rideshare.

I wound up by a gas station and stood on top of a pallet of Pepsi trying to negotiate something. I jumped off the pallet and wound up totally naked. I would have to go through the crowd looking for my clothes. I have no idea what happened next since I woke up.

It was another night of uninterrupted sleep.

Oddly Moving

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30° in Hoboken on a Monday night. It was a weird day. Started off with Mike calling way too early for me to answer when the phone is on ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode. Between the two 60-somethings sharing a bed, a night of uninterrupted sleep is a fleeting goal.

Bill heard my phone vibrate, I did not. Somehow his sleep was disturbed where mine was not. And that’s how the day started. He was in a mood when he woke up which rubbed off on me. I did contact Mike to tell him not to call me at that time but to text instead. Whether or not that is a solution remains to be seen.

Bill and I were in separate rooms, he was doing his thing and I was doing mine. No animosity just recovering from interrupted sleep. He did take a nap. I started watching Homicide: Life on the Street. I loved the show when it was on in the Nineties.

A Friday night event for me. Great characters, story, and script. It didn’t really catch on with the general public but it got along with seven seasons. I remember making a friend when I was working at Arista Records, Kim Cozzens.

I was out on the sidewalk enjoying a Gauloises roll-up and spoke with Kim who worked on the other side of the floor I worked on. We talked about Homicide quite a bit while I was at Arista.

That was over 25 years ago.
Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana. It was a different time.

I was living in Weehawken. Now I am in Hoboken. I lived in Weehawken for 11 years. Now in Hoboken for 22, going on 23 years. I first moved to Hoboken in 1984. Initially, I moved into a mosquito-infested illegal loft for a month.

Then I moved back home and out again a few months later. This time was 201 Madison Street. The neighborhood featured burned-out buildings which made my Mother cry when she drove down my street.

After 201 Madison I was at 1124 Willow, a basement apartment which I shared with Jimmy Lee. It was a great situation, Jimmy was at his girlfriend’s flat about 28 days a month. It was filthy, improperly ventilated and in the basement. The doors didn’t quite lock and It was surprising that no one ever broke in, though I did have a late-night visitor come through my window.

1124 Willow turned into 216 Madison, down the street from where I originally moved. That was with Kevin Craughn. It was not the ideal situation, it was more like a safety net that was torn and frayed. I moved after being there for maybe a year or two to 710 Jefferson.

That lasted a month or so, my Mother died in May of that year and I moved to Lodi again, thinking this time might be better. It wasn’t and by October of 1991, I had moved to 127 Jane Street in Weehawken.