Category Archives: Iron my Shirt

Wanna Be Starting Something

Well it’s the day after. Last night, after I wrote I took a nap, meaning I lay in bed for about an hour closing my eyes and telling myself that I was sleeping.

I was rested somewhat and some more nap time could have helped but I had enough of that. I busied myself in the apartment, Bill eventually came home with a Subway sandwich for his dinner. I convinced him to take the nap then eat the sandwich when he woke up.

He’s lucky. It seems that as soon as his head hit’s the pillow he is out cold but easily awoken. He slept for a couple of hours. Juan called stressed out from having dinner with his relatives. I told him to chill out, just get here and we’ll be fine.

Bill eventually woke up and I tried getting him pumped up about going out, playing Michael Jackson high energy hits. I was apprehensive earlier in the week but last night I was raring to go.

Took a while for Bill to fully wake up but he did and we were on our way around 11:00. Now that’s something I rarely do anymore, go out at 11:00. I used to do that all the time.

We met Juan at the Path station and waited on the platform.

Juan had some absinthe as well as a special little tablet of which I indulged once again. Bill abstained of course. So Juan and I sampled some magic as well as some absinthe and we were feeling good by the time we reached the other side of the river.

It was a nice night, the three of us chatting and laughing on the way. We had gotten to the club with no problem a little after midnight. I expected a line but we sailed right in, following Juan’s lead and me clinging to Bill’s hand.

Up the stairs, handing in the tickets, Juan checking some clothing at the coat check. The Killers were playing, or rather Rich Morel was playing his remix of the Killers and once again we followed Juan directly to the middle of the dance floor.

Now on the way to the club, Bill offered his thinking about what he likes to do when he goes out dancing. Just hang out and wait till you hear a song that you like. There was no waiting for the song, we just followed Juan.

It was a good song, the name of which escapes me. For me, the tablet was kicking in hard on an empty stomach and all was well.

Of all the times I had gone out late at night, I had never actually gone out dancing. Concerts, spoken word performances, but never dancing. (I’d forgotten visits to Palladium to dance to House Music in the late 80s)

I figured the tablet would help me out with the groove and it did for a while. We ran into wonderful Andy on the dance floor and I asked him where the bars were.

He pointed me in the right direction and somehow Bill and I made it through the crowd of bears. I got a bottle of water and Bill got an Absolut Cranberry.

We looked around and I was overwhelmed. A few minutes before I was on the dance floor grooving and then it was all too much. I was still feeling good but needed some air.

Bill followed me out after getting stamped and outside the air was fresh, and it wasn’t crowded. We crossed the street and I sat on some stairs. I could hear the music from where Bill and I were.

Bill asked if I was alright and I told him I was but I couldn’t go back inside. I was mighty peaceful and the thump thump thump of the music and the room full of guys was too much for my delicate self.

Bill asked what we should do about Juan. I texted him twice but in my condition I didn’t realize that he was in a very similar state and wouldn’t be answering text messages in the dance floor.

Bill offered to go in with a message so I told him that I was outside having a bad trip. It wasn’t a bad trip but Juan would at least have an understanding about what was going on. He came out with Bill, and I reassured him that I was ok but couldn’t deal with the crowd.

Juan was staying and that was cool, Bill and I left and headed back to the Path train. It was beautiful night and we had seats on the train riding up to 33rd street and back to Hoboken, me feeling great, air conditioned and chatting with Bill.

We walked along the riverfront and Pier A, coming home eventually. We settled in domestic bliss, enhanced on my end. I played Discreet Music by Brian Eno on repeat. It certainly worked well enough that I chilled out and was able to go to sleep around 2:30.

At around 3:30 Bill was in the room. Apparently all the fire detectors in the building were going off, not that I could hear them. It was figured out that a hot water heater broke on the second floor which set off the fire detectors.

The fire department were summoned and they checked it out. Everyone in the building was out on the street except for me. I started to head down but on the first flight down in the darkness the beeping from the detectors stopped so I felt there was no need for me to go any further.

I sat alone in the apartment for a while, online of course. While I sat there a fireman walked into the apartment, heavy coat and all. Just walked in, no knocking. I wouldn’t be surprised if some sticky fingers were hoping to pick up a laptop or an iPad or something. He was surprised to see me as I was surprised to see him. He left immediately after I assured him all was well and accounted for.

I did stay awake for Bill to come back and went back to bed. Juan called a little while after that asking if he could come over. I said yes and set him up on the couch. Bill was leaving at 8:00 in the morning so after he left I moved Juan into the bed.

Eventually I woke up around noon, still feeling good and did some laundry. Juan got up and went home to shower, coming back a little while later where we headed into the city to Bear Hill overlooking the Skate Circle.

A beautiful day to spend in Central Park, perfect weather to recover from the events of the night before. Now we’re all here again, Juan taking a nap in our bed and Bill on the couch watching Michael Jackson videos.

That’s about it. A fun night, different from the original plan. So nightclubbing isn’t it for me, I’d rather go to a show, a concert or just chill out somewhere. Had to find out somehow I guess.

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Chest Fever

Well finally a day without rain. For the past 7 or 8 days it has rained. Today was nice. Would have been nice for a bicycle ride, but I didn’t want to be all achy tomorrow, plus Central Park would have been really crowded since today was also the Puerto Rican Day Parade.

I stayed local today. Last night was nice. Didn’t watch TV until 12:30. Just wound up playing music for hours. Bill came home in the middle of it which made it more fun.

He fiddled around with his laptop as I sat at the computer going from Simon and Garfunkel to Silvio Rodriquez to Massive Attack to James Brown, finishing up with some Billie Holiday, James Moody, Wes Montgomery, Steely Dan and finishing with Brian Eno and David Byrne.

James Moody’s Moody’s Mood for Love was the closing theme for Frankie Crocker on WBLS in the 1980’s and Wes Montgomery’s Bumpin on Sunset was what my brother Frank used to end his radio show on WFMU years ago.

I was posting some of the track listing on Facebook, mentioning the Donna Summer/ New Order mix of I Feel Love & Bizarre Love Triangle was a mix I had heard years ago coming back with Julio and a friend of his from seeing a mutual friend in a production of Showboat.

The 3 of us were lysergically enhanced and when I heard the mix originally on Hot 97 I knew it was something I had to try. I did try the mix a few times and it’s always a fun thing to do. It was a happy memory, still fresh 20 + years later.

Went to bed soon after that. Slept ok, woke up with a headache. Dehydrated I think. No, I wasn’t drinking last night. I’m a social drinker I guess and since Bill doesn’t drink, neither do I. If I’m out with friends drinking, no problem.

Drinking alone, that’s a drag. I took one aspirin and went out to get some newspapers and coffee and some Stevia. Came home, Bill was off to church already, had a nice breakfast. Headache wouldn’t go away so I took another aspirin, and took a nap which helped somewhat.

Got a call from Julio. They’ve been spoiled, wondering what happened to the bagels this morning. Stine thought something might have happened.

Nothing happened, just that Bill picked up bagels from H&H in Manhattan on his way home last night and I didn’t feel like getting bagels for them when I wasn’t going to get any for myself.

Later I met up with Julio, Stine and Alexander on Washington Street. The toddler was sleeping as we walked up the boulevard, heading over for some time by the river where we watched a fisherman catch a 4 four striped bass.

Big fish, people were having their pictures taken standing next to it.

It’s amazing to see a human mind work. Watching Alexander as he tried to communicate over the past year, he points and makes sounds. He say ‘hey’ a lot and is fascinated by helicopters.

Not so much a 4 foot striped bass hanging from a tree. I preferred the helicopters myself.

Stine is going to try to get 2 tickets for Macca on July 17. She might have missed the pre-sale yesterday but tomorrow is the general sale and she might have a better opportunity then.

Back to work tomorrow. I guess I’ll find out what is going on, how long will I still be working there for. I look forward to finding out. Perhaps it will be my last week, or perhaps they’ll just do it by the end of the month. I do intend to talk to Vivek about it tomorrow.