Category Archives: So how’s band camp?

I Miss You

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It’s been a crappy day weather wise. Rain, sleet, hail and snow all accompanied by strong winds. I woke up this morning cursing. Not because of the weather but rather because I have to get up even earlier tomorrow since I have an appointment at 9:00 and I do not want to be late.

I didn’t realize how bad it was outside until I was actually outside. After my coffee, no cereal since I was low on milk, I started off to the bus stop with a stop at the bibliothèque to drop off Toy Story 3. I had never seen Toy Story 1 or 2 but since I heard so many good things about part 3 I thought I would check it out.

It was certainly heavier than I anticipated. The scene where the toys are facing certain destruction and they eventually all stop fighting it and accept what seems to be inevitable (death) was amazingly heavy. But things turn out for the best and the final scene with the boy, (now a young man) getting in his car and driving away, the gasp/sob from him is what really tugs the heartstrings.

I didn’t get a chance to watch the movie with Bill but if I get the DVD again, I will make sure Bill watches it with me. The walk to the bus stop was slippery but I made it and was able to wait for the 10:30 bus and enjoy the remnants of last night’s cigar.

The city was a mess of course and instead of hanging around the outside of the building which houses the cigar shack, I actually went inside and killed some time. Enough minutes passed and once again I was in the custody of the cigar shack.

Calvin recovered from his illness and was working with the Bradley, Marcus lurking about. Big event tonight at a big pricey cigar bar in the sky, I wasn’t sure if I was invited so I didn’t plan on going there. Ira, Georgia & James were playing a benefit for Japan and Glenn from the Feelies was making an appearance and I planned on going to that to lend some support and spin some discs or an iPod.

Since we had a full staff today I was able to go out for lunch and despite the weather being so crappy, I was glad to be out and about. Since there was the big cigar event going on, Calvin and the Bradley left the shop early.

And soon after they left it oddly got quite busy. I handled it admirably on my own. Luckily the customers weren’t the usual douchebags that sometimes come in, instead these people were calm, patient and understanding. And 2 of them had things that needed to be wrapped and I was able to do so under their scrutiny.

After that 30 minute flurry of busyness, things had slowed down quite a bit and only one customer came in for the last hour. I chatted with Jimmy Seltzer for a little while puffing on a cigar. He was thinking of driving out to the Hamptons tonight but after talking earlier with a customer who said the roads were freezing up, I convinced Jimmy Seltzer that it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to drive all the way out there.

Plus he had an important meeting in the early afternoon tomorrow and he was also flying off to Europe with his wife tomorrow night. He didn’t need the stress and the treachery of icy roads.

I texted Calvin, asking if everything evened out cash wise with the registers tonight, would it be alright if I left at 9:15. It is now a few hours later and still no word from Calvin who is more than likely on the nod at the big cigar event. I hoped to get him pre-nod.

It’s just as well since the registers did not even out but I figured it out and corrected it and left the cigar shack at 9:27. I was able to catch the bus and saw Hyman Gross who was more than happy to see me. He said I looked good and told me to have Bill take my picture.

I’m glad to be off tomorrow and also glad that I am able to help out Ira Georgia & James and the people of Japan.



per Hyman's request, photo by Bill.

And rest in peace, Elizabeth Taylor. Thank you for the work you had done for people with HIV/AIDS.

I Thought About You

2 Replies

I am so glad to be back at home in Hoboken. After Thursday night’s meeting/hang out with Marcus and Calvin I was resolved to play the game on their level. With most every new customer that came into the cigar shop I gave them a hearty hello and welcomed them to the good life. Really. I said that.

It was the Bradley and myself and of course, the Bradley is the golden child. Marcus and Calvin are sporting wood for the one who traveled up from North Carolina, leaving a cigar shop there to live with his cousin in Astoria and work as a menial sales associate selling cigars in midtown Manhattan.

Yes the Bradley has the experience and the fact that he is not from the tri-state area means that he does not have that metropolitan attitude. That comes in handy I suppose when you’re in the cigar shop but anywhere else, on the street wouldn’t help matters much.

The Bradley was in one of his moody moods, not really saying much which led me to believe that he probably snorted another Xanax before he came in. I take my Xanax as prescribed, my dosage is 0.5. I think the Bradley’s dosage is 2.0 and he prefers the nasal method.

Well he told me that he snorts his Xanax. Maybe he lies, maybe he doesn’t. I just know what he told me. So with my new attitude I once again tried to engage the Bradley in conversation and once again it was like pulling teeth from a hen’s beak.

I was probably obnoxious with my happy to be here attitude but I didn’t care. I was too busy polishing glass surfaces over and over again, removing items from a shelf and wiping off fingerprints, and using the Windex on the glass shelves, both top and bottom as well as the mirrored wall behind the shelves.

Occasionally I would go into the man cave and empty ashtrays and make small talk with the mostly small minds. Der Fred came in early, the assistant hotel manager who works part time and doesn’t need the job, he just loves cigars that much. So many times in a day he mentions that he doesn’t know how I do it.

It, being the fact that I spend a good part of 10 hours a day wiping and cleaning different items and shelves. He cannot understand how I do it day after day for measly pay. I don’t know how I do it either, and I am starting to feel like Sisyphus, only without a rock, it’s cleaning extremely expensive pens.

I am proud to say that I ignored Marcus and Calvin’s advice to have a drink before heading into work. After the Bradley left, it was me and Der Fred which is actually a palindrome. Der Fred is certainly a chatty Kathy, never really shuts up but it was fine with me after dealing with the Bradley and his non-communication shtick.

But now I am home all that is behind me. Bill is a few feet away from me. He picked up Hyman Gross from a nursing home for elderly Jewish folk in East Harlem and got him to Hoboken. Hyman seems to be OK and happy to be back in Hoboken.

He’s such a frail sort that until the snow and ice goes away that he’ll probably be housebound until the spring comes. And Bill is pretty tired, it’s been a long day for him. I’m grateful that he stayed up for me to come home.

Tomorrow is Sunday and it’s most unlikely that I’ll write. Planning on a Bala Cynwyd kind of day.

Expensive pens!





Oh yeah, one more thing. In January 2011, I had 2,003 visits to this here blog.
Here are the top 5 cities:
New York- 255
London- 49
Washington- 48
Bala Cynwyd (!)- 32
Arcata- 31

Thanks to all who read and an extra special thanks to the illiterates who just look at the pictures.