johnozed

Watching Mad Men on TV, the main event is the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. I was in kindergarten and have no recollection at all of when it happened. I just looked it up and it was a Thursday, so I would have asleep by the time the news would have been broadcast. Like most days back then it is all a blur. Consciousness of the outside world, meaning the world that wasn’t Riverview Avenue or St. Francis de Sales school or the Romaine – Sinniger VFW Post, did not arrive really until maybe 1972. I did know of death, but it was more familial than anything else.

Before Mad Men I found myself to be more jazzy than anticipated. No plans were in the works, except for Juan suggesting a pint. I begged off pleading being at a cash disadvantage and Juan said he would pick up the tab. I was thinking Maxwell’s, Juan was thinking of The Pint, a gay bar in Jersey City. And not right over the border Jersey City but a few stops away on the Path train. Juan doesn’t know that gay bars are anathema to me and pleaded and texted to no avail.

He even played the guilt card and despite my atheism, I do have a catholic background riddled with guilt and it really has no effect on me at all. So when Juan texted that he was going to go home and stick his head in the oven, I asked if his mother’s oven was an electric oven. In the midst of all this Bill had come home after looking after his mother all day and was incredibly stressed from that as well as other things. Bill didn’t stay up that late and I wound up staying in and watching Mad Men.

The schedule at Maxwell’s is supposed to come out on Sunday nights. I called around midnight and there was no schedule sent in. I called again this afternoon and still no schedule. I can guess that since the next time a band is playing would be Thursday so I will probably be working then. I will call later on to find out what’s what.

The past couple of nights when working at Maxwell’s the jukebox has been untouched and someone’s iPod has been playing the songs. It certainly is a mind fuck to hear New Order sing True Faith, The Ramones with Bonzo Goes To Bitburg and Echo & the Bunnymen sing Lips Like Sugar (a crap song). It causes flashbacks to way back when, bar backing and cleaning glasses while singing along with Joey Ramone and talking with Eve, Carol and Steve Saporito as I worked alongside Martha Griffin and Declan.

Now Pedro is on my Facebook page trolling, calling friends ‘sheep’. He claims Obama voted “yes’ to invade both Afghanistan and Iraq. Pedro doesn’t know or refuses to acknowledge that Obama was a state senator in Illinois at the time and was vocal about his opposition to the Iraq invasion. But Pedro doesn’t let facts get in his way these days. I’m sure he is getting his info from Joe Farrah and his ilk. Which is too bad since I consider Pedro to be intelligent but with postings like that I begin to harbor doubts.

C’est la vie.

Worked at Maxwell’s again last night and it’s true, no two nights are the same. Where last Saturday it seemed like a bus full of drunks were dropped off right outside- last night was quite the opposite. It was busy but not overwhelming and the only noisy people were a group of Yankee fans who quieted down once their alpha male showed up. Slow and steady seemed to be the rule last night.

The first two hours turned out to be akin to daycare. Families and baby strollers filled the majority of tables and once the kids had eaten a few of them were just running all over the place. They definitely raised the stress level in the restaurant and most everyone was grateful when they all left, roughly in the same time frame.

I recognized a few people from way back when but they didn’t remember me. It was two guys with their girlfriends or wives. One of the guys hadn’t changed much, just aged a bit. His friend used to be exceedingly handsome but man it was a reminder of how beauty can fade. He used to be as good looking as Robert Redford in his heyday, but now- not so much. Redford still has it, a bit craggy but he wears it well. Of course this guy from the past does not have the access to whatever resources Redford has.

And of course at 1:01AM I was out of there, lighting up a cigar for my walk home. The local Elk’s club were celebrating their 125th anniversary which explained the people strolling around in black tie and ball gowns and cloven feet and antlers. By the time I walked by after Maxwell’s things had calmed down and there were just some elk smoking outside their lodge.

I got home, Bill was fast asleep wearing his headphones so he did not hear anything at all. I wound up watching the last half of Rio Bravo before going to bed myself. I slept incredibly well and had a dream where Bill threw a ‘sex party’ for me which was unusual. Not getting into any detail at all here, but somehow Jimmy Seltzer was in it too, wearing a three piece suit. Never considered him sexy but there he was, full of sex appeal.

Bill was up before me this morning and as he was kissing me goodbye I told him about the ‘sex party’ dream. It was a great dream because it was all geared to things that turn me on. In the dream I walked into a somewhat dilapidated warehouse where I identified myself as a police officer (really). From what I gathered Bill was intrigued by my telling him about the dream, but then again I was semi awake and eager to get back to the dream, so I may have been projecting.

Heard from Juan this morning. He expressed a desire to have a few pints tonight and of course I am hesitant. One reason is Bill is looking after his mother today and he is quite stressed out and I promised him a hug when he gets home. The other reason is what I was discussing with one of the servers last night. Working in a service industry does do a number on one’s social life.

After having to serve and look after so many people, sometimes you’re resistant to going out and being one of those people and dealing with crowds and noise and whatnot. I would prefer a quiet night at home with Bill and of course Juan is invited to join us, but then again- Juan is probably bored with hanging out in this apartment. Too early to say what will happen, I can definitely use a nap though. And Juan doesn’t know what time he is working until and that doesn’t really help me with scheduling.