Something happened yesterday that I forgot to write about. A nice thing, doesn’t happen often, at least not to me. I was at the supermarket buying groceries. I try to buy what’s on sale and use the store shopping card to get the necessary discounts.

At the express line the total came out to be $20.10. I checked my wallet and had the 20 dollars but no change. That meant I was going to have to charge it, which I was hoping not to do.

It’s not like Farfetched where when I was working I always made sure I had some extra coinage in my pocket so if someone couldn’t make the full total, maybe off by a quarter I would cover it for them.

That never really happened often but I had the money and didn’t really mind and it helped make Farfetched such a good place to shop, at least when I was behind the counter.

So at the supermarket in the express line I was short 10¢ and I said aloud that I had the 20 but no 10. I swiped my credit card when a young woman behind me offered me 10¢. Awfully nice of her and I took advantage of her generosity.

I thanked her profusely and wished her a good evening and headed out the door. Quite nice and almost restored my faith in the kindness of strangers.

I made myself a decent dinner of ravioli and after that started to watch Countdown with Keith Olbermann. But Olbermann was off and Laurence O’Donnell was guest hosting. In the middle of the first quarter, I got a distress call from Planet Bernadette.

The Planet just needed a ear to vent into and I was more than willing since I’ve done the same to her once or twice. I tried to reassure her that she was in a temporary set back, and sometimes 19 year old boys are just that, boys.

I did my best even though I don’t think it was enough but I did get her to chuckle by the end of the call. When the distress call came in I turned off the TV and when the call was over, I headed out for a walk around Hoboken.

No Bill, no Julio to accompany me and I didn’t bring the iPod. I did have a nice La Flor Domincana Double Ligero cigar that Bill got me for my birthday and walked up Bloomfield Street to the Lipton Tea building at 15th Street on the border of Weehawken.

On my way up there, walking past Rand’s house where the lights were out I got a phone call from Harpy. His disembodied voice made for some pretty good company. We were on the same page basically, ‘fucking republicans’ etc.

It was a 45 minute call with both ends making some pretty good points. I wasn’t red eyed and he didn’t seem too drunk. Came home finishing the cigar around 9:00 and settled in after walking around the Hoboken waterfront.

Around 10:00 I get a call from Lois whom I’ve been hearing a lot from lately and that’s a good thing. She was calling from a bar and she sounded drunk. She had 2 words to say to me, Art Hams.

The Art Hams were a band that Rand and I created about 22 years ago to play at the Martha-thon for Martha Griffin who was trying to make a movie at the time. I figured she was hoping to get Rand and I active again and I really didn’t see any reason we couldn’t do it.

Perhaps these Nurk Twins will ride again someday. Then Lois drunkenly slurred that she loved me and hung up.

It’s funny, nowadays when rand, Lois and I go out we’re usually home by midnight which moves the time for drunk dialing up a few hours, from 3:00AM to 10:00PM which is acceptable.

Then after that a text from Rand basically saying Art Hams. I figured that he was out with Lois. I was slightly put off by the fact that I wasn’t asked but I had just gotten home from walking around Hoboken and probably wouldn’t have gone out again, but with some prodding I probably would have made an attempt as my sneakers were still on my feet.

Am I a recluse? Is that why I wasn’t asked? Am I Greta Hughes or Howard Garbo or something? I didn’t care anyway, it was a momentary thing.

Bill was off in Elmira and after watching Bill Maher I watched the news, then the Simpsons and then started clearing out the DVR recorded list.

Such an exciting Friday night.

Wound up watching Scrubs from the last season and eventually deleted most of them except for the last 3 episodes. Then I went to bed, not because I was tired, but because I was bored.

Couldn’t fall asleep easily, perhaps because Bill wasn’t there next to me sleeping. I listened to the garbage truck roll up the street picking up the trash and my gigantic computer monitor that I had no use for and no one would want it since it was a big tube thing and not the flat screen that most everyone uses these days.

Woke up OK. Got a text from Casey Chasm, which is what actually woke me up. Mrs Chasm had a baby girl, Anna I believe, 8 pounds, 4 ounces. Beautiful news to wake up to.

I got myself together and headed out after a cuppa. Got some bagels and the paper and came back home where I noticed a bicycle lock, cut open.

Julio’s bike was no longer in the front of the building like it’s been for weeks. Gone. Not his $1,000 Bianchi but his everyday street bike. Douche bags a plenty. He was sad as was I. He was off with Stine and Alexander when I called.

After that I walked over to Target to get an over the door coat rack since I broke the one we had a week ago. A nice walk on the new walkway between Hoboken and Jersey City and within minutes I was in Target.

I found what I needed and also picked up a cool t-shirt and an iTunes gift card for a certain nephew who’s birthday is next week or so. Also picked up some t-shirts for Jim Mastro who asked Meghan to ask me.

Not a problem.

Ran into Rand (and also saw Patrick Murphy for the 2nd time today). Rand was on his bike and pedaled next to me as we headed back to Hoboken on the walkway.

Rand went his way and I gave Jim his t-shirts. He’s off to the UK to possibly play with Mott the Hoople at their reunion next month.

I came home, had a salad and headed to the Hoboken Historical Museum where my friend Pat Longo’s brother Mike has an exhibition. It was fun, good to see Pat who was spinning records and Allison Lee his wife, partner and mother of Hank. Allison and I share a birthday. After a crunchy Boca burger I was out of there.

So that was that.

Planet Bernadette still is a bit shaky but like Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius by way of 24 Hour Party People says: It’s my belief that history is a wheel. “Inconsistency is my very essence” -says the wheel- “Rise up on my spokes if you like, but don’t complain when you are cast back down into the depths. Good times pass away, but then so do the bad. Mutability is our tragedy, but it is also our hope. The worst of times, like the best, are always passing away”.

Probably said it in a bathhouse, but it’s the message, not the medium damn it!