Well I just got back from an excursion to the wonderful wastelands of Secaucus. Juan drove me out to Syms where I wanted to check out their sales and man what a pitiful selection they had to offer. Definitely a better selection in midtown Manhattan.
The only things I liked were suits that I already owned and I was glad to see that they weren’t on sale. I bought a French cuff shirt instead, with a tab collar, which I could never find in NYC. Surprisingly it was made by Sean John.
P. Diddy himself. I can easily picture him drinking Cristal, puffin on a stogie and frantically sewing into the wee hours of the night. He’s that hands on. I don’t care for his music but his clothes I don’t mind.
And I don’t mean the t-shirts with his signature on them, or the jeans or the bandages. I do own two of his suits which I think are quite nice.
I almost bought a silk scarf to go with an overcoat that used to belong to my late cousin. It was specially made for him and even says so on the inside. And since we shared the same name, it’s perfect.
My brother Brian was hanging onto it for a few months since he got two other coats that fit him better than this overcoat. I can’t wait to wear it to work. I think it looks snazzy. I’ll try to post a pic of myself wearing it.
I did have a nice phone chat with my brother Frank. I mentioned that when we meet, the first five minutes are generally tense. Like a chemical reaction. When you mix baking soda with vinegar there a chemical reaction for a moment, lot’s of foaming going on and after that it generally calms down. That’s how it is with Frank and myself.
He complimented me on my guitar playing yesterday which was a first. I’ve been intimidated by him when I would play guitar in front of him. I told him that I often tried playing in front of him, maybe a Beatles song I practiced and when I payed it for him he would tell me it was wrong and nothing like the number I was trying to play. That happened a lot so I eventually stopped playing in front of him.
Now he said he enjoyed my playing and wouldn’t mind jamming sometime. Which is something I always wanted to do, but generally got shot down. But still I’m willing to give it a go.
Last night Bill was here for a few hours and Juan stopped by too. It was like old times and by old times I mean, September. That was when Bill was still staying here mostly and Juan hadn’t started school yet.
A lot of laughs, some jazz and some beers added to the festivities while we watched The Onion DVD which was a gift to Bill and myself from my niece Meghan and her husband Rob. It was a lot funnier than we expected. Many laughs out loud and a few, ‘Oh no’s!’
Bill had to go back to Stuyvesant Town so he left around midnight and he took most of the energy with him, leaving Juan and myself to watch Scrubs before Juan leaving at 12:30. After all the Guinness I had had sleeping was incredibly easy.
Bow Tie Juan at Syms
Woke up around 9:00 this morning, no hangover, and no sluggishness. Ran some errands, had breakfast and did laundry. Now Juan is off to the mall at Wood Bridge, Bill is in Stuyvesant Town and I’m here again.
It was great being with Bill the past couple of days. It was actually the first time in a long time that we were able to spend hours together. And now I miss him. He gave me a pair of really nice braces that weren’t easy to find and weren’t cheap either.
I gave him some cufflinks, some braces and a tie with buses on it. Those things weren’t easy to find either. He liked them. Juan may be back later.
Ann Boyles might be in Manhattan tomorrow, which would make it so much easier for Ann to meet Bill. She said she wanted to meet him and he said he wanted to meet her after hearing me talk about her. Of course it’s all up in the air, nothing really set in stone.