Tag Archives: Juan

Detour Through Your Mind

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Well Juan just left after providing me with a night full of extraordinary enthusiasm. I had dinner with Julio last night at O’Neills in Hoboken. We made plans to go to the beach which sounded like a good time. Umbrellas chairs and coolers all packed up. Juan came over around 10:00. We hung out with lysergic tabs a melting and watched the last two episodes of Weeds.

Then Juan got hungry and was itching for a walk. I rarely go out at night, just prefer to stay in so Juan was instrumental in getting me out. He ran into McDonalds and I hung out on the sidewalk, nerves starting to tingle. Lot’s of people out on Washington Street at midnight.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Juan emerged from McDonalds and we walked over to Pier A.. A few people roaming around as Juan and I lay on the grass and looked up at the few stars that were visible. Quite enjoyable and mellow. It had been a number of years since I had done this and I let it all go, and just enjoyed the ride.

We lay there for a while, listening to various people from around the world talk in their native tongues or singing an off key version of Happy Birthday in the distance. I suggested getting up and walking around, mentioning Stevens Tech but Juan wasn’t that into that idea at first.

We started walking in that direction when Juan suggested going back to the apartment. We were both somewhat clammy and soon we were in the apartment, me languid on the coach and Juan being a most able DJ.

Of course time flies while you’re in the state that we were in and for me it was all quite lovely and mellow. Juan would play some song and I would close my eyes and feel like I was in Versailles, a place where I had never been before.

It was a lot of fun just laying there in the dark, the only illumination being the holiday lights which give off quite a nice glow, contrasted with Juan’s silhouette in front of the computer monitor. Things got so mellow that we lay in the air conditioning with ambient tunes floating through eventually drifting off to sleep.

I woke up around 6:00 and texted Julio that I wasn’t going to the beach. It was spoiling to rain today so it was going to be a wash out. I went back to bed responding to a text from Bill asking me to record the US vs. China basketball game.

Then it was back to bed, waking up finally around noon. Rain clouds on the horizon. A beautiful ride, a blast from the past, something out of the ordinary, all courtesy of Juan. When we were going out for the walk earlier in the night, I asked Juan if I should bring my camera.

Juan being Juan mentioned that it was dark out and that I’d need to use the flash, saying ‘Don’t be that guy.’ Good advice indeed from a beloved good friend like Juan. Back to work tomorrow, and back to reality for real, after spending hours among tangerine trees and marmalade skies.

According to the counter for Word Press, the publisher of this blog, this has been entry 1,001.
Woo hoo! Let’s trip!

I Don’t Need No Doctor

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Last night was a wee bit intense. Juan came by after going head to head and toe to toe with both his mother and his father. He was fairly livid when he came by and I did my best to chill him out. Ninety minutes of Weeds and a half hour with a London call girl did the trick or at least that is what I had hoped.

He also used the computer and I was silently amazed at how fast he can type. Then again he was basically raised with a computer keyboard underneath his fingers. His words per minute skills must be close to triple digits. Impressive. I did have to kick his ass out so that I could get ready to go to sleep. He understood, he’s good like that.

Also chatted for a bit with Song in Sydney. He got his visa and should be back in the states next month. It would be good to see him and Ray again. Been a while. Last time they were in town I fell ill.

Slept really well, good old air conditioner humming along as I slept. I didn’t want to get out of bed, but of course that is what I had to do. I was out the door before 7:00 again and got on a soon to be crowded bus.

I sat in my usual spot and read An Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett, author of The History Boys among others. He’s a favorite author lately. This is about the Queen taking up reading which she never had time for before. That description doesn’t do it justice, but it’s not much more complicated than that. It’s an entertaining novella and after starting it yesterday I am almost finished with it. I’m so lucky to have the library just down the street.

Oh what an idiot day I’ve had. Work was busy, Tom Chin out of the office and John could you do this, John can you do that all day long. Not that I minded, not at all. It makes the day go faster and makes me feel somewhat needed. Vivek, the managing director and Greg Stevens the president of the company were getting a letter together to send out and I had to rewrite it an proof it a few times.

Unlike this blog where I sometimes post without fully checking for errors, I sometimes go back and make the necessary corrections after it’s been published. Today with Greg and Vivek I looked like a buffoon. They’d make edits, I’d work them into what I was writing and occasionally I’d omit something that they would point out after I printed out the letter.

I did my best and tomorrow is the day they go out so I’ll be bringing a fine toothed comb to the office.

But the thing that was the most idiotic was truly my fault. I’ve had some problems with the eyeglasses I got in November of last year. I had them fixed, then there was a problem with the lenses. So I brought them back after Evan, the nice guy who may or may not have a ‘thing’ for me was going to have a new pair made.

The lenses came in last week and he told me to bring in the frames. I said that I didn’t have the frames, that I left them with him. He looked and looked but they weren’t there in the shop. I wound up getting a whole new pair of glasses which I got today.

They look great, better than the old pair. As I was dealing with Greg and Vivek, I was cleaning up my desk getting ready to go home. I open a drawer and find an eyeglass case. I open it and what do I find, but the eyeglasses I said I left with Evan.

Oh I laughed through my horror, my idiocy. I guess I have to do the right thing and bring back the old pair that was missing and tell him it was all my fault.

I’m an idiot.

Tonight, I’m going to McSwells again. What is this? The eighties? I’m meeting with my friend Lois to discuss music since I am DJ’ing at her wedding party at the Rainbow Lodge in Walton NY on August 2. Then I’m meeting my brother Frank to see the Individuals reunion.

Oh but tomorrow, going back to Evan, humble and apologetic. Years ago, I would have had the ‘get over’ attitude, nowadays, I just want to do what is right.

And that means eating humble pie.