Hope that the end of the summer finds you well and fully recovered from the Labor Day festivities - you know, the abundance of cold beverages, grilled food, good friends, laughter and the always ever crowd pleasing party thongs. Of course, let's not forget the music...the soothing rhythm and lyrics of gangsta polka.
Since I haven't had the resources lately to devote as much time to this project as I'd like, I thought I'd play a little catchup and share with you the schedule of a typical week during this transition life stage that I'm weathering.As you might be aware of, I work part time, 25 - 30 hours a week, at a knowledge distribution nexus with other humans whom I enjoy satisfying relationships with - except for one male mutant human that I would gladly pound into primordial paste if not for some silly laws that the human authority figures are sworn to enforce even if they knew I was morally right in executing that action for the benefit of humanity at large and...and...breathe in, breathe out, wax on, wax off...
OK, maybe more on that later...
I awaken daily around 5 - 6 AM to the emptiness of the camping spot, darkened by the lot lights being turned off before dawn. Like a good little trooper, I floss, brush the tuskies, stretch out a bit and think about what I want to accomplish that day. Of course, the days alive counter increments by one and I thank the universe for surviving another 24 hours. Then I enjoy a morning smoke as I pause and watch this section of the planet come alive. Traffic, people filling up with fuel, getting coffee, doughnuts and such, saying morning things to each other, good things I hope - the sounds of civilization that are the mainstay of urban living. I have yet to hear weapons fire in the area of someone securing the day's food supply, though - hey, there's plenty of squirrels around. Next on the morning's agenda is choosing among four locations where I'm going to execute the ritual of body evacuations, face washing and securing that elixir of the gods, Dr. Pepper. I never visit the same place twice in a row in as many days. Ahh yes, when you have the bounty of the Earth at your disposal, a morning cigarette and DP are a gift from the gods, the fickle bitches that they are. As the sun begins to rise in the east, I initiate ignition procedures of Black Thunder and move to one of three other locations that are less traveled to pause for 2 - 3 hours.
I work 3 - 8 PM Mondays and Tuesdays.. Weather permitting, I go to the quiet pool around 10:30 AM and read and write, eat, nap and swim a few laps to get the juices circulating. The solitude of the pool area is refreshing with the sound of the pool fountain splashing in the background. I may get 15 - 30 minutes of direct sunlight but the majority of the time is spent in the shade of the friendly trees, reading, writing, etc. Around 2 PM I make my way to the shower facilities before going to work.
On Wednesdays, I work 1 - 6 PM. From one of the places I pause at mid-morning, I depart around 10:30 AM to the shower facilities and then report to work. After work, I usually get a couple of beers and ice them down. Let me digress at this point. In May, I bought a small collapsible cooler that advertised the capacity of six 12 oz. cans. What wasn't advertised was that the remaining room left in the cooler is just enough for a little ice; say, a couple of hand fulls of ice cubes which doesn't keep the product cool all the live long day so you may have to drink a bit quicker than you are accustomed if you want cold beer. At any rate, the place I go to in these particular instances is crewed by Hispanic women, nice looking Hispanic women, OK, hot looking Hispanic women that let me get some ice, free, from the fountain drink console that is enough for my small cooler. The times that I went by their drive by window, I was always asked if I needed ice to which I replied no because I raided the fridge at work for a few cubes, There is another place I go to that sometimes have 12 packs on sale. I have another cooler, if it can be called that, I bought earlier in the summer for $1.50 that is kind of like a thin bag, all silvery on the outside and can hold a 12 pack with a bit more ice. Anyway, there are a couple of young Indian guys that work there and they let me get the ice I need for free. Yes, people are nice to me and I'm clueless as to why. Anyway, I then proceed in good order to the workout place and...workout for around 90 minutes after which I change into the long suffering swimsuit and hang out by the pool and enjoy the cold beers and read or do a crossword. If I'm lucky, the pool is devoid of human presence and I can have the time to myself.
Thursday is the day that I always have off. After the early morning has passed, I go to the library to max out my computer time working on projects or researching stuff for my other endeavors. Around 2 PM, I get a few beers and grab something to eat and head to the the quiet pool to eat, read, write, and/or nap . Around 5 PM, I crack open a beer and indulge. I usually stay at that location until dark before retiring to the camping spot around 9 PM after the their day of business is done and the lot is about empty. Doubtless, the situation and timing will change during the cooler weather.
Friday is much the same as Wednesday except that the hours are 12 - 5 PM and yes, I work out at the same place and usually have a couple of beers afterward at the pool. This day usually includes the Friday night crowd grilling out and socializing. I may stay later but usually end up at the camping spot before midnight.
I work the same hours on Saturday but contending with the 5 PM traffic negates my desire to execute my most endearing military policy regarding 'scorched earth' doctrines to significantly reduce the vehicle throughput thus expediting the arrival at my destination. Sometimes it is at the quiet pool, other times at the workout pool to socialize with other humans, and their pets, until they get too slobbering drunk to be coherent. More than once I thought where are the people who can hold their liquor and still be coherent, intelligent and maintain a measure of social grace? Well, apparently not in my current world.
Every other Sunday I work from 1 - 5 PM. This is where a fine degree of coordination is required on my part, if it can be called that. Every Sunday, before the sun is an hour above the horizon, I take BT on a 12 - 15 mile jaunt doing around 60 MPH. During the week, her transport duties are confined to 3 - 4 mile hops doing 40 MPH which ain't the best for a well-bred machine that likes the fur parting speed of warp 90. With hardly any traffic and the windows down, I deviate from my standard practice and some one while listening to a CD during the early morning drive. Usually the music is of some Jewish rap group saying something about bustin' bitches and banging kneecaps...or maybe it's the other way around. It's difficult to tell. Maybe if I heard the music in a tabernacle...never mind. Anyway, I stop by a branch of my bank, hoping that it had not went out of business yet, and check my balance of the fortune that I am amassing to finance my future planetary empire. After that, I stop by a gas station, the clean one, and do the morning thing. I load up on the weekly fuel allotment, touch up the windows, check the tire pressure sometimes and touch up the rims. Please note that I did not say I filled up BT - don't make that much yet. Sometimes I spend an hour cleaning up BT for around $5 at a self-service car wash, that constantly beeps at you to put more money in or else. I then proceed to a fast food place where for the princely sum of $1.63, I savor the ingestion of a generous helping of biscuits and gravy with a DP thrown in. I think they like me. If I'm fortunate, someone has left a Sunday paper that I scour for news, sales, coupons, crossword, etc. After that I go to the laundromat and wash and dry my entire designer wardrobe for $5 - all two loads, light and dark. When dried, I fold and stow the items in BT. Now if I have Sunday off, I ice down some beer and go work out for a couple of hours and then head to a pool for the duration of the day.
If I'm working a Sunday, I go to the quiet pool around 10:30 AM and stay until noon, giving me an opportunity to rinse off and swim a few laps to get the juices going. Before reporting to work, I stop by the store and procure some food molecules for the remainder of the week - sliced chicken breast or peppered turkey breast (poor breasts but they sure taste good), a head of Romaine lettuce and several Roma tomatoes that are hopefully salamander free, and get some DP if they have it on sale. I keep this stuff in the lower vegetable tray in the fridge at work. I also have microwave popcorn, cans of soup and a can or two of white albacore in a top compartment on the pantry where I figure it's safe because the rest of the personnel can't reach that high. I don't eat the albacore at work because some people don't like the sweet aroma of seafood. I sometimes take a can to eat on Thursdays by the pool where I become the best friend to a couple of cats for a while. After work, yes, I go work out and enjoy a couple of beers when the pool is empty because everyone has already retired to their apartment to pass out from the day's exertions.
At the darkness, I return to nearly empty camping spot and park in a far corner where I can read or write by the lot lighting. I review the day and thank the spirit for all the experiences that has happened during the course of the day, whether pleasant or not; for allowing me to exist one more day. I think of how my workout went, what I'm going to write or read. I think of the laughter and those moments of connectivity with other people. I envision what my life will be like in a couple of years. I think of people enjoying the fruits of my projects. Sometimes I wonder where I will end up next...
I usually fall asleep around midnight after turning the bed down in the Black Thunder Hilton and notifying the nightstaff that I'm not to be disturbed.
More on the catching up stuff in the next entry.
Be well,
David
P.S.
The music I usually listen to these days is either old school stuff or soft techno. Didn't want you to think I went of the deep end...well, the deeper end, anyway.
