blkdragon

grounded
2008-10-16 03:57:03 (UTC)

Disinfectingly High Profile

10/14/08– 1:00 pm–I set my alarms but didn’t leave my bed,
I’d gone back to the Y last night, did another mile in the
pool and worked out in the gym. Going to the Y at night is
almost the same as going to the 25 cent movies in
California, it’s when the sex addicts hang out, most of them
were gay men; as I think of it, I don’t ever remember seeing
lesbians there. I did happen to go into one, I’d just taken
Kathy to work and I had a pocket full of quarters, I had to
feed that machine $6 to see the entire video and it wasn’t
worth it; I never returned.
I was the only person in the pool last night, I went to
shower and turned to find the guy that was in the doorway of
the sauna (the last time I did the Y at night) was on the
other side of the shower, after exiting the pool/sauna or
steam room my penis is the size of a plum; yet this
knucklehead is behind me fully extended. I’m thinking, wtf,
I got all this at a glance while turning to rinse my back;
I was still huffing and puffing from the mile I’d just swam.
I turn the shower off and grab my things to leave, I’m
heading into the locker section when I see some geezer
wearing a stars and stripes short set, more wtf and the man
(although noticing that I wasn’t making eye contact)
proceeds to say hello. The man didn’t appear to have been
doing any exercises anywhere, makes it his business to get
my attention and now I’m waiting for shower boy to reappear,
by this time I’m scowling; I get out of my speedo briefs and
into my shorts. I grab my work out diary and reference book,
I head for the weight room, I pass a brutha as I grab a
spray bottle of disinfectant, ordinarily I wouldn’t even
bother with such; considering the participants at the Y
during this time of day, disinfectant is absolutely necessary.
I was really tired, having done that routine earlier in the
morning, I’m doing inverted crunches, I’d been doing 200-400
assorted crunches per day; I’m reduced to 3 sets of 30. I
may have to see about building or buying an inverted bench.
The brutha would stop to ask me about an exercise, whether
it was being done correctly, I’d done the exercise with
Devon; it’s generally done by football players. Lie on your
back, legs perpendicular to the floor and have someone throw
your legs in either direction, your job is to keep your feet
from hitting the floor; it works your oblique muscles.
I’d been working my upper body, I’m still uncomfortably
sore, I have to revise my strategy and specify my work out.
I know better than to attack any muscle group incessantly,
believe me when I say that I’m attacking them, from my
sternum to my shoulders; my body is rebelling.
I just finished contacting ING about my retirement account,
now I can access everything online, I’d taken a loan against
my account a few years ago; the company was deducting from
my check, ING has since deducted that loan from the body of
my account.
I began putting the framework of the stoop together, don’t
know where Paula got the wood but it splits easily and they
didn’t make straight cuts. I’ll secure the frame with the
lag bolts and put the finishing touches on it, while I paint
the remainder of the step and landing.
I’ll hit the pool and the gym afterwards, concentrating only
on my core.
10/15/08– 4:35 pm–I woke sporadically through the night, I’d
eventually wake before the alarm and wait for it to sound, I
continued laying in bed until the last minute; I got out of
bed and started the car. I poured a cup of coffee, got my
bag together, hit the bathroom and made it out the door by
5:25. Robert was doing his laps, Dom/Frank and Philomena
were doing their thing, I said good morning to everyone;
Nicole is beginning to seem odd. We never discussed how she
felt about the sea salts, I threw the question out there, I
think she may believe I’m keying on her; she’d tell me that
she wasn’t with it this morning due to a death in the Family.
I’m starting to wonder about the drama of it all, I would
think that anyone with as many piercing’s in her head would
want a lot of attention, I told Nicole I was sorry to hear
her news and headed for the pool. Dom/Frank and Phil spend
their time treading water from one end to the other, I get
my mile in 30 minutes and prepare to leave, I hear Nicole
engaging Philomena and stop to talk about the show I saw on
Frontline; how both McCain and Obama have impressed me. I
don’t talk long and tell everyone I need to get to the gym,
I’m out of the Y before 8am.
Today’s the opening day of the barber shop (High Profile)
and I could use a shave/haircut, ½ price, why not; I also
want to show my support for this fledgling business. I go
down and find the shop empty, I thought it was 9am, it was
8:50; Mohammed would return with someone in his car. I
thought the passenger was one of the shop’s barbers, he was
a customer, it seemed they would make a habit of driving to
get their customers today; I would also notice that I had
been the only AA (cultural equivalent) to give them business
this morning. They had charts on the wall for black/white
and Latino heads, there is also an ad for the remaining
booth’s rental. Mohammed calls himself Moe, he told me he
could handle me when he finished with the guy he had with
him, Duane would arrive and tell me that he had appointments
until 11! I like these guys, even though it seemed I didn’t
fit the profile of their target customer base, I’d called
Pelham earlier and he returned my call while I was in the
shop; he was telling me all the business he was now
handling. I would find that M&D have high ambitions for the
shop, it would prove to be one of the most comfortable shops
I’ve ever been in, Moe asked how I wanted my cut; I told him
to make it look good. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen
a barber use a straight razor, both of these guys use them,
Moe would slap hot towels on me and ply his art; he seemed
to have missed my mustache and beard. Being that my cut was
half price, perhaps they were trying to hustle me out the
door, I think they mainly wanted to immediately convey how
busy they would be; get a flowing customer base viewed by
the passing populace. I think the barbers may have wanted to
present the fact that they’re well enough versed in their
skills to cut everyone’s hair, it seemed they made a
concerted effort not to have any AA’s frequent the shop, the
last thing in the world they should want is to be viewed as
culturally biased; nor will they want to present a hip hop
face to the business community. Being that they’re now in
the heart of the city, they need to keep a tight reign on
the image they present to the public.
I’d asked Pelham about his camera’s zoom and freeze frame
capabilities, I really wanted to see the camera in use, I’d
looked out my office window to see a bush offset by two
evergreens; the brilliance of it’s fall color starkly
contrasted by them. I’d thought about lying on my back under
the bush, taking the shot with the evergreens as a backdrop,
then I’d see the hawk soaring past my living room window;
the artist in me clamors to be heard. The imagery of life
tugs at my spirit, even in the despair of a strangled
economy, I can’t help but feel the effervescence of hope
bubbling under this epidermis of pain; change is often very
painful.
I’m in the process of changing my image and direction, when
I’m not troubled, I’m ebullient; I merely want to do
something that makes me happy and benefits those I come in
contact with.
10/15/08– 10:58 pm–I’d been waiting for the debate to come
on, thought I might have mistaken the time and date, I’d
been watching Jeopardy when Kenny called; he’d tell me that
he’s filing bankruptcy this coming Tuesday. He also told me
that he’s been communicating with John Smith, hoping to get
a leg up, that his calls are no longer being returned; he
has the number of a lawyer that is looking to question
anyone with knowledge of Tech Valley Printing. Devon had
called earlier to ask about health care for his Son, I told
him that the state of New York provides affordable care for
him to use. Charlotte would call while I spoke with Kenny, I
hate asking anyone to hold while I field another call, I
knew I’d get back to her when I finished; I told Kenny to
get the lawyer’s # to me and he said that he would.
I called Charlotte, I had a bad feeling, I’d thought of
calling her today; I wouldn’t act upon that. I told her that
I’d thought of her and I could feel her smile, I asked if
she were ok, she told me that things were terrible; she was
on the other line and asked if she could call me back, I
said yes. Now I would stew on the possibility that she’d
lost her job, she called back, she proceeded to tell me that
she was planning to resign her position in the morning; I’m
thinking that she’s just pissed off. She mentioned all these
people constantly enveloping her in their negativity, their
fears, from corporate to administrative to the blue collars
and how she’s feeling inadequate as the result.
I’m of the impression that she just doesn’t know how to
relate, how to diffuse potentially explosive situations, she
takes everything far too personal; keep business just that,
business. I told her that if someone came into her office
with an attitude, she didn’t need to return it, she didn’t
even need to experience it; she could calmly explain to that
person that they would need to turn around and take the
offensive posture back out the door they entered. She could
explain to this person that they would be more than welcomed
in her office when they got a handle on their emotions, when
they could civilly discuss whatever issues were on their
mind. She often reminds that she holds no grudges, I don’t
need to because people find it hard to stay angry with me,
when they return the door is opened wide; if not, Kenny
would never be calling me.
She mentioned my taking baths, I’m not sure why, I told her
that I bathed her well; it’s not the same as my soaks. We’d
stay on the phone for more than an hour, she was noticeably
more calm by the time I said goodnight, she knew that she
would be; how much I anger her isn’t as important as how
much I soothe her.
I told her that Cedar Hill won’t allow her to resign, she
didn’t want to hear that, she’d eventually understand my
reasons for that assessment; they won’t be able to get
anyone else to put up with the stress levels Charlotte has
been managing. Cedar Hill won’t be able to fill that
position with one body if Charlotte resigns, no other
applicant would be willing to go the distances she
maintains. I’m not sure she asked if she could call me
later, it wasn’t important anyway!




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