On Thursday I rush home and jump on the road bicycle for a ride. I crank out about 35 miles down to Huntington Beach and back with the wind against me on the way out and helping me on the way home. I arrive at home just after 7 pm and find four telephone messages (since I started the ride). The first telephone call that I return is Person Roy's and he and Ralph, his roommate, insist that I come over briefly for some pasta. I try to decline, politely and then not so politely, but I fail. And I rush through a shower in order to have a quick dinner.
I arrive with cold sodas and a few roses from the backyard for Person Roy and Ralph. I am introduced to the family and we enjoy each other's company.
Dinner is ready, so we make our way over to the dining room and start. But I see something in the pasta and I slowly put my fork down and professionally and politely ask Roy if there is any meat in the pasta sauce. The instant that I say the words he hangs his head in his hands. And everybody is slowly looking back and forth between Roy and me - wondering what is going on. "I am sorry. I forgot that you don't eat meat. I knew that, but I forgot", is what he comes up with.
Ralph chips in with, "And you told me that just before we started cooking".
"I know. What was I thinking?"
So I enjoy my dinner of diet Coke. I continually reinforce that this has happened before and it will happen again. It is not a big deal.
Friday is a frustrating day at work. I want to be left alone to geek-out and make progress on tasks that I have, but it doesn't happen. And Friday night finds me, when I again want to be left alone to recover from recent "people overload", heading off to a resourcescout meeting. Our mailers are back and we need to plan our next move.
Saturday is a VERY productive day. I do the laundry, get a smog check for the truck, cycle for an hour and a half (up the LA River past Florence Street and Gage Street where the graffiti paint holds the cement walls together), buy a new Weed Wacker, mow/edge/trim the lawn, paint half of the window frames in the house (powered by sugar and loud L7 music), and start in on cleaning the miniblinds. The kitchen faucet falls apart as I'm cleaning up, so a trip to the hardware store (for later installation) completes the day's activities. I am tired. So there is only one thing to do. Go out and party.
I'm entering Club Asia at 10:30pm - a bit early for the crowd. But this gives me the opportunity to get a chair before they are all taken. Tonight there is a reduced crowd. I run into a few acquaintances and we make idle chit-chat. I am home in bed alone at 1:45am on Sunday morning.
After 5 hours of sleep and a reasonable bicycle ride, I'm heading to Saint Matthew's church in Long Beach with Person Roy and his roommate Ralph for the 10:30am mass. I need to pray for all of the people in the world who have nothing. This is the first time that I have been to a mass in years. The first reading has an interesting idea about God always being with - even during the difficult times. This gives me comfort. But the ritual of the mass brings back many memories (both good and bad) of attending church throughout my youth and somewhat into college.
After mass we head down to the beach to check out some beach volleyball for a short period of time. I am interupted by a phone call from Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined}. After about 20 minutes on the phone, over the noise of a powerboat race, helicopters, beach volleyball sounds, and car stereos, I return to Person Roy and Ralph and agree to call Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined} back later.
Later turns out to be near 2pm and soon thereafter I'm heading towards Koreatown where Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined} lives. And wouldn't you f$&#*%@ know it, Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined} lives within a block of a place that I used to go to in the 1980's to buy drugs. The neighborhood looks about the same, but today I see know drug deals going on. A young kid of about 13 says "Hello Mr. Policeman" to me as I walk by. I wonder if I'm dressed that funny.
Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined} and I have late lunch or early dinner at Denny's and soon we're headed back to Long Beach to continue our conversation. [Activities here] Eventually I get Person J_{C++ Database Identifier Undefined} pushed out the door and to the train station so that I can recover.