Wednesday I skip out of work early to see a new chiropractor - something has been tweaked in my lower back and my previous chiropractor has moved to Washington, DC. This doctor, another Dr. L, so we'll use Dr. LC, does the initial examination, provides some electrostim therapy and ultrasound therapy prior to the adjustment. And then, as I'm about to leave, he says, "You need to get some sleep. This may have been brought on by excessive stress and not enough rest. You look worn out."
So I get home and jump on the bicycle for the Aquarium ride - I don't want to let daylight slip away without being on the bicycle. After the ride an ice pack on my lower back does feel good.
Thursday night I'm out for a walk and run into the schoolteacher neighbor from across the street. She's telling me how she was telling a friend how great of a dog Nopey is and that she wants to take Nopey to school so that the kids can play with him. (We've had this discussion a few times in the past about Nopey going to school.) I don't even want to think about the chaos, the screaming, the blood, the carnage, and the newspaper headlines. I steer the conversation towards other things.
On Friday night Person Roy and I speak. He's mad at me again because I didn't attend a party that he claims he invited me to (though I don't recall an invitation). He goes on to describe the evening complete with one of the involved puking in the car. I'm glad that I forgot about the invitation.
Saturday sees a good session with the weights and a morning walk prior to watching qualifying from Spa, Belgium. If there had not been so much flooding in Europe this summer I would have been at Spa right now (after seeing the motorcycle race in Brno, Czech Republic last weekend).
At 9am I'm heading out the door on bicycle to meet a former neighbor for a ride. We ride up to the dam and back for a total of 40 miles. It's a reasonable ride where I was trying out an older seat in order to reduce some of the...um...numbness. It works fairly well.
By 3pm I've recovered from the ride and geeking-out so that I'm out for the now-traditional Saturday afternoon rollerlbading session. It is an hour session on the rollerblades though it was uninspired. I sit for a while at the end of the session watching a group of kids on their BMX bikes trying all sorts of acrobatic maneuvers on curbs and benches. I should try this!
Saturday is a club day. Shouldn't everyday be a club day? After making
more airplane reservations for the neighbor lady via the Internet and
handling a number of telephone calls, I pick up Person J_VKPI (late again)
and head for a club. My only favorite Hole song comes on and pretty soon
I'm singing with Courtney Love (and having Person J_VKPI confused as to
what the heck is going on):
I told you...from the start...just how things would end
They want...they get...they never want it again
Go on take everything, take everything, I want you to
Go on take everything, take everything, I need you to.
Along with the singing I'm driving wildly fast as I try to get us to the club before the cover charge starts. Person J_VKPI continually asks me why I'm driving so fast - threatening overtaking maneuvers on slower cars, foot planted so hard to the floor that it is pushing through the front bumper, and squealing tires in a tail-happy fashion around corners.
We meet up with some of Person J_VKPI's friends and we run into a few acquaintances of mine. While Person J_VKPI is off dancing I get two offers - from Person A_E and Person P_E. I try to deflect the offers and direct the conversations to El Salvador. It sort of works. But Person J_VKPI comes over and is mad at me. I'm only carrying on non-threatening conversations, but Person J_VKPI is still mad. Now we have a long discussions about that. And I eventually tell Person J_VKPI that it doesn't matter where I go or who I'm with, there are going to be offers made to me. (Obviously because of my magnetic and charismatic smile and personality!) The real test is how I react to the offers. Person J_VKPI and I then go on to have the first version of "The Talk".
After we leave the club we stop in at a 7-11 at approximately 6th and Normandie. Or we try to stop in. As we pull up and park there are fire trucks and paramedics near the entrance. I start climbing the stairs to go into the 7-11 and am told that the store is closed. I look over and see a large pool of blood surrounding a body laying on the cement. I don't know if the person is alive or not, but it looks like, at 2:15am on Sunday morning, we'll have to find coffee somewhere else. I am in bed a little after 3am on Sunday.
Sunday morning I get the first warning signs from my body that I am overdoing things. The signs are the increased morning body temperature, the swollen and sore glands, and a third sign that we won't go into here.
I get up, lift weights, watch the Belgian Grand Prix, and head for Person T*'s house so that we can go to a Buddhist Temple. We drive to Hacienda Heights and walk around the temple. I believe that this is the Buddhist temple that got Al Gore into trouble for his fundraising efforts. Regardless I pray for social and economic justice for all people as well as an end to the abductions/killing of helpless kids.
On the way home the Ramones (remake of the Chambers Brothers) are on:
Now the time has come
No place to run
Might get burned up by the sun
But I've had my fun
I've been loved - put aside
I've been crushed by tumbling tide
And my soul has been...psychedelicized
I come to a startling conclusion. Joey Ramone and I are soulmates. I fell in love with the Ramones' music the very first time that I heard their music and was in love with the Ramones the first times that I saw them play. And the similarities between Joey Ramone continue as Joey Ramone has been called "the prepetual teenager". This seems to fit.
Eventually I get out for another hour of rollerblading. During the rollerblading a ChiChi stops me and asks me, "Can I take a picture of you?"
To which I respond, "Only if I can have your telephone number." The ChiChi doesn't quite understand so I continue with, "Sure". Pretty soon all of the ChiChi's friends have come over and everyone has to decide who is going to be in the picture. But the ChiChi only wants a picture of me. There is a lot of the typical Japanese giggling going on which I find attractive. After the picture is taken we make conversation about rollerblading and point to the building 20 meters away where they can rent rollerblades. "And I'll teach you how. I can take you two...um...teach you two today. And I can have...um...teach you three tomorrow." But the ChiChi and friends have to leave. Somewhere on the Internet is now a picture of me on rollerblades with the caption, "Great White Whale on Rollerblades".
Monday I get up early to lift weights and go for the Aquarium ride in order to beat the heat. A good day of reading and browsing bookstores is followed by another hour of rollerblading just past the midday heat. At the end I am sweaty and tired - but I feel good. What is this comment from the doctor about me being worn out?
I handle quite a few telephone calls during the day. Most notably the re-appearance of Person M_C who has recently been sick. And a few calls from Person J_VKPI - though we play phone tag and don't get to have "The Talk, Part Deux".