Schedules, Deadlines, and Obligations

I was on vacation this past week. The last one for this year besides the day after Christmas. I cant believe it's already Sunday, but at least it'll be a short work week, and hopefully uneventful. To be honest, I hate (usually) knowing I have to be somewhere, even if it's for something good. I can't really explain it. Deadlines and appointments tend to make me furious. I don't like to be rushed, no how-no way. I'm a fly by the seat of my pants kinda guy. I like to make it up as I go. Sorta like Indiana Jones, but not as cool and buff. Living this way can be a bit of a inconvenience to others and will usually cause me to end up alone more often than not. It's a good thing I'm the lone Wolf!

My vacation was very busy. I was hoping to get much accomplished. It was a week filled with doctors visits and some holiday events that were supposed to increase my lacking Christmas spirit. I will now share with you gentle readers, some highlights as well as some low lights. Join me won't you?

First thing in the morning, on my first day off, I had scheduled a complete physical at my primary care physicians office. They want you to fast for the blood test. I almost stroked out without my morning coffee. I had the shakes an the sweats somethin' awful! The doc was gonna call for a medic until I assured him it was just withdrawal symptoms. He checked under the hood (lotsa mileage) and sent me on my way.

The next day I had a podiatrist appointment. Let me tell ya, if I had to choose one of my most disliked physical features, it would have to be my feet! The good, the bad, and the ugly all rolled into two mammoth thirteen inches- and NO it's definitely and sadly (in my case) not true! They don't tend to smell so I've got that in my favor. Without describing them in too much detail, I'll just say that a good friend many years ago named them Raptor and/or Jurassic feet. Use your imagination. Spielberg did! They decided to keep the feet, but the toes are gonna have to go. Perhaps I'll string a necklace. That evening I attended a Christmas party which you can read all about in my post entitled "The Undertakers Ball".

I'm already up to Wednesday-mid week. As part of a Christmas present I took a friend to see Shakespeare's  "The Winter's Tale". It was presented by The Shakespeare Theatre of NJ on the campus of Drew University. It was staring Linda Powell who is the daughter of the former general joint chiefs of staff Colin Powell. So what you say. Only to impress you I'll say that I'm barely related through a distant marriage. I've met the General, his wife Alma, and son Michael who married my second cousin. I had never met Linda and thought my friend would enjoy meeting her as well. Getting back to the play, I have NEVER seen a Shakespeare play unless of course you count the film Shakespeare in Love, which I enjoyed-for a guy. Forget Ambien! If I can't sleep I'll just read or watch one of Shakeys plays/stories. ZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Hey I tried. I guess I'm outta school, 'cause I got no class! Get it?! It was nice to meet Ms. Powell after the show. She's a very talented actress and she seems sweet. She even knew I was "Kathy's brother".  Boo-ya for me! The play was almost THREE HOURS LONG including a twenty minute intermission! Needless to say, we missed our dinner reservation, so she had to settle for a diner as opposed to a nice meal which was supposed to be part of her Christmas present.

Thursday was a bust. I was supposed to go into the city with a friend to see the tree in Rockefeller Center and all that other city Christmas stuff. She called me in the am with some phony sick voice. You know, the one you use when you don't want to go to work. What a faker! That was fine I had plenty to do 'round my crypt.

Friday night, despite terrible weather, my best friend Jay took me along to see A Christmas Carol, presented by the Chatham Community Players. At the theatre we met an old flame of his who had brought along her niece. I must say for a local non-union show it was surprisingly well done. It was a musical, and staged very well so as not to bore. It was one of those theatres in the round. Shows at these kind of venues tend to make me uncomfortable due to the closeness of the actors, intimate setting, etc. After the show we went to a shitty diner where we ate some shitty food. My stomach felt shitty all night which was kinda shitty.

I realize this is another one of my way too long to read and keep my interest posts, but hang in there, I'm about to rap it up. Almost everyone has a room in their house that when the door is shut, the room and it's contents cease to exist! you know what I'm talking about. The "black hole room" where you toss stuff to make it instantly disappear. I have such a room here at my crypt. Between that room and the attic that's where all my pop culture collectible crap ends up. You can barely navigate around in the attic. The door to this spare bedroom only opens approx. twelve inches before it hits payload! I swear I occasionally her a muffled whimpering coming from under the huge pile of crap on the floor.

My goal these past five to six years has been to make room in the attic so I can remove the contents of the spare room, thereby effectively transferring the "black hole room" to the attic. I've taken many vacations through out the years with this very goal in mind, almost always ending up defeated in the fetal position on the floor rocking back and forth, vowing to try again during the next vacation. Well ladies and germs, I'm VERY proud to say, while the job is not yet finished, I've done more organizing and throwing out of unnecessary crap than I have lo these past five or six years, and good God it feels liberating! 

I have to go now. I feel the compelling urge to run naked through the cemetery. Perhaps I'll at least wear a scarf. It is quite cold out.