Quite the opposite of my schedule over the past half-year,
the past couple of weeks have been mostly away from the bedlam of the Xcel and
the varied entertainment held within. Between five-day segments of R&R, I
worked a maniacal 24-hours in a 32-hour period, during which I prepped for and
cooked for all of the guests that would enter my restaurant while attending the
Def Leppard & Guests concert, and the final playoff game for the Wild who
flailed and faltered, despite a strong third-period bid for contention. And now
it’s done. The season is Over Now and I have time to sit down and process a few
things before I go back to some scattered events and Lynx games while receiving
seasonal unemployment.
Will I go back to the laminating factory? Probably at some
point it will become necessary to put in a day or two, here and there, to supplement
my mediocre summer of already subsidized government-based income, which only
nets 50% of my salary. So, What I will do is stay away from both jobs as much
as possible for about a month because I can afford to do so, and then weave my
way through the hot season hopping from job-to-job until the Wild start
preseason again in October.
Not all of you read that recently my relationship of nearly
six months fell apart as I only shared that post on my Facebook Blog page. I
appreciate all of you who have sent me words of encouragement, and I want you
to know that even though I am down (although I may not show that outwardly), I
have many tools, resources, and friends and family to help me through this and
come out of this emotional slump. I also appreciate you, Heather, for all you
have given me, and all we have done over the course of our relationship. I love
you, and I care for you, and I hope you will always remain my friend.
I’m sitting at my new coffee hot-spot, J&S Coffee on Randolph
and Saratoga in St. Paul. All at once, everybody in the establishment—save for
the employees and people in line out of my view—turned and stared at me. I
thought, perhaps, that it was because I’m wearing a controversial shirt, but it
is more likely that they witnessed the arch of coffee exit my mouth and spray
the entirety of my computer and remaining table space. It’s the closest I’ve come to drowning since
my cruise through Grand Cayman over a decade ago, and these people had the
audacity to sit and watch me wane. Naturally, if I were one of them, I would
have probably laughed at the situation. I simply waved at them all and
mentioned that I chose the wrong tube to swallow with, and cleaned up my mess:
real life, folks.
Yesterday I went to another Twins game. It was the fourth of
the season that I’ve attended, but the first that I went to alone. It’s not
that I couldn’t find somebody to go with; it’s that I wanted to be there alone
because, like a trip to the river to find agates, I find serenity and peace at
the ballpark. The Twins didn’t do very well, losing 13-4, but I found the
silver linings and enjoyed myself throughout.
Today, I have been to the gym to lift, and to run. I have
been to the coffee shop to drink, spit on my computer, and write this post. I
will go home and take Willie for a walk, and likely continue to watch the new
MST3K on Netflix, and chill. It’s been a while since I have put meat on a grill
for personal consumption, but today could be the day I experiment with that in preparation
for a BBQ I plan to have at home within the next 30 days. These events of mine
take a lot of prep, care, and consideration. I’m proud of what I produce for my
friends, family, and guests of guests, and it excites me to know that the
grilling season is nearly here. It should excite you, too, if you know me well
enough. I’ll write more tomorrow.
