Where the Fireworks Pop

It’s a bright, cool beginning to July.

The non-stop personal fireworks over the last two and a half weeks have finally taken a day off. San Francisco has been popping nightly, reaching the usual zenith of explosions on the fourth. And the fireworks on the 5th of July were a total surprise, “you mean somebody has got some left after last night.” Garry didn’t go right to sleep on the night of the fourth. The noise finally quit at 2:00 a.m..

My very curious pit bull is more suspicious over sounds than afraid of them. Which I think is weird. There are many dogs in the city that are racing under the bed or couch not comfortable with the sounds but Luna always wants to go toward the sound, as if she can aid in whatever is happening. Perhaps there is another treat waiting! She is frightened of things falling however, always jumping away at something succumbing to gravity. That leap always looks comical because at 60 lbs, she isn’t a petite beast.

Half of a crazy year is in the books. We keep going forward, adjusting to our evolving reality and hopeful that time and science will iron things out. The stagnancy of this period does not eradicate my desire for travel. It’s there, lurking in my subconscious. Occasionally, I’ll see something on TV, filmed outside the U.S. and my brain turns on (okay where is this being filmed). I also randomly search the internet from time to time for airline tickets that I can’t buy yet, “Oh look business class to…” and I’ll see a deal. Who doesn’t like a deal? It’s unfortunately not real. It’s a holding pattern we’re in.

At work, we made it through our busiest time of the year with only a few hours of overtime. Also, a client has been keeping me hopping with website changes; video and audio editing. I do prefer being busy during a pandemic. 🙂 I’m happy to see Garry’s classes continue online. He enjoys doing them and the video feed must be unusually different than actually having live students (small class of five) interact across the living room from each other but that is the way at the moment (and longer).

There is a smaller version of the softball practices that we’ve been doing on Saturdays. It’s the unofficial practices for the season. The season that is awaiting cancellation. It will surprise no one. In fact, if the season happens (fall) that would be a shock to the entire softball community. As players, we get it. I will say, we’re enjoying our Saturday sessions, as both physical activity and mental therapy. We’re careful; masks, distance, and sanitizers. I also shower as soon as I get home. It’s not hard and it’s necessary.

It’s July 2020 and we’re halfway to the end of the year. I’m hopeful even before the year’s out, we will have something big to celebrate for a hopeful 2021, say maybe something in November? I’m confident folks can find fireworks to use for celebrating that.

July 7, 2020 0

AC love

It was great seeing Karl return.

After about 3 days of LA like 80’s (and upper 70’s), I spotted Karl yesterday, lurking about, during my 5:00 p.m. dog walk. I was so over it this week. We finally hooked up the mobile air conditioning unit purchased after the last round of hot spells.

Garry is actually fine with 80 degrees, 90 and up would be a bit much for him. I run warm. I always prefer cool. I don’t like 75 or above. Don’t ask me how I managed 30 years of seasons in New York City. It seems like a lifetime ago. I guess your body has a weather ‘type’ and mine is cool.

Anyway the AC unit is a dream come true and I used it for a couple of glorious hours until Karl the fog returned. It took us about 20 minutes to set-up. It’s a big standing box with tubes (think Robbie the Robot arms) that go to the window. We preferred this over the box on the window so we can remove it easier. It will stay up until mid to late September.

The unit makes a familiar noise. It sounds like August in New York. I can close my eyes and make believe I’ve come home from a particularly sticky walk and can feel the coolness in the air as I get closer to the AC. I love that first rush of coolness, when your body first feels it. It’s August on a sweltering subway platform and the train comes in and you get in a car (where you notice all the windows are closed) and you feel that onslaught of coolness. I get it, some would call it cold. It’s subjective.

There was a place I remember on 14th street called Western Beef. They sold meat. I used to enjoy walking in there during the hot NYC months, even if I wasn’t shopping. The entire store was a meat freezer. It was delightful. A quick cold hit on the way somewhere.

That whirring sound was immediately white noise for me as it was so many years ago. I truly only noticed it was there when someone video called me.

“What’s that noise?”

“An air-conditioner,” I said proudly.

“An air-conditioner in San Francisco?”

“Damn paparazzi, ” I countered.

Anyway, it was a great excuse to use my noise canceling headphones.

May 28, 2020 0

Homebound

Three weeks later we are settling into our new reality. Homebound (maybe that’s what the new Spider-man movie should be titled) with husband and dog. We are certainly doing our share of Netflix, HBO, and what have you. I’ve also discovered a few London theatres sharing free streaming shows. Thank you.

Like Spidey, I put on my own mask when I’m heading out. Thanks to Governor Newsom my SFSPCA group are considered “essential”, so I do pop out a few days a week making sure furry friends in the two hospitals have their meds. Still there is more time at home, sheltering with family hoping the city can continue to flatten the curve. It seems to be working.

The day in and day out of isolation can be daunting. I try to remain busy. This past weekend I added 5 books to my e collection and I’m going to start reading one of them this week. I’m currently halfway through a couple of books and I want to add a third to the lineup. It doesn’t bother me to have 3 going at once…books I mean.

We continue to have a theater night with the previously mentioned streaming but will also download the occasional movie. At home, we’ve got a 70 inch monitor to watch entertainment and while it can never take the place of sitting in an old west end theatre, it will have to do for now.

I miss so many things about the outside world but I’m also driven to keep my partner safe. It will all be there later in some form or another and we will be back better than ever, in the sequel and there will be an election in the fall. Man do I hope we get that right this time.

April 8, 2020 0

The Hands of Fate

These two guys got on the outbound K train. There wasn’t a crowd but only a few spots to sit. They both had roughly the same build and amount of facial hair but there looked as if there was a bit of years between them, as one might assume with a darker haired individual and a salt and pepper gent.

They got on the train flanked by a bunch of other people. The dark haired man found a seat and held it for his partner, who smiled and nodded. Once he was seated, he handed his friend a small bottle of something. Dark hair opened the bottle, applied some of the contents to his hands and rubbed. He handed the bottle back to his buddy, who then handed him a sheet of something that was about 4 inches in width and length.

I soon found out that this was to dry his hands. The train began to move and this individual needed to grab a pole. Before he put his large right hand on a nearby pole, he placed the 4×4 sheet between his naked hand and the pole.

I wondered if I was the only one riveted to this display.

If you looked hard, you might be able to see the corners of this sheet around his large hand. They got off at the Castro. I’m confident that they were ready for the next set of germs.

March 12, 2020 0

The Permanent Way

My first time at the Vaults theater was a pretty eye opening experience. I was expecting a real off-off-west end experience and I got that but it was really wild underneath the Waterloo Station.

In truth, the two plays we were looking at for this night were both housed at this newer theater and event space so we were going to end up here anyway. It was a Shepard play vs a Hare play and we decided on David Hare’s The Permanent Way, a criticism (justified) of the disorganization regarding management of Britain’s Rail System. It was a train play underneath the Waterloo Station — one of the biggest stations in the city and appropriately enough we could hear trains coming in and out. It was not loud but it was there as a sound backdrop.

Finding our way to the small theater meant crossing underneath a tunnel like graffiti walled pathway, where you were greeted with the smell of fresh spray paint and music. I thought I had walked onto a film set for an 80’s rap / breakdancing movie.

The play is good. Several actors play different parts, first detailing facts about the different train systems, their jobs and how the management had been privatized. Hare weaved information leading to different train crashes, that were caused by exactly the same thing with one actor playing the Prime Minister walking onstage proclaiming: “This can never happen again” which he comes back later to reprise, which is a combination of funny and horrific.

As we detail one crash, then another, instead of this bogging down into information overload, the actors changed parts from train employees to crash victim family members and that kept us locked in. We were surrounded by good performances. They continued to take us to different stops, filled with management denial and political face saving. It was theater about another sort of theater and Hare doesn’t let those responsible off the hook. Bravo.

Later, I found out that the graffiti tunnel was founded by Banksy and the area was meant for alternative arts and immersive theater. I felt Hare’s Permanent Way was pretty immersive like feeling the weight underneath a big train station.

October 21, 2019 0

11 More Days

Let’s hear it for those quiet weekends. With my work week done on Friday, I got up late today (Saturday) and am slowly hitting a few chores. We’ve got nothing concrete planned for the weekend and can absolutely lay back. I am someone who can appreciate the restful times, particularly when there hasn’t been much of it lately.

Yesterday I got home and I was truly going on about this and that at work. My hubby poured me a glass of wine and I sat and finished whatever the heck I was talking about and it was done…processed. Hello, weekend.

It’s 11 more days until we fly to London. I’m at that countdown stage, where I’m reminding myself of how close I am to the trip. It helps when I’m swamped at work, as a psychological shot of espresso. “What’s that…what do you need..oh, well I’ve got 12 more days to London.”

The National Theater announced a production of Translations, which fits our timing so we picked up a few tickets. We will also see Solaris, Falsettos, and an evening with Ian McKellen. There might be one more show there but we want to check out the half-price ticket booth. This trip is probably the quickest jaunt I’ve taken to the UK ever, as it’s under two weeks but I’m happy for the time.

On the way back, instead of flying all the way back, we will stay for a few days in New York City. We will meet up with my friend Joel, who is visiting from Las Vegas and catch Tootsie and Inheritance (part 1).

11 more days…

October 5, 2019 1

Busy Hands

It’s been busy since getting back from Kansas City. I’ve been working full weeks to make up for the missing manpower in the office. We lost two people recently and it’s only down to myself, the supervisor and a volunteer that comes in twice a week (and stays a couple of hours). As ironic luck would have it, we’re busier now than ever.

Mind you, this is not a complaint. I’ll work the extra time until they get at least one more worker. It’s a cool organization and I like the people but I’d rather not do this all week. My dog would also like to see more of me. She definitely gets a vote.

Am I getting lazy as I get older or is it the mere preference of work? I’ve got a client that I design and manage a website for (along with a few social apps) and he keeps me somewhat busy and I certainly would rather do that stuff on my off days of Thursday and Friday rather than Saturday or Sunday. It’s also the type of thing I’d rather do…the half and half seems to be the right recipe.

My work ethic at the office is always let’s get to it. Generally, my days go by quick because I dive into it and stay the course while catching a few curve balls that come my way. The busy hands always keep moving. I don’t feel it’s a lazy thing when I’m in there and doing it but when I’m home and thinking about it I wonder. And I know where the question comes from.

The question comes from the father that worked three jobs to put his kids through school. Antonio Plaza would take his sons to help on occasion and the result was never good enough for him as if the cement floors of a basement had to absolutely shine. It didn’t seem to matter how hard I tried.

As an adult, I feel I work hard but what sticks out is when I see others quite obviously not working or more precisely going at a pace more consistent with sleepwalking. I saw this plenty when I worked in the government and was continually told by others, “take it easy”, or “how many hands do you have?” The work will be there the next day and the next and the next. They have an excellent point and this is from folks making good competitive money in an expensive city.

I can acknowledge that and can accept that we all don’t work the same. That said, I can’t change me, in that regard. Playing pop psychology, I do believe some of that early personal programming, whether intentional or not is like cement for me. It’s hard and unmoving. I’m tired at the end of the day but satisfied (for whatever reason).

I always think of this weird dream I had a few times after my father died. We’re in this big house after he calls me in from being outside. He is leading me throughout the house and it is absolutely shiny clean. There is no furniture with the exception of a strange activity near each of the windows. He keeps quietly waving me over to come closer and I follow him around the house, while sneaking peeks at the windows. There are hands and arms working on something…in fact, the arms aren’t attached to a body. They float free but are constantly working on something invisible. Every window in this house has a set of floating hands and arms working on something. Suddenly, I lose where we went and I can’t find an exit. That’s when I awake.

September 28, 2019 0

Beard Around Town

September 16, 2019 – It’s a Monday in San Francisco after, for me a busy weekend. One of my dearest friends has been in town and I’ve been taking him out and about. Today was the first day back at the office and sudden responsibility realness; such is life.

The stops around town included; a GIANTS game, as my visitor hadn’t seen anything after Candlestick, drinks at the Fairmont, North Beach, small time theater (we can say that, as we’re both from NYC) a stop at the Castro and a few nostalgic. He lived in this left coast city in the late 70’s and marveled at how everything now is “built up”.

We walked through the Salesforce Tower transit skywalk, not unlike Manhattan’s skyline space, it was a remarkably pleasant green walk, among the giant cement and glass structures. The views were fraught with different flora to fawn over, even if it’s not tall enough to conceal the usual Starbucks intrusion.

On Sunday we visited North Beach, which is a neighborhood that I called home for about 10 years. The sun felt good with Karl around the corner and we he had some tasty slices of pizza at Tony’s (it’s really the best pizza in the city).

It was cool walking around my old hood, the coffee shop I used to hang out in is gone and a couple of restaurants have changed out but it’s still my beach with no beach. It’s as lively, as touristy as ever. Pass me that gelato.

After a muni ride up the hill, we were having Manhattans at the Fairmont Hotel. This was pricey and pleasant endeavor, good bartenders and a casual feel that will make you wonder why you go anywhere else. It’s fun up that hill and outside, it’s a buena vista on every side. Naturally, the view from the hill is iconic, giving you those side water views that the city enjoys fame for…they put it on their greeting cards here.

Anyway the workweek for me begins and my friend will make his way to Sausalito for a day trip. Back to reality after a nice timeout.

September 21, 2019 0

A Monday for the Dogs (and Cats)

Today was a grind. I awoke briefly at 3 a.m and was up for the next hour and a half. My mind was racing like a rat on a wheel, facing some uncertain cheese.

This naturally carried into my Monday at Pacific Heights. I do all the ordering for the dogs and cats for the hospital out there. I can always hear some of the pooches whining from their individual cages, as I’m walking in: “I know how you feel…but they’ll fix you up in no time.”

This hospital is the 24 hour one. I toyed with the idea of coming right in (when I got up at 3), but when I finally started to doze, that concept won out over any crazy idea of getting my work done earlier.

While I was no doubt happy to get 3 more hours of Zzzz’s it still made the day punchy. The two cups of coffee were of great importance. I stayed wired and focused long enough to get it all in. And what is it about those kind of days that cause other people to stop and ask you all kinds of questions about x and y, when you’re working on z. That said, it still a major life upgrade from working the graveyard shift for the government.

Back at home, I can kick my feet up, pet on my own dog and take it easy. Yay!

June 18, 2019 0

Show Must Go On

We’ve got our planning underway for a bit of a quick theater jaunt in the fall. London and New York are the easy targets and mid-October is the earliest and most reasonable $$ flight wise to go.

I mean a guy can’t live on only sports forever, there is a UK adaption of Falsettos and they’ve turned that old sci-fi flick Solaris into a stage drama. Additionally, they are making the show: There’s something about Jamie, into a film. It might be time to finally catch it live.

In NYC we will work the TKTS booth to get reasonable seats to shows. Tootsie is definitely on my list. My friend Joel will also be there. It should be great fun.

I’ll also visit my mom on the trip. It’s been a year. It’s time. And Garry gets to see his sister, who lives on the upper east side. I will insist to take the 2nd Avenue line (subway). I like taking it to commemorate all those folks who lived their entire life in the city, having been told they’re going to do it one day and then it was: on again, off again. There are city people, that didn’t live long enough to see it happen (like my dad).

It almost makes you want to turn into a Rhinoceros and trample city hall but enough about Ionesco and may ACT (American Conservatory Theater) never walk down that path again. As a young man who was impressed with the playwright, I had never seen a live production of his work…until Thursday. It was the wrong venue.

The backdrop was a curtain painted like where they were in the particular scene. Anytime an actor passed through it, it swayed and you couldn’t help but pay attention to that. The actors on stage were decent but they each were in their own little show. Did they know they were onstage with each other? Maybe, they were mesmerized by that curtain, which was bigger than any rhino.

With ACT, we will try once in a blue moon. We had a subscription at SF Playhouse but didn’t renew because there wasn’t enough to interest us, in the new season. Locally, we got a subscription with New Conservatory Theater. Their list of shows for 2019/2020 looks good.

June 16, 2019 0