"I May Be 'Twisted'.......But I Am Not 'Spineless"...................And I've Got The Pictures To Prove It!...................."

Good Afternoon;

This really is an incredibly informative website:

www.facebook.com/invisiblepeopletv

check it out.

So I spoke with one of my doctors yesterday and she hit me with a 'By The Way'.... as in "By the way...I forgot to mention that the MRI/CT/X-RAY regimen you just went through also showed that you have Scoliosis....We'll talk later"

....Ah...Well...Um...Gee, Thanks for telling me, and you have nice weekend too!.....

I left here and went to Starbucks last night and when I went to the register to order my coffee Josh, one of the barristas says wait he has something for me, and pulls out his wallet and hands me a $10.00 bill and tells me it is from Stuart, one of the regulars who I talk with, a quiet little old guy who lives in Roland Park, and who lost a packet of 100 Forever stamps worth $44.00 dollars the other night. In the packet was also a receipt for a package he had mailed with his address and name. I found his phone number and left messages that I had found something of his and he could pick it up at the coffeeshop. I met him on Wednesday evening and gave him his stamps and he offered to buy me a coffee, which I already had, then a pastry, again which I already had. I told him to 'keep it on account for me' for one of those days when i was flat broke and needed a coffee, and we just talked the rest of the night. He told Josh that he wanted to get something to me before Thanksgiving so that's why he left me the $10.00. I could have resold or returned the stamps for their full value, (and would have if I could not locate the true owner), but it really is much more gratifying to make a little effort and do the right thing, not expecting any reward, (but not refusing if any compensation is offered either...lol). Doing the proper thing seems in some way to validate my existence, regardless of the level of subsistence, and the emotional returns are intrinsically more substantial then the financial.

On the Invisiblepeopletv site is a story of a homeless man who returned a backpack with $3300.00 in it. There is follow-up story on the outpouring of offers of assistance the first story brought. I once found an obscenely large amount of cash years ago, which was obviously either a drug dealers stash or a sting operation setup.....as the saying goes, "I dropped it like it's hot" and "Got the hell outta Dodge"!.....lol!

Last year I had a string of cell phone and wallet 'findings' where I contacted the owner and in every case but one, (where I was in a hurry to get to an appointment and just left the phone at the courtesy desk at the Giant), they offered something to me, either cash or paying my tab, or paying for my groceries, or like one woman did when she saw that even the cash was still in her wallet...a room for the night in a motel, (though she chose NOT to share it with me.....LOL!). For a streak of about 3 months it became a weekly or every 10 day thing, then the Keno gods took me under their wing for a while, recently though it's been a dry spell....the recession must even be hitting Mt. Olympus and Valhalla pretty hard too...LOL!

When I got to the shed last night, about 10:30 pm., the door was open, HOPEFULLY by the wind, and next to the shed under cover and partially hidden by some machinery were 2 plastic bags, one with a pillow, and the other with a quilt or sleeping bag. This is in a place where I have found pieces of anti-shoplifting security devices dumped and sometimes a bag of clothes and other crap. I double braced the door last night and am in the process of constructing a better, (and inconspicuously hidden from the outside, but easily manipulated), way to secure the door when I leave.

I fell asleep very early and woke at 3:33 am., and again at 8:30 am. when I started to get up and head out. I took my morning meds and lay down for a 'minute'....and it was 11:30 am. all of a sudden.

I hit the Giant for a coffee, and came here to the library, and now time is up and I'm heading out to get some breakfast, (at 2:30 pm....LOL!), and over to the Starbucks to shave and change clothes.

Later.........Dave

"I Can See Clearly Now...................."

Good Evening;

Gee it sucks to be able to say that at 4:30 pm. as it is getting dark already!

Oh, well....After I ran in and out of here yesterday morning I eventually got to BCCC and the dental clinic, no thanks to the delightful morons riding the MTA. Grown men and women, college students no less, who cannot complete a sentence without half a dozen profanities scattered through it. Ignorant mannerless drones babbling on their cell phones with one hand, and the other holding up their pants, which are belted around their thighs...the males; or the other shoved in their face...sucking their thumbs!!...the females, (half of whom have infants doing the same thing)....(and whose language is fouler than many of the men)!

This is the 'Pride of Baltimore'.....the 'City That Breeds'...?

Anyway, I made it to the clinic and Michelle went to work with a hammer and chisel, (and the occasional pneumatic jackhammer....and at one point a small amount of TNT), and now all my upper teeth are smooth and free of calculus. (With all that she removed...I should of been a mathematician!....LOL).

I made it back to Jenn's about 5:30 pm. and watched the kids, showered and did laundry while she and Tom went to their respective meetings, (I had already shaved in the bathroom at BCCC and scrubbed my teeth before entering the clinic, it turns out the program administrator saw my name and mentioned she knew me from our school days...I am pretty sure we went from elementary to high school at the same time in some of the same classes. Now I have not seen her in 36 years at least....although it ain't much...I want to try to look my best if I run into her.....LOL!)

I had not planned to spend the night but my right ankle is all messed up from some unknown and unremembered twist or misstep, and the boots I wore for 2 days did not help at all. Once I had been sitting down it swelled like a balloon and I was going nowhere.

I rolled out fairly early this morning without my bags and went to East Baltimore to Monkee's and got meds enough to last through the end of the month. I then went up to Govans to Penn Optical and got my eyeglasses. For the first time in quite awhile I have "PERFECT"!! vision!...WOW! Everything was adjusted right the first time, and the frames are not in my line of vision at all.

I went back to Jenn's and packed up, and now I'm leaving here for the coffee shop.

Later..........Dave

"Now...........If Only I Could Find A Place To Park My Emotional Baggage..............."

Good Afternoon;

Here is a link to a USA Today article on what some cities are actually DOING!! to aid the homeless in a way that faces some of our real day to day needs.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-11-18-homelessstorage18_ST_N.htm

Off to the Baltimore City Community College Dental Hygiene School Clinic to submit myself to the tender mercies of Michelle and her WMDs...('Weapons Of Mouth Destruction')....LOL........!

Gotta run......back on Friday....and if I'm unable to talk.....I can still type...lol.

Dave

"Sunny.....................With A 65% Chance Of Psychotic Episodes!!................"

Good Afternoon;

Sorry, nothing witty or humorous to relate today, It's not a good day.

On top of the fact that for some reason everything hurts,(I've got to call Jenn's and see if the referrals/appointments to the neurosurgeon, hematologist, and pain management clinic have arrived in the mail yet!!), I'm also wearing a pair of boots that are so worn down that they make walking difficult. But they are dry. The ground is still too wet to wear the sneakers that double as sponges. I MAY....MAY... be going to look for shoes next Wednesday, if not then it will be the 30th at the earliest.

My feet are, (and have been since I was a child), a pain in the ass to fit properly, and the podiatrist said I have the flattest feet she has ever seen, so most shoes arches are painful to wear.

Yesterday I showered at Jenn's and went to the coffee shop. When I got back to the shed around 10:00 pm. I slipped in and lay down and went to sleep immediately. Then I woke up at 11:30 pm with a severe case of 'lower intestinal distress' to put it nicely, and barely got dressed and made it to the gas station bathroom in time. 40 minutes later i got back to the shed and took some meds that act as a motility limiter and tried to get back to sleep. Between the frequent, short but intense downpours and the wind that began to blow, with occasional gusts that shook the shed and tore pieces of the outer shell off....sleep did not come until near dawn. I was up at 8:30 am to use the 'tree' and got dressed and lay down 'for a second'...next thing I knew it was 11:30 am. I was going to go get my glasses, but I really don't feel up to it today. I just wish I had someplace to curl up and sit.

I'm off to the Giant to see what is on sale or clearance for breakfast, then over to the coffee shop in Mt. Washington to just kill time until I can go back and lay down.

As you can probably tell, the depression is coloring my mood today.....at least it's sunny.....a day like yesterday with all the voices in my head screaming as they are today.......I don't want to think about how or what I'd do to shut them up.....permanently.

Tomorrow, I'm going to the BCCC dental clinic to see Michelle in the afternoon, and sitting the grandkids in the evening. If I can get up I'm going over to York road to get my glasses in the morning, (I have a functioning pair, and the prescription change is relatively minor, so I'm not THAT pressed to pick them up), so I may not be back until Friday.

Later........................Dave

"Forever.................And a Day.............."

Good Afternoon;

I just read an article in the St. Petersburg Fla. Times about the homeless and their plans to deal with them. Did you know that the passed a law limiting the amount of possessions a homeless person may carry? There are people freaking out about how the homelesss population is up to 145 people in the city and how it is going to swell all the way up to 200 in the winter! One of the people doing the most complaining is the Dean of a Catholic church in downtown St. Pete. How about reaching out to help them Rev. Morris?

Okay, yesterday I went to Penn Optical to pick up my new glasses...only one problem, they are closed on Mondays! WTF?!? The business card does not say anything about being closed.

So that was a waste of time, 6 buses total, over to York Rd. and then I went back to the Starbucks. 3 hours of travel and waiting time.

I went back to the Giant with Jenn after her meeting and we talked about her upcoming trip to dover to see my mother. Rachel was supposed to go along with them and stay in the hotel with Jenn and Tom, and Ed and Devin but the 'ex' says she has a bit of a problem sleeping over if she or I are not there, unless it is at Bubby's house, (Rachel's maternal granmother). She gets all excited at the idea, then her face shows her fears. She had an incident at 2 different places this past year where she had a 'meltdown' and her mother had to come and pick her up. I think that Rachel and I will just spend the weekend at Jenn's together, petsitting instead, since there is no way I will be going to Dover.

I found 100 of the 'Forever' stamps in the bathroom at the coffee shop last night, 5 books at $8.80 a book....that's $44.00!, There is a Post Office receipt for a mailed package in the envelope with a name on it. I am going to try to contact the person. I think it is the same Stuart I talk to quite frequently. I'm going to return them to the owner in any case, if I can find them....maybe I can get a 'finders fee' of a free latte` or a couple bucks, like what happens with the cell phones I am always finding.

Okay gotta go, outta time and I'm on my way to Jenn's to shower and shave.

later..............Dave

The homeless aren't 'vagrants' - baltimoresun.com

Good afternoon;

The homeless aren't 'vagrants' - baltimoresun.com

The above is a link to a letter from Kevin Lindamood, vice president for external affairs & Jeff Singer president and CEO of,

Healthcare For The Homeless

on the attitudes & stereotypes toward homeless folks and

how certain words paint them with negative connotations.

Later...........Dave

"Slow Weekend......But...'Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut!'.........."

Good Morning;

It's a kinda grey, kinda chilly, kinda blue day....it's.....Monday!

Nothing exciting happened over the weekend other than on Friday night, (I never made it to York road to get my glasses, I just went to the coffee shop), when I saw Drew at Whole Foods to drop him off a copy of my little book of poetry he handed me a $20.00 bill and when I started to get $10.00 change for him he said keep it. That was a very kind and generous thing to do.

(I only ask $10.00..but if anyone offers more I'll attempt to honestly refund the difference, but I'm not going to be fanatical about it!....LOL!!)

Late Friday I went over to Jenn's after the kid's were asleep and crashed there so I could be there early on Saturday to ride herd on the little darlings while they got ready for and went to a wedding for Tom's cousin that he was also DJing at. It was not a restful evening, I just could not get to sleep for some reason until 5:00 am. I spent the day with the kids and I left there about 9:30 pm Saturday night, went to the shed and lay down and read for a bit and fell asleep with the lantern on. On Sunday morning I woke up about 6:30 am. took my morning meds and went back to sleep and woke up about 9:00 am. then just lay there until Noon feeling both exhausted and depressed. The cycle is bottoming out at last thank goodness and should begin it's uphill rise to what passes to 'normal', (or what I like to call...the "Journey To Ernie".....LOL.........I've been watching WAY too much Sesame Street!........LOL!). I ended up puttering and talking in the Giant, (Where I found $3.49 bags of miniature size Almond Joy candy bars for $0.87.... 75% off!! I just hope I can refrain fron eating all 60 bars at once.....LOL!), for an hour then went to the library. The waiting list for the computers was 25 people long so I just left and got on the buses to the Starbucks. I sat there for an hour or so and talked with my friend John Erby abour everything from the global economy to the piss poor job of editing and proof reading being done in the newspapers today, to the possibilities of doing some writing for the online site Examiner.com. I left there and went back to the shed where I fell asleep right away but woke upan hour later and again had trouble getting back to sleep. My fingers kept getting cold and numb, more so than just being affected by the temperature. I am waiting for the referral/appointment to the Neurologist/Neurosurgeon to arrive in the mail so I can get some definitive answers. I got here about 11:15 am and I'm about to leave for Penn Optical in a few minutes, and then head over to the coffee shop. As close as they relatively are, the bus routes are such that a lot of backtracking is involved....so I'm out of here. Back Tomorrow.

Later.......Dave

P.S. TEN..(10)..more days until the 2nd Anniversary of my "Exercise In Exorcism" here and the 'Hit Meter' is at 8,919 ....can we get to 9,000....or 10,000?

" 2 Minute Warning.........&............Badges!?!....We Don't Need No Stinking Badges!!................"

Good Morning;

Well nothing exciting to report, other than my new glasses are ready and I'm going to try to pick them up this afternoon.

Wednesday after leaving here I went to the coffee shop and Whole Foods, where I ran into my friend Allan sitting at the table by the exit door with his head down on the table. He told me he lost his balance and fell, (he just got out of inpatient re-hab after receiving his new prosthetic foot and leg 2 weeks ago), but he was okay. I had food on the table at the Starbucks so I told him to call me if he needed any thing and I'd be right over. When I looked a little while later his car was gone, so i assumed he was alright. When I tried to call yesterday afternoon I could not get an answer though, nor this morning...now I'm worried. I guess I'll keep trying until I find something out.

From Starbucks to the gas station where I attempted to attract the grace of the Keno gods once again, (they have been markedly absent recently), ...no luck, I guess they are still on vacation...lol!, then to the shed and sleep.

Yesterday I went over to Jenn's to do some laundry and shower. Tom had a DJ job and she took the kids out to a school fundraiser/dinner so I got some alone time, (with the Cable and the remote......I get lots and lots of 'alone' time...lol). I watched the ravens Falcons game up to the 2 minute warning, when I was forced to leave so I could catch a bus. The score was 20-14 Atlanta and I could find no one later on who had watched the end of the game. When I saw the paper when I went to the Giant this morning and looked at the final score...26-21 Atlanta!!! WTF did I miss in 2 damn minutes!!!!!

I'm done here, it's time to cruise all the sports web sites and look for video!!!.....LOL!!

(Then off to Penn Optical, and then to the coffee shop. After they close I'm heading over to Jenn's late tonight, after the kids are asleep, to crash because I'm 'monster sitting' on Saturday while she and Tom go to a wedding.)

But before I go....

Did anyone see the article in the Baltimore Sun about financial shenanigans in the Department Of Corrections regarding employees using the money in inmate accounts for their own purposes? Particularly in 5 Baltimore area prisons.

Well.....DUHHHH!!!

Ask any one who has ever been locked up, in some cases even just held overnight in Central Booking, about how money mysteriously 'disappears', or how long it takes for money orders to 'clear' before being available to inmates for commissary use.

In Central Booking, when one is being searched, (strip or not), the change in one's pockets seems to fall into a black hole somewhere. The amount credited on the 'Detainee's Possessions' sheet always seems to be in 'round' dollar amounts.

Also, one of the ways cigarettes and drugs are smuggled into the system is by Correctional Officers, (COs), who have inmates get their contacts on the outside to mail money to an address given by the CO. Let's not even talk about sexual favors.... And it comes as a surprise that the nick name of the department is...

"Department of Corruptions"

Later..........Dave

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Thanks....................Dave

"We Can Rebuild Him — We Have The Technology,"...................(But It's Cheaper Just To Scrap Him And Buy A Six Pack With The Cash)..........."

Good Afternoon;

Ok, To finish yesterday's list of hidden treasures discovered by a doctor who took the time to listen and order the proper tests...;

It turns out that I have not one but TWO hernias, one Hiatal, and one Umbillical.

Then she tells me that the colonoscopy I had a few months ago missed, (or was not looking for or concerned about), a shitload of 'colonic diverticula', which luckily are not infected at this time, meaning NO Diverticulitis, Thank God!

And of course the known 'bubble' or 'pouch' in my chest, a post surgical hernia..(I hope so, with my luck the surgeon dropped her Blackberry in there......LOL!), and the 'Post Surgical Neuropathy' from the damaged nerve nexus during the same thoracic surgery.

A Radiologist called into consult asked what pain meds I was on, Demerol..Morphine..Oxy-Contin?, When I told him none of them just the 2 mgs. of Buprenorphine, and Ibuprofen, he just shook his head and quoted Kipling..."You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din!"............LOL!

If I was still 'in the life' and running the streets, I'd be rich from the sale of all the pain meds I'd be able to legitimately get, and high as a kite too....lol.

But that is not an option nor a desire anymore...again...Thank God!

Next stop, the Neurosurgeon and the Hematologist, added to my list of referrals that include the shrink, and the addictions specialist so I can try to get my meds easier. (And if the skin on my legs does not improve from this latest cream....it's off to the Dermatologist too.)

It's a real bitch when you offer to leave your body to science when you die...and they tell you "No Thanks.....it's too beat up!"...........LOL!!

Last night I met Allan at the Starbucks and he gave me a ride back to the shed and we sat and talked for an hour or so and then I went into the shed and set up for bed. I settled in to read 'for a few minutes'...lol...and looked at the time and it was 2:30 am. I woke up about 8:30 am. and answered natures call and lay back down until 10:30 am.

I got up and went to the RiteAid to drop off my prescription refills and my new prescription for Zantac the doctor gave me Monday, that brings the daily total to 5 different meds each day. Which was about average back in the day.....lol., of course they fell into a different class known as "Recreational Phamaceuticals and Controlled Substances",......LOL!

I then went to the FedEx/Kinkos and made a couple copies of my little book of poetry that 2 people have expressed an interest in...(see sidebar at left, below the photos).

I just had a last minute reprieve from Jenn, she does not have to pick Ed up from school so i don't have to come by and babysit Devin, who is in one of her Nooooo!!!!! moods. I'm heading over to the Giant to grab something to eat and then to JAI to drop off a change of mailing address, (the 'ex' is moving and I'm going to use Jenn's since it is still in the same zipcode), then over to the coffee shop and Whole Foods to see if Drew is working to sell one of the copies of my poetry.

I'll be back tomorrow at some point,

Later....................Dave

" 'We Have To Talk'......AKA....The Four Words No Man Wants To Hear A Woman Say.....Especially If She's Your Doctor!!............................."

Good Afternoon;

So...I left here yesterday afternoon to stop by and see my doctor for what I thought would be a routine confirmation of known issues, verified by MRI, CT Scan, & X-Ray.....There I go thinking again...I should know better!....LOL!

First I saw the med. tech. for vitals etc., she was one of the cutest young ladies, with a great and slightly raunchy sense of humor I have ever met, and also had the most beautiful, smoothest, and darkest complexion I have ever seen. It was an amazing black so deep that it a had blue sheen in certain light conditions. She told me her parents had moved to Baltimore from Cameroon, and were both doctors at Hopkins and University of Maryland hospitals and she was starting med school in the fall to continue her career. As she was checking my blood pressure she got 2 very, very low readings on the computerized monitor that did not seem right so she used the manual sphygmomanometer, (I love that word...lol....and spell check come back with 'no suggestions'...lol!), and brushes up against a certain portion of my anatomy that has responded to her aura of beauty and sexuality with a normal physiologic reaction. She looked down and then looked me in the face and with out cracking a smile...said.."Oh THAT'S why the reading is so low!...Do you want me to leave the room so you can take care of it and then we'll try it again?"...we both burst into laughter until tears were running down our faces. Eventually, when our laughter and my other...uh....um....er.....'issue' had subsided and returned to normalcy my BP was just fine....LOL!

I saw the podiatrist and had my nails cut, chipped, and ground down to a reasonable level, and my circulation and nerve reactions checked, ( both normal), and had the large 'knot' behind the knuckle of my left big toe X-rayed, (with all the radiation I've absorbed in the past few weeks, it makes reading in the shed at night quite easy....lol!!), and the mass is osteo-arthrithic calcification, as suspected, and pressing on a nerve bundle, which was not expected.

I then waited to see Dr. Richardson my PCP for another 45 minutes. When I got into her office/exam room, she pulled out a ream of paper from my chart and began reciting and explaining the results from the MRI and CT. Because I'm running out of time here today..I'll be brief;

Cervical disk bulges in C1,C3, & C4, Degenerative Disk Disease, (deterioration) throughout the Spinal Column in varying degrees of severity, Stenoses in the L4, L5, and L6 vertebrae, Scoliosis, and a 'fatty tumor' on the Sacral nerve bundle just below the end of the Spinal Cord. Yeah..,welllll I guess we now know where all the numbness is coming from...don't we!

As they say in the late night TV commercials for Ginzu Knives...."BUT WAIT----There's MORE!!!"....(LOL);

My Liver is showing damage from the Hep C (that we knew about), in the way of fatty crepuscular masses. My Spleen in enlarged, as is the Prostate, (though Liver Function & PSA blood tests are within normal ranges).

Times Up...gotta go...

Dave

"What's Up Doc?......&......Time Bandits.......&.......'Programs...Get Yer Programs Here....You Can't Tell the Players Without A Scorecard'...."

Good Morning;

Well it's off to the doctor's office after I post this.

The numbness and tingling in my leg(s) is worrying me to the point that I'm going to walk in and wait. Last night my right foot just would not get warm and still feels weird. I also plan to see the podiatrist and have my nails looked at.

Yesterday I woke up as most of us did slightly disoriented by the time change back to EST. I fell asleep on Jenn's couch at 1:48 am. Saturday night/Sunday morning and woke up an hour later at 1:48 am......it took a few minutes to figure that one out....LOL. There was a movie listed on the cable that started at 12:15 am. and ended at 1:15 am. that I had been watching for well over an hour....took me a few minutes to see that the time change had been compensated for already....ain't technology wonderful...lol.

I left Jenn's and went to the Starbucks around 2:00 pm. on Sunday and sat out back in the sunlight constantly moving my chair farther and farther down the lawn, and right and left as needed, to stay in the Sun and out of the shadow of the various buildings and the old smokestack, until it finally dropped behind the last roofline for good. I figure to start a pre-emptive, if ultimately futile battle against S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder), as early and long as possible. I do much better in the lower latitudes!...lol!

Last night the depressive cycle I deal with started it's decline, it varies between a gentle slide to a fairly high and highly functional bottom, and a nose dive to the gateway to Hell and a 50-50 chance of a permanent crash and burn or being able to pull up and out of a flat spin and a controlled wheels up belly landing.

This time the darkness came on like the 3 foot thick, 25 ton, nuke proof Blast Door at Norad's Cheyenne Mountain Hq.;.......At first slowly and imperceptibly moving, but inexorable and unstoppable....inevitable as time and inescapable as gravity, picking up speed and slamming shut with a dull thud and the echo of impending doom. The different personalities usually dueling for dominance inside my skull each react in their own unique way, from curling up in a fetal position either to ride out the coming storm, or in denial of reality...to erecting the facade of normality to hide behind and fool the world, or donning the cloak of bravado and bluff, or.....rising above the fog and mist of illusion and the smoke and dust of the juggernaut of broken dreams and crushed hopes, impotent to change or affect events, but able to watch and chronicle their approach, occurrence and passing.

It get's confusing and crowded at times when you cannot discern your personalities from your hallucinations....lol.

Anyway.....gotta run.....

Doctor,.....then most likely the coffee shop,

then a ride back to Pikesville with Jenn,

and a stop at the gas station and into the shed.

Tomorrow, (if I'm able), I think it's the Dental Hygiene Clinic...

in the morning this time....ugghhh!

Later.....Dave.

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Good Morning;
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Thanx.........Dave

"SpongeBob FungusFoot!!......................."

Good Morning;

Well it has been a week of running here and there for appointments and babysitting duties. It seems that 75% of the time was spent on the buses and trains just traveling back and forth.

Tuesday morning down to Monkee's in the morning to get meds., then to Jenn's to watch Devin while Jenn picked up Ed from school, then over to the Starbucks. As I stepped outside that evening about 8:00 pm. to make my goodnight call to Rachel I saw a familiar figure slowly hobbling across the parking lot towards a car. I went over and it was my friend Alan coming from the Whole Foods. We went over to the coffee shop and sat until close and then he gave me a ride to the shed, where we sat in his car for a few minutes talking and finishing catching up. We covered everything from his stay in re-hab as he was fitted for his new leg and foot and the therapy involved, to his mother's death a few days before he was discharged, to old jobs and old girlfriends. When I looked at the clock in his car it was 10 minutes of 2:00 in the morning!! We spent almost 5 hours sitting in the cold talking, and it felt like only 30 minutes had passed....lol.

I went into the shed and prepared for bed and my right foot and leg, (and to a lesser extent the left also), became alternately numb and cold, the kind of cold that feels 'hot'. It went down below 30 degrees that night and although the rest of me was nice and warm...I could not get my foot comfortable. I had padding and insulation under it and had socks on, and the feet were covered with the bag and a blanket plus an extra wrapping of another blanket. When I stood up and went out to use the 'tree' (...lol...) the foot would begin to warm up and the 'tingling ' began. When I was in the dental chair the Thursday getting x-rays the left leg and left hand and lower arm kept 'falling asleep'. It has to be either a nerve or circulatory problem, and I have an appt. Monday at the doctor, (my PCP)

On Wednesday I stopped over Jenn's to shower and leave my bags and headed to both the opthamologist and (I'm back finally, 10 and 1/2 hours after I started this post...lol. I lost track of time this morning and had to run and get the bus to Jenn's, and between dealing with the grandmonsters and doing laundry and bathing, plus having Rachel come over, and when she left the car and ran down the sidewalk to see me she fell and skinned both knees. The 'ex' came out of the car and I carrried her into the apartment and we cleaned and put Neosporin on the wounds. Rachel got very emotional and said that her knees were hurting her about 15 minutes after the 'ex' left, and she wanted to go back home to her mother's, so we called her up and they came back and got her. By then it was dinner time for the kids and then tom and Jenn stopped in to change clothes and head back out.....and it's 10:30 pm. and I'm just getting on the laptop........) then the optometrist and optician for new glasses. The determination was that the problem of waking up and not being able to see that I had a couple weeks ago was not a direct opthamologic or ocular issue, and most likely neurologic in nature. Which I kind of figured from past history. I came back to Jenn's grabbed my bags and went to the coffee shop until it closed. I ran into a gentleman named Jeff Singer, President and CEO of Healthcare For the Homeless, who I had met and talked to, casually, socially last spring. It was nice talking to someone with an idea of why a person like myself stay away from shelters, and understands the ruluctance to come into certain organizations to ask for help, without having to try to explain and ending up on the defensive, as happens so often with other well meaning but non-comprehending people. They then get angry or disgusted and turn their backs when you see them again somewhere.

I came back out to the shed about 11:00 pm. and it started to pour, all night and most of the next day. The shed stayed dry in my area, (and I had a drip loop on the extension cord...just in case....lol! Got that from you and the fish tanks, Craig....lol!)

On Thursday morning it was raining steadily and my feet were soaked before I made it to the bus stop. Turns out the last thin layer of rubber had worn away and the foam insulation was exposed to the street. It was not noticable when it's dry out, but when the ground is wet I'm walking on 2 sponges! Wonderful.....now I've got cultures growing between my toes for the tropical biology research labs...lol.!

I stopped at Jenn's to shower and leave my bags then went to the BCCC Dental Hygiene Clinic to meet Michelle for my 1:00 appt. More x-rays, (when the students AND!! the Radiology Instructor herself cannot get the sensors in position and/or stay in position, there must be a problem with the system.....so why do the students get a 'fail' if they have to re-take the x-rays???)

She had to make an alginate mold of my mouth and teeth, (2!, upper and lower!), and with a stuffy nose that I could not breathe through, (while the Clinic's Dentist kept stating and restating, "Breathe deep, breathe through your nose......"), and my sensitive gag reflex, (good thing I'm not gay.....LMAO!!!), combined with my extreme distaste for spearmint, (which the casting material was saturated with), it was loads of fun......NOT!!....lol! Luckily I only nearly choked to death, with no 'Technicolor Yawn' to decorate the lab with....lol. The rest of the session was Nirvana by comparison....lol. I got back to Jenn's and she asked me to stay the night and watch the kids as she and Tom were going in different directions to different meetings, so I did. Michelle texted me with an urgent plea begging me to come back at 3:00 pm. on Friday if at any way possible, and of course I agreed. For some reason I could not get to sleep thursday night and kept getting up to use the batroom and turning the TV on and off and on and off again.

On Friday morning I showered and packed up and Tom gave me a pair of sneakers he never really wore in what is usually my size, but which felt small and tight, so I put the now dry sneakers of my own on...and avoided any damp spots on tghe pavement and stayed off the grass. I'll see if they fit better after I see the podiatrist on Monday, and she works on my nails again with the heavy construction equipment...lol. I stopped at the library to return and renew books and headed to Friday's session at BCCC. It was much less stressful and I got to have my picture taken, digitally, with a tiny camera on the end of a wand shoved into my mouth....technology....Oy Vey!!!

Michelle took me out to dinner at the Paper Moon Cafe in Remington, which was the site of one of our first dates 10...no, 11 years ago. It is still as Brightly painted and funky as ever with toys hanging or glued to any and all available surfaces...and the food is excellent! She got the Portabello and Havarti Griled Cheese sandwich with Sweet potatoe fries and I got the Chicken with Avocado, Bacon, and Tomato sandwich with regular fries. Yummmmmm! She dropped me off at the Starbucks a few hours later and I closed it up and caught the buses to the shed and slept like a log for the first time in a while. I got up at 10:00 am. this morning after waking at 6:00 am. or so to kill the weeds.....organically, I'm doing my small part to 'Go green'......lol!, and going back to sleep.

I went to the Giant and bought some grond beef for burgers at Jenn's and stopped at the library, where I started this post, lost track of time until she texted me asking my ETA......and we're up to speed now!!....lol. I'm spending the night because Jenn and Tom went to the memorial service for Tom's friend and boss, and then had to drop off some DJ equipment to the person filling in tonight, (Johnny Dark....the DJ from WCAO in the '60s and '70s...he was the big cheese in pop radio in Baltimore back then.....I remember cruising all night long to him in my mother's yellow 1969 Chevelle Malibu with the black vinyl roof back in the day.....yeah I know some of you reading this out there who have recently reconnected with me remember that car..(Heidi&Terry??....Mike??......Patti??....I know you were all in it....and maybe Craig..or had I totaled it just before we met???...lol!).

Anyway, the battery is dying and I'm gonna sign off now.

Sunday's plans are still a mystery to me....

Later.............................Dave

"Timeeeeeee Slippppppp"

Good Afternoon;

Well.....Again I'm pressed for time,

and the library will be closed before I'll be able to get back here.

Michelle texted me at 9:00 pm. while I was monstersitting the grand kids and sked could I please, please come back in today at 3:00 pm to the BCCC dental clinic.

Of course there is no way I'll ever be refusing a request to se her for any reason....

so I'm on my way out the door to the bus stop at the end of this post......lol!

I spent the night at Jenn's since she and Tom did not get home until late. It has been one hell of a year for Tom regarding friends and relatives passing away. Iam babysitting again tomorrow while they go to a service for his best friend's father, (who Tom also worked for part time DJing)

Gotta run............... Dave

"One Person....One Vote!".........(per category, per day......everyday!....[until Nov. 12th].....)............."

Good Afternoon;

So, the voting for the Mobbies has begun.

If you wish to cast your vote for our little piece of cyber-space;

just click on the title to this post and you will instantly, (depending on your ISP and connection speed......lol), whisked away to the Baltimore Sun's "Best Blog In Baltimore" page. The blog is listed in 3 categories, 'Humor', 'Personal', and 'Misfits', and you can vote once a day in each, plus for Best Overall.

No prizes other than bragging rights, but WTH!!..................LOL!

Later.................Dave

"Short And TweeT............................."

Good Evening;

Just have a minute here on the laptop at Jenn's.

Yesterday at the eye doctors and optician, today at the dental clinic, busy, busy.

Back tomorrow, hopefully, after the doctor at JAI.

Later...........Dave

"One Helluva Halloween!..................OR...............No Amount Of Visine Is Going To Fix THAT Case Of Red Eyes!.................."

Good Afternoon;

So I got to the library yesterday and only had time to check my e-mail before I had to jump on the bus to Jenn's because Rachel was coming over at 2:00 pm. and we were spending a few hours together alone while they were all at Jenn's mom's house in Westminster....(of course the 'ex' did not get her there until almost 3:00 pm., but that's typical....She brought me a piece of mail dated the 20th of October that stated that one of my physcians needed me to immediately get in touch with her about some test results.....and of course she is not there today...

...Great...another 2 days of 'anticipation stress'...just what I need!).

Rachel wore her maroon and gold sateen dress with the wire hoop at the bottom hem to hold it out. This is her Halloween costume/Renaissance Fair out fit, Tom took pictures and I should have them soon to post.

Rachel left just after 4:00 pm. as they were going to her grandmother's house for dinner and we will be getting together again sometime again this week. I get my little bit of monthly cash tomorrow, hopefully, and after expenses and necessaries, what's left is going to be for her and I.

I left Jenn's just before 9:00 pm. as they were coming in, and I went over to the subway and rode the train and a couple buses to see all the crazies out in costume.

It is one of the few times during the year that the 'thugs' can wear their masks and get away with it so it was no surprise when I saw a group cross the street and begin to approach me as I waited for a bus later that night at the Plaza station. After last years confrontation leaving Monkee's house I was not going to be caught out again so I prepared my self by making sure I was 'strapped'.....(No, not with a gun, I am not allowed to carry a gun and that would be illegal, and I never, never, ever break the law any more..hee...hee...hee).....with a device I read about in one of the books I've greatly enjoyed, that I borrowed from a commercial/industrial photographer friend. It is a zillion, (I don't know the exact rating, but supernova would be close...lol), candlepower Xenon flash with a HUGE multi-capacitor storage unit, (somewhere in the Death Star range), for quick, continuous firing.

As the young gentlemen began to spread out to encircle me, but before they opened up too far, I held up the flash unit, closed my eyes and said, "Say Cheese Mother f*ckers" and fired off all 5 flashes in the first storage unit. As they were clawing at their eyes and running into one another I took off across the street and up to the platform and jumped on the first train pulling out. I switched trains at the next station and headed back to the Plaza, and as the train pulled out again I saw 2 police cars with their 'oh sh*t' lights flashing, and a bunch of cops standing around half a dozen handcuffed young gentlemen lying face down on the ground, and what looked like to be an assortment of weapons arranged nearby.

Like the literacy ads say:

"Reading Is FUNdamental"!!!

I rode the train up to Old Ct. station and caught the bus to Reisterstown Rd. and the Giant, where I stopped in and used the rest room. While I was in there I was accosted, (in a nice mildly inebriated way...lol), by a man in a Tinkerbell costume...(really!!), who says "Hey I saw you on TV, my 'friend' knows you!.......Wanna come to a Halloween party?!" He went on to explain that it was the annual "Fruits, Flakes, and Nuts over Fifty" alternative lifestyles party that he and his partner had been throwing for a few years for their friends who had outgrown the club scene and wanted to continue to party, just at a lower atmosphere, as he put it with a wink. Since it was within walking distance if I felt like I needed to leave, I said WTF let's go! I ended up staying until 4:00 am.! It turns out that his partner was someone who I went to school with from 1st grade through High School. He, now SHE was a brilliant, sensitive, & near genius and virtuoso child prodigy musician who both looked and was very effeminate, and because of that and his intelligence and skills was picked on and bullied. Having had my share of being ostracized I tried to defend him when I could and we became not exactly friends but friendly allies. There were times when his wit and my bulk combined to trick or trap the bullies in retaliation and sometimes as a prophylactic measure. Anyway, Mark, now Margie, is someone I have not seen since graduation day 36 years ago. The party was mix of straight and gay folks of every persuasion, all over 50 and mostly committed couples. It was a night of interesting conversation, and ran the gamut between extremely intelligent and thought provoking ideas....and alcohol primed low brow hilarity. I had a good time and drank intelligently and ate as if food was being discontinued the next day!!...lol! One of the attendees was a restaurant owner and bon vivant who catered the affair. Their were dishes plain and fancy from all over the globe and some weird but wonderful matings! Carpaccio wrapped around baby oysters seared in lemon tarragon and served with a tiny dollop of fresh grated horseradish, Carnitas dipped in Queso, mini Spanakopita and a dill yogurt, toasted Basmati rice cups filled with a pureed vegetable curry, Extra ripe cantaloupe wrapped with Prosciutto, Smoked salmon with horseradish cheddar in puff pastry, Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.....Burp...Oooops..Excuse Me!

I have been having some very strong feelings recently about wanting to "DO" something useful on a large scale. I have been dreaming in and off for many months about kidney transplants, and being part of one of those 'round robin' multi person transplants. Don't ask me why, but it keeps recurring.

Well, as I was sitting in the Starbucks Saturday evening I look up and see a man with a walker coming across the floor toward me. I thought nothing of it and went back to my book when it hit me "Holy Sh*T....That's Alan!!!".

And it was my friend Alan who I've mentioned frequently in the past and have not seen since the end of January when the infection in his foot that would not heal and the complications from MRSA caused the doctors to remove his left foot and part of his leg below the knee, and then he ended up with congestive heart failure and his kidneys had shut down, now he is on dialysis. (Hmmmmmm? Eerie of what?). This was his first night out on his own after getting his prosthetic foot and leg and leaving the re-hab hospital/nursing home on Friday evening. He said he was taking a chance I'd be there and by luck and synchronicity I was. We talked for the next two hours and I walked over to Whole Foods with him acting as him pack mule.....lol! We talked some more until closing and then he drove me back to the shed and we sat for another hour trying to catch up on the past 9 or 10 months.

He left, I hit the gas station and then the shed and now you are pretty much all caught up I think. Last night was the first night that I would call 'cold' for real, (not just my body's reaction), and I ended up putting on a hoodie. I think it was even chillier this morning than at midnight. I was up at 7:00 am. to meet my friend and return his flash unit and then I went back to the shed and took my meds and let them put me back to sleep, instead of staying up since it was too early to do anything. Yeah...the weekend caught up to me bigtime! It was 1:45 pm. when I finally stumbled my way to consciousness again and got to the library!

I'm leaving now for Jenn's to watch the grand monsters while she and Tom go to meetings tonight. I understand that the little darlings have been quite a bundle today.....ah well....Pop-Pop to the rescue with that old standby Duct Tape!!!

I also have to eat, which I have not felt the need to do until now...lol!

Though the lack of coffee is noticeable, now the question is do I or don't I want to drink some so late in the day?

Tomorrow morning I have to be at Monkee's at early dash thirty o'clock, so I really don't want to stay up all night, and the book I am reading is very conducive to doing so. Jenn dose have some decaf, but it is that green label instant stuff in a jar...(retch...gag...retch)...but maybe if I mix it with some real drip coffee half and half....?

At any rate, I'm outta here, see you at some point tomorrow.

I think I'm going to stop by Jai and see if I can get squeezed in to see the doctor without too much of a wait by taking the letter with me.

Wednesday noon is the eye exam, and Thursday afternoon I'm back at the dental clinic. (I finally got in contact with Michelle and she was very sick but is much better now, and the front desk lost her call in message to the school, which caused the confusion and worry....good thing for computerized phone logs to prove yopu DID call somewhere, even if it only a record of the time and date of the call!)

Later.........................Dave

"Cold Feet, Warm Heart.......Or Just......Peripheral Artery Disease?.............."

Good Afternoon;

It is getting colder, so last night I spent some time re-paneling the shed with the boxes I had stored for that purpose. It was just a temporary quick fix until I get the motivation to tear out some of the old cardboard and refit the newer pieces and get a hold of some polyethylene sheeting and configure it and staple it to the roof and walls in such a way that the leaks all run down to one point where I am going to funnel the water into a piece of PVC pipe and out the wall.

It was cold but not so cold that my feet should have been as cold and uncomfortable as they were. I am still waiting for answers and results from the tests that were run last week. I don't know if it is a nerve or circulation issue, but my ankles feel 'tight', but they are not retaining water like an edema. My hands and fingers are also a concern that must be addressed.

Yesterday Devin and I had a ball and we got to watch Strawberry Shortcake and My Little Pony too, (my trade off for being allowed to watch the Noon news in peace.....lol).

I rolled out of there about 4:00 pm. after showering and grabbing my last 'markout' sandwich from her 'fridge. Now I'm working on the last few in the freezer, which should last me through Monday. (I have my can of Octopus in Garlic Sauce if all else fails....LOL!...really, I grabbed it one day at the Giant on impulse, planning to either make a salad or pasta with it over Jenn's and keep forgetting it!) On Tuesday I'll have a couple bucks left after 'necessaries' for one actual meal somewhere...lol.

I ran into my friend Michelle this morning, (the artist and MICA professor), and we tried to catch up a bit, but as usual she was on the run. I'm hoping that we can get together for a nice, long, relaxing talk over a couple of coffees over the school's holiday break. I'm heading over to Jenn's now to pack up my lunch and grab a bucket of coffee and head over to the Starbucks.

Tomorrow I'm going over there in the afternoon to hang out and shower while they are out and hopefully Rachel will be able to come and spend some time with me there.

Okay, I have to run now and get the bus. I may be back tomorrow when the library opens at 1:00 pm., before I stop by Jenn's.

Tonight it's back to the shed, after cruising past the construction site rolloff checking for castoff scraps of recyclable 'home improvement' materials.

Later........Dave

"Be Our Guest, Be Our Guest.................."

Good Morning;

Just time for a quick post right now, I have to get to Jenn's to babysit Devin.

It's time for another...'Tea Par-ee, Pop-Pop'!.....lol.

A Disney Beauty and the Beast 'Tea Par-ee' no less....no prizes for guessing who plays the Beast.....LOL!

I also have to call the doctor and see if there has been any diagnoses or determinations from the MRI and CT Scans done last week.

I woke up today with another temporary partial paralysis in my left hand and arm.

Oh Joy!!!, more problems.

I am hoping Jenn got a chance to wash my jeans with one of her loads, the weather is cooling off quite rapidly and they are my only pair of long pants left. Even though I am known for wearing shorts all winter long, that WAS in Florida, or here in Baltimore when my apartment, job, and lover were all in the same building..... as may imagine...I stayed in a lot.....LOL!

Today is early closing at the library, so I may not be back until Saturday morning.

Later.............Dave