Just Passing Time Before The Afterlife

Just checked in with the Marquis de P., who runs the print production show here at L.TV HQ. He said I might as well come in every day this week. That is significant because it makes two straight full freelance weeks, after a month or so when I was only able to garner four days a week of work. Combine that with my recent spurt of catering, plus some editing work that I am doing for a friend, and it's all I can do to contain my lust for life.

But seriously folks. I am tired today as the midpoint of my shift is approaching, dragging ass after working a party last night at St. B's. Yesterday I worked at LT from 9:30 to 4:00, then hightailed it uptown to 98th & Fifth, arriving at just after 4:30. The scheduled event was a sit-down dinner in the gymnasium for around 100 new parents. Someone said Gifford Miller, former New York city council speaker was there, so he must have a kid starting school there. But I covered three tables along with one other person and I don't remember seeing him.

Actually, sitdown dinner means it's more like waiter service, as opposed to an easier buffet style shizzle. So the honored guests were feted with not only a cocktail hour, but then a salad, main course and coffee & dessert, all of which had to be brought to the table. By the way, the plates themselves are usually piping hot, which takes some getting used to. You also have to make sure their wine and water glasses are full, and just be generally attentive to their dining needs. Now, if you think all the fancy tablecloths & candles & wine pouring meant that at the end of the night we saw some sort of cash-denominated gratuity coming our way for all our hard work, you unfortunately were sadly mistaken. But we did get a decent meal out of it, which has to count for something.

We were out of there at around 10:30 after clearing all the tables, folding them up, stacking the chairs and putting them away, getting all the plates and silverware and glassware boxed and put away. We had a good crew though of around 10, including Mike, Isiah, Ed (captain), Quentin and that real low talking Asian guy whose name I can never recall, as well as some attractive females, led by the suddenly popular Ashley, whose winsome good looks and engaging personality cannot be overstated. That was the second time I worked with her recently, and I spent a large portion of the night thinking of ways to stay close to her side, or her front or even back. I spent other times trying to convince myself I might have a shot with her. You have to project a confidence, a self-assuredness, even a cockiness, if I can still use that word on the Internet, to have any chance at all. One thing attractive girls hate is neediness and desperation. I learned that lesson the hard way, if we ever can be said to really learn anything in this lifetime. Or maybe all learning is recollection, as one of the Greek philosophers whose name currently escapes me was wont to aver.

Anyway, I had trouble falling asleep when I got home, maybe overtired or too wired to hit the sack right away. I listened to the end of the MNF game on the radio, then watched an episode of Globetrekker starting at midnight on Channel 25, WNYE, which passes for one of my cable channels, along with Channel 31, the old Pax Channel, now calling itself Independent
Television, or the i network. Whatever. Lately they've been running a slew of bad 1970s TV fare, including reruns of Welcome Back Kotter, Charlie's Angels, Green Acres, Bonanza -- sort of like a poor man's TVLand! Last week I caught a Kotter where once-promising actor and future right-wing snot James Woods played what else but a teacher. (I just looked at the Channel 31 listings for this weekend, and Sunday they're showing a bunch of Clint Eastwood spaghetti westerns, including Fistful of Dollars and The Good, The Bad & The Ugly -- always a good thing.)

It was sometime after 2:00 by the time sweet sleep snuck upon me unsuspectingly, and just after 7:00am when my trusty clock radio sprang to life, for some reason set to the dreadful Lite-FM station.

And that brings us up to date. Back today at L.T., where it's been slow, with nothing passing my desk all morning. I've got a few other projects I have to do some research on, but otherwise I remain blessedly free of obligations and responsibilities -- free to live, free to be, free to blog. I know it's times like these when you all wish you could be me, but don't be a hater: it's unbecoming and looks tawdry on you. Peace out...