Crazy Day

Yesterday was a "crazy day." I haven't had one of these in a long time. It started when I got an address wrong. I was supposed to go to 89th Street in Bay Ridge to pick up a new Dana Alphasmart for Jason to use at school. But instead of 89th Street I made the mistake of thinking I needed to go to East 89th Street and Avenue D in Canarsie. I headed over there very early hoping that I'd have time to pick up the Dana and then hurry back to Lucille Roberts and catch a morning class. As luck would have it, that just wasn't going to happen. Instead, when I reached my supposed destination I found myself in an industrial area, lots of truck and car oriented businesses around, but no sign of an office that remotely resembled a Department of Education office.

I called the woman I was supposed to meet and told her I was at Foster Avenue and East 89th Street and she gasped. "You're at the wrong end of Brooklyn!" she told me. She explained that I would need to take two buses and it would be at least an hour's ride out to Bay Ridge from Canarsie. In fact it took an hour and a half.

Since I was near Rosanne's house I called her and said I was just a few blocks away and would stop by for a few minutes. Rosanne was glad to hear from me. When I arrived I ran straight for the bathroom, and then Rosanne put up hot water and served me a cup of maple-flavored tea. We checked the ingredients and it had no sugar or caffeine in it so it was safe for me to drink. That's as close as I'm going to get to maple syrup or maple sugar in my lifetime, unless someone invents a sugarfree variety!

We checked on the computer and verified the route, and I also checked on how to get home from Bay Ridge. I had plans to meet Gloria at 1 PM on Kings Highway but I could see that wasn't going to work out. I called her and let her know we could meet at a different diner on Avenue U instead. Then I headed out and caught the B82.

I felt if was fated that I would get to see Rosanne that morning. She's been ill with cancer but she just had good news the day before that her tumors were shrinking in response to the new chemo drug. I was happy to be able to share that upbeat feeling with her.

On the B82 I found myself sitting next to an elderly man who launched into a tale of his difficulties with his eye doctor. It seems he has macular degeneration and the doctor told him he could not prescribe stronger glasses for him because they just were not going to help. Then he told me about his niece moving out of Long Island because the taxes were so high, and how they bought a house in North Carolina. All this without asking my name or giving me a chance to get more than a few words in edgewise. He must be a lonely fellow with not many people to talk to, so he talked nonstop until I reached my destination.

The second bus ride was quieter. The bus had padded seats and felt more like an intercity bus. Since I was going to the last stop, I read my book, Dean Koontz's "Seize the Night," which I will review here as soon as I'm finished with it. It certainly commands my attention. I felt like I was on an unguided tour of all of Brooklyn.

Finally I found the correct address and picked up the Dana. The old one was so battered that Pat couldn't even find the serial number, and she said it was not worth fixing, they would just discard it. She said nothing about charging us for it so I hope we won't get a nasty surprise at the end of the semester when Jason graduates.

I headed to the diner at Avenue U and even arrived there by 1 PM much to my surprise. Gloria didn't arrive until 2. In the meantime I drank decaf and wrote a draft of a letter of recommendation I needed a friend to sign for Jason so that Jason can apply for summer jobs through the government. Once Gloria arrived we had a lively conversation about our kids, and even about religion, one of the taboo three subjects. But we know how to avoid getting into a religious argument since we respect each other's viewpoints. The coffeeshop owners were tolerant, letting us sit there until 3:30 when I'd arrived two and a half hours earlier. Then again, I am somewhat of a regular there, and they weren't crowded.

When I got home I was exhausted and had a headache. Jason needed help with his college homework so I sat down and went over his paper with him. I kept getting phone calls from people from BSEC and I was getting frazzled. Then Bruce's computer crashed and Jason was frustrated, thinking he wouldn't be able to send his paper out before I left for the constitution meeting.

Finally, though, he was able to submit his paper and all was well. I did minimal editing on it and it seemed to me he is already improving his writing style and thought process. After that I ate a fast dinner and left for Ruth's apartment for the Constitution meeting.

We worked on the Committees bylaw, putting in many new requirements for committees such as reporting to the Board and presenting an annual budget of their necessary expenditures. We had much laughter and some great raunchy remarks by Bruce and Tony and a few from me also. I'm reminded of how much fun we used to have before the place was taken over in an illegal coup. With God's help (even though some of our group are atheists) we'll take it back again.

Today should be easier and that's a good thing because I sure need a rest!