Monday, March 2 – Sunday, March 8
The Week in Snapping Out of It: I am 7 days out from leaving a job I didn’t anticipate I’d have to leave and realizing I’ve stepped away from the dark side and demons. Out from under that pressure, here in the light, I have been very busy; the perfect kind of busy though. I’m getting things done for me and for my friends. Like a frog in water that slowly gets hotter, I didn’t realize how much harmful negativity I was mired in until I walked away. And friends, let me tell you, I was not unaware. What a difference a week makes. Be nice to each other!
The Week in Something New: Since I moved downtown I’ve toyed with the idea of being a beer seller at the Reds stadium, that is a beer tender/server, not one of those folks lugging a cooler up and down the stadium stairs. Yikes!
This year the job change made me revisit that idea. Apparently the agency in charge of concessions hires a ton of people to work throughout the season on a flexible schedule. No one is expected to work every home game. The pay is decent. The tips are variable (worse because the current credit card system doesn’t allow tipping). The atmosphere is super fun. I’m in. See you at the Ball Park.
The Week in Seasonal Brews: As the Reds get Spring Training underway, the local breweries get in the baseball mood with their baseball brews. I’ve not seen Madtree’s Rounding Third yet, but I grabbed the first pack of Rheingeist’s The Hustle. These are pretty limited offerings, so I’m glad to be on top of it. Spring is here!
The Week in Small Business: I made it to BlaCk Coffee (The capital C in the middle is accurate) an independent coffee lounge inspired by hip-hop culture. It’s a small, bright space on the corner of 8th and Elm with friendly service, and an unusual and welcome r&b centered musical playlist setting the tone.
The Week in Family and Awkward: Communicating in my family features the often awkward combination of speaking our minds freely and not necessarily being aware if it is the right time or place to take that liberty.
Case and point (be prepared people, you have been warned): In the car on the way to Sunday Lunch/Errands with my Mom today, she started talking about…um…uh…well…(deep breath)…her and my Dad’s sex life. (I’ll give you a second…) Granted, it was the most charming and sweet sex discussion you can imagine, but still.
Not sure what triggered her to start talking about her marital relations, but she started by talking about when she and my Dad went to consult with the Rabbi before their marriage. She said, the Rabbi told them there are more rooms in the house than the bedroom. Not taking that as intended (don’t forget to pay attention to each other’s needs outside of sex), apparently, per my Mom, she and my Dad decided to test the other rooms in the house theory literally, as in they should have sex in all the other rooms of the house. This changes a lot about my family home. Oh well.
Anyway, I don’t always drink at lunch, but when I do it’s because I had a flash image of my Mom and Dad having shower sex. By the way, my Mom does not recommend shower sex.
The Week in Unemployment – Three Things:
- One of the many great things about unemployment is the clothes I can wear. At work (The Man) would call it a dress code and use it as another form of suppression. Here in the free world I can cover my bits any way I see fit. One day this week I accidentally created a game because I wore the same shirt as the day before. I spent the day avoiding people and places who may have seen the shirt already. That was my entire goal for the day. As far as I know, I kept my laundry secret!
- At about 6 pm on a Saturday night I checked my emails as I put on some Saturday Night Gettin’ Ready to Go Out Music. I opened an email from a place I had applied to for a new job. One of the three short sentences read: “We have found your application suitable.” Seems like they’re already disrespecting my time and my skills and I’m not even on the payroll. No thanks! 😜
- Book and a Taft’s Hazelnut Coffee Milk Stout for Happy Hour. Did you know it’s still Happy Hour even if you didn’t work all day???
The Week in Organization: I got to put my organization skills into use today helping a friend get a roomful of her Dad’s belongings into manageable piles. Going through someone else’s stuff is emotional but I’m weirdly good at it. One key is remembering that if someone set something aside to keep, it meant something to them. Much needs to be thrown away because it isn’t important anymore, but the key to this type of clean out is not forgetting the person who saved the item in the first place.
I loved coming across a stash of little notebooks and writing tablets (many with one or two pages of her Dad’s handwriting). I also loved the contents from his desk that included his work snack…canned sardines he ate with the mayo he had dozens of packet of. Seriously, who eats sardines as a desk snack?? (p.s. I’m sure he ate them with gusto!!)
The Week in Pre-Panic: It’s gross out there. Soap will help, but we are in for a few weeks of a Covid-19 emergency.
Nothing Ever Happens on My Street 