that old gang of mineSeptember 5, 2005
As we were leaving Philosophy Larry's Labor Day cookout this afternoon Barbie asked if I was going to blog about it. I pointed out that the pyromaniac didn't try to burn their house down this time (though she was present) 'cause Labor Day involves neither menorahs nor fireworks. Not that there wasn't anything to write about, and I could blog about it if this were a blog, but ummm besides this not being a blog and my not being able to write what else is there except the absurd scenario of two middle-aged dykes leaving the party clutching fresh cucumbers from Larry's garden? Those were some cucumbers.
Philosophy Larry says he looks into the Starbucks that's where the Coffee Connection used to be and doesn't see any of the old gang to have coffee with.. Nobody goes there anymore; it's become too popular. With middle school kids! Anyway, it just ain't the same without Richard, who is in a nursing home immobilized with Parkinson's, and Dick (he who is not Richard) who passed away earlier this year. And David Bookstore moved to New Mexico and I have a day job and Tom's teaching schedule changes so often it's a wonder he has time to drink any coffee at all and who can afford coffee anymore anyway and wait a sec ... Philosophy Larry has had a confirmed David Bookstore sighting -- in a bookstore of all places but not the one where Larry works nor the one David used to own which is a nail salon now but a freakin' Barnes&Noble -- but he didn't get an address or phone number just a town, Silver City, New Mexico. Later I ask Frishman if he's heard from David Bookstore and he tells me he's moved to Tempe, Arizona (which is not near Bosnia -- oldtime readers of this oldtimey journal will get the Arizona is not near Bosnia thing without a hyperlink) but everybody else is under the impression it's Silver City, New Mexico and we could probably get the definitive truth and the phone number/address from Queen Isabella but though Philosophy Larry left him a phone message inviting him, he isn't here and hasn't been heard from. Anyway James Earl Jones thanks me for using Verizon Wireless' Local and National 411 but doesn't find a David Bookstore (where Bookstore was replaced with his actual last name for purposes of the phone call) in Silver City, New Mexico. Meanwhile, Tom wants to know if I've heard from Ned (of course I have !) and if so, how he is. Under my NNDA (Ned Non Disclosure Agreement) I can tell him that Ned has moved to Worcester and taken up painting but little else. Whipping out the cellphone, we dial Ned's cellphone and Tom leaves a rambling message on the voice mail. Nancy suggests we should continue our spiritual book club with a cardboard cutout of Ned. But then what would we use for the fireplace and the basement? While we're at it we could get a life size cardboard cutout of Ralph Waldo Emerson too. I wonder if we could get cardboard replicas of Thoreau and HGO Blake too? Come to think of it, HGO Blake lived in Worcester and the actual spiritual discussion group we modeled ours on was at his house, which probably wasn't in the former factory where Ned's loft is but at least is in Worcester and would be very authentic and there's always the pizza at the Wonder Bar or maybe the Hermit Potter would let us use his studio, which of course does not have a fireplace but has a kiln -- let us gather 'round the kiln on a winter night to read Emerson's poetry... Yeah, they're breaking up that old gang of mine...
Anyway, the cucumbers were really good and nobody lit anything on fire.
Today's
Reading
Neal Cassady Collected Letters: 1944-1967 by Neal
Cassady,First Russia Then
Tibet by Robert Byron, Rare
Encounters with Ordinary Birds by Lyanda Haupt
This
Year's Reading
2005 Booklist
Today's
Starting Pitcher
David Wells
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Copyright © 2005, Janet I. Egan