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| Thread: Old Friends From Distant Lands | |
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Consis
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Of Ruby
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posted August 27, 2007 08:43 PM |
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Edited by Consis at 18:12, 28 Aug 2007.
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Old Friends From Distant Lands
Do you have someone you became friends with before you came to where you are today? While going about your daily routine in your life today, do you often remember old friends you once knew and think back to how much you enjoyed their company? Who were they and how did you meet? Why did they leave or why did you leave? Do you miss them? Do you still speak with them on the phone or in letters or over the internet?
I'll start by saying that there is much I have yet to learn about Kristin. She is my long time friend none the less. But what's more is that I intend to spend the rest of my life getting to know her better. She's a good person and extremely intelligent and introspective. I'm going to write the story of our meeting, she and I. While reading it, you will undoubtedly notice some clear and gaping holes in the story. In all truth I really don't know her that well. From the very start I decided to approach her with an attitude of acceptance and patience. I couldn't tell you exactly what she has been through in her life but I get the distinct impression that her life has been long, discouraging, littered with the loss of trust, and posioned by unmitigated physical abuse. When I first met her it was clear to me the fear that dwelt within the surface of her thoughts.
So it began as a random encounter with not much to talk about. I was not married to my wife yet, though we had our first son who was merely a few months old. My wife had been booted out of the airforce for legitimate yet disagreeable reasons. I had just been let go by my last job as a physical therapy apprentice in a Vegas company called Novacare; under whom I worked for a man by the name of Alex. Alex was a very well respected Physical Therapist and he simply couldn't tolerate my flatulance in his tiny little cubbyhole of an office. Truth be told I was indeed a terrible stinker. Don't try and read into my description, I mean it literally. And so the man approached me with all due authority to inform me my position had been filled. From there I went home to our small apartment and awaited Jennifer's final exeunt from the Airforce under Bill Clinton. You may think that last piece of information is superfluous but you might be very surprised how relevant it is once you learn of the details/conditions concerning/surrounding her leaving the service. But that story is for another time. Having left the Airforce and not yet found new work following my own job invisibility, we decided that the most important matter of all significance was finding work for the both of us immediately post haste!
There I was, Jennifer had left for some job interviews lined up, and I was at home and it was only a few days before my son was born. I recall feeling an unbelievable determination to do whatever it took to get a job. I didn't care where I worked or what I did. A few ideas popped into my head, such as the city we lived in and my age. I was 'prior-military' as they say but it didn't seem the most appropriate course of action at the time. Yes it is true that I had the opportunity to enter into a program for local police or fire department but that would have taken too long to bring in the needed immediate funds to feed, clothe, and protect my baby son. As I said, I carefully thought of Las Vegas Nevada being what it was. I knew that fast food restaurants were easily dwarfed (in profit) by establishments that sold liquor and other such age-restricted merchandise. Having kept that in my mind, I went to the nearest gas station and picked up a newspaper. I discarded all parts of the paper except the "want-ads" and very simply went down the list. I called every number that came up. I left messages and spoke to many different people. On about the third day I finally got a break and had one of my calls returned by an AM/PM gas station convenient store owner who went by the name of Rupie. He was young and a recent graduate from college.
I'll continue this later . . .
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Roses Are Red And So Am I
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TitaniumAlloy
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Professional
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posted August 28, 2007 09:26 AM |
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Nice thread Consis.
I think this is something that affects us all, either to those who experience alot of change in their lives and leave people in their wake, or those who have friends leave them for other places..
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John says to live above hell.
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Consis
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Of Ruby
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posted September 22, 2007 06:15 AM |
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Edited by Consis at 06:19, 22 Sep 2007.
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More About Kristin
Kristin still hasn't come into the picture yet. Have you noticed? I haven't jumped into her description because it's imperative that you understand the circumstances under which she and I first met. I don't think the circumstances make all that much of a difference for most of the people I've met in life, but for her they make all the difference in the world. You'll see why as I go on.
After finally landing the job at the gas station I was elated to be thrown into duties and responsibilities. I felt such because of the dire need for my newborn son. I knew that the work would be nothing to complain about considering it was Vegas, the convenient store sold alcohol, and it had slot machines. These three factors assured me of a healthy state of business for the gas station. And not only those reasons but also Rupie was a very young man and he came off as extremely enthusiastic to not only have a successful business but also to try and raise the competition. You might not believe this but while I worked there he actually went against company policy and lowered the price of gas ALL THE WAY TO .99 cents! You can imagine the customers coming in and drooling in excitement, anticipation, and disbelief. As a worker during that time I can tell you it was a surreal experience. In the many years since then I've read many newspapers and heard all sorts of things people are doing in response to the prices of gas. I've even heard of some guy giving it away for free. I've heard of thieving rings that have become organized simply for the purpose to steal gas and re-sell it for a higher profit. But in all the cases people either didn't care about it or didn't believe it. When Rupie dropped it to .99 cents I've simply never seen such a frenzy of customers and shocked faces and reactions as if almost their prayers had been answered or something of the kind. Needless to say Rupie ran the store well and I couldn't have been more happy with what looked like (on paper) to be a dead-end job.
As I was working there I had a supervising boss who was brought in to obviously show me not only the ropes but also....the 'panic button' as he described it. If you're wondering, it's the little button under the counter in case someone comes in to rob you. My supervisor's name was Rob. Let me tell you about Rob. This guy is quite the character. This was a man who could have been a rock & roll star. First of all the guy was built like Senjaya Malakar. He was thinly framed, had long sandy hair that came about to the base of his neck, and a goatee. He had deep dark eyes and eyebrows that really accentuated his exotic beard. He's one of those people who had a face that many others would characterize as having good bone structure, sort of like that of a movie star. You know what I mean? The high pronounced cheek bones and the Cary Grant jutting angular masculine jaw? His hair was almost ALWAYS perfect. He liked to keep it like that of a modern conservative Bon Jovi. The guy's attitude was like this, you simply wouldn't believe it until you met him.....Rob was very polite, as rugged and dangerous as he looked, yet very proud of his job as gas station supervisor. He also was a very talented guitarist. But he always told me that his guitar skills were private to him, that he would only play for his girlfriend as a way to show his affection. Of course when I heard this I suspected he wasn't being all that honest. No sooner did I form a prejudgment then I was quickly told by many people who say they'd heard him play how unbelievably gifted he was. When I heard this I was simply floored. I had to ask him. So I did and he told me that he'd been through a lot in his life. A lot of '****' as he described it. He completely ignored my question about his guitar playing skills. He said he'd been to jail and got messed up with drugs and now after pulling his life together that he was careful not to think his past was behind him. He told me that it was and always will be a part of him, the things he did. He said he was simply enjoying his job and how well he was doing for himself. This guy was all that and a bag of chips! He was humble, gifted, polite, friendly, and was good with people in general. I had a lot of respect for him. I only hope that he's still doing well. I hope he was able to keep on the straight and narrow path, keep himself clean and his head screwed on straight. He truly was a real life cool guy with the cigarettes and all. So many people liked him.
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Roses Are RedAnd So Am I
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