Hollered At

I'm reluctant to brag, always fearing that others will perceive it from me in the same way that I perceive it when it comes from others, which is to say not kindly. On the other hand, I really do like attention, and I do telling people about the good things that happen to me. I just try to keep it to the things that most warrant it. I like to think that people will hear me out on such things if I have a good track record on all that.

Yesterday something happened that in my eyes was rather remarkable. Other people might disagree, and maybe this kind of thing happens a lot to some of them, but for me it remains a novelty. I was walking down the street in Hollywood, already feeling proud of having resolved something at the DMV. Minutes after that, I hear raised voices coming from the road. I've gotten used to friends spotting me while driving around, so I thought it was that.

Key Moment

I'm still in Big Bear Lake (as I understand the town to be called), and small matters just worthy of being written about continue to pop up. Yesterday we made a second visit to a brewpub. We drank and ate. The place was running some kind of a special, and so there were cheap drinks, hot dogs and fries. Naturally we partook of those things. Because a friend who ordered before me went with two chili dogs and a basket of fries, I of course had to get one chili dog and two baskets of fries.

I observed the first time we went there that the chief server bore a striking resemblance to Jennifer Lawrence. I didn't mention it then, but I did so to one of my friends, who mentioned it to the server in question. This sparked a brief conversation about her feelings on the matter, which were not especially favorable. She did say she liked the novels on which "The Hunger Games" and its soon-to-be-made sequels are based. Jennifer Lawrence is the star of those films, of course.

A Word To Regret

The library is nearly as fruitful a well of material on which to draw on for this blog as the buses and trains of this city. Mostly the incidents that happen in the library are either pleasant or harmless, but they certainly aren't always in the vein of a snack vendor getting shooed outside. They are something rather unpleasant, and the other day there was something which I found to be rather unsettling. I'm not sure what happened.

I was on the way to watch movies with some friends. On the way, I had to drop off dvds at the library. I resolved to go inside and see if there was anything I'd like to check out this time around, and sure enough I located a movie. While I was looking, I noticed a rather attractive woman also scanning the shelves. I didn't let my gaze linger. I didn't have the time in any case, but who wants to come off like a creep?

A Good Chair From She Of Beauty Fair

I seem to have a lot of opportunities fall into my lap. That is fortunate, since I would just as soon not do a lot of legwork. I never will have to if possibilities continue to present themselves at the rate they have begun to. I wonder if that 'Secret' thing could be true after all. If it's not that, it's something. I need certain little things, and then they come to me in some fashion. I certainly do hope that it keeps up for the foreseeable future.

A recent thing has been our need for furniture in this apartment, and a constant has been my interest in ladies. The two things coincided the other day. We need a coffee table, a couch, a proper dining table and chairs. Well, we still need most of those things, but we need one chair fewer thanks to one example of that  timeless pastime, ladies. It was a lady who lives on the very same floor of this building that I do who made this happen.

The Give And Take

I have had a difficult time in my life of getting to where I was at ease in conversation. I grew up very socially awkward, and was largely withdrawn and isolated. Over time I improved and now talk eagerly, although it remains difficult in group situations during which I must contend for opportunities to contribute. At such times, I still sometimes find myself sidelined and pretending to be content doing something by myself, but this is now relatively uncommon.

In those one-on-one scenarios though, I now face a far different problem from the one of the past. I struggle now to do what Dale Carnegie counseled, which is to be a well-liked conversationalist mainly by being a good listener. Ever fiber of my being strains against this, revolting against the order from my reasoning mind to contain the wonderful things that the rest of my mind has thought of to say. Regretfully I fail more than I succeed at this.

The Lady And Her Why

I have conflicting feelings about the very beautiful. I find them as attractive as anyone- the women at least (though I recognize the handsomeness of the men in an objective way). Not considering myself to be among the beautiful though, I harbor some negative feelings. Among them is the hard to shake attitude that the beautiful perhaps do not seek out knowledge with the same vigor as those who actually require it to get by in life.

So it was that I was a bubbling cauldron of emotions while waiting in line behind a rather attractive, statuesque young woman at the library. I was, as I am every three or so days, checking out some movies. You may trust that it was a good balance of fun and 'important' films. I wondered about the lady's purpose, as I did not notice what she might be checking out. As I always am in such cases, I was surprised just to see someone of her beauty within the library's walls.

A Regret

It was one of those rare occasions when I was on the subway and not alone (Rarer still are the times when I'm among friends on a bus, but that's of no consequence in this story). There was me and then there were four others who composed two couples. We got on and found ourselves a cluster of contiguous seats, which is no sure achievement in the evening hours on a weekend night (Los Angeles is known for its car culture,  but that is less and less deserved every year).

We were on our way to see a drive-in movie on the rooftop of a downtown parking garage. The concept reminded me of parking garage-hosted golf courses of which I've heard existing in space-deprived Japan. LA doesn't lack the space, but there are no proper drive-ins to speak of anyway. The idea of this place we were headed for was novel enough that I couldn't pass it up, and I've been to a movie in a cemetery out here.

She's Got Legs (And They're Blue)

Southern California carries a certain reputation where its women are concerned. They're said to be quite beautiful, and while that's probably not uniformly true, it's true enough that the reputation is well-earned. The women are indeed very good looking, and they are resolutely committed to showing just as much as they can. In fact, if anything, it may be so that they show too much. I certainly don't say so out any sense of puritanical devotion or propriety. It would hardly be the time now to start with that attitude. Nonetheless, I have my reasons for at least half-wishing that LA's women, breathtaking though they are, would cover up some of the time. It is something like how if one engages in unsafe stunts during an improv scene, it does not matter how funny it is when the audience fears that injury may come to one of the performers.

The thing is that one who only has visited the area during summer or perhaps spring break would not realize how cold it can get here during winter. It's especially bad far out in the desert areas, but in the city it can be rough. At the late hour during which I write this, it is in the mid 40s. I certainly can recall praying for temperatures like that during winter months in Chicago, but then I had proper clothes at the ready then too. I don't have that now, and neither do the very attractive and ordinarily beguiling women of this town. As I said, they are most committed to showing what they have to full advantage. You see even now short shorts and miniskirts that would be most appealing to me if I did not fear for the health and well-being of the wearer. Is it sexy when they shiver? I've heard that black is beautiful, but is blue? Weight loss is a popular pastime, but what about when it comes about as a result of frostbite?

On Books & My Most Beautiful Women

It seems to me that most people read only for school, and the reading ceases when they graduate out of lack of interest. I guess that I don't judge such people for that. They don't get any pleasure out of it, and it's not a priority for them. I wish they would read, but I think that's just a projection of my own values. No doubt they're out doing things they can't live without, and which I have a hard time doing and do not consider a priority.

It's my understanding that reading has never really been an activity of the majority of humanity. There was a time when books were the main media for entertainment and education, but many, if not most people were too poorly educated to take advantage. I understand that if there was any book a common person did own and read, it was the Bible. Today, due to organized education, more people are literate and able to read than ever, but books and other reading materials must compete with tv, movies, recorded music, and the so-called "New Media". Books don't have a monopoly on the enlightenment of mankind, and I guess we're not any the worse off for that.