There is a certain methodology and order to madness. A je ne sais quoi...
I was walking to Beaconsfield this morning (a delightful, tree lined stroll that allows me to connect to Riverside with only a 10 minute walk), and on Beacon St, an obviously unhinged woman started drifting in my direction. I resolutely focused on the road ahead of me, and steeled myself for a solicitation for money. Although Brookline is a fancy, upscale neighborhood, its still regretably close enough to Boston that the homeless sometimes wander in, especially around Cleveland Circle, and occasionally near my end of it, which is right along the border of Brighton/Allston. As I drew near, I heard her muttering to herself that she needed to sing, as I passed by her, she continued whispering cheerfully on the need to sing. As soon as she was a few steps behind me, to my delight, she started singing "Monday, Monday" by the Mamas and Papas. Captured my mood in a heartbeat.
I'm not entirely happy with everything I have to do this week. I am going to suck it up and angle to work at the supermarket next door, after the Parisian cafe and the Calc grader position didn't work out. Additionally, I have to start getting all of my documents together for the Spanish embassy, plus finalize the purchase of my ticket to Spain. Plus, the rent check has to go out by Friday, but fortunately, I am in an excellent financial position. Little things, I realize, but I am not yet looking forward to going to Spain. Currently, it just feels like a lot of hassle. And I hate hassle.
Reunion was fun. I met a lot of really interesting people. I was lucky in that I had a nice dinner with some of the members of the first class to graduate Brandeis. I really think there's something about a college education that keeps people sharp and with it, no matter how old they get. We talked about the death penalty, Israel/Zionism, liberalism at Brandeis, presidential politics, and pot on campus. Plus the neurotic Abraham Maslow, pioneer of feel-good psychology. Only one person behaved like a dingbat, however, everyone involved knows who that person was, so no more need be said.
Although I could have made more per hour working in the library, not having to feed myself or travel anywhere for 5 days saved me at least $60, so doing reunion actually put me ahead by about that much for the week, which makes me a happy man. Plus, I got a tip for being charming in the coatroom. Hey, $5 can buy you a delicious, cheap lunch at Felipe's at Harvard Yard. Or a smoothie at Emack and Bolio's on Newbury Street.
The saddest news of the past 5 days has been that I lost my copy of Dr. Zhivago while at JFK park on the Charles, just south of Harvard. Irony being irony, I bought that book 2 years ago, but I only got around recently to reading it. Now, having less than 100 pages left, it fell out of my pocket while I was climbing a tree (don't ask), without me noticing. The streak continues, although in the grand scheme of things, Pasternak is a small loss compared to a cell phone. And hey, I don't have any excuses now not to start Ch. 7 in my group theory book.
Another downside to the past 5 days is that Reunion has put me staggeringly behind in terms of calling people. I expect some cantankerousness when I start playing catch up tonight. Sorry, Mom.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
You met Abraham Maslow? The Hierarchy of Needs guy? That's pretty cool. I read about him in psych this year. He's mildly famous! Sorry to hear about your heart-drooping losses, though.
Hold on. He died in 1970. Time for a critical rereading of what you wrote.
Ah. You discussed him, not discussed things with him.
Post a Comment