http://4jdl.com/wp John's Words - looking for the best blend Thu, 02 Dec 2010 06:12:06 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://4jdl.com/wp/2009/11/15/soc-31/ http://4jdl.com/wp/2009/11/15/soc-31/#comments Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:14:24 +0000 John http://4jdl.com/wp/?p=347

As I ran aboard the last Ikea bus leaving NYC, just behind the driver and before he closed the door

another passenger proclaimed me “Lucky, I’ve been waiting 30 minutes!”

I smiled and shrugged my shoulders and looked for an empty seat

went back halfway and my subconscious heuristic chose the skinny asian woman

(there’d be more room for my wide shoulders)

I asked if it was free, as I pointed to the seat

didn’t hear her response but her face indicated approval

I sat and caught my breath as I texted my success at catching the last bus

as we got out of the tunnel the setting sun lit up her side of the bus and I noticed her outfit

typical fall knits and tights and boots, at least that seemed to be what every other woman in NYC was wearing

her attractive face with pulled back long hair completed each other well

but her posture said stay away, crossed arms and legs…

as I contemplated my best Mentalist skills, I weighed

the risks of exercising my social skills VS her apparent

desire not to be “socialized” with

later her demeanor stayed firmly knotted, yet there broke the semblances of a smile on her face as I glanced over

I took the mixed signals to mean she was ‘taken’

but didn’t see any rings on significant fingers

the lack of traffic brought us to Elizabeth  quickly

only punctuated by 4 texts and 2 phone calls

besides her phone was studded and I couldn’t figure out

whether she was much younger than I guessed, or why would

a woman have such blingy accouterments with otherwise earthy tones and sensible knits?

alas we disembarked before the perplexity allowed me a chance to break the silence

and I was in the hunt for wood

it reminded me of the reality show on Planet Green

I’ve been mildly addicted to

they were accumulating firewood for the season

4 groups of people from California to New Jersey

retired factory worker with his daughters

a computer tech, among others

in “Alaska Experiment”

a show about how these people will survive a winter in Alaska,

roughing it in some cabins and tents, certainly unplugged and in the wild

lumber turns out to be cheaper at Ikea than I can get at lumber stores in Manhattan

I cruised the aisles and activated memories of short cuts but

the Ikea was under renovation so at the second turn past pots and things I started looking at signs

I arrived at aisle 35 bin 36 and was surprised at the quality of the bed slats, it was labeled unfinished wood

but was much better than what I could pick up closer to home

and this was pretty much cut already to size

OK, I changed my plans a bit, but saved myself some noise and sawdust

now to figure out how much to get…

I decided on 3 bunches as well as a few other odds and ends

the skill of picking a fast line proved still with me

but there was only twine at the packing table

i was hoping to make a handle from tape

so it took a while to tie it up and fasten a handle

as I worked feverishly a woman and two small children walked by

she was somewhat out of it, but I didn’t really pause to observe

and instead continued to tie and hope to catch a quick bus back home

as her older child the daughter pulled a sign off the wall and it came crashing down loudly

an Ikea staffer came over quickly and asked her a question but she didn’t respond

I thought whats with these woman today who seem to not have a voice?

then her boy started to bang a cart into the wall and the table I was using, so I shot her a look of WTF?

she just took my stare and let it glance off her

not even making any attempt to corral her charges at all

I made my final knot and rushed out the door

just past the woman I sat next to

she was on her studded cell phone and she stared up off into the distance as our paths intersected

she towards the returns area

me out into the fresh air

and then I sprinted with cart towards the bus for the second time

and the driver indicated that he had to check if there was any seats left

luckily the woman in front of me was waiting for someone and I heaved the stack of lumber into a free spot and boarded the  bus

the purple colors were spectacular with the setting sun and the golden rays bouncing off downtown skyscrapers sandwiching the blue waters of the Hudson

I thought to myself how timely was my impromptu trip just as we hit tunnel traffic

enough time to review my To-Do list and send a couple texts

I carried the stuff across the long subway tunnel and my thoughts strayed towards that Alaska Show again

I was carrying 30 pounds of lumber to make some furniture

and they were logging and splitting firewood to the tune of 9,000 pounds to survive the winter

I sweated a new understanding of their predicament

just got snookered on a 4x trade, but it was only for dimes

and  I realize that 2 monitors are not enough for all that I want to do

so the new furniture I’m building which will be part custom bed, window seat, and large work surface with plenty of storage underneath

should allow me a spot closer to my multi monitor setup

and I did de clutter about 100 pounds this weekend

despite the 30 more I brought home.

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