Vacation Pictures

 
 

 

 

 

Vacation Trip

This is just a test to see if there is a way to post content to this app without being connected to the matrix.
So far it seems to be working.  But I will find out soon enough.  Right now, I am on a bus heading towards Sauna Island.  And I'm figuring, this trip would make for an epic vacation tale.  Not sure if it.would be more "lampoons" style or "how Stella got her Groove Back".  for now, writing down details seems to be the priority. 
Like, when my cousin visited the Doctor at the hotel yesterday, and after hearing all of her symptoms, the doctor looks at her plain faced and said, with her limited English and Dominican accent, "The good news is..you're not gonna die.".  I had to laugh.  This is hardly consolation when you're throwing up blood.  *shakes head*.  Or, how today, we are to see the Caribbean sea.  On a catamaran.  and of course, the island decided to make up for the lack of rain last time by raining last night and today.  Hoping this cloud cover removes itself while we are on the island. 
The main character could be Gianna or Marianna.  They could be here with their loud, obnoxious family who likes to make themselves known anywhere they go...especially among the natives.  They could say obnoxious things like, "Why is everyone speaking Spanish here?" On a Spanish speaking island?  Happened to me.  Quite funny.

Mischeif Night

"Sandy!!!  Grab the eggs and let's GO!!!"
Sandy hardly had time to bask in the fall scenery, as she normally liked to do.  But who could ignore the loud swishing of the multicolored autumn leaves as she jetted across her former teacher's front yard, trying to catch up with her friends who already reached the getaway car.
"Hurry up or we're leaving you here to get caught!" shouted her friend Gomez.
Sandy was already running as fast as she could, but attempted to pick up the pace.  Suddenly, her feet landed in a mud patch, and Sandy slid all the way to the fence.  The weight of her upper body pole vaulted her over the wooden fence in true somersault style.  Gomez, who had the door opened for her, grabbed her one open hand and yanked her muddy self into the back seat.  Her friend Joy sped off before Sandy could even close the door.  The car raced away before their prey, Mr. Wittlesby, reached his fence's edge to see who egged his house and toilet papered his trees.  Peering through the rear window, Sandy and Gomez could see the shadow of an old man, swinging his hand over his head in anger.  But they didn't care.  The old man deserved it for the way he treated the kids in his classroom years before.
The foursome took a break from traversing back roads to look for their next target.  Here in Jersey, Mischeif Night is an annual tradition, and who wants to break with such a fun tradition??  But, with all of the "main targets" out of the way, the group was bored.  They couldn't believe there was nothing to do, nobody's house to trash, at 3:30 AM, on Mischeif night.
Suddenly, a couple of locals drove up to the group's unnofficial spot in the park.  It was their rival group of friends, headed by Mick and Audrey.  They came in covered in different colored paint and glitter, obviously celebrating the tradition in their own way.  Audrey came in with her usual gritty attitude, trying to one-up everyone's fun while Mick stayed by his car, a rusty 2000 Honda Civic, enjoying a clove.
"So, have fun eggin'up Mr. Wittlesby's?  How predictable..."
Joy retorted with, "You KNOW he's gonna be the main target every year, thanks to the way he treated Gomez as a kid."
"There were LOTS of teachers that disrespected you, Gomez.  You just for him because he lives in town."
"AND because he was openly racist." answered Gomez.  Even Audrey couldn't argue that.
"So, where are you losers headed next?"
Matt, Joy's boyfriend and shotgun passenger, answered nonchalontly "Going to Camden."
"What do YOU tools know about Camden?" quipped Mick.
Silence for a minute.  The truth was, these central Jersey kids had very little experience in Camden.  But they weren't about to let Mick and Audrey know that.  Matt shared confidently, "Joy stayed there a few weeks this past summer."
Joy gave a surprised look to Matt, but quickly responded with, "Yeah, I was visiting some cousins."
"Oh yeah, what street did you stay on?" asked Audrey.
Joy paused, and replied with, "It was right off "Martin Luther King Jr Blvd."
Audrey laughed so hard she spit out her soda.  "YOU...stayed off MLK Blvd?  YOU??"  She thought for a second, and then stated, "Pics or it didn't happen."
Joy immediately whipped out her phone, knowing full well there wasn't a damn picture on there outside of Middlesex county.  But her boyfriend stopped her hand, and said calmly, "We don't need to prove anything to you."
"Oh really?  You're such a selfie slut, you should have dozens of pictures in the hood."
"Where I stayed, the neighborhood wasn't that bad."
"Then I KNOW you weren't on MLK Blvd in Camden."  Audrey then started to walk back to Mick's car, and stated, "But I can't waste any more time with you fucktards.  We've got houses to hit."  The group heard the door slam shut as Audrey drove away and screamed, "DEUCES!!!" while Mick drove away in his rusty piece of crap.

Hanging out in and near Walter Rand Transportation Center, and consequently, MLK Blvd.  Meeting a homeless lady that Sandy recognizes from years before.  The lady told her to "keep her cracker ass away from her".  Then the lady took out what turned out to be a dead cat out of her bookbag, and proceeded to pet the cat in the station.  Never mind the foul stench of the urine soaked blanket she was sitting on.  For her, this was totally normal, and she was happy.  Sandy is jealous of her happiness, as it seems to elude her.
Hanging out in the local McDonalds.  Meeting Loida and her three kids, who the bunch ended up adopting for an hour while Loida visits her husband in the local lockup.
Sandy, getting separated from her friends, senses something weird behind her, walks faster, but the weird feeling persists.  Suddenly, a wolf looking creature with yellow glowing eyes comes out of an alley way to her left.  The wolf was waist high, all grey with thin black streaks on his back.  He let out a fierce low growl; at first, Simoriah thought it was directed at her.  Then the wolf directed its growl in back of her; she looked behind her and there were two teenagers walking close to her.  Though they were not menacing looking, it was troublesome, on Mischeif Night of all nights, to be walking so close to someone.

Flatbush Willie

*TRUE STORY*

This is the story of my fun and fabulous New Years Eve in the city.  THE City.  As in, the City which was built on Sex and Sax on the Six...well, you get the jist.

I was originally supposed to spend New Year's Eve in South Jersey with Mick and the gang.  Then I found out I had to waitress, which sucks.  The bosslady and I argued about my schedule for that day, but in the end, I had to take the shift.  Though I would have preferred to see my friends in South Jersey, this was kind of a way to save me $50 and a tank of gas. 

So, anyway, I got a call from Flatbush Willie in NYC. He tells me about this happening party in Harlem that night. So, I agreed. Hell why not? Never spent NYE in NYC before...

Friendlys' is a non-alcoholic restaurant, so thankfully it closed at 8:30 PM.  I left work in a hurry, showered, and changed for the night.  I was originally told the party was "casual" (never listen to a straight man's fasion sense) so I wore jeans and a nice shirt.  Nothing fancy.  I put on some light makeup, let my parent's dogs out, then I took the train to NEW YORK CITEH!!  Sharing the train was a group of hot Asian men along with a flurry of drunks waiting to celebrate new years half naked with a bottle of champagne.  It took an hour to reach Penn Station, where I could see the ungodly crowdedness that is Times Square. Waiting for my friend to arrive, I have a $6.50 slice of pizza. Damn. That pizza better had gold in it.
After about a 1/2 hour wait, Flatbush Willie arrives. Instead of driving to Harlem right away, I wanted to be as close to Times Square as I could possible get being that I did not arrive at 9AM. So, we walked as far as we could and then heard the ball drop. We (Willie and I) were in back of the building with the Apple on it.  Wow, such an amazing feeling. All the people there were just so joyous. The feeling of togetherness was so palpable…then we were whisked back to reality when we had to watch out for vomit puddles and avoid the drunken fights. Hey, at least Willie did not get a ticket for parking illegally.
We got to the party in Harlem around 12:30 AM. During the drive, I called my friends to wish them a Happy NY after trying about 10X. Going into the apartment building, there was a strange lady who screamed “Happy New Year! Did you find Jesus yet?” I felt like saying “He’s on the back stairwell recovering from New Years” but that could have incited a riot on 96th.  We walked up the stairs, and for the place it was in, the apartment was nice. The place was nicely painted, and I never saw such a huge TV. Had to be 80 inches.  Well, then everyone was getting back from being at the clubs. $150 a ticket. I would never pay that, and if I did, I would be there from beginning to end. I guess they kinda knew because there was this air about them, like “oh your from jersey”, and they did not want to talk. There was kind of a harbinger at this party to warn me about the rest of the night. Willie told his friend that he did not see a single roach when he went to my apartment, much to his surprise.
 I realized early on in the night that the next train back to Matawan was not until 5:30AM. So, I followed my friend Willie back to his place in Flatbush, Brooklyn to kill some time. Well, this was a real Eye opener to the way people live. I walked into the building…and there was this smell, similar to the smell of roaches and filth. like the roaches owned the place and let people live there..So, I went into his place, and WHOA!!.  When he turned the lights on the roaches did not even flinch…it was disgusting…there were 20 of them just having their own New Years party right on the kitchen counter. He had the nerve to offer me juice, to which I abruptly said “NO”. I was trying not to come off as a snob but I was also glad I left my purse in my car at the Matawan train station. Well, then after I got over the initial shock of the cluttered kitchen, I went to his living/bedroom. I sat uneasily on the daybed. He assured me there were no roaches in this room, but one could never tell with all the stuff there. I had to use the bathroom, and there were roaches in the bathroom. He looked at me as if I was the one with the problem, and said, “Don’t worry they don’t bite”. Like he would know. After 15 minutes, I finally hovered over the toilet and prayed that nothing would come near me, since I had no shame at the moment of running and leaving a slight yellow trail. So, I got over that and watched an amazing special “the history of sex” on the history channel (no gratuitous nudity).
At 4:30 AM, I headed back to the train station.  I saw a sign in the building: "Please do not leave your doors open. There is a thief in the building. We do not know if he is living in the building or if it is the crackheads next door.” That summed up the building right there. I was glad to go back to the train station.  It was way too early, or late, depending on your schedule.  I bought a ‘cheap’ $7.50 cheeseburger & fries and also a National Geographic. Any other magazine and I would have fallen asleep amidst the sex articles. But they had such a good article on coffee, which of course I had in my right hand. I contemplated the days events. I had fun, and I did another thing I could cross off my todo list, of being in New York for Times Square. Yay.

10 Minutes of Silence

Walk outside

Inhale the garbage fumes

Exhale tension.

Sit down.

Whip out a cigarrette.

Try to light it

but the matches don't like fire

Suddenly, one match concedes

and my Marlboro is lit.

Inhale the tobacco tension reliever.

Exhale the stress of today.

Let thoughts escape.

Close eyes

Headache finally calms down.

No man to bother me.

No customer to annoy me.

No schoolwork to bog me down.

Watch the busy clouds roll by

They have work to do

Ignore the dumpster

or the stench of it.

Admire the Rowan Countryside

Thinkin' back to the easy times.

I looked forward to this?

Remember Roxanne

Think of the stupid things

The things we did in time free

And time free we had too much to be

enjoyable then.

I miss them.

Think back to....summertime

Dangle my feet off the firetruck ride.

But that wasn't good enough

Drive on 35 at 65 with Tina.

But that wasn't good enough

Stayin' out late on a date with my man, Tom

But that wasn't good enough.

So this is good?

Think of what has to be done.

Think of what has to be faced

And who gets honorable mention

on my shit list.

Think of the time

Look at the time.

See, it's time to go.

Say goodbye to the busy clouds

Put your memories away for another day

Flick your cigarrette.

Slowly, get your legs firm.

Go back to work.

More Ideas for the Novel

Very stressfull week at work.  11 hour days.  And yet, in my break time, the story is starting to take shape in my head.  Before, I could not imagine how the story began, or would end.  I took some inspiration from a few things.  For example, I could see in my head where Rose finally would get upset about being let go of her internship at a specific job.  She was so upset, in fact, she didn't want to go home and tell her dad.  So, she took the train from Long Island to Manhattan.  She had fun walking around the city, at night, doing things that were normally "forbidden" by her family.  She went to a nightclub and danced for two hours.  The bouncer didn't even check her ID!  After having a few drinks, she went into a pool hall.  It was there she met "Alonzo".  He was a tall, clean cut African American man, around 6 feet tall.  He was wearing dress pants and a dark gray dress shirt.  Rose felt that she could trust him, and so she told him about being in the city along.  He said this was a very dangerous thing for promised that he would show Rose around New York, and keep her safe.  Of course, that came at a price.  When he took her back to the hostel where she stayed, he insisted on sleeping with her.  This was her first time having sex, and she felt very dirty, and used.  Also, when he left, he tried to take her $$.  However, she started to yell at him outside the hostel, and this attracted the attention of a local named Scully.  Scully stole back the money for Rose, and "rescued" her by bringing her to his aunt's house for the evening.  She slept on the couch.  In the morning, she was woken up by the most handsome man she ever met.  His name was Dean.  He was 18, as she was.

I also figured out that I can somehow make it so that Dean sees a missing person's ad, and realized that he may be considered Rose's kidnapper.  So he ends up taking Rose back home.  Rose, of course, is unwilling to separate from Dean, but finally goes, if only to have Dean avoid issues.  Meanwhile, they pursue their seperate careers.  6 years later, they finally meet back up thanks to good old social media.

Of course, the logistics of it all, I am still trying to work in my head.  But it feels good to finally be thinking of the story again. Funny how this only happens the more depressed I am.

Lil' Sister

Inspired by Little Sister by Jewel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5Rjfyc7Gnc

Hey lil' sister
going home to Mister So and So
knock knock knocking
on his door again last night
in a fit of rage
Threw your clothes on your floor
He hit you
And you went back for more and more
like a hurricane
Shining saddle on his doorstep
to rescue you
but you didn't take it
said you deserve the torture
of spring sunny days flashing before
like you've never seen
and will never get to enjoy them
like a child

Why does her mind wander around
with a confused passion
like a dragon or a demon
searching for answers
of the unknown question:
Who killed my mother
and my dear father
all in one fell swoop
like flowers drifting on the ocean
got some water
but 'tis not the right kind
Oh, no I don't mind that you
made me dinner of rice and cracker jacks

Whose that round back?
Go and answer the door
but 'tis the same
yet not like before

Bless your heart,
How did you rip your skin?
Where did it come from?
Where have you been?
I just took a walk round the big ol' lake
about a quarter to 4
then I saw a poor
little girl just walking alone
and you know after midnight,
it's not safe for little girls
with white lace bobby socks
and a little pink sundress
and long straight hair in pigtails
to go searching for snails
Sure enough, she fell,
and then let out a wail
But lil' Suzy
mama ain't here
she's having a beer
with Mr So and So
So you better get to
knocking on his door before
he slaps your momma some more
Maybe someday you'll receive
a reprieve from your crazy life
and enjoy a spring sunny day
like the kind your momma never had

It's too bad, so sad
your momma never knew
the gift she had in a little girl like you
until one Sunday in May
you ended up in a body bag
thanks to Mr So and So
and his drama
Knocking Up Your mama
one more time so they
needed you no more
another mouth to feed
and care for
But it was so easy
Just knock her to the floor
and let the maggots do the rest
Oh Lil' Suzy
you deserved
so much more...