"Steamed" and "Stuffed"

Art is "magic without power," the point being that money is power and dangerous whereas art does no harm, is magic, but hasn't the power to destroy that money does.
-May Sarton
"At Eighty-Two", a Journal

Twenty-five years ago today:

April 21, 1985
Sunday

I called mom and made a deal with her. I’d supply dessert if she made breakfast (since Steff gave me the remainder of the lemon meringue pie to take home).

Dale called me at my mom’s just before I was going to eat breakfast.
“So, how did it go last night?”
“Well, if you want to know if we kissed or not the answer is no.”
“And?”
“If you want to know if we held hands or not the answer is no.”
“And?”
“If you want to know if we slow danced or not the answer is no.”
I gave him the news he wanted to know. My mom was standing there and could hear him.
“Are you doing anything special for Mother’s Day for your mom?”
My mom laughed but he did not hear her (I don’t think).
“Let me speak to your mom.”
I was hesitant but handed her the phone.
Mom said, “Why don’t you call me during the week.”
Apparently, Dale had told my mom, “If you want to know something you can ask me up-front.”
“Ho Ho Ho,” I replied after he told me what he’d said.

Mom and Sherri didn’t really want to go to Sausalito via the ferry because it was drizzling a little bit.
“I don’t think it’s the best day to go,” Sherri said.

Mom did want to go and visit Helen at her condominium in Oakland. I took a nap right after dinner (which is a definite ‘no-no’). After my nap, mom and I got ready to visit Helen’s. We went to pick-up Ashley because Sherri had plans to clean houses all day and finish up invitations to Ashley’s FIRST Birthday Party. And so, Ashley accompanied mom and me to Helen’s.

Helen made us some ‘hors deurves’ after I had suggested the idea. I really didn’t think she’d go all out and actually do it though. Mom liked her place. Ashley had fun running to the mirror and just plain checking out the scenery of the new setting. We didn’t stay very long. Mom and I took Ash to the little playground near the Harbor Bay Library. I put her on the swing and let her slide down the slide. She loved it. She’s such a happy, loving child. I’m so glad she’s my niece. I’m her uncle!

I shaved my lizard (beard) off and kept the caterpillar (moustache). I will probably shave the moustache next Sunday. I need a haircut, too.

After taking Ashley home (and mom, too) I went bicycling in my new little black, gray, white and fluorescent-checkered shorts. I rode along the beach and in-and-around Harbor Bay Isle. I caught mom pulling out of the driveway en route to Mervyn’s.
“Do you want to go? I am going to look for a dress to wear at Sandy’s wedding.”
“Okay, I’ll go with you. Let me just ride home to change.”
While at Mervyn’s I helped mom choose a dress that I thought would look great on her. She needs to buy some white shoes, earrings, a necklace and maybe a hat, too. I felt a bit uncomfortable in the bra, panty and slip department but I got a kick out of watching the ladies shop for bras. That was an interesting sight, seeing one lady feel the bra cups softness. Ha-ha.

After mom happily left Mervyn’s with her new dress we went to Fish & Chips. I ate dinner at mom and dad’s house. Dad got a little “steamed”—at first—when I mentioned how his niece, Gloria, and her husband owed them twenty-thousand dollars. After dinner I walked home feeling rather “stuffed”.

Marty was home but left for a jog.

Steff called and she said, “I will be having a bodyguard on Friday night at the CHICAGO concert because my annoying husband has threatened to kill me.”
“What? Are you kidding me?”
“No. I was protected in a will that states that if something happens to me…and if you become a famous model.”
“Give me a break. I’ll believe it when I see it.”
“Jean-Pierre and I think you’d make a great model. He even said that your suspender outfit reminded him of his home country, France.”

Dale called me and said, “Sue and Mary called me. We had a three way.”
He meant a three-way calling conversation, of course.
“We had a three way conversation about you and ‘The Paloma Predicament’ and the Steff ‘obnoxious-weird lady’ story. We all have a plan to follow you on Friday, April 26th during your lunch date with Steff Redding.”
Dale continued with all of the details of their conversation.
“What else?”
“I was only trying to protect your interests, Michael.”
“I wish you hadn’t told them about my having Steff portray my modeling manager!”
“Do you think Mary may have a crush on you?”
“It crossed my mind but I don’t know,” I replied, deciding to play ‘dumb’.
“Well, I told them ALL that I could about you, Paloma, me and Steff, including your dinner date last night.”
“I kind of wish you weren’t all talking about me that way.”
“Wait a minute…I said ‘why do you think we were bad-mouthing Steffanie’. Are we jealous of her?”
“What?”
“Mary even said ‘We all like Mike and don’t like to see him mixed up with this weird lady’.”
After listening to Dale I thought it weird that Steff called me last night at 2AM to say that her dad was of Royal Heritage from Poland.

Steff is a lady. If the band bows to her that’s why…big Whoopey-Dooey… She’s always coming out with some ‘left field’ statements.

Dale can’t make up his mind about a girls’ name for his baby. He is thinking along the lines of Rachel, Monica or Amanda. For a boy it will be named ‘Andrew Michael Joe Orlando’ (not bad).

I asked mom about the dinner idea at the San Francisco CLIFF HOUSE with Dale and family. She’s all for it, so it may be a scheduled event after all.

There’s a movie on tonight called “EMBASSY” that looks appealing but I think I am going to bed instead. Yawn.

Life to him meant action, rather than thought. He had that rarest of all things, common sense.
-Oscar Wilde
"Lord Arthur Savile's Crime"