Silver-Tongued Devil, Sr.

I went by a nursing home today to clear out some papers for a friend whose mother had been moved; he lives in Florida and couldn't get up here to do it. As I was leaving with a cart of boxes I came across an elderly gentleman, smiled and said, "Hey, how are you this afternoon." He replied that he was as well as could be expected. I gave an encouraging smile and said, "Hanging in there, huh?" He didn't seem too enthused about the fact.

He then challenged me, "How old do you think I am?" Heck. I'm horrible at guessing ages. So I said, "I don't know. How old do you think I am?" He gave me a closer look and said, "Oh, in your 40's." I blessed him right then and there and told him I'm 56. He said I'm his daughter's age. He then took off on the subject of his daughter. Said she really needed to lose weight. I thought, "Shades of Daddy ... I do not need a STRANGER after me on that." I, said, "Hey, hey, baggy sweatshirt," and drew it closer around me. He looked at me more closely again, up and down, then said, "No, I didn't mean you. You're okay. You're like one of my wives was. I was married three times." I laughed and asked him then how old he was. 92, to be 93 in September. He got out his driver's license to prove it. (I would've been way wrong if I'd guessed. Would've guessed late 70's, early 80's.)

Roy was hard to get away from. He wanted to keep talking. I eventually picked up a box and tried to ease my way out the door, but he wasn't having any of that. I finally caught a passing aide's eye and mouthed, "Help." She lingered, trying to divert his attention, but it took a while longer. He finally said, "Well, I have to go. She'll [meaning me] talk all afternoon if I let her."

I have the feeling I, a stranger, may've been the bright spot in his day. Nursing homes are sad places.

this and that

i feel like i should start my blog with a bang, but not feeling very bangish. instead i will ask this profound question -- who the hell is amy winehouse? all of a sudden the celebrity news pages don't go by without tales of her woes in the headlines. i know i'm getting older and un-with-it (more about that later), but where did she come from and why do we care?

read tonight an article, Mexico City Rolls Out Women-Only Buses, admitting to such blatant sexual harassment problems that they've introduced some "women-only" buses. i'm trying to imagine adding that to all the other frustrations of everyday life. i already had a list of places i'm glad i don't live (obviously topped by those where famine is rampant and those where veiled faces are de rigueur); i've now added mexico city to that list.

now the sign of age thing. i realized recently that today's generation won't have any idea that tv stations used to actually go off the air at night. a picture of a waving u.s. flag (i'm trying to remember if they played the national anthem), a test pattern, and then nothing. gray snow until the station signed back on again the next morning. really.