woke up at 5:30am. not sure why but I did. i still have a cold or allergies or covid. still not sure what it is but i’m stuffed up and have a sore throat. drank a bottle of wine last night and passed out early. a long day on the construction site. hot sun beaming down on my bald head. hard work. little pay. long days. long talks. long drives. long talks. for some reason the customers vent their frustrations onto me. they think that I am the leader. i am the owner.
“WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD DO OVER HERE? WE’RE NOT HAPPY WITH THE WORK. THE BRICK NEEDS TO COME OUT MORE, DON’T YOU THINK?”
“well i don’t really know too much about that. i’m not good with grading.”
“WHAT ABOUT THE SIDE? WHY ISN’T THERE BORDER BRICKS ON THE SIDE?”
“yeah, I don’t know. to be honest I am just an actor. i am only here to help out.”
“YOU’RE AN ACTOR? WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN IN?” the customer asks with genuine interest.
I tell her about Burt Reynold’s and other movie stars and she makes me pasta and her husband brings out homemade wine and we chat some more and they complain some more and I just nod and smile. smile and nod. everyone likes me. everyone feels comfortable enough around me to tell me their life stories. their life’s frustrations. their excitement. their struggles. their pain. maybe they know what I have been through in my life. maybe my face and my body tell my story. reveal my pain. i am open and I listen. i accept and don’t judge. we continue eating. we continue drinking. the sun is beginning to go down. my wife and daughter waiting for me at home. we were supposed to go to The Keg for dinner. but, as always, i let them down. i am never good with time commitments. i am never good with time management. always letting people down. always rushing to meet deadlines.
now tired.
still sick.
burnt neck.
sore stomach.
sore back.
sore knees.
sore feet.
sore eyes.
sore throat.
sore hand.
sore heart.
sore soul.
ready to go back to work but also ready to go back to bed.
two coffees down.
one shit.
i’ll eat a breakfast sandwich and get on the road.
long drive.
long day.
short nights.
and then life is over.
enjoy every minute.
enjoy every day.
enjoy life with all of it’s ups and downs.
one day there won’t be a life.
life.
death.
notanotherphony. 