THE SHIELD OF LOCKSLEY

In which we discuss my not so happy, happy birthday; I put up Chapter 31: The Knights, at Bath...and a short poll as well.

SPOILER ALERT!!

This is paywalled…

Okay, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s move forward.

I did a reading last week, and, even though it was my intent to read a full chapter of my novella CINDERELLA AND HER SISTERS, I read very little of it and ended up (mostly) talking for an hour and a half. I’m sorry to say it was actually pretty easy; but anyone who knows me, knows I like to talk. And boy, did I talk. I didn’t have any particular thing I wanted to talk about, and so I was all over the map as a result. Next time, I think I’ll make an agenda.

I don’t know when the next one will be though, because, well, the wife has the week off and she doesn’t think my writing here is all that important. I think, that as far as she’s concerned, it’s just something I do to fill up the day while she’s at work. It’s never been that for me. On Thursday, we’re going for dinner to the new Gordon Ramsey Restaurant they just opened here last month. It’s a little pricey, but hey, she’s worth it. (After all these years, she’d better be, right?)

So now that we’re sliding into our 60’s, (she’s dragging her ass as far as that goes,) our friends are entering their 70’s. (Not the women, but the husbands, of course.) Like, wtf! How’d that happen so quickly? In fact, we’re going to a 70th Birthday party in April. My nephew’s wife just turned 38; my brother will be 77 in five days. And so we age; in fact, so much so, that now I’ve been forced to wear compression socks. Again, WTF! Those are for old people, aren’t they? That’s when the specialist I went to see said: Well, you are 67. I wanted to say: I’ve only been 67 for two days, asshole, but bit my tongue.

67 isn’t old now that I’m actually here, but it sure was when I was 23…and even 35. But my brothers are all older than me and standing on the precipice of their 80’s. I guess that’s where the mortality part of living comes into play, because my dad died in his sleep when he was still 79, on April Fools Day of all days. My mother’s death was more recent, having lived to 96.

I don’t mean to get all morbid and shit, it’s just that turning 67 and then having the doctor treat me like an old person, well, that kind of threw me for a loop. I wasn’t expecting that. It looks like I wasn’t taking things too seriously in my life. I didn’t buy the compression socks when my doctor prescribed them for me last year. And then the specialist I saw asked me if I was still smoking dope. I said, yeah, sure, wondering why I ever told her I did. And then I remembered my ex-brother-in-law didn’t tell his doctor that he was doing a whole pharmacopeia worth of drugs. He died as a result. The specialist said: Do edibles instead. Smoking it isn’t good for you. And then he said: Get the socks, too. You have an issue, and if you don’t use the socks your legs are going to swell up on you. (I’ve seen what that looks like, and believe me, it ain’t pretty.) Then he added: If you don’t wear them, there’s every possibility you could loose a leg. The operative word here is: Possibility. My wife didn’t hear that when I told her what he said after she came home asking me how the appointment went. She heard that and said we have to get you the socks. I said I didn’t buy them because they were $115. Who wants to spend $115 on a pair of socks? I said that to the doctor. That’s when he said if I didn’t, I could (possibly) loose my leg — below the knee, but still… So I went and got them yesterday, and bonus! They only cost $99.

That’s how my last two days went, I hope yours was a little more entertaining.

Oh yeah, in case you were wondering, I don’t say much about the story here because if you haven’t subscribed, why would I tell you what’s going on, when you can just pay the $30 and get past the “Gatekeeper?” (That’s me.) I also received my novel in the mail today. If I get more subscribers, I can publish more of my work.

So what’re ya waiting for?

Oh yeah, and I was thinking, should I read this out a chapter at a time as well? I’m willing to do that if you give me an idea as to what day works for you.