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nerves (not) of steel

i could really benefit from a Quaalude or two about now, not that i take drugs, i usually drink them like everyone else.
in the wholefoods 'cafe' the small fat dark haired woman with a red Christmas gift-printed turtle neck and mom jeans is squirting, endlessly, a topical cleaner on the massive table behind me. no doubt it's filthy but she's seventy-five sprays in...and she's wearing what appears to be a gauzy red ribbon bracelet adorned with hundreds of tiny multi-colored tinkling balls on one hand and a latex glove on the other. "spray it again sweetheart."
i don't have the heart to tell her i think she missed a spot. i can see the attraction, if you attack the largest available surface regularly it can keep you occupied for...hours.
In other news... the Salvation Army, it's everywhere here, the trucks, the effort, and the stores. A few days ago as i shopped for plates and cups I glanced up from an exorbitantly overpriced set of really ugly dishes to see a young man, twenty-five maybe, holding a very large stuffed bear. "Sweet." and then i noticed another man, slightly older with a goofy, toothy grin also grasping a stuffed animal close to his chest. Looking around amongst all the unattractive christmas ornaments i realized there was a group of young to middle-aged 'challenged' people all carting around stuffed animals of some kind, it seemed they were picking out their own gifts. As i continued to browse I found a pair of black Levi's suited to my height and made my way to the dressing room. While I waited a young black girl, half dressed, opened her dressing room door and asked me to ask someone for a mop. "A mop?" Peering past her i could see a pool of what could only be urine at her feet.
"Clean up on aisle three!" Here's a crazy thing about Austin, so far: I find a genuine effort to make real the command made in most religions to clothe the hungry, care for the needy, house the homeless. It's tangible. There's something amazing about being in a city that strives to do well, with public appeals to "donate your car, join meal-on-wheels, and give a toy or two...."



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