Coffee, Not Booze

By kiki

At 2:36 am this morning, I woke up to answer the call of nature. Like clockwork, a man my age wakes up between 2:30 and 3am to answer the call of nature. But, don't worry; you will find it unavoidable when you reach your elder years. As I crawled back between the sheets, my pup, Sister, notified me that she too had to go and answer the call of nature. So, I crawled out of bed again to open the door for her, then I had to sit and wait for her to finish doing her personal business. Done: she decided she wanted to play outside for a bit. By the time she was ready to come in, it was 3:20am, and by then, I was wide awake, so I decided to get into my drinks, coffee, not booze.  

Disgusting Behavior

By kiki

I have been trying to stay clear of political stuff. But I watched Trump at the PA rally yesterday afternoon and after watching him I was left more disgusted than ever with him. The vulgarity that he uses to describe those that in his warp mind he has a beef with is astonishing. But more astonishing is the silence coming from the congressional right-side of the aisle. The same people that wanted to hang Hillary Clinton for using a private server are now tight-lipped when their hero goes apeshit. And let's not forget the people that voted for and still support him. They too are silence on the profane and disgusting treatment that he gives his political opponents...I know that politics is a tough game, but, you can be tough without being profane, a little class will go a long way in winning you votes...I have to say to my friends and relatives that voted for and still support, this poor excuse of a human being and who are silence on his disgusting behavior "you are no better than he is" If I lose friends over this post, so be it!

Will Trump live to rue the day he decided to run for president?

By kiki

Will Trump live to rue the day he decided to run for president? Before he decided to jump into politics, he was cheating people out of their money by not paying for work he had done on his properties and running a crooked non-university; I could go on and on, but you get my drift. Indeed nobody was looking really hard into his crooked movidas. (moves) - His sex life was not a soap opera on the 24/7 cable news channels; now everybody knows who he bedded and paid off to keep quiet - His sons and daughter were mainly unknown to the general public: now the whole world knows how arrogant and self-serving they are. Sometimes it's better, for your own good, to stay under the radar. But egomania is sometimes too complicated for narcissists to control. So, it might be that in the end, Trump will just be remembered as an impeached and crooked president who was sent to prison.

Smoking Grandma's Cigarettes

By kiki

This kid reminded me of myself when I was 7 years old: My slightly older cousin Robert, who used to live with my paternal grandparents, Grandpa Francisco and Grandma Lupe in Simons, would steal Grandma Lupe's cigarettes, I believe they were Lucky Strike's, but not sure though. An older cousin, Chuy, would join Robert and me in the cow corral, and we would puff away. - I quit smoking at about 10 years old, only to start again at 17 years. I quit smoking cigarettes over 25 years ago, though I smoke cigarettes on our annual opening day weekend fishing trips. So maybe I didn't quit after all. Nothing like cheating on yourself, que no? Lol. - I used to enjoy a good cigar after a good meal

The Granite Monster

By kiki

There is something magical and almost untouchable about the glimmer and grime of the Olympic Auditorium. These intangibles made the romance boxers, and their fans had with the fame arena seem so surreal. - Hearts were often broken at the Granite Monster's Palace, but that didn't stop the boxers, and their fans from falling prey to the Monster at 18th and Grand, Ave. - There are arenas. There are arenas, but there is only one Granite Monster, 'The Beautiful Olympic Auditorium.'

Blocked Calls

By Kiki

My cell phone started barking late yesterday afternoon, so I picked it up to see "Blocked" on the caller I.D. I usually do not answer blocked calls, but for health reasons (old age ailments), I've been spending most of my time in bed, and I could use some amusement to pick me up from my dum-dums; I decided to answer the call. I picked up the horn and responded with a"hello," then a raspy and creaky voice that sounded well polished from too many Bourbon and Cokes and unfiltered Pall Mall's said: "I would like to speak with Frank Baltazar. Is he there?" I said to the creaky voice, "well, that depends on who's calling" The creaky voice creaked. "I think I am speaking with Kiki," I told the creaky voice that he was speaking with Kiki, and I asked, "and who am I speaking with?" The creaky voice then told me his name (real name omitted). I remembered him, but I knew him as "Babe." 

The last time I saw Babe was around the mid-'60s when he did some photo work for me; he is an old acquaintance from Pico who married a girl from Simons. After establishing that I was Kiki and that he was Babe, I had an interesting conversation with many "huh's?" in it because Babe, at 87, and I, at 80, are both hard of hearing due to old age. 

Between "huh's," we reminisce about the pet crow he used to have and the Cushman scooter that, as a teenager, he used to ride and about all the time he spent at my uncle John's house. 

We traded stories about our days in Pico, stories that have changed significantly with time - Babe then told me that he has read most of my stories on my blog (he said he loved my 'Juana the Loca' story)  and wanted to know if I was writing a book. I told him no that I had no plans of doing so. I explained to him that I am not a writer per se and only write as a hobby, "so no book," I again said. - I asked Babe how he came around to get my phone number, and he answered with a classic "I made a few calls"  We ended our half-hour conversation with a "huh?' and plans to get together for lunch soon. Isn't life wonderful?!

80 or 81

By kiki 

Yesterday afternoon while walking out to the mailbox, I found myself walking on unsteady legs. I thought while I reached in and grabbed the mail (bills) 'man, it's a bitch getting old' Looking for a wall to grab onto, but finding none, I instead grabbed the mailbox for support and to steady myself before I started the trek back indoors. Once indoors, I told Connie, who was sitting in her easy chair, "sweetie, I am having a hard time walking; my legs wobble when I walk" With a smile on her sweet face, she said, "well, babe (yes, she called me babe) that's because you are 81 years old" 81! that grabbed my attention real quick, "hold it there woman!" I heatedly protested, "I am 80; I still have a month to go before I hit 81!" "80 or 81, we can all agree that you are old, so what we are arguing here is just how old you are, but instead of arguing, we should think about what to do about it, get you a cane? No, you already have a few of those; how about a walker?" I responded to her with what I thought was a better idea, "how about an electric scooter?" "hell no!" she almost felled out of her chair when I said 'electric scooter' "the way you drive you'll run the dogs and me over. Hence, an electric scooter is out of the question, so go for the walker" Connie is a hard woman to do business with, so I said to her, "Okay, I'll think about the walker. Still, sweetie, I would never run the dogs over" At that, she opened her eyes real wide and asked, "how 'bout me, would you run me over?" And without answering her, I grabbed the wall and wobbled my way to our bedroom. Damn, there goes my custom low riding electric scooter!