New Glasses – 14 April 2014

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14 April 2014

“Good morning, Chuck, have you heard anything more about Joy?”

“No, I was just talking to the one guy. He said there was some kind of altercation between Michelle and Joy. He said something about fifteen hundred dollars or fifteen dollars. Knowing Joy, it would be the latter. There’s no way she could get hold of fifteen hundred dollars. There was also something about a bus fare. Michelle was either drunk or high, I don’t know which. She pulled a knife and stabbed Joy.

I said, “I’ve met Michelle many times. She’s always seemed nice to me.”

“Yes, when she’s sober. She stabbed her idiot boyfriend a couple of times and he’s still with her. He’s a real asshole. I don’t know what she sees in him. That’s all I’ve heard. I don’t know if Joy is a t home or in hospital.

“I guess you heard about that other stabbing involving Brittany Hawk. I know her.  She’s a nice enough person when she’s straight and sober. She’s a prostitute, met a guy in front of the Shepherd. They went to his apartment, got drunk.  An argument broke out, she tabbed him  in the face, head, chest, thigh and hand with one of his own kitchen knives. One of the wounds pierced his heart.  She was still on probation for stabbing her mother and stepfather. She’d previously stabbed a man during a home invasion robbery, cutting his thigh before saying sorry, asking him not to report it to police, and kissing him on the cheek. You never know about people. Anyway, she plead guilty. They expect that she’ll be sentenced to fourteen years.”

“I got in a real row with my son this past weekend. I’ve mentioned that I have a lady friend that lives in Brampton.  I’ve decided that when I die I wanted to be cremated. The ashes are to be saved. When Goldie and my lady  friend die the three sets of ashes are to be mixed in one urn.  They have this special cemetery for people without much money. They’ll be buried there. Chuck Junior wanted to know all about this woman in Cornwall and why I wanted to be buried with her. I said to him, ‘It’s my funeral, it’s my decision. It’s got nothing to do with you?’ He said, “Yeah, It’s always about you.’ I said to him, “Do you know why nobody likes you? It’s because you talk too damn much and you don’t mind your own business.’ He was even on Facebook sending messages to people I know. They’re not friends of mine they just happen to live in the same building as me. There are probably only two people in that building that I would consider friends. In the summer sometimes, a bunch of tenants will gather in the parking lot and have a barbecue, share a few beer; that doesn’t mean they’re friends.”

I asked, “How was the rest of your weekend?

“It was quiet. I have to get new glasses. Welfare will pay for the eye exam and lenses, but I have to pay for the frames. I phoned all around the city to find the cheapest price, mind you with Welfare we only have so many to choose from. I had to go way out to the end of Scarborough for the frames. They were regularly a hundred and eighteen, but I got them on sale, fifty percent off.

“It’s the same with my electric wheelchair. They’ll pay for the chair, but not servicing. If I have a chair, they won’t pay for a walker. Sometimes I go to places without wheelchair access, like my daughter’s home.

“I even had a guy complain that he saw me using a cell phone. Well, why shouldn’t I use a cell phone? How else can I get the Wheelchair Taxi to pick me up?

“Here comes trouble. See that man across the street with the dog?” Chuck put his cap over Goldie’s head.

The man said, “Don’t worry, my dog won’t hurt your dog.”

Chuck yelled, “Just keep your dog away from me.”

To me he said, “Some pet owners are so irresponsible. It happens in my building. Guests with dogs will come over and let them run loose in the halls. I knew who it was and I complained. I said, ‘Either keep that dog in the apartment, or get it out of the building.’

“We have the same problem with tenants letting their friends use the laundry facilities. They always leave a mess. We have recycling boxes and they don’t use them properly. There was one neighbor who even let her friend use our trash disposal. I told her, ‘You do that one more time and I’ll report you.’ I get so mad sometimes.”

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