recharging batteries

one of the things i do to keep my head on square is to step out now and again for an evening of dance and drink. last night i did just that and ended up at a little bar a few blocks from where i live.

on the way there, a white van slowed down and this woman jumped out and came across the street and started talking to me. said something about having just come from the northeast (calgary is divided into quadrants) and that she had been hanging out with ken. at first i wasn't sure if she was actually talking to me because she was sort of following one step behind but as i looked around ... there was nobody else on the sidewalk. so i stopped, and with a puzzled look on my face, said, "i think you may have me confused with someone else." a wash of disrecognition spread across her face and she stammered, "uh, yeah, i think so..." my ghost twin strikes again.

at the bar the band was just setting up. they played acoustic guitars through all their sets and covered all sorts of favourites recent and past. there was a movie crew there that had just wrapped up a movie called september dawn about some mormons that enlisted the help of a group of natives to jointly slaughter a wagon train of settlers in utah in the 1800s. it was interesting to meet and talk with some of the cast and crew as they drank the night away at their wrap up party.

i ended up dancing with several of the people who were there, including this one woman who had no concept of letting the guy lead. so i eventually just gave up trying and let her lead, which she seemed pretty happy about. i went to leave at around 01:00 but this one woman insisted i stay and play some pool first. i begrudged her a game and she asked for my email address as she has friends in the software industry that she figured would be quite interested in talking to me about open source. i'm not holding my breath though; "oh, i have a friend who you should talk to. how can i get a hold of you?" never seems to result in anyone of interest ever contacting me. ;)

on the way home i came upon a group of homeless people. they were panhandling for money, and i recognized one of the fellows as a regular in the area. he's a very nice person who is originally from the dominican republic; i've noticed he is always polite and friendly, even when those around him aren't. some of the others in the group were new in town and looking for work, complete with work boots and other such gear tethered to their rucksacks. so i went, bought a bag of sandwiches and brought it back to them. they were quite appreciative and surprised.

i was originally going to get the sandwiches from a fast food place that is open late in the area, but they wouldn't serve me at the drive through (the only thing that remains open at that time) without a car. when i suggested that they break out of their corporate slave mentality and apply a bit of reasonable consideration and initiative to serve a customer who would like to purchase a good number of meals, they seemed to be even less happy to take my order. wonder why. =P

in all i probably spent 4 or 5 hours doing nothing but letting my hair hair down. certainly helps me get through days like today where i've done nothing but administrative duties, prepare presentations for upcoming shows, deal with promo issues and the like.