Friends...some fall out, some betray, some walk out, some disappear like smoke...some just don't give a damn |
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It
was 1971. Tom was hitch hiking that night on Hwy 80 in Berkeley. We
picked him up. My wife and I put him up for the night. Tom became a
friend and we stayed in touch.He earned a Masters and then a Ph.d. Very
funny, smart guy. We closed Winterland with the Grateful Dead in 1978.
Those were concerts where I'd dance in the isle until I could wring
water from my T-shirt. On 4 hits of windowpane
I looked up at the ceiling and it was gone. There was a life force
beam from another galaxy entering the hall. I noticed aliens connecting
their nervous systems to the concert and asked them about it. One
explained that it was like their version of TV. OH! That I understood.
"Do you guys like the Grateful Dead" I asked. The alien
said, "Oh yeah! They're the best. Dance on guy, have fun!"
Later, in Texas, I met Tom again. He was a theatre critic in Atlanta. He wrote brilliant reviews and had quite a following. He say things like "The only reason the lead actress was cast in the role is because she sleeps with the director." Now that was actually true. But the theatre didn't like that. His fans loved it! He sent me a clipping once of the theatre burning his figure in effigy. No kidding. They hung a Tom the Critic doll from the marquise and then torched it. That same month Atlanta Monthly offered him a job. Tom went back to school in his mid-thirties and graduated from Medical school a few years ago. Now he is training to be a psychiatrist. You know the Bible says not to turn away strangers as "...some have entertained angels unaware." You see what I mean? After 26 years of friendship I have not heard from Tom for 8 years. He just disappeared like smoke....blew me off... |
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Some people are only friends when you give them what they want. When spurned some may turn and become vicious enemies. I used to be vulnerable, when I was young. But too many persons proved to be unworthy of my special kind of generosity. One woman, Laura, was a friend for 4 years until a simple argument one day ended everything. Unbelievable. How can anyone be so shallow? Who is not made of smoke?
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Copyright© 1999 by Russell R. Robinson. All rights reserved |
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