Where Are You From?

He would have guessed her age at somewhere just on the better side of thirty. A woman whose considerable looks were at their peak and whose understanding of the world had sharpened past youth.

-John Katzenbach
THE ANALYST

Twenty-five years ago today:

May 22, 1987
Friday

After work I decided to walk over near Union Square to the WILKES SPORT shop. I rekindled a meeting with Timothy Lewis. He works for WILKES-BASHFORD and he actually remembered me from when I dropped in to the store last November. I bought some black vertical-striped shorts and a green sweatshirt/jacket and a turquoise blue WB polo shirt. Timothy threw in a yellow and white tank-top for me. That was mighty sporty of him. We briefly discussed the idea of biking together some time.
“Where are you from?”  I asked because he was so friendly.
Timothy said, “I’m from the Monterey peninsula originally.”
He’s a nice chap but I’ll probably never hear from him again.

I went to FUJIYA’s and had a Michelob beer as I waited for the arrival of my former coworkers from Pacific Bell. Laverne and Stephanie arrived first and then the rest of my old Section ‘G’ showed up. I met Edward and was surprised to reunite with Cathie Tingle after three years of not seeing her. We used to work together at the Oakland RASC (Revenue Account Service Center) and she recently transferred to the SDC. Dale Orlando didn’t make the birthday event for Pearl. Cedric Green showed up though. I’m glad I found a fun Birthday Card for Pearl. She was happy.

After the dinner many of us went to CHANNELS (formerly BARNABY’s) for drinks. I saw Christy McQueen. She’s a friend of Cedric’s but I actually remembered her from my old Directory Assistance Operator days way back in 1978! She’s a real party-type.
Some Mexican gal asked me, “Could I see your ID?”

She didn’t work at the restaurant and claimed to be an undercover cop. That was wild. Do I really look under twenty-one? A little later I realized it was all a ploy for her to get to know me. She wanted to dance with me. She was kind of ‘ugh’ though. She could have been close to thirty years old. After a dance with her I joined my group and we cracked a few jokes. Laverne drove me to my car. I was home by ten-thirty. It can be exhausting to go out after work on a Friday. Yawn.

“I’ve always wanted to live by the seaside.”
-Lucy Muir
THE GHOST AND MRS. MUIR, 1947 motion picture