Ep. 16 - The Curse of The Wildwoods, pt. 2

Hey, gang! Welcome to my life – where anything is possible and nothing is as it seems. I’m Freedom and I’ll be your host, coming at you from within the depths of Geistopia.

Welcome To My Life is a project, an experiment in Life and ART. A living storyboard, if you will. Its premise is that life is experiential, and that you can, and do, experience the life you choose. It is based on The Wheel of Life and The ARTs for The New Millennium as life building tools.

Welcome to my Life is an I T.V. Studios/Geist…House Players Production, in association with the Center for Creative Inspirationalism. JustUs Productions, the parent company, would like to give a ‘Shout-Out’ to the following for their ongoing, and sometimes unknowing, inspiration and support:

Princess Cuddlebug

Princess Sunshine

Craze & Co.

The Shaman

The Pillar

F’n Bob

The Entire Putt-Putt-Putter Clan

Professor Siggy Chong

The VanMan and General Ralph Glossop (may they R.I.P.)

PDT

‘Blue 326’

The Original KLT

The Looch

The Baker

Bert-on

Andy Pandy

The Mudder

Hoagie

The Prodigy

The Wix-ians

Piz-Niffer

Dancing Queen

Downtown Encyclopedia Brown

Mama Rabbit

And, of course, a very generous sponsor who (not-so-much) wishes to remain anonymous.

It is…Sunday, July 8, 2018. Time...

Theme of the Week – It’s A Demon

Well…Duh!

If this were a video segment, Walt would have a line there, “No Shit, Sherlock.” Why was I surprised? For years I have been saying this very thing. [Only I would normally spell it Daemon. There may be a connection between my Demon and the Daemon, but they are very different entities.] Yet, when it popped up this week, I was all like, “Oh…right. Now it all makes sense.” Like it was some grand friggin’ revelation. *Scrunches up face in mock confusion.* It’s a Daemon folks. It took hold around 2000 and then for a brief period of time it allowed me to think I was free. But, it is most certainly is a Daemon. And, not just any Daemon. Oh, no. This is not some ordinary run of the mill Daemon. This is the big guy. The HDIC…and the ‘D’ does not stand for ‘Dick.’ [Well…sometimes…] This is THE Daemon. (Not the one you are thinking of…) It is He Who Shall Not Be Named. [No, not him either.] He shall not be named because I put a name to him once and very nasty, wicked things happened.

It is a Daemon. [But…I don’t think it’s here for only me.]

I don’t exactly know what that means, or what to do with it. But, it is what it is and that is what it is.

Lesson of the Week – The Message Comes First

It’s true. We’re always given a heads up. We so very often, walk through this life, with this happening or that, and think that somehow G-d has left us ill-prepared, uniformed. This is not ever really the case. Don’t believe me? Take a look at the previous episode’s Lesson.

This was a head’s up on two counts actually. First, it was a good reminder as I walked through the last few days of this week.

Second, it is relative to a dialogue from earlier today.

I knew 6 months before Mama left that she was going to. I had watched it happen. [While I drove to work, but that’s…a story for another time.]

I was told before The Cave-In.

We’re always told. Sometimes to prepare us for what is going to happen. Sometimes to remind us when it does.

Observation of the Week – Beliefs – Friend or Foe?

I don’t want to get too much into this at the moment. I may have a story or two about it later on. [Don’t know yet.] However, the gist of it is simple – We define what we believe. What we believe defines our lives. It is what we will have, what we will experience. What we believe is all we will ever know.

This can be a good thing, but, I believe, it can also be very bad. It can be limiting, suffocating. What we believe can keep us from experiencing the essence of Life itself. It is what we believe and that is all there is…

Or is it?

Totems – **Goldfinch**; Heron; Bat; Squirrel; Robin; Fox, Catbird, Blue Jay; Chipmunk; Fly

[Birds Like me.]

*I left all of the ‘weekly’ stuff the same. It’s all covering the same window of time, even though different weeks.*

So, I suppose you’d like to know the rest of the story. What could have possibly happened after such a splendid retreat?

Well, my friends, sit back, relax and grab a good book as JustUs Productions and The Center for Creative Inspirationalism present:

The Curse of The Wildwoods – Part 2

When we last left Sir Dimwit and the Princesses they were leaving The Wildwoods, headed for the Great First State…

It was fairly normal and routine at first. Nothing truly out of the ordinary. It was a hot day. God, it was such a hot day. At that point it was the hottest day of the year. We have had hotter since, but still, a very hot day. So hot that it felt like the air conditioning was not helping at all.

Just on the city limits we made the obligatory convenience store stop – refueled, both the car and ourselves. Then we headed out. All systems normal, except I wished that damned air conditioning was helping more. About thirty minutes outside of The Wildwoods it happened. The AC conked out altogether. There was nothing. The panel wouldn’t light up. Nothing.

The rest of the drive was extremely uncomfortable. I am fairly certain that between there and our destination I bordered on a heat stroke twice. I have never felt so miserable. I drove through the deserts of Arizona in late June and didn’t feel that horrible. [Of course, that’s 18 years ago.]

So, we made it to Wilmington in one piece - and just in time. The first stop was to get dinner. There is this pizza place 5 minutes from my grandmother’s that is just extraordinary. I’m not even exaggerating. It is out of this world. It is ‘melt in your mouth’ pizza. After we had it the first time, the Princesses refused to eat any other pizza for like two months. My grandmother has told us repeatedly that she only has it when we come down. So…we always get it. Dinner in hand, we arrived at my grandmother’s. Everyone ate, drank and was merry. Life was good.

My cousin had stopped in for a bit to visit with the Princesses. I don’t know what it is about her, but of all my cousins, she is the one that the Princesses absolutely adore. She is the one that they need to see. Interestingly enough, she has always been my favorite cousin as well. So, again, the girls all hung out and daddy drifted. The thing that daddy does best.

After she left, we started a movie. This has also become a traditional part of the visit. My grandmother so enjoys the movies that the Princesses bring to watch and she constantly tells us that this is the only time she sits and watches a whole movie. So, every time we go now, they have to take a movie. This trip’s selection was the original Ice Age. Another hit. [And, only four more in the series to watch.]

We paused the movie just briefly when the other cousin, the one from The Wildwoods, stopped in to say hello.

To bed, and up again.

Up…and at ‘em.

I ran for breakfast. Everybody ate. We chillaxed a bit. And, before departing, the Princesses and I took part in yet another of our traditions. My grandmother is a good woman. She is. She can be a little rough around the edges, but she is a good woman. She gives and gives and gives and gives. Never takes. God forbid you should ever try to argue with her when she wants to pay for something. So, since she is too stubborn to not give and too prideful to take, every time I go down I leave several $5 bills tucked here and there around the house. [I don’t have much, but I try to give what I can.] Well, anyway, I passed this tradition on to my daughters. They LOVE it. I think this is their favorite part of any visit. They were ready to do it already the night we arrived, and I was like, “No, no. It must be when we leave.”

From there we were off to one of daddy’s favorite activities – a mall crawl. Turns out, this is actually an interest that the Princesses share with me. For different reasons, obviously. And, it is a whole different experience for all of us when we go together.

Daddy goes to relax and observe. I like to see what stores are happening and what they are marketing. I like to see what’s ‘Trending Now…’ That’s one of those hidden advantages to being poor – I don’t get all caught up in the latest trends because I can’t afford to do it. So, I just watch the trends come and go. It’s quite amusing actually. I do have my stores that I frequent. I always got to Spencers. I always go to Hot Topic. And, of course, there is always a coffee in hand. But, that’s not exactly news, is it?

From there, I just sort of bounce around. I go into any other shops that catch my attention. I browse and I peruse. People as well. A mall is just such a fun environment in which to people watch…and engage. It’s the perfect place to turn up the Spirit and flow. You never know where you will go.

Once, I was visiting Downtown Encyclopedia Brown in Charleston, SC. He had work one night, so I headed out to the ‘local’ mall. [Local as in 30 minutes away.] When we were both back at the apartment I told him about my mall crawl. He looked at me, this most confounded look on his face, and he says, “Dude, I have never known anyone to go to a mall and come back with so many stories.”

I had talked to so many people that night. There was the Arab gentleman at the jewelry kiosk who explained to me that the tye-dyed shirt I was wearing actually had Arabic written on it. He said it was an artistic styling, but it was definitely Arabic. He went on to explain that the two words written on the shirt were the Arabic words for the Koran and Allah. [This was significant at the time.]

I had an encounter with the sales girls at Fredericks of Hollywood. [Don’t ask…really.]

I talked to some chick in an art store.

There were like 6 stories in all. This mall crawl with the Princesses was no different. I learned things along the way. I questioned and queried and let my curiosity play. In just about every store we entered, I believe. I even came back with a story about the Lovesac. [Don’t think about that one too hard.]

For the Princesses, I was to learn, the mall is a very different beast. *Straight, very serious pause to emphasize the word ‘beast.’* It’s kinda frightening actually. It hurt. *chuckles*

They’re girls. They shop. They shop girly things. I have never spent that much time in make-up stores in all of my life. Never. Not cumulatively. It is but a fraction of a percent of the amount of time I spent in stinky, smelly, girly stores that day. Cuddlebug tested so much make-up that by the end of the crawl she looked like some psychopath counting kills on her arm. War paint. One store I even had to just get the hell out. There were so many aromas that my olfactory senses were in overdrive, and, for someone like me, that’s not always fun. It is true that aromas activate and stimulate different and varying aspects of being.

Nonetheless, good times were had by all. There was shopping and laughs and food and fun. I so enjoy those times. The ones when the three of us can get away from the distractions of life and become enveloped in a whole separate world together. We don’t get that often. It’s such a good way to get to know each other.

During our Spencers stop, Cuddlebug found a T-shirt she wanted for my grandmother. I won’t share what it was, but there is a story behind it. The shirts were buy one get one half off or something like that, so they found one for me that reads, “In my defense I was left unsupervised.” Again, this is so very appropriate for me. And, again, I’m not sure how I feel about my daughters knowing this.

When we were leaving the mall, Cuddlebug was certain that she knew what entrance we came through. I listened to her. Never again, I tell you, never again. We walked around that parking lot for almost thirty minutes before we actually found the car. Ok, so, car found we headed home – making one quick, surprise stop back at my grandmother’s to deliver the shirt. She was very amused by it.

By the time we got the car home, it was making a not-so-good noise. When I talked to my mechanic on Wednesday morning his advice was to not drive it much and bring it in on Friday. Not a big deal, I still had the truck to use.

On Wednesday, Big ‘D’ would go into the hospital. This was a crazy day. Apparently, she had been feeling unwell all day and had an appointment with the doctor that evening. I didn’t know any of this until it was happening.

It turns out she got hit really hard with pneumonia. I learned something about pneumonia that night. When it hits hard, it looks almost just like a stroke. Craze and Big ‘D’ were eating dinner before her appointment and she just kind of zoned out for quite some time. I could see by looking at her that she wasn’t in there. When she did come back she wasn’t really making sense within the conversation and her arm was shaking really bad. I honestly thought she had had a mini stroke. In fact, I was on my way to call 911 when she finally spoke. I realized though that I had seen that look, witnessed that behavior. Twice before, in fact, when my father had been stricken by pneumonia. [It smells ever so faintly of ‘Death’.)

I offered to call an ambulance. I offered to drive them. Both offers were refused. So, mom goes to the doctor. The doctor sends her to the hospital and the hospital decides to keep her. Originally until Friday, but that would change several times over the course of the next several days.

On Thursday, I made a quick run to the grocery store. It is a five minute drive. By the time I got there I had received a text from my neighbor’s nephew to be careful because the truck’s inspection was out of date. I looked at the sticker, and, sure enough, it had expired at the end of May. Now, it is not my vehicle so I honestly had no clue, nor even a thought to check such a thing. So, I did what I needed to and then snuck the truck home on the most back roads I could find. [Which really wasn’t all that difficult.

Ok, so now I had no vehicle whatsoever. I had 3 days of work coming up [yes, over vacation] and no mode of transportation. I would have to rely on other people, mainly Boom-Dee-Aye, to get to and from work. This also meant that any extra stops along the way – cigarettes, etc – would have to be planned out and pre-approved.

On Friday, I got a call from the mechanic. The car needed a new compressor, or the comparable [and cheaper] pulley system. Besides the cost, the only other difference between the two was that the pulley system would not give me AC. *Sigh.* So…no AC do I have. Nonetheless, it still needed work, but if I needed it for the weekend I could pick it up and use it. Sounds great, except that I couldn’t drive it too far, especially once I realized there were no turn signals. So still, I had no vehicle for work. But, at least I could get myself to the store and whatnot.

Later that day, as we pulled into the hospital parking lot to pick up Craze, I got a call from a strange phone number in Reading. Now, I knew Cuddlebug was with her friends at the mall in Reading. But, who was calling, and why?

When I answered the phone, I heard Cuddlebug’s voice. She was still speaking to someone there with her when I said, “Hello.” Then she said, “Dad…” and I knew right away what had happened. She had lost her phone. It was then stolen and the person disappeared with it. [Incidentally, the Find My iPhone app is very interesting.] Now I had one very upset, almost teenage girl on my hands. She was a mess on the phone. I told her things she could do and check out and people to talk to and we would just take it one step at time until we had it figured out.

So, like I said, the phone was stolen. Cuddlebug set out right away with plans to get a replacement. The only problem was that we couldn’t do anything. Big ‘D’ is the only authorized person on the account and everything, including the insurance claim, has to go through her. Obviously, that wasn’t going to happen any time soon. I love my daughter, but she treated me like I was the most horrible father on Earth because I couldn’t just snap my fingers and hand her a brand-new working phone.

With both vehicles down and out I began to wonder what would happen if the truck didn’t pass inspection. This beast has been trying to die for some time and they just keep breathing life back into it. One time, last year, it literally died at the metal scrap yard and I thought, “Uh…she found home. She’s ready to stay right here.” This sentiment was echoed just a short while later. We had actually gotten it running and as I pulled out onto the road from the scrap yard, it died again. But, we towed it. We fixed it. And, not too long after that it was in the garage again. Near the end of the fall season last year it was in the garage for five weeks while they tried to find the problem. That was 5 weeks I had no way to haul stuff. I was left with piles of leaves and weeds and grasses that I couldn’t get rid of. [I just got caught up with it all today.]

Funds are very limited across the board in Geistopia these days. Needless to say, I do not currently have the funds to fix, let alone replace a vehicle and they are strapped due to the new septic system. The only thing is that we need a truck on this property. It would be near impossible to keep up with the yard and gardens without one. So, this is like…a thing. This is a real, live, honest to goodness concern. Funds are limited and we really must have a truck.

As I thought on it, my solution would be simple should that scenario arise. Do not fix my car. Scrap both of them for the metal [as well as the RV with no brakes that has been sitting here for a year.] Then take that salvage money, plus whatever would have been spent to fix my car and put it towards a another truck. [Still makes sense to me. Still what I would have done in any instance.]

On Saturday afternoon, I was expressing these thoughts to Boom-Dee-Aye. Before I could really say too much she chimed in, with this indignant tone, “There is no money for a vehicle!”

I don’t know what it was, exactly. Maybe it was the insanity that had been my week since we returned from the beach. Perhaps it was the pressure I was feeling from all the things I needed to do and couldn’t. It just might have been the fact that once again I was shut-up and shot down before I could even really speak. (Mayhaps it was something a little more ’Divine.’) Whatever it was, I snapped. I totally snapped. It was like a volcanic eruption.

I essentially told her to “Shut the F--- up!” I told her I was tired of it – the way she speaks for them as if she is them. I didn’t just tell it. I yelled it. I shook the house. Really, I did. Frankly, it was a bit of overkill for the moment. But then, that is what has me wondering what was the real source of that eruption?

The Princesses heard me explode…and they were on the other side of the house, and upstairs. They weren’t happy with me at all. But, in our dialogue, I defaulted to the reading. It takes a lot for me to lose it. So, if I do, it has been going on for too long. And, this has definitely been going on for too long.

All the while that this craziness is happening, they are here tearing up the yard to put the new septic system in. My whole world was all topsy-turvy and congested. There was absolutely nothing on which I could work. Nothing that I could do. I had all of this time, with no work, and there was absolutely nothing that I could accomplish.

The timing of the septic work actually intrigues me and piques my interest. The fact that it was all getting done now and now was falling apart caught my attention. It’s no coincidence. You see, we started having serious septic problems around 2000 at the very latest. It was right about the time the Daemon would make his first appearance, and life would forever change once more.

This was perhaps the craziest week of my life. [Well, except for the week I died. That was pretty crazy.] It was just one thing after another, every day. It had gotten to the point that I had to wonder – just what did we do on vacation to elicit such an experience?

I did since receive an answer. However, I’m not going to share it. It was for me and really serves no purpose in moving the story forward. (For now.) Besides, there has been the realization that I may have misinterpreted the message. I must look at things closer. Quite literally.

So, without hesitation…

For now and for always, from here in Geistopia this is your beloved Rev wishing you Peace, Love, Light and Freakishness, baby!

Please feel free to leave comments, questions, and concerns. I don’t know you are there if you don’t say, “Hi.” Also, you’re experience of WTML is just as important as mine. So, let me know what you think. Secondly, if you would like to connect, or find out more about me, you can find WTML on Facebook @TheNewWTML or myself at @rev.mgeist.