January Hussle!

It's that time again!

Photos of people, places and of course meh! Thanks to the very efficient Walkgreens photo development team the pics are completely out of order...bleh!



Yes I'm a fan of Dune. The original movie and then the mini-series. I'm yet to read a Frank Herbert book, but i'm going to soon (as soon as i run out of Star Wars novels), i believe his son also wrote some Dune novels which i will probably also read.



One of the hatian girls who hooks me up with food, and god... her name escapes me, but she is 21 and 5 months pregnant, nice girl.



My tent during sundown, my home, my shelter.



At the library, hmm... what does this do if i pull it?



Where i clean up, yeah... hey i got to do it somewhere!



Burger King crew, Marilu and Craig =D



Me and Marilu, of course the pic came out bad... Crait took it! oh well.



This is my usual table at BK, where (as you can see) I read my books every night.



The evil Shade, just don't tell her i said that... or she will step on more donuts!



Just chilling at sundown.

Beautiful huh? you can imagine the wealth the people have who live inside. And that is where i distributed the fliers this week.

I wonder if i can take a dip?

Hey there!

Taking a break near a lake today.

Listening to hip hop tracks (Jay-Z, Kanye West, Flo Rida, and others).

Ah, to relax and be stress free, heaven!

I'm not going in! i can't swim!

Had to take a nice pic of the lake

This is where i saw "I am Legend" a while ago.

Oh noes! i fail my camouflage skillz!

Peace my people!

I'm falling from the sky and i got no parachute!

Not sure how i messed up this pic (look at the right side).

Well there it is, this week's pic batch =D

Limos, photography and lawyers who don't reply!

Ok, let me start from this morning.

Wake up, BK, Home Depot by 9AM. This routine you know.

10:30AM, jewish woman asks for my cell # and she tells that she'll call me back (implying of course to work).

11AM she comes back to my spot and we discuss work (not pay rate, i had a feeling not to push). She and her husband owns a limo service to the airport, and she is also a photographer.

My job: distribute very nice (and apparently expensive) fliers into mailboxes in a very exclusive and wealthy neighborhood (gated community). Ok, no problem.

For the first couple of hours the security people drive by and don't bother me, until they see me open a mailbox.

Boom!

"You can't open mailboxes, it's against the law. It's federal property, also by law it requires postage." and so on and on he went. I understood, the guy has a job to do and he is not kicking me out, just telling me i can't open mailboxes.

Of course i try to sweet talk him. "I'm a homeless dude. I'm not here to steal mail, just wanna make an honest day's work here." hoping he would sorta look the other way, you know "out of sight, out of mind" like they say.

Nope. So i had to compromise with placing both fliers on the side of the mailbox which was still visible to anyone picking up their mail.

In other words, cool beans.

I finish at 4:30PM, get paid. Then she tells me on the phone (her husband had picked me up and i'm in their SUV) that she wants to help me out, offering me an apartment and i'm like "i'm ok right now" but didn't say no. Then after me and her agree on $8 per hour (since she mentioned she wanted to hire me on a regular basis) i get paid by the husband. Now it's not over guys. He then offers me a brand new scooter! and even offers me to help me get my driver license back!

Can you imagine? i just worked for these nice people one day, ONE DAY!

They want to dress me up and place me in the airport to help their limo driver after all the fliers are distributed (i'm doing more of that tomorrow starting at 8:45AM).

Tomorrow i'm going to tell them that i want to earn their trust first, and then if they want to offer me an apartment and the scooter i would be glad to accept them.

God oh mighty! all the thanks i give daily to the man must have gotten me on his good graces, thank you lord!

Oh yeah, talked to my friend Van last night. She seems to be a happy gal these days with a new guy in her life, and i'm glad that she is.

I don't know but... for a while when i see a couple in love, or showing affection, a kiss, a hug, holding hands, it just brings a smile to my face. I'm happy for them, for strangers! yet at the same time i'm a little bit jealous that i don't have that.

Oh well. All in time i guess.

As the subject states, lawyers didn't reply to my emails. That is frustrating. But right now i may end up with a steady job. If i can work with the couple and make decent money i will walk into the nearest divorce lawyers office with a few hundred bucks and just say "get me a divorce".

So many things happened today. And most of them good. Now i'm at the library, checking more of "her" emails, and i'm not stressed at all.

All you guys who give me moral support, thanks. I mean it, it means a great deal to me, and it has helped me keep going for a long time. It has made me stronger, and hopefully a better man.

Ok before i get too mushy, i need to recharge my cell. Later guys!

Well, here it goes

I've felt free emotionally (for the most part) for quite some time, even to the point that i was looking up dating sites. However recently something has made me realize that even though emotionally i'm ready to move on, the legal ties of being married are undeniably a hinderance to any serious relationship with any woman.

The laws are different in other states, however from what i've seen it requires me to be a resident for at least a few months before even filing for divorce if i leave florida. Also it appears that getting a divorce from Canada would still require me to return to the states.

So, today i've emailed 2 lawyers and i'm awaiting on their response regarding my situation. I asked the aproximate time it would take to get a divorce and what it would cost considering it probably would be contested by my wife.

I got to wait out the winter going on in canada anyways. I'm working enough that i believe i could afford to pay for the divorce myself as long as i remain in my tent and not rent a room for whatever long it would take. I would have to move my tent to higher ground in a few months when the weather changes and adapt to it of course as i have to everything else.

This is an unexpected expense, but the result would be me being 100% free from Nina in every possible way. Emotionally she has been using my niece and nephew to try and get me back, and i've managed to remain strong and not fall for it.

For 20 years i've either been with women for fun, or picked the wrong one to have serious relationships. I'm 38, i want to experience fatherhood, a good woman i can love and respect, to grow old with. My bad marriage needs to end if i'm ever to have a chance at a good one.

Wish me luck guys, i think i'm going to need it if Nina gets a good lawyer to drag the process down.

Last night and this morning...

Well, after the library i went and hung out with the guys at DD.

I must now mention a female at DD, "Shade" (her full name is Shadela). The meanest black lesbian i've ever met (she has a very sweet girlfriend), in a nice way. She has a big mouth, and let me tell you... she knows how to diss people jokingly, but she does have a mean streak. A couple of days ago she said "man we're loosing all the good looking people around here" and i replied "which would explain you", we were joking around, but i didn't think much of it until last night.

Shade started to step on donuts, throwing them away (and this is at 8PM mind you, she is not supposed to do that until 10PM) demanding an apology first, and then asking me to rub my belly and make a weird sound.

Oh how my precious donuts began to get slaughtered! Oh the tragedy my friends!... ok i got too used to donuts.

Kravis (the other black dude who is very cool with me -he was in the last batch of pics-) is laughing, and then tried to defend me, for a whole 10 seconds before he backs off from Shade knowing she may say something like "you perv!" in front of a customer (which i heard she has done before) just to mess with him.

So Kravis retreats to the back of the store to do some work, and then i do what Shade asks (at least i didn't do it in front of Kravis, to save some of my male dignity).

I got my donuts, my muffins and a decaf coffee (light and sweet, like i like it).

Note to self: Don't mess with Shade.

Now of course my night did not end there. I go to BK and Marilu and Craig are working. Let me say that talking to those two is pure entertainment, between Craig's silliness and Marilu's stories of her getting drunk with just 2 drinks, being friends with a good looking (and wealthy) man without her husband knowing... ok you get the idea.

We were talking (when they weren't busy serving food that is) until almost midnight! i never been in there that late. I was even hooked up with a small salad with chicken, then given 2 large salads, ranch dressing, crutons and a few pockets of chicken to share with my homeless neighbor (which i did on my way to my tent).

As i was leaving Marilu asked me... how i get cleaned up. I had to go back in, sit down and well... i know them for months so i figured i tell them about the library. Ok, so they did laugh, not at me of course, but at how i managed to keep clean compared to other homeless guys.

Marilu said i had an exciting life. I guess in a way, i do. Hoping never to get caught holding a bottle with water washing up, heh.

Well i get to my tent and even tho it's late it takes me a while to fall asleep, and i wake up this morning with my sleeping bag half off me, which was weird. I guess i turned around a lot in my sleep.

I go to BK, eat my 2 muffins and the salad. I didn't think Marilu had thrown in 5 (yes, five) pockets of chicken with my salad. God, i could not eat it all. I was full, which is rare in the mornings.

I ride and get to my spot at 9AM, and stand there until noon. No work, but a guy stopped and got my phone number, he may have a paint job for me in a few days.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention, the dude who hired me last night called back and said he didn't need me Tues but maybe Wed and i said it was ok and thanks for everything. It is what it is.

Got me a new crank flashlight 'cause the other isn't quite working as good anymore, i will probably give it to Micheal/Jhon/Rico later today since i gave Timmy the other salad last night.

Sharing is caring.

Ok so i'm at the library since 12:20PM and i'll be reading my SW book for a bit and then write another post regarding my situation that i've been thinking about recently. This post is already long as it is.

Later!

I'm Picasso! ok, no i'm not!

Alright, woke up at 8AM, got to BK at 8:30 and then realized i had not made my new "Looking for Work" sign. Duh!

After eating my breakfast (courtesy of my DD crew from last night) which was 2 blueberry muffins and a raisin bagel with cream cheese i went behind Office Depot, got cardboard and made my sign.

I got to the Home Depot around 9:15AM, and held my sign. At 10AM a latino picks me up for paint work, we talked a bit and i worked for a bit over 8 hours painting. Decent pay. I was worried earlier in the morning since l had no luck with weather last week (made no money).

Finished at 6:30PM and got paid. Looks like tomorrow i will get picked up for another day of painting (thank god). Today alone covers my food expenses for the day, now if i can keep working straight to Friday i will be able to add to my canada funds.

I got to the library at 7:15PM and had to wash up, had paint on my arms and face, and well... as sone of you know, i got hairy arms. And that means, it took a while to remove paint. I'm not like a wookie, more a wolfman... no seriously, except no hair on my back like a told a friend recently.

Well, i've checked my emails, Nina still trying to convince me to go back through myspace mail, and now she is mentioning my niece and it's getting to me.

I do miss my nephew and niece, they were my weak spot, and the main reason why i stayed with her so long.

I'll probably leave florida in a few weeks, don't know where yet, but I think i will have to take my tent with me, or buy a new tent to camp elsewhere. I don't mind living alone in a tent, as long as i can work and keep saving for my canada trip.

Like i said before, I'm alone, but not lonely... most of the time. Heh, that's ok, i got my books and the TDH forums where i can pick on the noob members from afar, muahahaha!

Ok, i will try to update the blog in the next couple of days.

PS: I'm going to make a "TDH owns this joint" cardboard sign and start taking pics all over the place, hehe.

PSS: For those that don't know what TDH is, it's "The Dark Hunters" a guild in the Windfola server of Lord of the Rings Online.

Holy Cow Batman!

Today i will be share some pics of the places i hang out and the people there (who allowed me to take pics of course).

We shall begin with the Tanning Salon (yes i don't work there anymore, but the place was too beautiful not to take pics)



Ok, a hummer certainly is a good car to advertise with, even if it drinks gas like a tank.



The lobby, left side, you can see the name and the beautiful art on the walls.



Here is the right side.



The left side again, but a bit more towards the front, you can see the expensive furniture. Yeah, you can imagine the kind of young ladies who frequent the establishment.

Next is the Burger King crew! some of the friendliest people i've met.



Here is Craig looking on as Fanny is laughing her ass off after hearing a joke, and this is a VERY RARE scene, the woman is usually very serious (but friendly).



Here is Rafael giving his "hang loose" sign next to Mark (night shift manager).



I wonder if all brazilians are like him? heh



This is Marilu and i caught her as she was talking to me about her inability to have 2 drinks without getting drunk and i caught her right as she was trying to say she couldn't help it last time, lol!



This is Luis (yes, we share the same name) who does the maintenance of the place in the morning. He also wants to go to Canada (yes, this is the guy).



Caught Mark, this time i told him he had left his iphone on the counter and he turned around and i got him, heh



Craig posing as he is about to clean up the area.


Next is 2 pics of me in my penguin suit, this is the catering job which requires tuxedo pants, shirt, bow tie, black shoes, you get the idea.




Ok, i look decent.



Not bad either, lets move on shall we?



On my way to my tent one night.



Listening to the radio in my tent another night.



And this is how sometimes i end up, listening to the radio falling asleep.

Next is my friends at Dunkin Donuts! unfortunately their names escape me at this time.



She always hooks me up with bagels and muffins, a sweet girl.



Heh, she calling him so i could catch him. He usually has a nice smile, good guy. He hooks me up with donuts and coffee.



Welcome to Dunkin Donuts, how can i help you?

Next come a few pics of me and Cody last night. He used to work at DD then he got a job at the chinese place next door delivering food (he makes good money doing that). Last night he asked me if i wanted to ride with him on a few deliveries, and as you can see, we did. He rides fast, lucky for me he told me he is more careful when someone rides with him, phew!



Me and Cody doing the deliveries.



Flying down the street.



Who ya looking at?

Well that's it guys, not bad for a homeless huh? it seems it's good to be free and myself again =D

Cue the Star Wars music!

Well sorta. Last night i finally spoke with Shawna and it was good, nah... it was great =D

You know when you're on the phone with a friend, you lose track of time, usually that wouldn't be a problem. Unless you're on a pay-as-you-go phone.

Cost of phone $30
Cost of monthly plan $30 (200 minutes)
Total investment $60

Cost of last night's call $15 (150 minutes!)
Having a heart attack when i saw the balance $0
Total balance on phone: $10 (used it before for work)

Upgrade to a free mobile-to-mobile plan $40

Knowing i will be talking to Shawna tonight for free... PRICELESS!!

Ok, so i'm a happy camper knowing that someone likes me, she is interested in me and i've been 100% honest about my situation including my marriage. I was corresponding with other females but now have made clear i just want to be friends because i'm interested in one person at this time, well of course that would be Shawna =D

Today i did research on how to get a divorce, and been emailing her to try and convince her to agree to it. Nina still is trying to convince me to go back to her, which is not gonna happen after me being homeless for 3 months, going through all the hardships for what? so she can be happy and i can be miserable again? no thank you ma'am!

This week between the rainy days and yesterday morning's heavy fog i made no money, but i'm ok so far, on a donut diet thanks to the guys at Dunkin Donuts who still hook me up. The other night Mark gave me a free Whopper and fries without me asking.

I guess being myself helps a lot, i'm friendly and i like to converse with people.

If things don't get going with my divorce, i will probably just leave florida and wait out the canadian winter elsewhere (california is an option i'm strongly considering).

Well, got some things to do, later guys!

New template

Well i decided to change the layout a little bit, may as well make it look a bit nicer.


Raining right now outside the library (what else is new). No luck today, but with what i made in the past 2 weeks i can handle a few days of no income.


I'm very stuborn, once money is in the bank, i won't take it out no matter what. I'll eat free donuts and muffins for days rather than take my canadian savings out.


I'm pretty hopeful things will improve.

New Linkage

Addeed a "Favorite Links" module to the blog, of course TDH is listed, same with AOU (I'm still Assistant Site Manager there even now), and you may notice something new.

Private Journals of Commander Windguaerd is a new project of mine which i decided to write even now that i'm homeless. My love for science fiction is stronger than ever even in my situation. Probably from all the sci fi books i've been reading in the past few months.

Feel free to check it out and give me feedback on it.

Written Yesterday (hey it was a holiday!)

Well today is Martin Luther King day, library is closed. I'm writing this on my laptop at Mc Donalds. Of course somehow the laptop is glitched and won't work with the free wi-fi now. Yesterday (Sunday) was a busy day, worked from 3PM to midnight, got home at 1AM (after getting soaked by a sprinkler as i rode through a dark avenue). Wore my tuxedo clothes, add jacket and white gloves and i don't look half bad (yes i took pics which will come out as soon as i finish the roll). It was a jewish wedding (well the congregation is jewish).

Setting up the ballroom and reception area, opening doors for wealthy jewish people as they come ouf of their expensive cars, cleaning up the reception area of drinks and small plates as 230 are socializing, escorting ladies to their table in the ballroom, then taking care of table 16 with 11 people, taking their order for drinks, keeping their water glass ful, refolding their napkins, clearing plates, serving food, etc, etc, etc. It was a learning experience and it was nice to see a bride and groom so in love and happy, i envied them.

I called Tammy today (the young lady who got me hired there) and she said she'd call me if i was needed. My other temporary job ended today so i will make a new "looking for work" sign and get me something going for weekdays. Thank god i didn't accept Linda's offer about the condo.

I'm confident i will find something to do. My wife has been emailing me trying to convince me to return, promising me to make all the changes i've hoped for years, then telling me i would be allowed to work, get me my driver's license back (which was her fault it got revoked) and even offered me a new car! guess what? i ain't for sale. I even had to tell her i didn't love her anymore, something i have been avoiding to do since i left her.

It had to be done. I didn't marry her for convenience, and i don't want to stay married to someone i don't love.

I'm going to try and rekindle my friendship with my good friend Van from North Carolina, continue my friendship with my friend Shawna from California and all my friends from lotro around the world who have given me so much moral support. I got to say Shawna is a great person and i can't wait to talk to her on the phone (something we're working on).

I'm considering investing in a new laptop, then giving this laptop to one of my online friends. Unfortunately everything runs on Vista these days and getting a low-end model would allow me to go online at the library without any more "reservations" of 30mins+ waiting time if all computers are being used.

It would be an investment, like my tuxedo clothes were, probably i could get the money back in a month of work, which is acceptable to me.

I'd like to hear some opinions on this guys.

Oh and you won't believe some of the stuff that is coming through the dating sites i'm in. A girl asked me for a pic of my "part" to decide if she wanted to meet me, yeah, she is blocked after i told her not to message me again.

I've gone through that kind of stuff in my 20's and i ain't doing it again.

I should be online Tuesday monday/afternoon unless i get picked up for work.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Wow, what a busy week i had with things going for and against me.

This week i worked, but unfortunately i lost my bike lock key while holding the 9 foot sign, i had a second key for it back at my tent. Now i managed to get about 1/3 of the way home on a bus, waited on another bus to get all the way home and stood at a stop from 8PM to 9Pm then realized... the bus stopped running!

So i had to walk home, tried to run part of the way... another realization, i got a bit in shape, but not good enough to maintain a steady run. So, by the time i was back at my tent, it was 10:40PM, another fun day. However a good friend of mine, Shawna tells me to see the bright side... I got excercise out of it. I guess she was right, because i'm well acquainted with the pain that comes from it. Heh.

Next day i had to take 2 buses to get to work, and ended up being an hour late. Maybe i shouldn't have taken Monday off.

I managed to get in touch with a good friend of mine, Van also this week, was talking to her on my cell until a Coconut Creek Code Enforcement officer stopped to tell me i had to move and almost got a ticket. Guy was pakistani and i talked my way out of a ticket which probably my boss (Linda) would have been stuck with.

Things were ok (not counting my long walk earlier in the week) until i got the back tire of my bike got a flat. I was lucky that there was a nearby bike shop to fix it. The bad news was that the guy tells me the reason why i got a flat tire was because the tire itself was worn out and full of holes and replacing the tube would not make a difference without also replacing the tire.

Tire $14.99

Tube $4.99

Labor $5.99

Tax $1.69

Total $27.66

Discovering that you just spent more money than you're gonna make because you're going to be an hour late to work?... Priceless!

No really, there are some lessons that need to be learned. Had i payed more attention to my bike i may have been able to anticipate the need and not have a flat tire. I tell myself often "be aware of your surroundings" but i forget to be aware of the here and now sometimes.

Now besides that my friday ended up in not such a good note with my employer's son. Joey tells me he CAN'T pay me because i didn't work the full 15 hours this week assuming i was asking for my full weekly pay, i corrected him nicely saying i only wanted what i had earned this week. He said to come back Monday and he would pay me then.

Well, i had left my "looking for work" sign at the tanning salon since i didn't think i would need it. I went and got it, said goodbye and went to unlock my bike outside. I was planning on looking for another job Monday. I guess Joey notices because a minute later he comes out and hands me almost half of what i had earned and to come Monday for the rest. Fair deal, i had only $3 in my pocket, good timing.

I'm considering moving to California and wait out the winter there, but not sure yet. I need to get to know my friend a bit better before i make such a leap of faith because she'd be the only one who i would know there.

Tomorrow is my first day of my weekend part-time job wearing my tux pants, shirt and bow tie, oh yeah and black shoes. I don't know how good i will look as a caterer, i guess i will find out tomorrow. Library closes in 30mins, i may take my laptop over to Mc Donalds and use their wi-fi and maybe talk to a few friends.

Boom!

Surprise surprise! I'm staying in the states! until winter is over in Canada.

For weeks my homeless brethen have been telling me that it was suicide to go now, and it finally sinked in, that and finding work, and my friend Shawna in Cali. It was a mix of things that made me decide that.

Well, i had a good weekend. I worked, i was fed, i was happy. Yesterday i actually got to use Ventrilo (thanks to my laptop and McDonalds' free wi-fi) and spoke to Acheron, Natalya and Bluezippers, my guild mates from Lord of the Rings online. It was great to hear their voices and... they miss me! i can't wait to rejoin the fun in lotro with old and new faces.

Today i got a pay-as-you-go AT&T phone. So now, i'm good for work since they can call me. And today i was off so i did my laundry, cleaned up at the library (you know how that goes) and finished my 2nd disposable camera and had the roll developed so you know what's coming next...

PICTURES!

This batch is from January so now i got my head shaved and a nice goatee, i look human again! yay!

Outside the library.

Hello there!

Cool dog outside the library, i had to take a pic!

On my way to the library.

My and my tattoo.

It's been so long since i wore shorts that you can see the difference in skin color!

My buddy Frank, selling his newspapers.

My favorite place in the world.

Yes, i love the library!

Big entrance, fits me well.

Me holding the Tanning Salon sign, the one i dance next to.

My place of work, they love me there.

The corner where i usually look for work near a Home Depot.

Oops!

Yeah, I'm flying with my bandana.

My "Looking for Work" sign at my spot.

Hey hey! in front of BK.

Smiling at the sun.

Time to put some shades on!

Shades and a bandana, and yes i love to smile.

Ok, 'til next time my friends!