On Time, On Age, On the Passage of Time and Ages

So either my usual regiment of sickness cure-alls worked their magic (aka whiskey), or else perhaps I suffered from some other sort of ailment, but as of today I feel quite all right. A little slowness, a little grogginess, but otherwise I pronounce myself with a clean bill of health.

Whatever the case may be, I decided I felt well enough to venture out for my usual Monday night excursion, though tonight I chose a different path.

...

Monday nights happen to be my favorite night to go out. Though I'm eternally doomed to work Tuesdays for the rest of eternity, or at least until I find some other form of gainful employment, I still cannot pass up the Monday night.

The pub I used to frequent on these nights has had a drastic change in their drink policies. What used to be a deal, has subsequently become something of a money wringer. While I tend to like supporting local businesses, especially local brewing businesses, I find their recent move towards raising their happy hour prices, and changing their rules on certain "strong" beer pricing and delivery in smaller glasses for the same price, not to be within my budget and tastes. Not to mention their service kind of tends towards the laxer side, which considering the amount of time I've spent in the food service industry typically does not bother me. Its more that the staff seems more intent on the horrific music playing on their I-pods, and fixing their dreadlocks than the beer in my hand...

I've worked some shitty "not known for the service" type of places, and I've also worked for some "insane, over-the-top, quality" service establishments. Either way, I'm just looking to get my cheap-on. As long as I get what I want, when I want, in a somewhat timely manner, I'm ok with it. And I'll definitely tip well. I am one of you.

Anyway, I decided to forgo the pub this evening, and make my way to the The Bar, for some free pool, which is something I used to do on Monday nights ages ago, back when I thought my abilities at pool would bring me something more in this life, much like my capacity to drink...

Oh how sadly we were deceived.

The "coolness" factor of your early twenties matters not towards the latter part of them. Once you are passed your prime, it only seems sad. You become exactly the thing you thought you wouldn't.

Just like when you hung out at the playground, and the big kids would ridicule you, tempt you with cigarettes, make fun of you... and one day you wake up to find that you are suddenly the big kids at the playground, harassing the younger kids, the circle nature of life...

I still remember that day, when Johnguy and I discovered we were the big kids at the park. Or at that Joan of Arc show, when we were ridiculing the teenagers at the show with their backpacks and patches, punk-rock attitude, and bad hair cuts... when we realized we were the old dudes at the show. Like visions of our younger selves, at the Fireside bowl so long ago.

...

I sometimes find myself saying far too often, "back in the day..."

Like tonight, when I found myself as that lone guy at the bar, racking the balls, and half playing a game of pool by myself, no one else around to play against.

Just practicing my game. Shooting around until someone shows up.

Back in the day...

There were a host of Monday night regulars, endless rotations between tables, people yelling out names of the next victims, all of us there for the thrill of the game.

There were the assholes that brought their own pool cues, and acted like hot shit on the table. There were the agro-dudes, that took the game way too seriously. There were the ladies that took their game way too seriously, even though they weren't that good, but somehow they garnered respect, simply because they were ladies, holding their own against the agro-men.

Tonight it was me, and one other guy, someone quite good at their game, and me, relearning the sport that kept me going through a very cold year in Chicago.

...

Time has passed. I found myself with significant other. We opted for the other Monday night festivities that took over the The Bar, and Monday nights with it, Karaoke.

Over two years... Now that I'm at the point in my life that I am at, I find that all three of those things have seemed to pass. Karaoke is gone, hopefully never to be reborn there. I do not mean Karaoke in general, just what it used to mean to me, what it meant to me at the The Bar.

Significant other has gone that way as well.

And it seems all of those people that I used to duel with on the pool table, well, they are seemingly all gone as well. Moved on. Only I remain to document their passing. Or perhaps their absence.

At least the dollar PBR special is still in tact.

My little slice of heaven.

...

And I finally knew this day would come. The website for my source of free movies and TV shows has finally been dealt a nearly fatal blow.

My other source for cheapness, and entertainment, has almost gone under.

I knew this day would come. I just was not expecting it so soon. *sobs*

Even though they didn't fully quite have all of the episodes for Dr. Who and Battlestar Galactica, and Heroes for that matter, I still managed to squeeze off quite a bit of time wasting. I'm forever in your debt.