Whenever I am low on hope, I end up on the Coast and the Pacific View Center. There is a great view no matter where you eat or simply eat. Sometimes I walk up the steps and take a seat in front of Philz, the best coffee shop in the land.
I usually have a book in hand and sit in a corridor that provides shade and a blissful view of the ocean. This last week, the lines have been out the door...and then some. Time flies as I enjoy the various colors and hue of the main attraction, the tourists. They come from around the world and I can understand a little French or Spanish.
This morning a tropical storm came in with fifteen foot waves. On the coast, nobody swam or sat. All looked at the pounding waves. But I bought the best view. With a bad case of bronchitis due to humid and hot weather, I left the bus at the Waterfront Hilton Hotel, the buses second stop.
I walked up some steps towards a fountain and the main door of the hotel. On the left was a little coffee shop. Is it becoming my favorite since inside, the AC is free. I put down my new back pack and grab a New York Times -- the best paper in the land. I also bought a two dollar and change drink.
The Norm's meal hit the spot earlier and why not? A steak, eggs, hash browns and pancakes for eight and change. The AC at Norms of course helped as I connected with a bus to take me to the Hilton Hotel.
Beside the coffee clutch I sat enjoying the view. A lot of white water splashed and danced over the sand as nary anybody took the change to ride these large bunking broncos. And my the coffee tasted real good. Yet the water did not thrill me as much as the Watergate on the front page. A text between a Russian business man and Donald Jr. made it appear that they had tried to place dirty tricks into the up and coming election.
I devoured the newspaper and almost cried when I read about one of the finest from the Bronx go down with a bullet in the head. The funeral brought four thousand to New York's finest. And why was one hospitalized with mental illness allowed on the street, and with a gun?
The next day finds me at the Waterfront Hilton Coffee Hole Again. The AC and great view are free...well almost. Again I buy a Starbucks regular coffee and a New York Times. Yes, one might say the hotel and I are a match made in heaven.
Outside, the palms sway in the light wind while the remnants of crashing waves hit the beach. It is a bit humid, but inside the hotel who cares. I can't afford the room rates and I know I must be discreet and blend in.
Today I wear a white, thin blue lined shirt my daughter bought for me on my last birthday. With my gray hair combed and new tennis shoes, the ladies all give me the eye. I make sure not to open my mouth until I get my top dentures.
In my crows nest inside the hotel, I view the crashing waves and a girls volleyball team doing a warm up routine. Like yesterday, I work on a short word puzzle on the third page and inside notice a good article about a new cancer drug called Novartis. Those with incurable blood cancer have had their blood sent to a research lab and somehow reprogrammed to fight the cancer. Their T-Cells are then returned into their body and the results have been promising for the new drug.
Buggy boards, pails, and beach attire come and go. The beach below beckons them and why not, Huntington Beach is a picture postcard today.
My years of teaching speed reading put me at a big advantage. Outside, the waves crash white wash while bikers, and skateboarders make up the boardwalk. I notice that a Kaiser convention is having a luncheon today. My #25 bus is due to come at exactly 11:07, and pick me up where the #29 had dropped me off. I am getting good at using the bus schedules.
The bus drops me off on Orange and Main, two blocks from the library. I still don't know why there is no AC at the old library. It is not sizzling inside today so my mind is as quick as a wink.
I think of my Mom Edith who got me glasses, piano lessons and s "shrink" when younger. She gave me just what I needed to stay alive today and milk the rest of it so cream will pervade the top.
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