The Waterfront Hilton booted me out!

"Mel!...quit shaking your legs."
Dr. Steel  continued to stick pins into Mel's left ear. I held Mel's feet down as the doctor removed the cancer from his left ear.

     The above story took place two weeks ago. The doctor's name is changed, at this time. In what looks like a long folding dentist chair, Mel is finally, having the lump inside his right ear tended to at long last. A week earlier, Dr. Dills examined Mel's ear and told us the blockage may go as far as the inner canal. If so, it would require another surgery.
     In earlier blogs I revealed that the ear problem he has had for almost three years stemmed from a doctor Ditz treating Mel's ear itch with ear drops. It appeared he had been referred to a Dr. Prickly while he resided at the Pacific Spartan Assistant Living Center located in Midway City a small hamlet between Westminster and also Huntington Beach on Balsa Avenue.
      "Mel, you have three choices. You can take a pill, radiate it or simply cut it out."
       "Cut it out!"
      Two years ago, Mel could walk without a walker, sing and partake in activities.  Today, he remains in bed until a wheel chair moves him somewhere As he tell it, "It has been the worst two years in my life." He no longer sings Johnny Mathis songs.
       A week ago, Mel suffered the worst pain in his life while his dermatologist inserted a graft inside is right ear. At least the cancer had been removed and he needed one last followup to make sure the ear surgery turned out fine.
       Too bad that his Primary Doctor and four other doctors did not take care the earlier infection. It also appeared the Doctor Joseph Nassir had been billing Medicare for thousands of dollars even though Mel had never seen him.
        The shuttle to return Mel to the warehouse came on time. Later, I found out that my brother needed to pay cash for round trip. Mel does have a trust account, but needed to somehow enter the business office down the hall to find out his balance. There is no invoice for Mel each month, although it appears that the warehouse should provide one.

That Saturday, I brought two New York steaks for Mel. I took a bus and walked two miles to his Sea Cliff nursing home. This time, I had a cook sign that she received the meat and I told her when to cook it. I am certain that Mel still had not received it.
   Depleted of energy, I needed to go to the Waterfront Hilton to relax and get my bearings. I felt my brothers suffering. The swaying Palms, while surfers peddle lock their bikes before removing their paddle boards for rides of their life. A day so bright that now the pool too had waves of many tourists enjoying the ambiance
    In their lobby I began to read my book about Thomas Becket and became re...All of a sudden I heard a loud  and felt, like the Archbishop Becket, that a swordsman was about to unhinge my head. 
A large bear looked down on little old me. He was dressed in suit and the way, he examined me i knew my jig was up.
    "You probably want me to leave, right."
     "Yes."
    Now with all the killing going on, all I needed was a bullet up my nostrils. The large bear did not smile or blink, but waited for my depressed body to exit. I have heard that many security men or quck to act without surveying the situation.
    "Here is a cutie tangerine...and are you the manager of the hotel?"
     "Yes."
     "Can I see your card?" He presented it to me.
    "I am going to get you fired!
I allowed this jerk to ruin my day. I called the management who called me back. Think her name was Pauline. Next door I bought a breakfast burrito that seemed to calm my nerves and the return call said that they apologized. Yet the euphoria had been destroyed by this mean Hilton bastard. The manager called me again and told me the security director was sorry "and would buy me a coffee next time."

The next day, three buses and two trains took me to Los Angeles. The sky was blue, ever so blue aa Los Angles for me is again the City of Angles. 

   


     

Was this your first?

A  bit early, I made it to Dr. Painter's office three hours early. I needed good clean air to help with my bronchitis. The Garden Grove Kaiser satellite is where I go to my yearly dermatology check up, and besides, my face had grown a couple of weeds that needed to be exorcised out. It had been a three month wait and I had no idea that one of my best blogs would take place in the Garden Grove facility, across from a large Ralph's. 
    My last bus on Chapman dropped me off on Euclid. I needed to fortify my depleted energy with food. My body told my mind it needed potato salad and a combination shrimp and crab imitation salad. I entered the Kaiser facility at about twelve, three hours too early but what the hell. I had taken along my Thomas Becket book to read while feeding my face with my Ralph's deli. 
    I found a couch on the second floor and tried to ignore my labored breathing. Several pregnant teenagers waited to be called while I devoured some bread and my shrimp  Oops the lid dropped,..and I don't know where..
    "Sir, your lid is on the floor. Too bad I didn't bring something to eat. What are you eating?"
     I looked up and on a couch across from me sat a beautiful smile Her gorgeous blond curls sat on to of a rotund face. 
     "Ah, shrimp and a crab salad...Is this your first?" 
      "Na, why doya think I am pregnant?" 
      "Look at the sign on the door... obstetrics!" 
      "But I am going to the other door!" 
      "Oh my I didn't see the geriatrics door, sorry."
   I enjoyed our parlay and the way she laughed as if she had her whole life. Not bad looking also. 
       "What sir are you here for?" 
        'Pregnant, in fact I made the Guinness book of records as the first male to have a baby?" 
        "Ya kidding of course."
      Just then I heard a door open. "Matilda, you are next." She gave me such a look and left. Now I could read my Becket book Since Becket was a deacon, he could not mingle with the ladies and have  babies. About thirty minutes later, Matilda came out and ran up to me. I almost lost some of my shrimp salad.  Excited, she screamed for the lobby ladies to hear. 
      "I am having twins."  In a hurry she left while I held my breath. And what a pleasant sight I saw as standing up she looked like a Vogue cover girl. 


Nuts and bolts for today: "Cover your face and body since God provides one paint job for customer" contributed my Doctor Painter , 

A Revisit to L.A.'s Pico Blvd

From the underground, I popped up at the Purple Line's last stop, on Western and Wilshire in downtown Los Angeles.  A break from the House of Wax, or the Sea Cliff Health Center was needed. I had compromised my own sanity and health to care for Mel for almost two years at the health center in Huntington Beach. 
   With blue skies for my canopy, I left the underground escalator,  turned left and a right on Wilshire to the C.V.S. and my hop on the Rapid Seven bus, that come every ten minutes. The Pico bus is the link between downtown and downtown Santa Monica via Pico Blvd. Also, I had survived the Blue Line train out of Long Beach.  Most of the riders on the Blue Line don't pay and make a nuisance of themselves but I have learned to make the ride enjoyable in any case. .
    To remove the cancer from Mel's ear and restore some vision into his leaky left eye had taken the life out of me. Hence I called the Huntington Beach Health Center the House of Wax.  At least Los Angeles and Santa Monica would not have the extensive pollen and fields of molds as does Huntington Beach.
 
The Rapid Blue Seven weaves down Pico and pictures a different canvas than the one in the forties. The old Sears department store has been taken over with shops, but the Rampart line is still there. As the bus continues I remember the Five and Dime and Ralph's off of La Cienega that no longer are there and have been taken over by a post office, Sub stores and other stores. Our favorite eatery is gone but not the smell and memories of the best french fries and hamburger in West Los Angeles.
    We lived on Holt Avenue, and three blocks from Kentucky Boys restaurant. The smell of the giant burgers and fries could be smelled a block from our favorite restaurant. We both grabbed the ketchup bottle and made our large order of fries duck for cover. While our taste buds enjoyed the lively taste of the burger and fries, a Nickelodeon played songs of the forties. Why we could have spent hours there pining away at the delicious menu as well as a chocolate malt, my Dad Harry told us to hurry up as he wished to drive to Hollywood Park for Thoroughbred racing.
    Mom did not drive a car in the forties, but while Harry enjoyed the race track, Mel and I played in the backyard of this $10,000 house. On hot days Edith would hose us down while we ran to get away from the spray. We had a swing and slide set and enjoyed pushing one another
    Our fig tree never quit in providing me with the tastiest fruit.I made a little tree house so as to keep the black birds away from my favorite fruit. A Mr. Berman drove an old truck with many types of fruit on each side of his truck.
    But back on Pico Blvd. my Mom shopped most every other day since refrigerators had not been available then. Abe the butcher's store was next to the grocery and bread shop. During the war the choicest of meats were sent overseas for our enlisted men. That may have been the reason why I grew to hate liver night, at least then as a kid. But I didn't hate all liver. She fixed the best chopped liver tha she placed over her iceberg lettuce along with radishes, onions and cucumbers.

Edith is hosing me and Mel. Mel to my right. 

    She frequented a grocery store for staples and what the milk and vegetable fruit couldn't provide. She was always breaking brooms while she chased me. I always made sure she bought chocolate chips and helped her mix them with the flower before placing them in our stove.
    During the war years of the early forties, my Mom mowed the lawn and one day her two year old went under her dress and accidently hit the blade of the cutter. She wheeled my down to doctor who stitched my left thumb back again. Mel and I were always getting dirty so her wash day was every day. But oh did Mel and I love, just love chocolate chip cookies.
   You could see an occasional jack rabbit while you walked across Olympic towards the Beverly theater. When school was out, we could bike towards the Farmer's market and just maybe see a baseball game, My team the Stars played there.
   Mom always gave me money to buy stamps or a tasty dish before returning back to Pico Blvd but not before buying some tropical fish for my aquarium. Fish tanks were everywhere. (More to come.)

A Shot in the Dark

There is a craze now to reveal the deepest of secrets, of abuses,  done in the past. The Me Too movement has spread to other areas besides sexual abuse. I am sure a Mel Too movement just might focus on the ills of nursing and assistant living homes.
   Mel has not had his shots in about two years now. His right eye is dead due to Glaucoma and the left his leaky. Two years ago he could see no more than the third line of the eye chart. Today he can't see a shadow only if he lifts up his eye lid.
   The last thing I wished to do this Thursday was to take him to the VMR Institute on Center Avenue in Huntington Beach. But is was my brother Mel and as the son of my Dad Harry, I had to make a last try to regain sight in his only living eye, his left one. Also, I wondered if the eye's focus had not been compromised since the ear cancer had probably moved to his brain. He has had headaches now for over two years.
  The Bella Terra shopping Center is to the west of Beach Street and just off the 405 freeway. Costco, the Century Theater, Whole Foods and a host of other stores live inside this lovely area. I covet the breakfasts at Whole Foods and try to take in a movie once a month on a $5 Tuesday.
  His appointment was for eleven and the shuttle picked us up at the Sea Cliff Health Center at about ten thirty. Lifted to the back on his wheel chair, the shuttle drove us for his appointment. The shuttle made a right on Center and then a left across from Costco to 7677 Center Avenue and the four story medical building.
  We did not need to wait long in the lobby and were escorted coached first room. A Swedish and Vietnamese couple sat and gazed at Mel. My circuits were a bit short but felt that now we could get a line on his left eye.
   Mel wheel-chaired to three rooms in a space of two hours. In the first he revealed that he could only see the first letter on the chart. Inside the next room,  machine took a picture of his eye while a technician held up his eye led and told him to "Open both eyes and look down." It took some doing but Mel finally obliged.
   The third room was for a dye to detail where the clots were located. It took the artistic hands of the doctor to find the vein while he returned to another room The doctor handles up to five patients at the same time. We than went to the final room.
    "George, I am hungry. Go down and buy a club sandwich."
     "Is that all you can think about is food?"
    Downstairs I went and bought two sandwiches for six and change each. Stressed out now, I ate mine on the first floor to cool off my wiring. It worked to some degree and then I took the elevator back. Brother Mel sat on his wheel chair and seemed upset.
    "What took you so long?"
    "Here is your sandwich."
    "I can see now George. Call for a shuttle"
    I left a bit early and felt proud to have taken brother Mel. But I needed something to relax with so I bought a nine dollar ticket for a Clint Eastwood movie.