Needed to get away from the pollen-mold capital of Southern California, and the knowledge of visiting Li'l Nell excited me. After watching my brother Mel complain about his infected teeth, I needed to remove stress with a kiss the lips of Los Angeles. The air quality of Los Angeles is leaps and bounds better than south facing beaches of Southern California.
The Surf City 33 bus picked me up at at eight ten. Again, I said hello to my friends from Little Saigon who trick to the beach each morning. These thin-healthy ones are the happiest people in the Huntington Beach area. The twenty or so on board joke with one-another as they wait for their stop in Westminster
After Little Saigon or Westminster, the bus makes a sharp turn and Garden Grove is in view. I feel a surge of energy as the buses AC removes begin to clean my lungs air-filter. Tee bus ambles on to Anaheim before settling descending on Buena Park and La Palms. The Metro 460 bus stop fronts a Texaco gas station, a relic from the good-old-days. Gas has climbed to $3,50 a gallon.
The bus stop has been commandeered by two homeless transits. One lies on the bench while the other sorts his clothes inside his luggage. Like many homeless, the bus stop serves as their home before they find shelter or end up in the hospital or morgue. I wait a few minutes until the Metro Bus stops. Two climb aboard before I place three quarters in the cash slot. I walk to the rear and take a seat in front of the air conditioner. a large young man wears shorts and sandals is at the opposite end.
"Do you mind putting on ear plugs. I don't wish to hear music right now."
"Don't own any."
"Go right ahead then, I can live with it."
He moves to another seat. The bus makes a right on Beach as I say hello to Mr. and Mrs. Knots as a roller coaster zips by my head. The bus goes another miles and makes a right on La Mirada. We are headed for Norwalk as it zigs and zags back and forth through the City of Commerce.
I remove a plastic bag of Fuji apple slices.The flow of natural sugar perks me up. A smile comes over me as I begin to forget my Brother Goldberg's teeth problems The bus makes a turn on Firestone and Imperial and enters a side street. It pulls into the Norwalk Transit Station. Several hundred cars are parked there as they have taken buses or the Green Line train.
Finally my bus picks up a few more passengers and leaves the Center. It makes a sharp left onto the 105 Freeway that parallels the Green line tracks. Hunger overtakes me and I remove a peanut butter sandwich from my bag and munch on it. It feels good that I will be downtown in a few minutes in a trip that has taken me less than two and one half hours The long bus curves to the right and says good by to the 105. It is now on Harbor and makes stops at Manchester, Slauson and a U.S.C station.
Since it travels on is own bus lane, it is a breeze as the downtown sky-scrappers bestow their greetings to me. I wave to Magic Johnson at Staples, the renowned Pantry and finally get off at Seventh and Fig. I shake a leg and walk across Fig. A young chap is blaring rap as a business man in aa blue suit vapors himself and enters Morton's Steak House. I enter Staples and give my order after [picking up a New York Time.It is now ten thirty and i hear a commotion
A security guard has placed gloves on and shakes a sleepless one on the shoulder. The sleepy one tries to stand and does on the third try - it is obvious that he tries to make a scene and then sue Starbucks.
The headlines seem to be good for Trump but the story that grips me is the one about a a Vi\king Ship that is being tossed by 25 feet waves. Helicopters pick up many but the ship makes ot back to a harbor safe and sound. The homeless one return to the same area and begins to drink a latte. Going on eleven now, I head across the street to the \Seventh Street Station. I tap my blue card and elevator down to to the Purple Line. At Western, I pop up. The sky is blue, ever so blue and my tattered lung sing to me. Soon I will see a gift from God, my Li'l Nell.
NUTS and Bolts for today: Li'l Nell slept with me last night.. .so I got little sleep...but what I got was well worth it...A gift from heaven.
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