The Boardwalk

          Life is like a jack in the box, always something popping up, never knowing what, is the magic in it, and our ability to deal with these things ,help form and shape our inner being ,for better or worse.Was it only last week ,maybe the week before, things were getting a little crazy, not just in personal life, but bills too. It is really wierd for me, a person who never used to even try to pay my bills on time, to actually caring that they are. I guess when it gets to the point where you dont have the resources, and things get shut off, it is a lot different,from having the money to pay them and just putting it off, to pay it next week or month.Yup, i call that fear, hehe,get behind and dont know when  you can pull another rabbit out of the hat, so you try to keep it straight.Hehehe. I am writing as i am in a good mood now, it has not been a bad week,though it has had its moments,for sure, So lets begin this twisting journey,take a few detours,and rock and roll.
         The Boardwalk Beach Resort, is one of the premier resort areas here in Panama City Beach,Fl.,it is also one of the more difficult places for a vendor to get in,due to their high standards.A couple of weeks ago,tthe company that handles their janitorial supplies,Tek supply,was kind enough to recommend me to do some floor work for them. I met with them, gave them a price and honestly speaking, though I had high hopes, I also had low expectations. they called me back and asked for another meeeting stating they had only gotten approval for a one time clean, and asked if i was still interested.Hell Yeah!!!!!!! Like I told them better to be working, then sitting at home worrying about paying the bills, when asked about the price I told them it would stay the same. A lot of companies would have gone up on the price,I figured if I do a good job, they will keep me and if they need other floors done they will continue with my service.
         The day arrives when I am supposed to start and I am feeling strange, waking up I fell a new sensation and it is not pleasant. Trying to figure it out, i mention it to Scotty, and he states, overwhelmed maybe?, hit it right on the nail.It had never happened to me before,hehe, anytime I figure a job was too big, I would just state that it would take till I was done, plus before I would usually have some help, here we are talking 14,000 sq. ft., and using a 15 inch side by side for most of it, though I did have my automatic scrubber for the travatine. Plus no help,and they needed it done by friday morning, 4 nights and quality must come first.
         I had given my nephew, Robert, and Noah, a guy who used to work with me, calls but never got an answer. When Robert called back and said he would help out, it was better then an alka seltzer when you are bloated,hehe. Monday and Tuesday we got the lobby,dining room and front entrance way done,all to my standards and the Boardwalks expectations, they being impressed with the cleanliness not only of the tile but the grout also. They stated that the last 2 times the floors had not come out so well, even though they paid more. Wednesday night,Robert could not work and there was all this travertine left, so i brought down the big scrubber and just looked at the first hallway,thinking I am never gonna get it done.It seemed like it was a mile long, I swear, I am gonna measure it one day.hehehe. I got a late start as I had to do the Piggly Wiggly Express in Fountain first,so after setting up my equipment, it must have been about 10 pm. Everything is set up, Scrubber is charged and I sit down to have a smoke, my mind racing in torment at all that could go wrong, The longer I smoke , the louder the rattles of that snake, self doubt got, until finally tired of the noise in my head, I flung my smoke into the ashtray,and tossing all thoughts aside, just began to begin. The hall was beautiful,smooth sheets of  whitish, smoky grey, squares ,bordering roughhewn  natural stone of the same color, however its beauty lay in its coarsenes, interlaced with open veins,pinholes,and natural gashes ranging in color from a pearl white,to a black soft and translucent as that of a squids defense. Set in between these sheets of coarse stones, centered in the smooth travertine, were sunbursts,costructed of small tiles, measuring up to 3 or 4 ft in size, ranging from a rusty red to a soft turquoise, the colors,demanding, a closer look, at the intricate play of hues,creating a picture often taken for granted, in its entirety as a whole.
        So it began, the unveiling, starting with a small section at the top, laying down a cleanser and cleaning the grime of a couple of years,rinsing it repeatedly to remove the layers trapped not only in the surface but removing the accumulation trapped in the veins and pinholes.Its beauty apparent as it dries to a soft luster,while its sunburst pendants revealed colors,soft yet strong, patinas which prevail on your eyes to search and imbibe of a sensual feast. Here I get lost, no thoughts, simply enjoying the colors unfolding beneath me, the joy in the pleasure of being the first to behold this softly sensual beauty. The sunburst had colors I would never have thought to associate with a sunburst, blues,soft greens, muted orange, a greenish turquoise that entranced me. here the splendor of mother nature crafted with human hands depicted a beauty, singular and original, though each was similar in the general depiction. At 6 am I finished the hallway, looking down, you no longer saw the more reflective sheen created by the dirt and cleansers, in its place was a soft haze, warming you while its sunburst pendants glowed with subtle colors once lost, reflecting the sun.
       Thursday,Robert and I finished up the rest. He was a lot of help and with his dry sense of wit a real pleasure, to work with, Joking and messing around while maintaining a good work ethic, rinsing the floor and moving everything around. Though we both forgot to take pictures before we moved everything, hehe.
        I have to confess that the management from the Boardwalk were really nice to me, while they  wanted their expectations met, they were not hesitant in informing me I did a good job,and  when they had any questions, were not hesitant to ask me directly, instead of being wishy washy.The whole time I was there everyone, was really nice, helpful and made me feel a part of, rather then as a contracter working for them. One lady even made me a cup of coffee, on her own. Gotta love it.
        Saturday night I did a convienet store i had done before, he had planned to remodel the store, unfortunately it took longer then he expected for everything to get approved. He decided to remodel after the summer so I lucked out on that. Then I was gonna do a beauty salon but the owner went to Orlando for the w/e, so that will get done tomorrow. On thursday The Old fashioned Floor Store called me to do a clean up for them,which I looked at today and will do friday. Today i also recieved a call from a doctors office about doing their floor, off a reccomendation from one of the ladies at the Boardwalk,loving it I am.hehehe.
        I wont get paid form the Boardwalk till friday but when I do the bills will all get paid plus some,hehehe.Now if I can only figure out a way to get tickets to the Jazz festival I would be escatic,oh yes oh yes.
        My life, financally,things are looking up, for which I am greatful, but the rest is unraveling. I dont know, well thats not true,what I am gonna do, just thinking of it and doing it are 2 different things.The wife is happy she has her car back, and her freedom. I dont know why she tells me she is gonna do one thing,while we know she is doing something else. Life is funny, sometimes it takes a slap in the face, mine I guess.She told me she was going to play bingo, got herself all dolled up, and then i happened to see her driving her car, with a companion, busted. You know people forget how small this place is,or how people like to gossip.I have to concede it was not easy seeing that, i had been looking in the parking lots for the bowling alleys,well i did twice,then I said stop acting like a fool, so i stopped and  proceeded to drive straight to work. Bam, two lights up there is her car and her friend, that shit tore me up, but what are you to do.I have to do what is right by me,not others, and  I am not gonna do something stupid. Friday, i offered to take her to her favorit reataraunt but she told me she had to help her friend,life can be a bitchhhhhhhhhh. So Saturday,before work I stopped at my brothers, man he can talk,hehe, and after awhile unloaded on him a little and went to work. Felt a little better after that and  when i saw the wife asked her about bingo and she stated she never went,well at least she was honest about that.
       Life, well I love it,things happen, that is just the way it works, but its those precious moments of joy that make it all worthwhile,sometimes I cry,not always in pain, but the beauty that I have discovered in living,the pain of heartbreak exists,but more overpowering is that beauty of falling in love,the love that seeks to explode your world with its joy,here i have cried too.I have been blesssed by the people who compromise my world,for they have given me joy to enrichen my world.
      Last,but not least, I have not started my song but i will, hmmmmmmm, maybe I am getting all this work so I dont torture anyones ears,hehehe, loving it.