Zombies. Just. Everywhere.

 206th day sober. Up at about 3 in the afternoon, did some practice last night. 

I'd kind of given up on today's original plan, since I thought my laundry would not be dry in time. But I decided to look at the vaccine situation at CVS and the internet, as usual, made it look super hard to get a booster shot, and I decided Well, I'd seen a sign board right outside CVS saying they're offering flu and Covid vaccines, so I figured I'd just ride down there and walk in. 

I did so, and the sign board was not out. It was "Incorrect" they said, and they're no longer giving vaccines at that location. I get the impression I probably should have gone right in when I saw the sign out, and might have done it without trouble. 

This night, because by 5PM it is indeed night, there were zombies just absolutely everywhere. They were staggering all over the streets and sidewalks, around CVS and the hardware store where the workers there were pulling in all the bins of stuff they put out on the sidewalk during the day. There was, naturally, a zombie wearing a few layers of rags staggering around. I said something about "strange characters at night" to one of the guys and got a laugh. 

When I'd locked up my bike at Whole Foods to walk up to CVS, there was an old guy with a table full of petitions who's been a fixture there for a few years now. He was on Whole Foods property instead of on the actual sidewalk like I was always careful to be, and was more aggressive than usual. He didn't seem to recognize me and want into his blather about whether I'm a registered voter, and I said I was, but in Alameda County and we'd been over this before, and when he continued to pester me I said I had an appointment at the drugstore and had to go, and that mollified him a bit. 

When I came back, after going to CVS, to unlock my bike, I noticed he had a big sign on the front of his table now saying HELP THE HOMELESS. He also had a sign he held in his hands, about 4 feet wide, saying HELP THE HOMELESS. "See my sign?" he said. I told him how, after the last election, I'd collected the campaign signs made of that plastic cardboard stuff, and made a bunch of really neat drawer liners out of it, and it's great stuff to make signs out of. 

Apparently he trusted me enough to feel unabashed about going into his new routine: As some people got out of their car nearby (handicapped space) he left his table and went right over with that big sign in his hands and blathered at them about how he needs money, using the sign to block them from going into Whole Foods. So, whatever drug addictions he's got, or the zombie virus, or a wide variety of things have got him really acting more like a zombie now, and a particularly annoying one. 

I thought about setting up right next to him (on the sidewalk of course so it's actually legal) and having a sign on the front of my tip box saying HONEST MUSICIAN WORKING FOR HONEST TIPS and thought at least I don't have a crack addiction to feed or whatever problem that guy has. 

I also noticed that, while it's not obvious, there's a place that's closer in to the Whole Foods building where I could stand on the sidewalk, not be hidden by Christmas trees, be fairly visible/audible to customers going in and out, and as a plus, since it's  closer in I'd not feel compelled to play so loudly, which would make things a lot easier on me and better for my musicality. 

Nobody follows this exceedingly boring blog but if they did, they'd remember that many times I've given instruments to bums I've hoped to encourage to become street musicians. And out of the very few takers, exactly none have actually done anything toward doing anything but plain old begging. It's not to say that begging doesn't pay well, because it does, especially using strong-arm methods like Mr. Petition Zombie uses now. But plain old begging is boring. In 2 weeks you're as good at is as you'll ever be. 

I picked up bubble mailers at the Amazon place, some chicken at Nijiya, some O'Doul's at TAK, and came on back here and ate and watched some stuff on YouTube. Ken called and said he'll come by tomorrow or Friday, and I told him of my misadventure trying to get a Covid booster shot. (I looked up some Country walk-in sites though and might try one of those.)

I also told Ken it's really nuts out there and Thanksgiving Weekend is usual a time I lay low.  I normally don't spend anything on Black Friday, and the whole weekend is just a stay-in time for me. I'll stay in and read cheerful things like this: 

https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2021/11/23/man-mistakenly-locked-up-state-psychiatric-hospital-2-years-files-federal-suit/ 

Yep a white guy was kept in the jail/prison and nuthouse in Hawaii because he looks kinda like another guy who left Hawaii in 2009 and is in jail in Alaska. But all whites look the same, dont'cha know, and one thing I really don't miss about Hawaii is, if you are white/white-appearing, you are always assumed to be lying or to have some nefarious "angle". 

A "local" (basically anyone brown these days) would get the benefit of the doubt. They'd listen enough to at least check fingerprints. They'd actually ask the guy where he graduated high school then the questioning would go on to who he knew, and that leads to who you're related to and so on. If you're a local. 

Now, I can actually tick most if not all of those boxes. I did indeed "grad" from the school system in Hawaii. And I am indeed related to people there and have a work history there and so on. But that means getting a chance to spit that all out. Meanwhile there's that ever-present atmosphere that I'm probably lying, or have some nefarious scheme in mind. Getting financial aid for college was hell, because of the assumption that I secretly have gold bars under my bed or some damn thing. I just had to be trying out some scam, and for that matter I guess I'll never shake the habit of having my receipt in plain sight when I leave a store, because one is presumed to be a thief.