News with Richard Bleil
On my social media page, I posted that I have a woman in my house. The very first comment on it was, “is she cleaning?”
I rarely have visitors. That’s the cold hard reality of my life. And, when somebody made this comment on my post, my friend was in the shower, so yes, I could honestly say that she was cleaning.
My friend has been traveling for several months, spending a lot of time in Maine, and a couple of weeks in Florida. She stopped off to visit me for a week before continuing back to her home state of Oregon. As I write this, we are watching a gross horror movie from the ‘80’s, as she eats cheddar popcorn and I eat chocolate covered mint cookies.
I met her at the airport. It was a surrealistic experience. I actually met her online about thirty years ago, and we’ve been close friends, but we never met in person. It’s amazing to me just how close you can be with somebody that you’ve never met in person. She’s actually not the only friend of mine who fits into this category and I’m fortunate to be able to call them all friends.
The one who is here (let’s call her “Corban”) arrived a couple of days ago (as of the writing of this post; she’s home by the time it is published), and I met her at the airport. Like any modern airport, I was not allowed to go to the gate, but right past the walkway to the TSA checkpoint there is a place where you can sit and wait. With modern technology, you can track your friend’s flight as easily as you can track the food you order to be delivered to your home, so I knew when she landed, and when the passengers were disembarking. I walked to a post near the walkway and leaned against it and watched for her.
My friend is rather striking in appearance. To be fair, she’s also very kind, smart, talented and so much more, but it’s hard to see that from a distance, so I was looking for this particular striking young woman. When I saw her, there was no mistaking who she was. But she didn’t see me (she tells me her vision was blurry from sleeping on the plane). I just stood there, unmoving, as she walked towards me as I contemplated the optimal moment and line for humorous effect. But, as she got close enough, she did recognize me before I could even “spring” it on her.
It was very strange meeting her in person. We had known each other for so long, and knew each other so well that it was like a regular greeting. We uttered typical words of greeting and hugged. There was absolutely no shock or surprise, and only a very delayed “glad to finally meet you.” I must admit, it felt strange.
My house is far too large for me. It actually has four bedrooms, but one is my office and the other is a junk room (or printer room or hobby room and so forth). My main bedroom is upstairs, and the guest bedroom is downstairs. My main bed, which cost me ten thousand dollars, is of course in my main bedroom. Of course, I set her up in my main bedroom, and I am sleeping in my guest bedroom. She has the upstairs bathroom, and I’m downstairs.
I respect her privacy. While she’s upstairs, she has the entire floor. I won’t even go to my office until she’s downstairs. I told her I would do this, so she can decide if she wants doors open or closed. Star, on the other hand, has no loyalty.
When I woke up this morning, Star was in my bed, but as we spoke today Corban told me that she went to sleep spooning with Star. Apparently, Star is enamored with Corban, and, well, I don’t blame her. I asked Star why she spent the night with Corban, and Star just said, “us hot girls stick together.” Something that I did not know.
My friend will be here for about five more days. I’m trying to think of things to do while she’s here, but I don’t want her to feel like she’s being run ragged. We do have a “haunted” museum that boasts that every display has been associated with some form of paranormal activity. We also have a wonderful zoo, and many other things. So, I hope she has fun. But, sadly, she’ll have to put up with me as she does.
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