TWICE LOST TO A WEDDING Pt.1

pstrongbr /bTHE WAKING NIGHTMAREbr / BEGAN WITH SIX WORDS./b/strong/p pbr /bJOSEPH,br / YOUR BROTHER ISbr / GETTING MARRIED./b/p pDIV align="left" TABLE cellpadding="5"TR VALIGN="TOP"TD/td/trTR VALIGN="TOP"TD/td/trTR VALIGN="TOP"TDTR VALIGN="TOP"TD pby Joe. B./p pThis column is dedicated to anyone born with a rotten sense of direction.br / br /Dreading long drives, walking, flying, or taking trains or otherbr / transportation to destinations unknown with vague approximationsbr / from others with perfect or near perfect powers of direction. /p pLike perfect pitch of musicians and singers some of us havebr / those gifts in abundance while most can only admire br /true talent when seen and heard./p pIt has taken me three weeks to get over my brother’s marriage not the marriage itself it’s the gearing up for br /this special event, going to it that was constantly giving me a queasy feeling./p pSuddenly there are new clothes to buy, taking time off from work, for a few days, money from br /the bank, maps to read, and how to spend less on food and gas./p pMy mother, brother,and I live in three separate areas of Californiabr / Fairfield, San Jose, and San Francisco. /p p lucky for me that years ago while emptying trash from my br /one room apartment there was a dirty portable icebox./p pYou know the kindbr / they are different colors, rubber lined for water proofing whenbr / filled with ice and keeps sandwiches, soda’s, water, beer orbr / whatever placed inside in ice cold until ready for use./p pI was glad to have something of value to contribute not br /having enough money to buy gifts for bride or broom on such short notice./p pbr /With my immediate family, the couple to be wed, their closebr / friends who are married, two relativesbr / of ours from of town came out too. /p pbr /My mother bought me a complete suit from head to toe and one my brother.br / br /The wedding is to take place in Las Vagas, Nevada. I will not name the Casino Hotel because immediately after the wedding there was a medical emergency and one of the rare times I am glad there were persons with cellular phones calling an ambulance for medical help.br / br /Even before that incident two weeks before I’m a nervous wreck worrying about gifts I cannot buy, If I have a gambler’s genes, or do I write about this and what to keep out./p pbr /All the questions swimming in my head as I rode a Richman bart train to the El Cerito Del Norte bart station./p pbr /My mother is at the station to drive me to Fairfield. /p pAll of my new clothes are in a clean, dry, aluminum lined portable icebox whose name will remainbr / unknown not wanting to give a free plug unless br /I’m paid a few dollars./p pbr /The aluminum is extra padding protecting br /both the icebox and new clothes within. /p pIn my mother’s home after carefully taking the clothes from the icebox, hanging them up br /carefully I placed the icebox in the bathroom's bathtub, took the foil out br /for reuse, before running water in it then closed br /the box letting it sit. /p pbr /This is the background before my trip to Las Vagas, Navada./p pI dislike doing a second part to this however if I didn’t no one br /will believe how people with a map can go sobr / wrong both ways to and from Las Vagas, Nevada. br /But it is a true story./p pPS I'd like to paid for voice over radio spots or, television or internet work.br / br /I'm not greedy scale is fine for me./p p I can learn on-the-job though cold readingbr. may take some practice./p pbr /Please send donations to br /Poor Magazinebr / br /C/0 Ask Joe at 255 9thbr / br /St. Street, br /San br /Francisco, CA. 94103 USA/p pFor Joe only my snail mail:br / br /PO Box 1230 #645br / br /Market St. San br /Francisco, CA 94102br / br /Email: askjoe@poormagazine.org/p/br./p/td/tr/td/tr/table/div/p