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Expounding on Nothing

Impartial Observer

 
BATTLE OF THE BANDS

Since TGG and his bandmates had practice this afternoon at the bass players house, I loaded up the BEHEMOTH with the guitar, the amp, the guitar strap, three cords, and one multi-purpose pedal. Phew! Oh, and the skateboard, of course.

We picked up TGG after late P.E., as well as Nico, Zach, and a friend of Zach's who I don't know, and still don't. And, then picked up Simone along Morning View, as she had no ride home either. Mr. B opted to wear his ear protection. Dropped off Simone, headed to Topanga Canyon, and in the midst of the drive, Mr. B pointed to Nico, Zach and Zach's buddy and emphatically stated, "Get out, get out, get out". Mr. B has strong opinions about things.

Nico: I'm starving.
TGG: Didn't you eat lunch?
Nico: I got up late, and didn't have breakfast.
TGG: Didn't you eat lunch? I saw you eat lunch.
Nico: Man, I was late this morning and didn't have breakfast.
TGG: . . . . . .
Nico: But. . . ummm . . yeah . . .
TGG: I want to move to Finland.

We snaked up Topanga, then up the one-lane death-defying Grandview, unloaded the people, the backpacks, the equipment, and only held up two other vehicles while unloading. Mr. B instantly took up his usual space in the back of the BEHEMOTH, usually reserved for three people.

TGG is spending the night at Zach's, so Mr. B, Nancy X., and I are now kicking back, boiling some eggs, and saving up energy for next weekend when TGG and the band have not one, but two gigs. The big one is the Battle of the Bands of course, and they have a mere 10 minutes on stage. They plan to play two songs, but I personally know that one of them is at least 8 minutes long, and the other, an ear-splitting 6 minutes easily.

Time for a glass of Chardonnay.

:-)

 
THE QUEST

Mr. B is an avid collector of items that he finds fascinating, such as straws, or hats from playmobil and lego people. He keeps his collections in zip-lock baggies, so that he can take them in the car when we go anywhere along with his grey straw and his ladle.

His latest obsession is packets that you get at take away restaurants. You know, like ketchup and mustard and soy sauce. He has been avidly collecting packets for about a month now. His collection includes:

Sugar, Sugar in the Raw, Equal, Splenda, Sweet'nLow, Dazz-ahh Sugar-Free Syrup, Honey, Best Foods Real Mayonnaise, Best Foods Light Mayonnaise, Generic Mayonnaise, Sysco Mayonnaise, StarKist Sweet Relish, Heinz Ketchup, In-n-Out Burger Ketchup, Fancy Ketchup, Kikkoman Soy Sauce, Yamasa Soy Sauce, Crest White Strips Upper, Crest White Strips Lower, Crest White Strips Premium, N.V. Perricone Body Toning Lotion Sample, Yogi Bedtime Tea Bag, Numi Desert Lime Tea Bag, Bigelow Chamomile Tea Bag, and Emer'gen-C Orange Drink Mix.

Now, Wednesday we took a field trip to Disneyland. Mr. B rode the carousel, the train, and the rockets. The remainder of the five hours we spent at the park were a thorough inspection of every dining venue in the park, searching for new and novel packets. (Do you have any idea how many restaurants are at Disneyland? A lot.) I am please to announce that Mr. B found four new packets to add to his collection: Heinz Taco Sauce, Hot Sauce, Sona Sweet and Sour Sauce, and Malt Vinegar.

The quest for packets continues.

 
MARMALADE

Mr. B and I made our weekly visit to Marmalade, where Mr. B is a celebrity client. We dropped our belongings off at our usual table, and Mr. B headed directly to the restroom. I waited outside the door, as Mr. B does not lock the door, and it puts other guys in an embarrassing position when they go to enter the bathroom, and encounter Mr. B 's plump behind standing there at the toilet.

Of course, when we returned to our usual table, there was already Mr. B's iced tea waiting for him, and a glass of water with lemon for moi. Nice.

As Mr. B and I settled in, the couple at the table next to us were in a deep, serious discussion about life, politics, religion, etc., but with the usual L.A. level of depth, which is as close to superficial as one can get. The fellow was talking and gesticulating with dramatic flair. The woman matched his level of drama with the following bombshell statement: "I really think that you should see that movie, I mean, I couldn't get it out of my mind. It changed my life, I mean, I thought about it for an ENTIRE WEEK!" Now that's what I call contemplation. An entire week. Deep.

After an hour or so, the waiter dropped the check, but by then I'd decided to have a cappuccino. So, I politely asked him to add that on, and he said "No way, I'll get that for you no problem." As in FREE. Only because of Mr. B's status there as a VIP customer.

Yep, me and B. Honorary membership in the Marmalade Hall of Fame. Malibu.