So it seems. It’s now Thursday evening, Christmas Day. Spent 9pm-9am at Rem’s. She didn’t want the Christmas dinner I brought. Complaining unintelligibly about “those people are they still around?” (thinks there are mobs of negroes filling up her living room). I sipped the remainder of her weak vodka and rum. New Jamaican negress, a hearty soul arrived at 9:09 am and I walked home. Cold and overcast but pleasant.
I have not slept, really, since around 6 or 7 or 8 yesterday morning. Christmas Eve, Wednesday. Bought a pt of v on 58th St.
But “Out of the Woods?” here means the message I found in duplicate from Jenn Rubin and Kirsten Gillibrand’s office. It appears that at long last my SS back benefits, at least some of them, are coming through.
$41,427.00. That takes care of present predicament and lots more. I told Laura, thinking she’d find it pleasant and worthy of being called my Christmas present to her. Did not give her the amount. I owe the landlord either about $10,000 or $13,000. I have 45 days as of the 19th of December to pay, supposedly, $13,400. I’ll get the landlord’s ledger and see what I really owe, I’m sure it’s a couple thousand less.
I also have been renewed for Medicaid, which means my Medicare (which I never use) wil continue without payment out of monthly SS. And monthly SS ought to go up to about $2000 p.m., perhaps even $2200. With my pittance jobs paying me anywhere from $1500 to $2000 p.m. I will be wealthy by hooligan standards. And I may get a semi-grown-up job. Yes, at Nruns. Jen sent a flyer around a week ago. They want Directors, Managers, etc. And a couple of steady jobs. Ones paying $60-$80k. Things I would never look at in tech, but this is not contractual tech paying $75 per hour and you’re gone in a month.
So i read that email, copied to me first by Jenn Rubin, two nights ago. Seems like a month. I’d just spent most of the day going over to the E 70th St block, driving-cold rain, a few doors west of Rem’s bldg at 225. Antoinette Peters was not there. I left, went home. This ‘Edy’ (male demi) phones me up, tells me to go to 1339 York Ave. Well I go off on the M31 bus, first time all the way over to York Ave. At least first time in 20-25 years. Turns out 1339 York is Mary Manning Walsh, once a superb facility, now not so nice I hear. After a couple of hours I am met by my patient and her friend, Liz. I’ve spent those hours in the library/lounge on the ground floor, reading Dean Acheson. We fetch, I fetch, a taxi and we go to 211 E 70th. My pt has not been there for three years. Turns out I get along with them like a house afire. I go out get ibuprofen for Toni, put away her groceries (ordered by guardian…Wonderbread, pork loins, steamer bag veggies, pasta, pasta sauce, ten ton bag of rice). I do her laundry, just a big bag from MMW, using the new washers and dryers down in the basement, set up with the same Hercules app we have here. I spend maybe $15. I think I’ll be back with Toni for a day or two per week. Toni has framed photos around, of her with husband #2, usually in Palm Springs. A lot of golfing. Pic with Dinah Shore. Autographed photo of Frank Sinatra and Barbara Marx. Liz is dear. Former model, English-Portuguese. She has a place in Sharon CT. Phoned me when I was having a wind-down v martini at the Beach Cafe. I told about having head from Guardian Mllton Dias. We initially connected over Margaux/Margot Hemingway, first hour or two at Toni’s place. I told about the Bill Cash, or William Cash, memorial in the Telegraph, mid-1996. Toni is one of those people who have fallen into the Guardian scam, where they get pronounced non compos mentis without their participation. Much less reason than Rem. I have discussed this with Liz, and how I will look into this with Liz Kruger.
Last week saw Act One with George Hamilton. Very strange. Attractive production. Written and directed by Dore Schary. A personal project. Complete flop. Focus on dialogue and GH imitating MH (haughty, diffident) at least the bits of MH I see on old TV clips; and meetng up with and gradually warming up to Jason Robards Jr’s George S. Kaufman.
It is very hard to think of George S. Kaufman now, and not see him portrayed by Jason Robards, Jr.
Not at all the Sturm und Drang I got from the book. That story from Moss was hellish. Anyway I ordered a bio of MH, Dazzler, and may get it out of the LPA before the hard copy comes.
Roundup for CC: Dean Acheson, MH?, Churchill Warlord. Also those damned Russia collusion books. Put the Michael Cohen book in the roundup.
The Lost Weekend at FF next week. Catch it. Maybe Sat.
