Location: Judge Fisher Apartments
Date: Tuesday, July 07, 2015; 6:30-8:00 pm
I was a few minutes late and arrived to see that Jason was
chatting with some residents. There were
4 other volunteers besides me - 3 teenagers and an adult - and they were
decorating. The 2 ladies who are always
cheerful were making the candy bags and they were as chirpy as usual. Jason and I chatted about his upcoming
wedding in the Philippines and he said that he was trying to lose weight. He mentioned that he was going to wait till
the last minute to rent his tux and would do so when he gets there. He mentioned that there was some renovation
going on in these apartments and so many residents have been displaced to other
places, meaning that we may have a smaller turnout. The ladies said that the workers come in at 8
am and immediately go on break. Then
they do some plastering and other stuff before leaving. Looks like the renovations make take more than
a year.
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| Bingo Prizes |
My buddy, the Sinatra singer, came in and he said he
remembered that I volunteer at “Wells
Street Café” and asked about that. We
talked about Sinatra and he asked if I knew why Sinatra had been so good. He said that's because he sang in the style as
if he was talking. It was like he was telling
a story, just in a higher pitch. Another
lady with whom I have spent some time came in and I complimented her on her
brilliant violet overcoat. I sat next to
my singing buddy and he asked how I spelt my name, saying that he wanted to get
it right. There were cookies and milk
tonight, with a choice between 3 types of cookies. Jason brought a sampler plate to show the fun
ladies and asked which ones they wanted. They just picked up cookies from that plate,
which defeated Jason's purpose of a sampler. Then they started giggling and I
couldn’t help but love their chemistry and enthusiasm.
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| A note from long ago... |
The youth were going to call the game and wrote down the
numbers on paper - as one has to here. The
lady at our table won and took a body wash bottle, prompting my buddy to claim
that she took his prize. But he won on the next round and took toothpaste. He said that he has no teeth and no dentures,
but loves brushing his gums. I walked
over to the prizes table and there were some interesting ones like an
artificial rose and “potpourri”. There was also a spiritual book on Christ and
I opened the cover page. There was a
lovely note in there, dated 1970. Jason
must have picked it up at the dollar store, and I found the note very nostalgic. A gentleman who always wears sunglasses won
and started eyeing another pair of sunglasses that were on offer. I said that one could never have enough
sunglasses and that he should go for it. He tried them on and asked for my opinion. I said that he should take them and he did.
I went over to the lady in violet coat and she was playing
with one card and wasn’t winning. I said
that's why you play with 2 cards and that I would play for her. I picked up a card and promptly won, at which
she picked a notebook. The youth were
having a great time, though when one guy made a mistake - calling “I-81” instead of “I-18”, the residents ragged on him, asking for the next few numbers
if he was sure. This was all in good fun
and he was laughing as well. I went back
to my table and one gentleman there hasn't won. The lady had won multiple times and the fun
ladies had even said that they would mug her later, even though she had given
away her prizes. Once again, it was in
good fun. There were few prizes left and
my buddy won again. He asked the other
gentleman to go select and he came back empty handed. He said that there were just 2 prizes left and he
didn't want either the spiritual book or the “potpourri”.
Soon everyone but my buddy left. I asked how he ate without any dentures and he
said that there are certain foods that he can't eat. He also has to take a lot of medicines - 30
daily - some for his glucose and others for digestion. He asked me to request a Sinatra song and I
said “Something Stupid”, which he didn't know. We listened to
it on ‘YouTube’ and he was soon humming. He talked about singing the ‘National Anthem’ and how he had once
sung it 3 times in a row. Jason asked him
if he wanted wanted leftover cookies and he said yes. I told him to watch his sugar and he said that
he was going to give it away to the security guard. But he said that he would save one for
breakfast. Before leaving on his scooter
he said that he was going to “Taste of
Chicago” tomorrow. I said that it
was always crowded and I wouldn't go anywhere near it; plus it was expensive. He said that he liked the entertainment. As I left, he said he had to get up at 5:30
am to go to ‘Veterans Hospital’. I said that he should get a good night’s rest
and he said that's not going to be possible.
I wished Jason, saying that the next time I see him he would be a married
man. I love coming here and meeting
everyone, especially my buddy. He has
such a great zest for life…and don't even get me started on the 2 ladies.
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