Hanging out with the Gang…

Well, I made myself get out of the house this afternoon and walked back down to the shopping center. I scrounged up some more change to buy my daily 30 cent can of soda. As I walked down the road, I saw my neighbor out working in his yard. Pipe may like to know that my neighbor is also a pipe smoker and a retired professor. I waved and let out a hearty, “Hello!” as I passed.

“Good afternoon, good sir!” He replied.

When I arrived at the shopping center, things were abuzz. George was parked out in the front talking to some pretty girl leaved over into the window. I bought my can of soda and went and sat down next to Big S.

“George ain’t got a chance if thinks he gonna get a piece of that action,” Big S said.

“Well, you know George has Pookie for his lovin’ needs,” I replied as we both laughed.

“Ain’t nothin’ like a crack whore to keep you warm on a cold night,” Droopy said as he stood next to us. We all laughed again.

I sometimes have a hard time understanding Droopy. He talks in this fast, stuttered staccato cadence. He also had the ever present sad look on his face. Big S was eyeing my drinking my cold, sweating soda.

“You got 30 more cents?” Big S asked. “Dat coke sure looks good.”

“Man, you are talking to probably the most broke man in the Valley,” I replied. “I had to go through the pockets of my dirty clothes to find this.”

George then turned off his car and got out to open the hood. He had to put another quart of oil in. George’s 1981 Dodge Diplomat guzzles the stuff.

“You need new piston rings badly,” I told him. “With as much oil as you put in that car you could have paid to have it done by now.”

George buys the generic looking store brand oil from the grocery store. The cheapest stuff they have.

About this time, Cap w/Tag Guy came sauntering by. He held out hand for me to shake it and nodded the black man’s version of hello. He headed on down towards the dollar store after our little exchange.

“Is he still selling crack?” I asked Big S speaking of Cap w/Tag Guy.

“The last time I heard him say he was retired,” Big S replied. “He said it was too much of a hassle.”

I burst out laughing. What a novel concept; to retire from selling crack.