So we had a little rain, even a lot of rain; so what. Pride was great! Soaking and dripping the paraders paraded and the cheerers cheered; all laughing and smiling. I was sitting in the “shaded from the sun” covered seating area. As the deluge started, dry and comfy, I smugly enjoyed the spectacle of the inundated avenue, drooping feathers and drowned hair-dos. I was soon punished, however. The pressure of the trapped water above me finally split the tenting releasing a veritable Niagara. Drenched, but smiling madly for the chuckling onlookers, I might as well have been sitting on the sidewalk. The tightness and wetness of their uniforms aside, I was especially moved to see the police and members of the armed forces. Such a sight was once beyond our wildest imagination.
For me, my main event occurred going to the festival. As I was trying to cross the raging torrent called Park Boulevard and standing in water over my ankles, a car roared close behind me (deliberately!) unleashing a gigantic 10 foot tidal wave which left me completely sopping and bedraggled. It was such a perfect comedy scene however, I had to laugh. Luckily two young women pulled up and said, “We saw what he did. Can we give you a lift?” and they did. That was the spirit I encountered all day. Covered with a garbage bag, I watched the similarly attired good-natured, enthusiastic crowd.
Congratulations to everyone who worked so hard. The results were clear and deservedly appreciated. The spirit of the 2015 Pride and its many supporters can make the LGBT community proud.
Note that date
Time flits by at such a rapid pace we often don’t realize when a week, a month or even a year has passed. More and more we write messages to ourselves on calendars, memos and scraps of paper scattered here and there. This helps, but only if we remember to look at them. Make a note of that. Unfortunately, I didn’t and this week it cost me. A notice from our local TV service arrived announcing my credit card payment had been refused and to cough up the money plus a $25 penalty charge. Well! Since it had been working perfectly for a year automatically every month, I called in high dudgeon to complain. Guess what; it was my fault. A year had sneakily passed since I’d signed up and when I got my newly re-issued credit card with my usual number, I neglected to pay attention to the new expiration date; thus – pay attention – making all arrangements with the old date invalid.
It seems on receiving a new card, we are to inform all those places with which we have an arrangement of the new expiration date. Without that reprogramed information, it won’t work. If you receive a surprise notice from your supermarket, cable service, newspaper, etc. informing you of your failure to pay (plus a penalty), most likely this is the problem. Before this happens, look at your monthly bill and see which card you are using with that company. Grab a piece of paper and jot it down for future reference. Don’t forget to make a note where you put the note.
