Better Late Than Never

The OC Fair Virtual 5K, which was to have been completed between July 17 and August 16, got off my bucket list this morning.

I took my time and still made fairly good time.

Looking at the way my online results compare to what looks to be five others in the 75-99 age range, I came in fourth.

I didn’t see a Bib No. in the swag bag. Don’t know if this was an error on the part of the organizers, or none were issued. I’ll have to check to see if my friend The Archeologist, who completed the virtual some time ago, also did not receive or was issued a Bib.

A Bib is really not all that important. It’s just that I don’t have one to match the medal on the Bib and Medal board.

At any rate, the swag bag was nice.

A little stuffed piglet, Medal, Cool Hair Buff and Free Ticket for next year’s fair ... that is if the world is completely Covid over by next summer.

Reasons for not having completed this race in a timely fashion was mostly weather ─ it’s just been too darn hot to walk; not to mention low energy and lack of motivation.

However, whatever dark cloud was hovering, causing me to not want to go anywhere, do anything other than sit on the couch all day watching television and working on that needlepoint project ─ even getting out to the Pain Cave had been a challenge, whatever that was suddenly began to lift yesterday.

Waking up this morning, feeling unburdened, unfettered, ready to seize the day, I headed to the mall to walk the walk.

That sign didn’t mean I couldn’t walk outside ... around the mall, so after having driven the 25 miles to get there, that’s what I did. And, up until 10:00 ─ when shoppers and employees began to arrive, it was quite pleasant as I had the parking areas around the mall free of cars, all to myself.

The only signs of life before people began to arrive, seemed to only be the Security Guard driving around the parking lot, to keep the displaced from camping out on the property, was the line of cars at the Krispy Kreme. It looked to be about 25 to 30 cars patiently waiting to buy donuts.

I haven't seen lines like this at Krispy Kreme since they first opened up in the area some fifteen years ago. At that time, folks began lining up at 4 a.m. to get donuts for the office.

The area smelled delicious, but I wasn’t even tempted. Mainly because, though my gut will accept a little See’s Candy now and then, a donut would be pain for days, so no.

Back at the complex, I ran into Apache. He has his arm in a sling. He broke his hand in a fight.

You read that correctly.

Apache had a fist fight with the resident he’s been feuding with for years.

The resident, let’s call him Bicycle Boy (BB), is kinda crazy. He's feuded with not only Apache, but others, including Big Linda ─ who he used to mock on the streets by doing the chicken dance and sneak around her area at night to leave spittle on her car.

Management, for whatever reason, won’t do anything about BB ─ other than he was banned long ago from the Community Room for stealing popcorn.

I guess, to management, stealing popcorn is a worse offense than being a danger to other residents, and BB IS a danger. I stay out of his way ─ even though he once told me he liked me and I was "nice".

BB and Apache have been at it to the point where Apache tells me he recently had to go to court, because BB had taken out a restraining order on him. Both were granted restraining orders against each other, but BB immediately violated, so his against Apache was removed, but Apache’s against him remains in force.

BB all along has been the aggressor. He won’t stay away from Apache and, when neighbors phoned Apache to tell him BB had climbed over Apache’s first floor balcony railing and was on his patio, Apache open his patio window, went outside to the patio, and throttled BB, who managed to break away, jump back over the railing, get on his bike and flee the scene, leaving Apache with a broken hand.

Management, I understand, still doesn’t want to get involved. Probably because management doesn’t like either one of them, Apache or BB, and is waiting for the worst to happen to eliminate one, the other, or both.

That’s senior living for you.