This Blind Guy Bought Me a Drink

Back in the late 70's, I was in New York on business. My employer, back in North Carolina, kept an apartment in the city on Central Park west and 58th St. In the evenings, I would take in some of the popular theaters, pubs and small neighborhood pizza shops, and found my way into a few of the more popular night clubs. New York, New York! What a city! So much to do all hours of the day and night!

One evening, I caught a cab, and had my driver drop me off at the famous "Birdland Jazz Club" on W 44th St. All the best jazz men and women played at Birdland's, at one time or another - great jazz! The club is not all that big, so it was usually crowded. The night I was there I was lucky I saw one empty stool at the bar and quickly plopped down on it. I asked the two black guys sitting next to me if my stool was saved for anyone, the blind guy next to me said no. We started a small conversation about Birdland and all that Jazz! My new black friend then asked me what my drink order would be. He offered to buy one for me. We continued to carry on our conversation. I was curious why he was still wearing his dark sunglasses inside this already dark night spot. He told me he came to Birdland's a lot when he was in town and had even played there a time or two himself. "He did?" I asked myself. "Who is this guy? Should I know him? And then, it hit me! I asked my blind, black friend if he was Ray Charles! He smiled and said, "That's me!"

Dang! I had been sitting next to the famous Ray Charles, and "Ray" bought me a drink! Suddenly, I felt famous!

As the famous Rosanna, Rosanna Danna of the hit TV show Saturday Night Live used to say: "It just goes to show, you never can tell!" Although, I'm telling you now, this really happened! Me and Ray were in Birdland's back in the late 70's, and we had a drink together!

Comments

Texas' Big Bend Country

How can I describe this snapshot of our Texas-Mexico border, taken on a trip we made to our Texas Big Bend country, other than spectacular ! We were driving Texas' state road 170 heading to Presidio from Terlingua. We were a little spooked since we were the only vehicle on the road. Along this section of the road, we didn't pass any other cars or trucks. I must say, this desolate part of Texas is just as rugged as it is beautiful! Every curvy turn of this lonely highway presented yet another picture postcard panorama. It would be hard to believe anyone would risk their life crossing such treacherous terrain, but I imagine some have, at one time or another. In the summer, temperatures go well into the hundreds and the dangers of heat exhaustion and death are very real! Diamond-back rattle snakes and scorpions happily make this desert their home -- we never saw any though. We held our breath while traveling on this deserted, stretch of road, not wanting to think of having any ...

Once We are Retired

Most of our adult lives our commitments consume our time. We don't dislike having to be busy and responsible for others. It's what we do! As we age our obligations and priorities change - that's not always a bad thing! If we live long enough it happens! Once retired, our retirement frees up our personal time, so we can pretty much can do whatever we want. If we have a choice, we can fritter our time away doing nothing , or we can do something ! My interests are all over the place -- seldom am I ever bored. Cartooning, creating caricatures for tourists at popular resorts here in the states and abroad, in the past, and music appreciation, church involvement, sailing, photography, creative writing, cooking and flying my drones, as well as, fooling around with my tractor on our property have been my occupation since retiring in my late fifties. In the days and weeks to come, I want to slow down on my writing to spend more of my time editing and producing my videos for my YouT...

Sleeping with a Fan -- or Not

I'm not a fan of sleeping with a fan -- especially, all night long! My wife is, and that's all I'm going to say about that! Best I don't go there, so I am changing the subject! What about dreams? What are they? Why do we have them? Are dreams real? Let's see, here's what I can report about dreams. "In your dreams!" Now, that's funny! When we dream, we get to act out what we probably wouldn't do in reality. That ca n be fun! In the 19th century, Sigmund Freud pioneered the study of dreams. However, in spite of all the advanced research done with science, through the years, and since then, we still don't know everything about dreams or why we have them. Here's what I have discovered in my research on the subject of dreams : Typically, we spend about two hours each night dreaming. Our dreams can last anywhere from 5-20 minutes each. Sometimes, it seems, I dream all night long. Other times, I may not dream at all. I don't always rememb...

What's Up Melton?

Search This Blog