Random Thoughts About The Week

I was drinking coffee the other day with a retired guy. He worked as an architect for years. Since I want to take the Interior Architecture course at Cornish, there’s a common interest. He’s also bought a couple drawings I had printed up.

He hangs out at a little cafe area in the library. When his wife gets off work and shows up he says, “Sorry boys, I have to talk to The Boss.”

When we were talking he asked me how old I was. I told him I’m fifty. Then he said he heard I was Native and asked me questions about the culture.

I told him that I grew up in a farm town not the reservation. Since I don’t know a lot of people out there, I really can’t talk about them.

He asked me if there was anything I could tell him. I said there are some natives who consider me an elder. It seems strange to me that people I don’t even know are acting like I’m a leader.

I told him the reason it’s strange to me is that I don’t care about leading anyone or giving advice. I just want to play with my granddaughter and stay in touch with my kids to see if I have any more grandkids on the way.

He just laughed and said I probably shouldn’t get too involved with them and their games. That sounds like good advice to me.

I was watching the news a few days ago. A story came on that the parents of a kid under 18 can go to jail for what they do.

It’s strange for me to think parents have any say about what some teenager does when they leave the house. It would probably be better to let the stupid kid sit in jail for two or three days and put an ankle bracelet on him or her for about a month.

But what do I know? I’m just a guy from a farm town. I really wonder how that law is going to work out. If people know they’re going to jail for what their kids are doing there will probably be a lot of teenagers getting the shit beat out of them in the near future, or they’ll learn not to get caught.

I got to the coffee shop early today. There’s a different crowd there at 6 a.m. than at seven. There was a retired couple there I see from time to time. They hand out Bibles with their church group and go to Starbucks for their coffee breaks.

I showed them some art I had printed up, then gave them the prints I was showing them. They weren’t going to take the drawings at first.

Then I told them that my mom’s a Christian and would like them. Besides when she hears I’m giving people who hand out Bibles some of my art she might not Bible-Thump me next time she sees me. They laughed and thanked me.

Written by Mark Blevins

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About Me:

I was a Construction Worker and Commercial Fisherman. An injury on a fishing boat in Alaska forced me into early retirement. Now I’m a Writer and Blogger. Having to start over forced me to realize people are more than their job title.

Contact me at 1mark.blevins1@gmail.com