Saturday, March 27, 2010

Butlermania

Who said white men can't jump?
Don't tell that to Butler dynamo Gordon Hayward.
Hayward converted an alley-oop slam dunk and snagged nine rebounds en route to a trip the Final Four.
Who said you can't go home again?
Butler returns to Indianapolis as part of a Fantastic Final Four appearance as the Bulldogs dispatched Kansas State Saturday.
Hayward's heroics efforts encapsulated a grand finale in the West Regionals of the NCAA March Madness.
Not many bracketeers picked Butler to return home to their Hoosier roots and play for the national championship.
Never underestimate the human heart.
Butler toppled No. 1 seed Syracuse, 63-59, and advanced to the Final Four by turning the No. 2 seeded Kansas State Wildcats into Mildcats.
That's what makes amateur athletics so unpredictable.
Likewise my life has been very unfathomable.
Who would have predicted I would be sleeping in a tent one night and training to be an apartment manager the next day?
I've never found a four-leaf clover and I don't have any Irish blood in me, but my favorite holiday is St. Patrick's Day.
So, I'm rooting for Butler to win the national championship.
This will mark the anniversary of me acquiring my nickname Big Al.
When Al McGuire coached Marquette to the national championship I rooted for him and the next day a friend started calling me Big Al.
Big Al hopes for another miraculous occurrence.
I just hope I can afford a TV set next week so I can watch it live rather than on a Hewlett Packard.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Comfort zone

When does one reach his comfort zone?
As we trudge along seeking a new identity after enduring some slings and arrows of outrageous misfortune, it's comforting to meet new friends and helpmates amongst our new employers who will guide and direct us into a new dimension. A new comfort zone.
At first we live in a land of confusion on the first few days of our new expedition into the land of apartment managerialship.
Then, when we have the thrill of victory, i.e. renting our first apartment to a tenant who appreciates us and our optimistic and helpful attitude, a bond has been successfully accomplished.
We're approaching a comfort zone.
Never in the past few years have I experienced the overwhelming zeal of a new challenge.
Now I have full time employment.
I have a very comfortable bed to sleep in.
I have a very good support staff of employers who sincerely care about me and my future.
They want me to succeed because they've glimpsed my personality and see a spark of zest which will translate into bonding with future tenants.
My goal is to fill this place up and then I'll qualify for bonuses.
I'm not into materialistic benefits.
I seek spiritual enlightenment with the people I work with and the tenants I serve.
I want to be remembered as a nice guy who also served as a quality manager who cared about the welfare of his fellow neighbors who just happen to rent from him.
I want my comfort zone to be their comfort zone.
We can all be warm and cozy here as we traverse down life's highway.
We are family!
Indeed, when my friend Berry Williams passed on Jan. 20 I bravely and spiritually commemorated his loving spirit with that We Are Family outlook.
Now I must invoke that with my fellow inhabitants in this friendly little comfort zone we call home.
Not bad for a guy who didn't know where his next real home would be.
My home used to be an abandoned house, or a tent on a hillside.
But now I have a real home and I'm engaging in a comfort zone beyond belief.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

myway

Frank Sinatra crooned I did it my way.
My way may not be as circumspect as it needs to be.
But I've always been a trusting soul.
A friend of mine told me once, "David, I've never heard anyone say anything bad about you."
The first tenant who opted to move in here told me her boy friend opined as they left after our initial visit, "Now, that's a nice guy."
She said they'd toured numerous apartment complexes and opted for ours.
I don't know if that means they were infatuated with the scenario we represented or were just tired of touring.
Yesterday I showed an apartment to a young man and his friend. I firmly believe he's going to move in here. I just told him the best perk about this apartment is the washer and dryer. You don't have to spend an hour going to the laundromat and acquiring quarters to do your washing and drying.
He said, "Yeah, that's what I need to do now."
My maintenance man is starting to bond with me.
He told me he could do a lot more fix it uppers if he just had some tools.
So, that's my next goal.
Interrelationships of bonding distinguishes friendships on all levels.
I learned that while struggling to survive.
Hopefully the lessons I learned during the past few years of toils and tribulation and turmoil will make me a more discerning person as far as nurturing my kinship with tenants and fellow apartment aficionados.
I know some want me to be more business-like and suspicious of people who walk in here.
I can change my approach to handling interviews but I can't change my personality.
I am who I am.
When I gave a eulogy for my father I vowed to strive to be like him.
He was a genuine caring man who treated everyone with Christian love.
He trusted everyone.
He invoked altruistic virtues.
He believed in the Holy Spirit.
He preached love, peace and understanding.
I couldn't walk in my father's footsteps.
He wore a size 10 1/2 shoe.
I wear a size 8.
Those were giant footsteps he trodded.
As Neil Armstrong said, "That was one giant step for mankind, but one small step for a man."
Nevertheless, if I treat everyone with dignity and respect and trust and show them that I care, hopefully they'll treat me likewise, no matter the circumstances.
So far I know even some of the most untoward individuals I've met who were homeless and a little bit misunderstood became my best friends.
So I will continue to do it my way.
Or maybe I should say I will emulate Major William Maurice Lanier's way.
Nice guys finish with class.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

homelessness

Now I can truthfully say I enjoy homemoreness.
More than less I am home.
In fact I enjoy homemostness.
More than likely I savor homeallness.
They say, "Don't take your job home with you."
I say, "My home is my job."
Indeed, my apartment serves as my office and my home.
It's challenging to sustain a fastidious kitchen and bathroom.
My kitchen is a showcase 'cause whenever anyone comes to the office my kitchen adjoins the office.
And whenever needs to go do No. 1 or No. 2 they utilize my lavatory.
In the past I personified Oscar Madison of "The Odd Couple."
No, I did't win any oscars for my Madisonian slobbery.
But now I'm inculcating a new persona as an apartment manager who must glisten when tenants or prospective tenants enter my realm.
I'm not pristine but personable.
So I'm turning over a new leaf in a new chapter of my life.
I'm enjoying new adventures and foregoing misadventures.
The old me learned lessons the hard way.
Now the highway leads to high goals and aspirations.
My heart pines for indigents.
I've been there and done that.
God chose me to enlighten.
I documented and wrote about homelessness. I lived that lifestyle. I persevered.
But once while two newfound friends were putting up a tent for me to reside, one reminisced about the movie "Heartbreak Ridge."
Clint Eastwood opined, "Persevere. Adapt. Overcome."
In a nutshell that's what I accomplished.
I persevered my trials and tribulations forlornly but without sacrificing my human dignity.
I adapted like a chameleon and drifted along in a hoboesque mileu amidst the woodsmen.
Now I've overcome!!!
New York Mayor John Lindsey appeased the blacks in the ghettoes of his Big Apple following the tragic assassination of Martin Luther King.
While Los Angeles burned, Lindsey strolled hand-in-hand with his comrades singing, "We shall overcome."
Indeed I overcame and now I'm living the lifestyle, "Don't Worry, Be Happy."

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

home work

An old adage doesn't apply to this apartment manager.
They always say, "Don't take your work home with you."
I say, "My home is my work."
Indeed I'm finally enjoying the comforts of home and work at the same locale.
Life couldn't be grander than to finally have a luxurious bed to doze.
No one knows how uncomfortable one might be enduring the nightmarish scenario of a skunk poking its beady little eyes into one's tent at 5 a.m.
Now I'm peacefully snoozing and there's a comfort zone which provides joy and peace of mind. I take a shower every morning and put on clean clothes every day.
I no longer have to worry about the disdainful fear of police invading my premises and waking me up at 1:30 a.m. telling me I'm on private property and have no right to be there.
I don't have very far to traverse to work.
In fact, my kitchen adjoins my workspace, so I can cook or make sandwiches on my lunch break. I won't be eating out as much as I used to either.
Indeed, God has blessed me so much I wish I could understand why.
Just like I used to wonder why I was homeless.
Maybe because of my intestinal fortitude and positive attitude my fortunes changed.
Actually, it's all due to friends who came to my emotional rescue and introduced me to my employers who are also going out of their way to make me feel comfortable.
So, what do I do in exchange?
This morning I went to McDonald's and saw a homeless man lugging plastic bags full of his stuff.
I bought him a sausage biscuit and tried to do so nonchalantly.
What goes around comes around.
I remember when I had people buy me food at McDonald's when I was forlorn and bedraggled.
None of us can end homelessness, but we can make someone's life more tolerable just by doing them a kind favor.
Just to be treated nicely and not being treated like the scum of the earth makes all the difference in the world.
It's better to give than receive. Especially when you've been receiving and not being able to give like you wanted to.
Hopefully my generosity will make an impact much like friends made me feel good about myself again.
The memories of my pauper past make me appreciate my newfound success and the comforts of home so much more.
Many take for granted sleeping in a comfortable bed.
Now I praise the Lord for making me a landlord.

Monday, March 22, 2010

confidence

Confidence is in the minds of the beholder.
Initially I lack confidence when boldly going where I've never gone before.
So, today I've built up a modicum of confidence in myself as a manager.
I flew solo on my new job and enjoyed motivating my assistant and handling a prospective tenant.
Once a person gains confidence he can be self-motivating.
Handling adversity provides a backdrop of optimism in handling the next adverse circumstance.
If I can overcome a skunk invading my homestead then I should be able to cope with almost any adverse circumstance imaginable.
Indeed, a nice lady today desired to move into an apartment but she disdained the odor of cigarettes.
So, I sought advice and sprayed her future domicile with a mint-scented disinfectant designed specifically to combat pet odor.
Hopefully my friends gave me the best advice.
But like a wise man once said if you don't know the answer to something go to someone more experienced.
Sometimes in the past I was filled with stubborn hubris and thought I had to do everything on my own.
Finally after struggling to survive with just me, myself and I to rely on for guidance I came to the realization that teamwork of everyone who participates will generate better results and solutions to problems with simple answers.
I don't know how to turn on a hot water heater but I know someone who does.
There is no I in team.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

letitsnow

I'm dreaming of a white spring!
Yes, Jack Frost just doesn't want to hibernate.
On the first day of spring, what did Mother Nature bring?
Four to eight inches of dandruff from heaven.
What a way to start a new job!
I'm probably going to be by myself today in the office.
But I'm loving every minute of it.
I feel like a homeless man in heaven.
I have my own king-sized bed.
What could a hobo ask for?
This must be indigent nirvana.
They snowed me under with a big couch, a lovely love seat, a chest of drawers which would accommodate all the clothes I've ever owned in all of my 58 years of existence, a super long table, two smaller end tables and two TV stands with glass partitions.
Now all I need is a coffee maker, a microwave oven and a TV set.
Wait a minute.
I think I must be dreaming.
Just last week I was sleeping in a tent.
What would the world be like today if I woke up cuddled up in a blanket of snow?
No.
I'm hibernating in my apartment, sitting at a computer, ruminating.
I think I'm a happy camper now!
Just come by and see me sometime and we'll reminisce about the good old days when Pepe LePew chewed his way into my life.
Eat your heart out Pepe!
I have a bag of Doritos.
But they're all mine!

Friday, March 19, 2010

tentrevival

I now have a new significance to a tent revival.
I'm coping with a new challenge.
I'm training to be an apartment manager in Rogers.
I can't transfer to Facebook because there's a filter on our computer system.
So if anyone wants to communicate with me it has to be done via e-mail.
My e-mail address is davidlanier1951@gmail.com.
Thanks for the perseverance as I transition the culture shock of sleeping in a tent to sleeping on the floor of my new apartment.
My phone number is 636-5135.
My address is 600-1 North 12th Place, Rogers, AR 72756.
Office hours are Monday-Saturday, 9-6 and Sunday 1-5.
I'll be a workaholic with approximately 59 hours a week until I finally get paid in two weeks and can afford to take a lunch break.
Keep those prayers uppermost in your mind.
Thanks for reading and caring.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Godblessesus

God truly blessed me today. St. Patrick's Day is my lucky holiday.
Last night I slept in a tent and today I'm an apartment complex manager in Rogers.
I went to the UofA library this morning and read my e-mail which told me I was approved.
So I'm in a state of ecstasy but aware I have a mammoth task ahead of learning how to be a good manager and make all the right decisions and fill out all the requisite paper work.
I can't say much more because my employer disdains publicity.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

hypothermia

Another homeless man finally found a home.
In heaven or hell.
A friend perished last Friday night due to his lack of a warm place to lay his head.
The sadness continues.
CW was evicted from a local hotel/apartment dwelling a few weeks ago after he found another former homeless man dead in his bed.
A mutual friend Dwayne found CW lying in the woods stiff as a board on Saturday morning.
I talked to CW the day after his eviction.
The property owners would not let him retain the steaks he'd purchased with his food stamps.
And they evicted him because he wasn't listed on the lease.
I feel very saddened by all of this because I knew all three of the aforementioned individuals.
Why?
Sometimes once depression sets in and there seems to be no hope, one drifts into a state of apathy.
I hope somehow awareness will supersede apathy on the part of those who don't care about the homeless.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

jobops

Who would believe that a homeless man would be interviewing for a position as an apartment manager?
That should qualify for Ripley's Believe it or not.
A friend recommended for an interview with a local apartment complex mogul.
I'm slated for the interview on Wednesday.
I hope he doesn't delve too much into my recent background of housing and the lack thereof.
The main impact of this scenario is that friends can make a difference in our lives.
Indeed during the recent winter siege friends intervened and permitted me to couch surf or sleep on the floor of their domiciles.
I've had several folks comment about how cold it was this winter. But warm hearts provided relief and comfort.
Thanks to everyone who aided me in my continuing efforts to overcome the elements of nature.
The key to survival no matter your circumstances are friends, God and the love bestowed by caring hearts.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

couchsurfing

Many homeless individuals couch surf.
They find a friend who'll let them sleep on their couch until the welcome mat is no longer user friendly.
Some sleep on floors.
That's been my lifestyle recently as newfound friends sympathetically let me sleep on their floor instead of camping out.
The downside to that proposition is when the person gets mad about some petty deal and holds your stuff hostage.
That's what happened to me this weekend.
A guy let me crash on his floor at the Twin Arches motel/apartments.
Then when we started playing pool I permitted another guy to play the winner.
Unfortunately my "friend" got perturbed and knocked the eight ball in on purpose before the rotation and stomped off mad.
I can't arouse him and I'm worried about my stuff.
This is the second time this has happened to me so I'm paranoid about retrieving my belongings.
Then, I read that a trailer which I used to sleep in burned down, so I lost some more of my clothes.
Que sera!