[stylist] New THOUGHT PROVOKER #138- In a Crowded Place

[Shelley J. Alongi]

I do very well in crowded places. I do have to admit I haven't tried 
Disneyland by myself yet. I'm not sure I want to only because as I get older 
I do prefer quieter places, perhaps for reflection rather than being 
stimulated by crowds. A man I admire and wanted to marry at one time called 
me a social butterfly. I once disappeared on him in a crowd and started 
making friends. Crowded bars are usually okay when I frequent them, church 
parties and birthday celebrations are where I get my crowds. My x fiance got 
jealous once because I was off making friends in a crowd and he was onstage 
doing whatever he was doing. He was blind I guess he didn't want me 
wandering away from him. In any case, that was that. If I'm looking for 
someone in a crowd and I cannot successfully locate them I will ask someone 
to scope out the crowd to find them. If there's noone to ask to find someone 
I usually go about my business saying hello to people and introducing myself 
until I find them. And then there are those times when I walk into a crowded 
place and just want to sit and daydream. Lately what I've been doing is 
going to the train station and talking to people I've never met before, 
sometimes on the patio or sitting by the tracks on the planter or the 
benches. It's not always crowded but it is a new environment and does take 
some assertiveness. And then there are times when I go into a crowded place 
and just sit and want to participate and don't. Two weeks ago I went to a 
completely new place, Santa Barbara, and found my way around town on the 
trolley and to a restaurant and back to the train station. If I needed help 
I asked for it and people were surprisingly gracious not stepping in to help 
if I didn't ask. It was nice. the only thing I didn't do was stroll down the 
main boulevard and go shopping partly because I didn't want to stray too far 
from the train station and miss the last train (it was a three hour trip 
back and I couldn't afford to be late for work) and I didn't really want to 
spend money. Next time I go there I'll do that. That whole area was pretty 
crowded. IN short, whatever mood I'm in is how I handle crowds. They're 
quite doable for me as a blind person.
Shelley J. Alongi
Your Lifelong Pampered Chef Consultant With Bells On!
Home Office: (714)869-3207
Start your holiday shopping now with great quality tools from the pampered 
Chef
http://www.pamperedchef.biz/shellbellskit

**
Read my latest writing about my Santa Barbara train trip 
http://www.storymania.com/cgibin/sm2/smreadtitle.cgi?action=display&file=newtitles/AlongiSJ-Metrolink111LoveANew.htm


To read other essays on my journey through Metrolink 111 or other interests 
click on 
http://www.storymania.com/cgibin/sm2/smshowauthorbox.cgi?page=&author=AlongiSJ&alpha=A

updated Oct 21, 2008
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Robert Newman" <newmanrl at cox.net>
To: "'NFBnet Writer's Division Mailing List'" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, October 28, 2008 6:01 PM
Subject: [stylist] New THOUGHT PROVOKER #138- In a Crowded Place


> Fellow Writers
> RE:  In a Crowded Place
>
> Here is my newest THOUGHT PROVOKER. I'm looking to see how people feel
> and/or function in crowded and/or noisy environments. Any advice? If you
> have not read the PROVOKER, it follows.  Recall that I collect responses 
> and
> post them upon my web site for all the WWW to read and learn from and that
> URL is- Http://thoughtprovoker.info <http://thoughtprovoker.info/>   If 
> you
> wish to receive THOUGHT PROVOKERS sent directly to you, just write me and
> ask, at-  newmanrl at cox.net
>
> THOUGHT PROVOKER 138
> In a Crowded Place
>
> "It's been a hard day's night ---" The familiar lyrics rode the crest of 
> the
> wave of sound washing over me as I opened the door to the hotel bar and I
> knew too well what the next hour or so would bring in terms of
> communication. Sigh.  The event was my 40-year class reunion. I was here 
> to
> find my party, eight guys, my remaining teammates from our senior year
> champion wrestling team. We'd start out in the bar and later move to the
> larger gathering.
>
> Inside, weaving my way among the scattered tables, I moved from one island
> of sound to another, I figure my guys will grab me when I am spotted.
> Chances of me finding them in this environment are slim to none.  The 
> crowd
> is fluid; people standing, sitting, walking about, so the auditory stimuli
> are coming from every direction.
>
> "Robby boy!" the booming, beer-soaked voice directed down upon the top of 
> my
> head had to be Harley, the former heavyweight wrestler, sweeping me up 
> into
> his, now, even weightier embrace. "Com'on, little --- we're over here in
> ---. Let's get you a --- one." I didn't need to have heard all he said, 
> his
> firm grip and drink happy mood carried me along.
>
> "Rob!" "Hey Bat Man how yaa ---" "Bat Ma --- oh invincible one!" A chorus 
> of
> greetings met me at the table. (All of us had special nicknames back in 
> the
> day.  Bat Man had been mine but I'd not heard it spoken aloud for years.
> Harley had been Elephant Man.")
>
> Seated next to Thomas (alias Spider Man), a friend I'd not seen in person
> for nearly 20 years, I asked,  "So Tom, how's life?" Leaning forward,
> positioning my ear to be at the best angle to hear his responses.
>
> "Hey Rob," Super Man's voice projected across the table. It was Jeff, the
> once team captain. "The lady wants to take your order." And thinking she 
> was
> behind, between Tom and me (where I had felt something touch me), I voiced
> my order.
>
> "Rob --- " Jeff yelled again, "she's over here! Ha, and I think she read
> your lips --- a draw, right?"  I gave him a thumbs up.
>
> Getting back to Tom, I said, "Whatever happened to that motorcycle you 
> had?"
> Not getting an answer, leaning closer I could tell he was engaged to 
> someone
> off to his right. Turning to my left to talk to John, the once smallest 
> guy
> on the team, nicknamed Invisible Man, I found him laughing it up with 
> people
> at his end of the table.
>
> After a couple of rounds of drinks and several broken conversations with 
> my
> former teammates, consensus came to move ourselves to the banquet room. 
> We
> made a short stop at that room's cash bar; then, glass in hand, I started
> mixing and mingling prior to sitting down to dinner and speeches.
>
> The music playing in the banquet room came from a string quartet and 
> wasn't
> going to be a problem. The room was large, had high ceilings, a carpeted
> floor, and was set up with enough round tables to seat 1,000. Right off I
> ran into a former girlfriend; we hugged and got caught up.
>
> Free again, I went on the prowl for other old friends. I used the location
> of the music as a point of reference, moving through the scattering of
> tables, listening for any voice I recognized or for someone to yell out my
> name. There were small groups standing and talking or already seated and
> visiting. I'd catch a word or phrase as I passed, even stopping a few 
> times
> to insert myself into the group's space only to find that I didn't know
> them. People, people everywhere, and no one I know to be found anywhere.
> Not even finding my old wrestling buddies, I got more assertive, stopping
> the next person walking by. "Hi, could I ask if you have seen ---" and 
> this
> guy answers, "May I get you another drink, sir? I'm one of the banquet
> staff."
>
>
>
> Robert Leslie Newman
> Email- newmanrl at cox.net
> THOUGHT PROVOKER Website-
> Http://www.thoughtprovoker.info
>
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