Lunch Dates

Former Patina All-Stars

Last Thursday, I met up for lunch with former catering coworkers, and what a true pleasure it was.

Besides seeing him on Facebook, I hadn't seen one of the fellas in dang near 16 years!!!

We met up at my new favorite spot, El Tejano. And it's only my favorite spot because it sells deeeeeeeeeeeelicious frozen margaritas!

It was great seeing everybody again. I had an opportunity to speak with each of them separately. Those conversations made me realize how blessed I am to think the way I do. What I mean is, I'm immeasurably optimistic even when circumstances would suggest I think otherwise.

Our conversations covered the spectrum: homelessness, depression, loneliness, family, unfulfilled dreams, etc.

As I listened to everybody's testimonies, all I could think was, "Universe, I am thankful to be me. As I am. And I look forward to all the great and exciting experiences coming my way."

Come on with it, LIFE...

C. A. MONTGOMERY JR is THANKFUL to be here!

Back In The Day

What's going on in today's world?

I recall being a kid (10-15) and always hearing older people (that would be folks older than 25) talking about life being better "back in the day."

Well, I'm 54 now, and I fully understand what they meant.

When I was a kid...

Nobody had surveillance cameras attached to their house.

Nobody worried about leaving a house door unlocked.

Nobody worried about leaving a car door unlocked.

People borrowed sugar.

And eggs.

And ice (if your family had one of those new-fangled refrigerators with an ice dispenser in the door). My family was one of those families, thank you very much!!!! :)

Nobody wore a helmet when riding a bike.

Nobody told their parents everywhere they were going when riding a bike.

People knew their neighbors' names. At least, their nick names. :)

Young people showed respect to older people.

Parents WANTED teachers to discipline their children in their absence.

Parents BELIEVED what teachers told them.

People talked to each other during meals.

Heck, people talked to each other, in general.

Yes, since my youth, technology has changed the entire landscape.

And, unfortunately, not all for the better.

Back in the day, I was filled with soooo many dreams and truly believed I could and would realize all of them.

Now, I realize that some of those dreams might always be relegated to dreams.

And you know what?

I'm fine with that.

I'll continue to write when I feel like writing, and to treat people the way I want to be treated whether I feel like doing so or not.

And whatever comes from those endeavors, will come.

And I'm fine with that.

I'm truly fine with that.

What I Know For Sure

So let it be WRITTEN!

So let it be DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Act Two

In my humble opinion, the writer in me believes that our lives are composed of THREE acts.

Birth to 30 years old is ACT ONE.

30 to 60 is ACT TWO.

60 until death is ACT THREE.

I'm 54. That means, ACT TWO.

Heck, truth be told, 54 means I'm bringing up the rear of ACT TWO.

Before I know it, God willing, I'll be rolling over into ACT THREE.

It's highly likely that I won't see another 54 years ahead of me.

So, that means I've already lived over HALF my lifetime.

How do I think my life has measured up thus far?

Well, I don't think I've ever embraced professional fulfillment.

Yes, I've had jobs I liked. But none of them really paid anything. And the few showbiz gigs that did pay something were only fleeting. A day or two at the most.

So, I'm convinced that my relationships with people and animals will have to determine the quality of my life, because professional achievements might not cut the mustard.

Liston Spence

Today, I sat in the park and talked to a terrific, young actor named, LISTON SPENCE. He moved here to L.A. from Virginia, but later this week, he's making another move to Atlanta. While talking, we discussed my theory on life being broken up into three acts. He's 32, so he's in the beginning stage of ACT TWO.

Liston and I talked about a wide range of subjects: his mother, his brother living with Downs Syndrome, depression, etc. Just like many of us, he isn't living his best life yet. But he's willing to work toward achieving that goal. And I hope and pray he keeps on the straight and narrow path that leads to it. He possesses a compassionate soul, so I wish him the very best!!!!!!!!!!

ACT THREE is around the corner for me. It's up to ME to make it better than the previous, two acts. And you know what? I'm gonna do just that!

Yep! I sure am!

Why??????

We've got folks fighting over separating children from illegal immigrants,

...kicking Trump supporters out of restaurants for being Trump supporters,

...protesting police brutality,

...unfriending people from social media pages for having a different point of view, etc.

It's just one conflict after another.

ENOUGH!

ENOUGH, ALREADY!

I feel perfectly fine, accepting that not everyone sees eye-to-eye with me on every issue in the world. Fine. That's what makes the world go 'round. So, no deleting folks who don't share my views.

What I will do, though, is choose not to engage with people who are argumentative about their viewpoints. It's a waste of my finite time on this planet. So, I let those folks air out their gripes, then I keep it movin'.

Honestly, I truly want all living beings to live in harmony.

Why, you ask?

Because it simply makes me feel good.

Big Brother, Season 20

It's officially SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, that means BIG BROTHER is back!!! BIG BROTHER 20 to be precise!

That's right, CBS's summer smash, Big Brother, is back for its 20th season! And we're gonna have a BLAST!

They've now spent three nights in the house. And I suspect they're still learning their way around the place.

I want them to do their very best. I always tell them that there can only be ONE $500K winner, so that means the Universe has everybody else there for a different reason. It's up to them to discover that reason.

I can only imagine how nervous each of 'em were before they stepped into the house, but once the challenges begin, all those nerves have to take a backseat to a drive to win!!!!!!

As always, I look forward to seeing how this season will turn out. Some of the houseguests always surprise me with their behavior, so we'll see what we see!

BIG BROTHER 20, let's DO this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Thankful

Let the record state!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Snack #45

Make a SANDWICH great again!!!!

Haaaaaaaaaaaaa! :) :) :)

Me, Me, I'm First

We've all seen and heard flight attendants go through their emergency routine about the oxygen masks.

"In case of emergency, oxygen masks will drop down in front of you. Please pull the mask down toward your face and place the mask over your mouth and nose...please attend to yourself first."

We are instructed to attend to ourselves first because we truly aren't in a position to help others until we're secure ourselves.

I realize now that this warning applies to our day-to-day lives, too. I am often asked to assist others in attaining or accomplishing something they seek. And oftentimes, I have helped said people even when helping them meant something I wanted to accomplish had to be placed on the back burner. I don't even need to say how frustrating it is for me to end the day as a blessing to others while putting myself behind the eight ball.

Last night, I made a vow to put the oxygen mask on ME FIRST! I'm no longer in the business of helping others fulfill goals at the expense of fulfilling my own.

NO! I'm not going to research how you can get in touch with someone when you can do the same research on Google your dang self!

NO! I'm not going to help you move. You'll have to call a moving company or other friends. I'm spending my Saturday doing precisely what I had intended to do: washing clothes, cleaning the apartment, or just lounging around, eating bonbons.

NO! I'm not going to read your feature screenplay this weekend and give you notes. I'm going to do what I had originally planned: walk up a mountain in Griffith Park, have lunch at El Tejano, then check out a play at The Mark Taper.

NO! I'm not going to assist anybody with anything UNTIL everything I want and/or need to get done GETS done!

From now on, it's ME FIRST!

Any other way is too painful.

Any other way, I CAN'T BREATHE.