We are not normal

So, we have a very interesting group of people here where I work. I love 95% of them, and actually am quite close to a bunch of folks and call them my friends. Another gay guy here is my best friend at the office. He is totally the antithesis of me; big, bearish, says anything on his mind, no matter how rude, passes gas, etc. etc. He does have a heart of gold, though, I really love him.

Anyway (I hate people that use that word in conversation, and then do it ALL the time myself), he has a phobia of the dentist. I mean, we ALL have a fear of the dentist. No one LIKES to go. I suppose if you were some sick masochist you might, but ... you get the point. His phobia is so extreme that merely mentioning a dentist makes him sweat. If you actually raise your hand and with your fingernail scratch your teeth, making the motion like the dental hygienist, scraping your teeth, he gets nauseous to the point of having to leave the room. All this leads to him knowing he needs serious dental work, including a veneer on the front because he has an old root canal on a front tooth and, well, long story, but he asks about my dentist, knowing I had considerable ($17K, baby) work done in the last 4 years (right after I started here I had 4 veneers replaced on my front teeth that were improperly done by a 'friend' dentist of mine years before). When he is medicated like this, his decision making is hampered, and, the next day he has NO MEMORY WHATSOEVER of what happened the day before after taking the pills.

Fast forward a year or so, and now every time he has to go get a crown or whatever, he takes 2 Halcyon (prescribed by my dentist) so that he can actually make it through sitting in the chair without having a total panic attack. Sometimes, when he is really uncomfortable, the dentist actually has to use gas on him too. So, I have to go and pick him up. The problem with this situation, is that he *seems* very lucid and aware when you are talking to him. Once, a new clerk at the dentist actually let him out without me there and, thankfully I had the idea to call right after, so RAN out of here to the dentist a block and a half away and found him. One time early on, he convinced me to let him get on the metro (his normal commute). He later confessed to me that he had no idea how to get home at his transfer station and wound up going the wrong way, and kind of coming out of his stupor at the Branch Avenue metro station (not the best station, but all of them are generally safe during the day; however, in his state, you never know where he might have gone, done, etc). So today, he tries to say, 'oh today is different, I feel fine', but I say no way, baby.

So, did the same thing on Tuesday for his cleaning, took a cab over to his place and back to the office. $14.50. Do the same thing today and am charged $19.10. Nearly a $5 fare difference. Totally annoys me. It would be one thing if this rarely happened (and I am a big fan of New York Hack so don't get me wrong), but it seems to happen on every trip. A dollar or so difference, fine, I mean, we all gotta earn a living, but... whatever.

On a completely unrelated note, I see where Eminem filed for divorce AGAIN yesterday. You know, I come from a LONG line of white trash, I know my peeps. He is gonna have a hard time getting someone else to deal with his ego...

And, I have had this for what, two weeks, and have already been found by one of my friends. Damn my inability to shut up and not COMMENT on people's posts (especially PSP). Since this said friend is in the picture I published, it means I need to find a hosted pic of me online somewhere that I don't hate. Tough mission. ;-)