Thursday, January 10, 2008

Who Am I?

Because this is my first post, the obvious place to start is by telling you who I am and "what I'm up to,'' as they say down South.
Well, wouldn't you know it, I'm stumped on the very first question on the test.
But I can tell you who I used to be, which will at least sharpen the focus of this otherwise hazy self-portrait.
I used to be the Metro Columnist of the East Valley Tribune. I was fired sometime in April; I'm not sure the date. I got a "Dear John'' letter from the Tribune's editor while I was in prison. By the way, prison is a terrible place to get bad news: there's no place to cry. And in prison, tears are blood in the water. (I'll blog about that subject pretty soon)
I used to be "The Cat's Meow'' to one beautiful woman. But I lost that title back in December, a few months before I went to prison. When I got out, I learned that she had met and married a man after a few month's dating. He's a "senior consultant,'' whatever that is. I suspect it pays well and she's living in the lap of luxury. She upgraded, I guess.
I used to be Dad to my kids, Corey and Abby. I'm still Dad, of course. But my ex moved back to Mississippi a month after I got out of prison and now I sometimes feel as though I'm just a voice on the end of the phone line.
I used to be an extremely-social drinker. Not anymore. Three DUIs in four-and-half years has had, quite literally, a very sobering effect on me. I don't drink. At all. Under any circumstances.
I used to have a lot of friends and acquaintances. What I've found over the course of the last year is that I haven't been abandoned so much as forgotten. I can count my friends on one hand now, but I'm blessed. They are the kinds of friends who will stand by you, no matter what.
I used to be a guy with a good salary, a Cadillac and a good reputation in the community. Now , I make $8.30 per hour as a barista at Tully's Coffee Shop in the Fry's Market Place on Rural and Ray in Tempe. Stop by and see me. We have a special on Mocha Shakes right now. The Caddy is long gone. I won't be allowed to have a driver's license until April 2010. I ride a bike now (If you see a middle-aged man biking around Tempe, it's probably me). I am a pariah at my old newspaper, where they did a seminar on "ethics'' and used me as the poster child. Glad I could be of some use.
So that's who I used to be.
But who am I now?
I guess that's what this part of the journey is all about.
God goes with me.
Maybe you'll want to stay tuned to this site and see where I wind up.
After all, if you know where you're going, it's not much of an adventure, is it?

1 comment:

Sheila said...

Hi Slim!

I am a friend of Brian's and he sent me the link to your blog. Ihaven't had time to read much yet, but I just wanted to say my heart goes out to you for all you've gone thru and I will pray that God uses it for tremendous good in your life as well as others lives. God bless!