Something Out of Place

The weather is getting back to normal here in Seattle. That means the rain is here. For months people have looked at me like I’m crazy because I’ve been walking around with a coat draped over my arm. Well a lot of people think I’m crazy, but I lived here in Seattle for 16 years because this is where my kids grew up.

The weather might be nice for a while, but there’s a reason the area is called ‘The Water Shed.’ When the people who forgot that started running to get out of the rain, they remembered. For a whole day last week you could see guys running in business suits. Women were also running downtown in nice dresses and high heels.

None of them were wearing coats or even carrying umbrellas. That all changed the next day. All week I’ve been seeing people walking around with coats draped over an arm. They know the nice weather won’t last.

I sold some of my art. A guy at Starbucks liked a drawing in my scratch book and wanted to buy it. It’s part of a portfolio I’m working on so I had 20 copies printed up and sold him one for ten dollars.

When I make things to sell I usually give the first one away. There’s a retired couple I see handing out Bibles who come into the coffee shop on their break. My mom’s a Christian and would probably like them. They also might be the nicest people I see in there, so I gave them the first print. I signed and dated it and put 1 of 20 on the back.

I explained to them the first and second printing can be valuable later on if a drawing gets popular. They thanked me. Since I only kind of know them they seemed surprised.

Hopefully I can sell the other copies.

It was a late start for me today. When you’re waiting on someone to make an appointment, it’s like that sometimes. I talked to a couple guys on staff at the dorm about making and appointment and left the dorm.

There was a different crowd at the coffee shop when I got there. Someone was surprised to see me break out my sketch pad and start drawing. I guess I’ll do some reading then go to my son’s food truck for lunch. If the rain lets up there might be people playing chess at the tables in Westlake Park.

My eyes slammed open at 4 a.m. this weekend. I couldn’t get back to sleep and finally got up at 5:30. There were people watching the early morning news at the dorm. I watched the news for a while, drank a couple cups of coffee and took off around seven.

You can stay there all day if you want but I’m used to being outside. I think I’d go nuts being indoors all day just hanging out. Even on the fishing boats there was always something to do. Sitting around the TV all day just isn’t for me.

I was going to stretch out the other day but decided to give my hand more time to heal up. There’s a beginning blacksmith class I thought was interesting. When I put the metal I was working with in the water tank to cool off it seemed like it was all cooled down.

When I got back to the anvil there was a section that was still hot. That’s what I managed to grab. Almost two weeks later the blisters are closing. I called the school last week and told them I couldn’t finish the class.

Since the class really is interesting to me, I’ll probably take it again in a few more weeks. I’ll also remember to check the metal I’m working on to see if it’s hot before I touch it.

Yesterday I saw a lady pushing a baby in a stroller. I noticed it was covered up in a blanket. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but something made me notice them. Then I thought to myself, ‘Man that is one ugly kid!’

Then the thought came to me it was wrong to think someone’s kid was ugly, even if I didn’t say it out loud. When he started moving I realized it was a dog!! I’m used to seeing dogs walking around on leashes not riding in baby strollers. I guess sometimes I still get surprised.

If you think something is out of place, you’re probably right.

Written by Mark Blevins

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About Me:

I was a Construction Worker and Commercial Fisherman. An injury on a fishing boat in Alaska forced me into early retirement. Now I’m a Writer and Blogger. Having to start over forced me to realize people are more than their job title.

Contact me at 1mark.blevins1@gmail.com