Upon re-awakening at 10 a.m., I showered and headed to the television room.
There René, Robert, and Nurettim were sitting soaking in the news of the world
from CNN, an American 24 hour cable news channel. Still the big news was of a
beating by the police of a man out in California named Rodney King. It was some
compelling video so the news channels kept playing it over and over and it was
the topic of the nation for weeks. I struck up a conversation with the guys about
the news and then we all decided to share a home cooked breakfast together.
But first we needed to get the fixings. I gave Nurettim the key to my new bike so
he could ride to the store to get some eggs, bread, and butter.
When he returned I video taped each of them as they cooked their own
breakfasts. At the same time I was attempting to relate to each of them a little bit
of what had happened last night in my dream and why I felt they were lucky to be
around me. I knew they thought I was being silly or crazy but I was certain I had a
good idea for this concert and I was now on the fast track to try and see it
through.
While eating our breakfasts we set our courses out for the day. René and I made
plans to go see the art deco section of Miami Beach this afternoon at about 4 p.
m. and Robert and Nurettim were heading off to sun themselves on the beach.
René headed off on a morning date with Misha and I made some phone calls and
then joined Robert and Nurettim at the beach.
I stayed for about an hour taking a short dip in the ocean and video taping the
beach scene and Robert and Nurettim's first swim in the warm Atlantic Ocean. I
returned to the hostel to pick up my bike to ride to the Pompano Beach office of
the American Automobile Association where I could purchase my airline ticket to
Puerto Rico and replenish my supply of traveler's checks for free. First, I
stopped at the bike shop to get Carlos’ flight information and then rode down
Federal Highway toward Pompano Beach.
Once I got near to the office I asked a helpful senior citizen if she knew where the
AAA office was located. She gave me directions the rest of the way and I headed
off. About ten minutes later I had not found the office. I stopped at a photo shop
and asked directions again and they headed me in the right direction. The
helpful lady from before had pointed me in the opposite direction from where I
needed to go. On my way to AAA I passed a travel agency. Needing a rest, I
stopped to check with them on a flight to Puerto Rico just for comparison before a
reached AAA. The agent couldn't book me on Carlos’ flight because it was full
except for first class (only $600). She searched her computer for flights but she
couldn't find another flight for the price I wanted. So I started to head out the
door when she shouted to me, "I've found something." So I headed back in and
sat down as she explained she had found a flight with no advance purchase on
Pan Am for only $150 round trip. This was a very acceptable price since all of
the other flights were over $400. She made the reservation for me and I headed
to AAA to purchase it.
After resolving a few slight problems at AAA (it seems it’s not proper to make a
reservation with one travel agent and then go to another to purchase it,
something I now know but didn’t at the time) I received my traveler's cheques and
my ticket for a Wednesday morning departure at 9:30 a.m. The AAA travel agent
reminded me per Pan Am's note that I would need my passport to fly to Puerto
Rico.
By now it was nearing 4 p.m. so I knew I would be late to meet René at the hostel
to go to Miami Beach. I called to leave him a message and I rode back to the
hostel.
On my way I stopped at a sound equipment store named Sound Advice to buy a
few accessories for my CD player. A helpful young man named Mike greeted
me. I purchased the accessories and asked Mike about the problem I had been
having with my new Sony CD player. Since I had purchased it at Christmas, it
tended to skip very easily, even when I just picked it up to move it. My old Sony
CD player, which was not a part of the Sony ‘walk-man’ line like this one, never
skipped so easily. Mike told me the CD player should not skip so easily. He
suggested I take it to the Sony repair depot here in Miami and they should
replace it for me. I planned on doing just that. Then I asked Mike where the
nearest record store was. He told me of a great store just down the street. I
planned to go there later to buy a few more CD's in order to decide on what songs
to perform at the concert.
I headed on back to the hostel to find René, Robert, and Nurettim. By now it was
nearing six o'clock. René, apparently having not received my message, had left
for Miami Beach without me. Robert and Nurettim were still planning to stay the
night out back of the hostel illegally. I had asked Carlos earlier if Robert,
Nurettim, and I would be able to sleep at his apartment on the floor. He had to
check with his roommate first but he thought that it would be O.K. I called him a
bit later to check if we could stay at his place. He said he was having problems
with his roommate and that we couldn't stay with him tonight. So I planned to stay
another night at the hostel and the guys would have to sleep out back.
For dinner this evening I ate a couple of pieces of the left over pizza from Friday
night. Robert and I headed over to the bike shop to arrange rental of his bike for
the Wednesday trip through the Keys. The rental would be no problem and it
wasn't too expensive. On our way back to the hostel I stopped at a pay phone
and called Jess’ brother Jan in Key West to inform him I wouldn't be arriving on
Tuesday. I let him know Carlos and I planned now to come on Wednesday the
27th of March. I also let him know two German kids, Robert and Nurettim might
arrive at his Bed and Breakfast earlier than Carlos and myself. I informed him
we planned to camp out in the Keys somewhere the night we stay in Key West
but he kindly invited us to stay at his place which I told him I would kindly
consider. After our conversation I headed back to the hostel. Robert and
Nurettim had gone out and being fully exhausted, I retired for the night.
The next morning, Tuesday, I awoke and continued to work on the concert. First,
I had decided the previous day I wished to have René be my right hand man on
this business venture. I had also decided to help Nurettim out if possible by
giving him a job so he could remain in the United States. To show the two that I
was serious, I felt I needed to do something, which would prove my seriousness
to René and Nurettim. My idea was this:
I would get in touch with Tammy, the girlfriend of Lane, the dancer in Texas, to
arrange a surprise viewing of his show by me and my talent committee (I had just
appointed René, Nurettim, and myself to the talent committee). We would fly to
Texas tonight, view the show, and come back before morning. I got in touch with
Tammy in the early morning. I began by explaining to her that I was Kory, Lane's
old neighbor and friend from Seattle. I explained that I wished to come and view
Lane's show tonight and that I wished for my arrival to be a surprise. Due to
some brain issue she didn't understand. She immediately gave the phone to
Lane, totally ruining the element of fun and surprise. I spoke with Lane to set up
our viewing but unfortunately tonight was his night off so we wouldn't be able to
see his act. I summarized my concert plans for him and he was excited about the
idea and fully supported my plans. I told him I would call him back later with more
information.
Still needing a way to gain René 's allegiance toward my business venture and to
prove to him my seriousness, I decided I would go buy some new technology: two
cellular phones. My plan was that I would have one cellular phone and René
would have the other. He could continue his trip out to California, while I
continued on to Puerto Rico and Jamaica. I could keep in contact with René to
arrange the concert by cellular phone, arriving in San Diego just a few weeks
prior to the June concert date to begin practice sessions and pull the concert
together.
I called a taxi and headed out to buy the phones. First I had the taxi take me to
Sound Advice and the taxi driver waited as I went inside. Mike once again
greeted me. I explained to him my need for two cellular phones and he said he
would take care of all of the necessary arrangements and I could come back in a
couple of hours to pick up the phones. I headed on out to the taxi and I had the
driver take me to the Sony repair depot. On the half-hour drive the taxi driver
and I talked about his family and my concert plans. I was amazed at the number
of children he had, which was over 18. He was of Cuban descent and he spoke
English poorly. Apparently being enthused with my speaking ability, he asked me
what I did to get where I am and how he might improve his English. I informed him
of an organization for public speaking called "Toastmasters" which I was a
member and President of for over two years. “Toastmasters” gives you a chance
to practice public speaking and most importantly, to practice impromptu
speaking. He resolved to find a “Toastmasters” club and to start attending their
meetings this week.
We arrived at Sony and again the taxi driver waited for me. After an hour of
argument at the Sony repair depot, I left the CD player for them to look at and
determine what the problem was with it.
I headed back into the taxi and decided I really needed a rental car. I had not
realized the Sony repair depot was so far away from Fort Lauderdale. So I had
the taxi driver return me to Fort Lauderdale where he dropped me off at a rental
car agency near the hostel. I rented a car and headed off to the hostel to talk
with René, Robert, and Nurettim.
To my surprise not one of them was around. In fact, René had checked out of
the hostel. He had apparently gone to stay at the new hostel in Miami Beach and
Robert and Nurettim had gone to the beach. I gathered up all of my belongings,
loaded them into the car and put the bike in the trunk. I headed off to the beach
to look for Robert and Nurettim. I couldn't find them. So I drove to Carlos’ bike
shop where I dropped off the bike for Nurettim to pick up tomorrow. The owner's
son Matt knew I was leaving the bike for Nurettim. He tagged it and put it in the
back. By now it was afternoon and I was hungry. I asked Matt where the guys
from the shop get the great pizza they were talking about the other day. He told
me it was just around the corner.
I went across the street and bought several cold drinks. Then I went around the
block to the pizza shop. Not wanting to wait 20 minutes for the pizza I asked to
have it delivered to Sound Advice, the place I was heading to next.
Unfortunately, Sound Advice was not in this shop’s delivery area but a smart
thinking employee called their other restaurant and kindly ordered a pizza for me
with delivery to Sound Advice. Excellent service!
I headed down the road to the Sound Advice electronics store. As I walked into
the stereo shop with the box of cold drinks, the cashier was rushing around the
store looking for someone who had ordered a pizza. Of course it was I. I paid the
pizza and went off to find my helpful salesman, Mike. Mike wasn't quite ready yet
with my phones, so he led me upstairs to the employee dinning area where I sat
and ate some of the extra large pizza. As much as I tried I couldn't get any of the
other employees to help me eat it nor to drink any of the new juice drinks called
Snapple that I had bought.
Mike continued to work on the cell phones and occasionally came upstairs to
have me sign a form or to let me know how the order was progressing. One time
when he came up we sat for over half an hour discussing work places, my new
company and my concert plans. I told him how all of this was coming together so
easily and so fast. I told him that it was weird to which he agreed. While sitting
talking with him I proposed to name my company "Who's on First" because it went
along with the surprises to which the performers and audience would be treated.
Mike liked that name.
I asked Mike about how well the cellular phone will function in Jamaica. He
believed there was no cellular phone system in Jamaica, so I would have trouble
if I planned to use the phone there. Since I had told Mike that I was an Electrical
Engineer he mentioned that maybe I should put a cellular phone system on
Jamaica. I laughed and half heartily mentioned that I would look into it. Mike
finished by assuring me there would be no problem using the phones in Puerto
Rico however, since according to Cellular One there were several cellular
systems working on the island.
Mike finally finished with all of the paper work and we headed back downstairs
with the leftover pizza in my hands. Here I discovered that Mike's girlfriend had
been waiting to go to lunch with him ever since I arrived. She had been patiently
waiting for over an hour and a half.
Mike took my charge card and I paid for the phones. As he was getting approval
of the charge, another salesman named Mike began talking with Mike and me.
Somehow, oddly enough, the second Mike and I got into an Abbot and Costello
situation of battering around the question words "Who, What, Where" which
finally ended in the second Mike saying "and who's on first", causing the first Mike
and I to go white and to look strangely at each other, confirming our earlier
agreement of how things were happening fast and weird - some sort of
synchronicity.
There René, Robert, and Nurettim were sitting soaking in the news of the world
from CNN, an American 24 hour cable news channel. Still the big news was of a
beating by the police of a man out in California named Rodney King. It was some
compelling video so the news channels kept playing it over and over and it was
the topic of the nation for weeks. I struck up a conversation with the guys about
the news and then we all decided to share a home cooked breakfast together.
But first we needed to get the fixings. I gave Nurettim the key to my new bike so
he could ride to the store to get some eggs, bread, and butter.
When he returned I video taped each of them as they cooked their own
breakfasts. At the same time I was attempting to relate to each of them a little bit
of what had happened last night in my dream and why I felt they were lucky to be
around me. I knew they thought I was being silly or crazy but I was certain I had a
good idea for this concert and I was now on the fast track to try and see it
through.
While eating our breakfasts we set our courses out for the day. René and I made
plans to go see the art deco section of Miami Beach this afternoon at about 4 p.
m. and Robert and Nurettim were heading off to sun themselves on the beach.
René headed off on a morning date with Misha and I made some phone calls and
then joined Robert and Nurettim at the beach.
I stayed for about an hour taking a short dip in the ocean and video taping the
beach scene and Robert and Nurettim's first swim in the warm Atlantic Ocean. I
returned to the hostel to pick up my bike to ride to the Pompano Beach office of
the American Automobile Association where I could purchase my airline ticket to
Puerto Rico and replenish my supply of traveler's checks for free. First, I
stopped at the bike shop to get Carlos’ flight information and then rode down
Federal Highway toward Pompano Beach.
Once I got near to the office I asked a helpful senior citizen if she knew where the
AAA office was located. She gave me directions the rest of the way and I headed
off. About ten minutes later I had not found the office. I stopped at a photo shop
and asked directions again and they headed me in the right direction. The
helpful lady from before had pointed me in the opposite direction from where I
needed to go. On my way to AAA I passed a travel agency. Needing a rest, I
stopped to check with them on a flight to Puerto Rico just for comparison before a
reached AAA. The agent couldn't book me on Carlos’ flight because it was full
except for first class (only $600). She searched her computer for flights but she
couldn't find another flight for the price I wanted. So I started to head out the
door when she shouted to me, "I've found something." So I headed back in and
sat down as she explained she had found a flight with no advance purchase on
Pan Am for only $150 round trip. This was a very acceptable price since all of
the other flights were over $400. She made the reservation for me and I headed
to AAA to purchase it.
After resolving a few slight problems at AAA (it seems it’s not proper to make a
reservation with one travel agent and then go to another to purchase it,
something I now know but didn’t at the time) I received my traveler's cheques and
my ticket for a Wednesday morning departure at 9:30 a.m. The AAA travel agent
reminded me per Pan Am's note that I would need my passport to fly to Puerto
Rico.
By now it was nearing 4 p.m. so I knew I would be late to meet René at the hostel
to go to Miami Beach. I called to leave him a message and I rode back to the
hostel.
On my way I stopped at a sound equipment store named Sound Advice to buy a
few accessories for my CD player. A helpful young man named Mike greeted
me. I purchased the accessories and asked Mike about the problem I had been
having with my new Sony CD player. Since I had purchased it at Christmas, it
tended to skip very easily, even when I just picked it up to move it. My old Sony
CD player, which was not a part of the Sony ‘walk-man’ line like this one, never
skipped so easily. Mike told me the CD player should not skip so easily. He
suggested I take it to the Sony repair depot here in Miami and they should
replace it for me. I planned on doing just that. Then I asked Mike where the
nearest record store was. He told me of a great store just down the street. I
planned to go there later to buy a few more CD's in order to decide on what songs
to perform at the concert.
I headed on back to the hostel to find René, Robert, and Nurettim. By now it was
nearing six o'clock. René, apparently having not received my message, had left
for Miami Beach without me. Robert and Nurettim were still planning to stay the
night out back of the hostel illegally. I had asked Carlos earlier if Robert,
Nurettim, and I would be able to sleep at his apartment on the floor. He had to
check with his roommate first but he thought that it would be O.K. I called him a
bit later to check if we could stay at his place. He said he was having problems
with his roommate and that we couldn't stay with him tonight. So I planned to stay
another night at the hostel and the guys would have to sleep out back.
For dinner this evening I ate a couple of pieces of the left over pizza from Friday
night. Robert and I headed over to the bike shop to arrange rental of his bike for
the Wednesday trip through the Keys. The rental would be no problem and it
wasn't too expensive. On our way back to the hostel I stopped at a pay phone
and called Jess’ brother Jan in Key West to inform him I wouldn't be arriving on
Tuesday. I let him know Carlos and I planned now to come on Wednesday the
27th of March. I also let him know two German kids, Robert and Nurettim might
arrive at his Bed and Breakfast earlier than Carlos and myself. I informed him
we planned to camp out in the Keys somewhere the night we stay in Key West
but he kindly invited us to stay at his place which I told him I would kindly
consider. After our conversation I headed back to the hostel. Robert and
Nurettim had gone out and being fully exhausted, I retired for the night.
The next morning, Tuesday, I awoke and continued to work on the concert. First,
I had decided the previous day I wished to have René be my right hand man on
this business venture. I had also decided to help Nurettim out if possible by
giving him a job so he could remain in the United States. To show the two that I
was serious, I felt I needed to do something, which would prove my seriousness
to René and Nurettim. My idea was this:
I would get in touch with Tammy, the girlfriend of Lane, the dancer in Texas, to
arrange a surprise viewing of his show by me and my talent committee (I had just
appointed René, Nurettim, and myself to the talent committee). We would fly to
Texas tonight, view the show, and come back before morning. I got in touch with
Tammy in the early morning. I began by explaining to her that I was Kory, Lane's
old neighbor and friend from Seattle. I explained that I wished to come and view
Lane's show tonight and that I wished for my arrival to be a surprise. Due to
some brain issue she didn't understand. She immediately gave the phone to
Lane, totally ruining the element of fun and surprise. I spoke with Lane to set up
our viewing but unfortunately tonight was his night off so we wouldn't be able to
see his act. I summarized my concert plans for him and he was excited about the
idea and fully supported my plans. I told him I would call him back later with more
information.
Still needing a way to gain René 's allegiance toward my business venture and to
prove to him my seriousness, I decided I would go buy some new technology: two
cellular phones. My plan was that I would have one cellular phone and René
would have the other. He could continue his trip out to California, while I
continued on to Puerto Rico and Jamaica. I could keep in contact with René to
arrange the concert by cellular phone, arriving in San Diego just a few weeks
prior to the June concert date to begin practice sessions and pull the concert
together.
I called a taxi and headed out to buy the phones. First I had the taxi take me to
Sound Advice and the taxi driver waited as I went inside. Mike once again
greeted me. I explained to him my need for two cellular phones and he said he
would take care of all of the necessary arrangements and I could come back in a
couple of hours to pick up the phones. I headed on out to the taxi and I had the
driver take me to the Sony repair depot. On the half-hour drive the taxi driver
and I talked about his family and my concert plans. I was amazed at the number
of children he had, which was over 18. He was of Cuban descent and he spoke
English poorly. Apparently being enthused with my speaking ability, he asked me
what I did to get where I am and how he might improve his English. I informed him
of an organization for public speaking called "Toastmasters" which I was a
member and President of for over two years. “Toastmasters” gives you a chance
to practice public speaking and most importantly, to practice impromptu
speaking. He resolved to find a “Toastmasters” club and to start attending their
meetings this week.
We arrived at Sony and again the taxi driver waited for me. After an hour of
argument at the Sony repair depot, I left the CD player for them to look at and
determine what the problem was with it.
I headed back into the taxi and decided I really needed a rental car. I had not
realized the Sony repair depot was so far away from Fort Lauderdale. So I had
the taxi driver return me to Fort Lauderdale where he dropped me off at a rental
car agency near the hostel. I rented a car and headed off to the hostel to talk
with René, Robert, and Nurettim.
To my surprise not one of them was around. In fact, René had checked out of
the hostel. He had apparently gone to stay at the new hostel in Miami Beach and
Robert and Nurettim had gone to the beach. I gathered up all of my belongings,
loaded them into the car and put the bike in the trunk. I headed off to the beach
to look for Robert and Nurettim. I couldn't find them. So I drove to Carlos’ bike
shop where I dropped off the bike for Nurettim to pick up tomorrow. The owner's
son Matt knew I was leaving the bike for Nurettim. He tagged it and put it in the
back. By now it was afternoon and I was hungry. I asked Matt where the guys
from the shop get the great pizza they were talking about the other day. He told
me it was just around the corner.
I went across the street and bought several cold drinks. Then I went around the
block to the pizza shop. Not wanting to wait 20 minutes for the pizza I asked to
have it delivered to Sound Advice, the place I was heading to next.
Unfortunately, Sound Advice was not in this shop’s delivery area but a smart
thinking employee called their other restaurant and kindly ordered a pizza for me
with delivery to Sound Advice. Excellent service!
I headed down the road to the Sound Advice electronics store. As I walked into
the stereo shop with the box of cold drinks, the cashier was rushing around the
store looking for someone who had ordered a pizza. Of course it was I. I paid the
pizza and went off to find my helpful salesman, Mike. Mike wasn't quite ready yet
with my phones, so he led me upstairs to the employee dinning area where I sat
and ate some of the extra large pizza. As much as I tried I couldn't get any of the
other employees to help me eat it nor to drink any of the new juice drinks called
Snapple that I had bought.
Mike continued to work on the cell phones and occasionally came upstairs to
have me sign a form or to let me know how the order was progressing. One time
when he came up we sat for over half an hour discussing work places, my new
company and my concert plans. I told him how all of this was coming together so
easily and so fast. I told him that it was weird to which he agreed. While sitting
talking with him I proposed to name my company "Who's on First" because it went
along with the surprises to which the performers and audience would be treated.
Mike liked that name.
I asked Mike about how well the cellular phone will function in Jamaica. He
believed there was no cellular phone system in Jamaica, so I would have trouble
if I planned to use the phone there. Since I had told Mike that I was an Electrical
Engineer he mentioned that maybe I should put a cellular phone system on
Jamaica. I laughed and half heartily mentioned that I would look into it. Mike
finished by assuring me there would be no problem using the phones in Puerto
Rico however, since according to Cellular One there were several cellular
systems working on the island.
Mike finally finished with all of the paper work and we headed back downstairs
with the leftover pizza in my hands. Here I discovered that Mike's girlfriend had
been waiting to go to lunch with him ever since I arrived. She had been patiently
waiting for over an hour and a half.
Mike took my charge card and I paid for the phones. As he was getting approval
of the charge, another salesman named Mike began talking with Mike and me.
Somehow, oddly enough, the second Mike and I got into an Abbot and Costello
situation of battering around the question words "Who, What, Where" which
finally ended in the second Mike saying "and who's on first", causing the first Mike
and I to go white and to look strangely at each other, confirming our earlier
agreement of how things were happening fast and weird - some sort of
synchronicity.
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
| 2.6-1 Setting up the Concert Monday Morning until Wednesday Morning March 18th to March 20th, 1991 |
Nurettim and Robert sleeping out behind the Fort Lauderdale Youth Hostel
World Turned Upside Down