in the bigger scheme of things today was a bit of a crappy day – i mean i am generally quite an easy-going guy and it takes quite a lot to piss me off or really ruin a day and as i sit here typing just before i go to bed, it’s not like i feel this huge ‘burden of the day’ or anything – i still feel like it was a great day with a lot of good happening, but there were a couple of crappy things that happened along the way that made it harder i guess…
the one was finding out that after working really hard for the last month, thru a lot of weekends and public holidays and giving up a bunch of better stuff we could really have been doing, the money we were promised for the work failed to be delivered – why? someone forgot to send in a form – sorry, but we can only pay you at the end of this month now [that with rent already a few days overdue which incurred a fine because we were assuming it was the mass of public holidays delaying the money] and i won’t say much more on this [hopefully] because there were different ways this could have happened and still been kindof okay but it was just really not that cool [fortunately we have friends and family who we could call upon and so we have the equivalent of that money available to us until it [hopefully] comes in at the end of the month and we can give it back so we are completely sorted on the money side of things…
so that, plus i’ve been semi-sick the last day or so and trying to beat that and the R12 live below the line challenge and just a bunch of stuff related to us being able to head to americaland being all up in the air still contributes to what could have been a bit of a less-than-exciting day…
i wanted to cheer up tbVal so i took her to see Thor which she’d been wanting to see [go figure, i’m the superhero movie guy and she’s the one wanting Thor] and it was Tuesday so half price cheap tickets at the E mall near us and we went to watch it and it was a popcorn entertaining movie [but without the popcorn this week of course] and just a lot of silly fun.
at the end of the movie i wanted to stay and watch the credits to check out some of the actors names but i also wanted to stay til the end of the credits cos often movies, and especially Marvel Superhero movies, have an extra little snippet on the end [like the end of Iron Man when he meets with Nick Fury or the end of Hulk when Tony Stark makes an appearance or the end of Iron Man II when you see the appearance of Mjolnir, Thor’s hammer] to tease introduce the next one [i normally know about these things before but i had no clue if there was or not]
so we waited and watched credits and the lights came on and the cleaners came in and started cleaning and we watched credits and the cleaners cleaned some more and we went and stood at the back of the theatre so that they could clean where we were and watched credits and flip-the-credits-go-on-forever and then the one cleaner guy [middle-aged rasta looking guy, very not cleaner-of-cinema-looking-guy] whispered something to Val and ran off down the tunnel and turned the lights off. She leans across to me and tells me he said “there’s a bit at the end” so we think that’s pretty cool and the credits go on some more and his friend who is cleaning with him tells him to turn the lights on and the credits go on and then they end and a line comes up “That was a marvel superhero movie” or something like that and i turn to Val and say, “Flip, i hope that wasn’t the extra bit at the end” and she agrees… and then a second later there is a whole extra scene which leads straight towards the Avengers movie which is next up [well after Captain America]…
it was such a simple act and yet so profound and it touched me and Val a lot. and i really wish, thinking back now, that i had asked him his name so i could thank him properly. on a day where we got bummed cos the people that were supposed to do something didn’t – and didn’t largely seem to care all that much – the person who could have kicked us out and had no reason to do anything – went above and beyond and lifted our spirits and gave us such a shiny little gem of a gift.
and so it ends a great day. with me left hoping that i have that attitude towards and for other people in the smallest of things. random acts of kindness seldom are.
KOOL! Wish I had said cleaner in my day!
it did take me a few moments [yes, it’s late] to understand your message despite it being 9 words long. was trying to picture how you saying the word “cleaner” would have made your day better… bit of a bruce handey that… sleep well buddy!
One small question. Doesn’t going to the movies totally blow your “live on R12 or below the line” story? I thought the idea was to not spend more than R12 a day, and even if you went to half price movies they couldn’t have cost R12?
one small answer – not a lot – i repeatedly stated in the first two notes on the day that we are doing R12 for food/drinks per day for the week so the realisation is so much bigger because those who average that amount have to do everything on that amount but the challenge was to liit your eating/drinking to said amount which is tough enough, so yes not really close to ‘getting’ it at all but a step towards that.
ooh! I saw Thor in 3D on Saturday! Was AWESOME! and I made sure we stayed to the ned to see the extra scene so thanks b! and the nameless cleaner 😉