Reminder (Stani Pa Gledaj) Mar25 update

 

Lady calling out and then running down to greet a chap on the lower path, 3 - 4 young kids in tow. At first it seemed almost like an alarm being raised.

How much heart flowed out, what tide of feeling. 

How could the man not be chuffed, delighted and overwhelmed, without in his case quite being able to match the blazing woman.

Mid-30s and not much more; Indian Muslim, tall & heavy-set. Her mother had remained at the table near the Wadi counter, looking on. Half-familiar the latter, generic sweet old nene; grannie.

No, it was not her brother, but god-brother down there. Like brother, the woman later explained after the show had concluded and she was quizzed.

It was the bonding that drew the attention, then? lady asked in turn of the odd, curious white guy... There was no intrusiveness felt; lady found herself pleased, grateful to be acknowledged and appreciated.

Thank you. Thank you.

Well, the matter could not be left just like that. 

Indoors she had hovered, perhaps at the bathroom with all the littlies. (Able to rely on the bigger, Primary 3’s aid no doubt.)

Woman’s mother had not been adopted into that man’s family; no more than she herself. (In past time the Malays had commonly accepted unwanted, or burdensome children from the other races.)

In fact, there was no family alliance here, nor any blood tie.

Said chap just there on the lower path kept a famous mutton soup stall over at the market. Up over the road, yes. Hardly credible that even a stranger did not know that particular place.

Lady’s husband had been in the employ. Once for a large birthday party, the woman, wife of the employee, had been called upon to help. Two-three day prep; a large affair; sizeable order and much needed to meet the deadline.

The aid had been duly provided; all the needed performed, and conscientiously by this lady. Which was not difficult to believe.

They liked my kindness, she added, for further explanation.

In this kind of report, this kind of community, there was often an unusual frankness, a lack of restraint that surprised even after years of acquaintance. Certainly here was not a case of immodesty, or overblowing. All this woman’s volunteered, generous help was simple fact, dependable and straightforward. The substance of life indeed in such communal groups.

Exceedingly grateful for the notice. Thank you. Many thanks.

In Bab’s narratives over the years, from the store of a long life, she would sometimes say as part of her own unfolding for some particularly remarkable event, Stani pa gledaj.

Stani pa gledaj. Repeated often. Stop and look; or stop and stare. See there.

Behold, beneath the pavement rain tree toward Onan corner. In contemporary times such wonders were rare and the relevant English archaic.

 

              Geylang Serai, Singapore

 

 

Practice Makes Perfect

 published by Airplane Reading, Aug 24

For a fellow who had missed FOUR internat. flights, 2 ½ hrs early by the gate was A-OK. At the boutiques along the corridors the ice-cold starlets had loomed with bags & watches, calling out all the losers. (Fantasies of the Soviet austerity; some modicum of purity.) Eye contact anywhere almost completely verboten, even from many of the salesgirls in the uniforms, the makeup & lashes, shaking out the cobwebs early morning. Usual probs at check-in. That is your boarding pass, sir. Downloaded by yourself without yourself knowing. Latino lady, the Euro shine worn off a week later, if there had been any for that poor dear, single mum likely. The fine, mostly sunny was always welcome, especially after a couple of days light drizzle in the driest autumn on record on the driest continent. No slick on the tarmac to worry about, slide onto the grass, fire trucks, &etc. Strange you might actually miss Brunetti’s a wee tiny bit, even after how many months unable to stomach the stage-set indoors. One has to be somewhere, the Norwegian Nobel Fosse had it. (Was there a Roman archbishop on the panel last year? 745pp of slow, slow-slow repetitive dribble.) Again pre-dawn thoughts of Era the Minanghabau, slowly raised for the squat over the pillow. The surprise of it for a kampung girl such as herself and her masked delight was  the whole of the turn-on. Unfortunately, wouldn’t be in town on landing; the reserves would need to be called up to the front. ANNOUNCEMENTS for the hearing impaired. Lass was struggling with all the ethnic names in the radically altered country last couple decades; all over the first world the new middle classes enticed, who cares about their own hospitals, labs & peak industries over there. The Sikh cabbie had talked about his labrador, about comfort pets and his daughter in bio-med, hoping to transfer to vet science. Uniformed lass in the corridor on the end of a leash had been struggling with an excited tail-wagger trying to drag her into one of the boutiques, drawn by the pumped perfumes no doubt. Perhaps they have them on hand now in the airports too; very understandable. Heel clatter over the tiles like artillery in a war zone. Half hour later another early bird, settling himself behind with head-bobbing tunes. A good many smiling faces were anticipated in the days & weeks ahead, though in truth you have made yourself a stranger everywhere now, you jet-setter you. Some concern the front section might in fact be reserved for biz & first—couple others arrived also keeping back in the large pen behind…Yeah, definite demarcation. Blue wheelchair seats were clearly signed, but not all the others adjoining. Would the staff be able to tell you didn’t cut it? Time was nigh to pull the Versace outta the bag and lay it on them. ($35 2.5s @ Sacred Heart without a single scratch.) The stockings! Outbound they had been left in the bag. Soon enough dozens & more dozens arrived, without risking the breach. No! Point blank refuse to budge. Would they have the gall? Couldn’t they see the VVVs staring them in the face? Note-taking would give additional pause; collared shirt, albeit colour-faded. ($10 Sacred H. few years back.)… Well, a pee soon settled that contretemps without trouble. Gee, there was a mass of us great unwashed in cattle, some old Chinese included likely hiding their wealth. Blasted drip at the urinal, no amount of shaking-out availing. Zadni kap ostaje u gace (Slavo). The last drop remains in the trousers. Hopefully the liberally applied essential oils would screen. Clutching the passport against the downloaded boarding pass on the phone, 2-3 minute panic where in the FFF could it have gotten?! In fact no first on these budgets. Despite biz being called, at first nothing to suggest even that cohort from aisle 23. Well, rear of the seats the bright red lower anchor. Delay loading with all the holiday attire. The 10ml eyedrops had been no kinda problem, snappy guy was only interested in 100ml. Almost a full-blown emergency within the dangerous first two minute climbing: drips drenching the girl in the window. 2-3 dozen at the very least, without any pause. Luckily she had donned a hoodie. Not to worry, the phlegmatic little Chinese crew reassured—reason inaudible. Hosing down the wings? the motors? condensation?… The VVV weren’t gonna be removed for the duration. Screen-flippers could get their fill right there before their eyes in the meat world.

 

https://airplanereading.org/story/5091/practice-makes-perfect

 

Muso (Last of Winter) Sept25

  

On first landing with his bags outside Scarlet guy played a big blast air guitar, fiercesome kinda strumming, bending and reaching down low on the groin. Cock rock SU-PER-lative. Following which, some refreshment was needed, milk choc brought over to the opposite table, where he spooned sugar x 3 into his bottle. A stem of that length extracted from one of the bags was of the kind for supping only with the devil. Quaffing on the other side of the shadow line, one hand on the pavement tree, he reminded of Arthur sunning himself after the indoor morning chill. This man had a deal more to contend with overnight. At the bus stop with his 6-7 bags an early lunch was taken in the form of a thick sandwich cut on the diagonal and wrapped in paper. Brief juggle how-to-do, before setting one half on the aluminium waste bin. Earlier the man had remarked on the young magpie or mudlark come down onto the pavement. The claws on its feet were not growing, juvenile-form; rather torn off, most likely in a fight. Man had seen the same in other birds, seagulls particularly. Keen observer as much as performer, valuing freedom above all.

 

 

 

 

Publication news - On the Street (Linda)

 Hello everyone

I have another piece published at New World Writing in the US. This one is drawn from the mean / hard / captivating streets of Footscray, down there in Melbourne. The piece was first penned during the last trip a couple years ago. It’s pleasing to have acknowledged some of the people in that quarter, without whom there is nothing.

Freely available (1.55k words) —

https://newworldwriting.net/pavle-radonic-on-the-street-linda/

All best

Pavle 

On Your Marks

 

Revolving in the usual way Era, Yan & Rina. Neet had pretty much fallen out of the picture now since the last mail, which almost certainly put the final nail in the coffin. (Slowly I’m stop loving you, Neet... Let’s see how the gal fields that true-enough teaser.) Atas, Era. Up. Upstairs... Era needed to be bushwhacked unawares for the spell to work, waiting on her to slowly twig. If she hesitated a second or two too long, take her hand and pull her up toward the bedhead, where she could hold herself steady, adjusting position same time on the pillow below. Era was hardly likely to forget the prompts last time, near nine months ago now. Slow and steady, in the squatting culture pretty easy peasy for her. Ya. Bagus. (Good.) Honey. Honey. Dirty talk would be out of order for E; the Minangkabau was the most conservative of the trio. No, fucking, fucking, good fucking. / Era honey. Darling. Darling, rather. Making enquiry how we were getting along. Careful, measured, targeted, deft darts & tickles, listening out the while for the escaping moans. Era has always been careful to mask her pleasure; rarely ever a hint offered, almost nothing to suggest. Wonderful fortitude and restraint; marvellous game to join; perfectly happy, delighted indeed to play by those rules. For Yan again slow holding back. Give the gal a bita hell. We not put all in, Yan. OK? Slow. Just little. Once or twice last year in the midst of it, the slow nosing onward, the lady had frankly called out her objection. I want all!…  No real soto voce tumbling off the cliff as she had been. Unexpected. Lady was not supposed to blurt that, giving the game away. Might be on getting home that night Yan had prayed, when she was less than observant; recited at least the Al-Fatiah. For Rin similar rather spun out the lady. Not too much, Rin. We do only half inside, OK? (The play was because of the size involved, blush to tell; and also the separation; recommencing needing caution, &etc.) At the first suggestion of that Rina had frankly guffawed. Ha! Only half!… No two ways about it, lady was seeking holess boluss for herself, thank you very much. With little more than a fortnight for the scheduled return, the reunions were keenly awaited, hopefully the same all three sides.

 

Alarm

 

The grimace, the wince, the internal shudder, sometimes the lizard blink, raising the arms both sides like a bird preparing to take wing was also known—it needed to be left until one had passed. Two weeks ago the deeply gouged leathery man, sitting over his beer in the window at the Elizabeth Street pokies smoking bench, had put on a twisted grimace of his own, recalling something way bad, presumably. The rough sleepers, the beggars by their cardboard signs (one was penning something yesterday for Fourth of July), the chap sitting on the cold footpath smoking by the phone booth at Woollies—such numbers brought undone. Overnight temperatures were near zero last few days and felt like 3 under, Pauli reported his iPhone showed yesterday. In the Studio the Pad yesterday failed to recharge both morning and night, until the temperature returned to “normal.” Young Antoinette was giving the woman drawing flowers in crayon on LaTrobe corner some converse instead of coin, as the young PhD candidate had none of the latter. Not using heating at home herself to save money had Ant’s feeling heart properly attune. The chap with his lady outside Coles said they hadn’t eaten for five days. To the suggestion of Sacred Heart, the man replied he had been barred from there, which drew a laugh from his companion. In Kachin State Shachendra WhatsApp-ed a dire situation: Life is any moment gone here. (Singapore was unendurable any longer for the Nepalese pastor.) Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan too made it into the paper this morning. Dressing in the more tolerable 6 degrees this morning there came a momentary confusion over the socks... Ah yes, worn overnight! Climate deniers would be chuckling at all the unnecessary alarm.