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Unhealthy Fascinations
Posted on 2007.12.05 at 11:10
I has them.
And I'm indulging a couple of them quite a bit lately. (Must be the holiday season - brings out the indulgence. For some it's food and drink - for me, well, anyway…)
The first unhealthy fascination is eavesdropping. It usually starts with accidentally overhearing a bit of someone's cell phone convo, or a couple people's one on one discussion while I'm riding on a bus, sitting having a quiet drink in a bar, wandering around a store - various places. The world is a cornucopia of voyeuristic possibility! If there seems to be any human drama associated with or anything slightly sordid about the discussion or convo, my behavior de-evolves quickly to a focused and determined eavesdropping. This is especially easy if I'm sitting near the eavesdropees on a bus - I'm a captive yet entertained audience! I have also discreetly trailed someone around a department store while they had a virulent but muted argument on their cell phone with someone they had clearly been having an affair with who was causing all sorts of covert mayhem (a la Fatal Attraction) with this person's family. It was challenging, this following and listening, and really interesting. I lost the trail of this person when they left the store suddenly and merged into the holiday shopping crowds. Frustration!
I had a great overhearing to eavesdropping experience just this morning - which segued very nicely into the other unhealthy fascination I will be writing about later in this post. On the bus to work this morn, I sat in front of a gentleman who I did not get a look at but shortly into the ride I heard him begin a cell phone conversation. It started out dull enough - sounded like work-speak so I played the "what does he do for a living" game for a few moments until his tone and the substance of the conversation took a sudden delicious turn. He was obviously trying to be discreet and was trying to use code words to discuss the issues but the phrase "Grand Master of the Lodge" slipped out during an argumentative moment. I was hooked. It was a good half hour of delightful eavesdropping wherein I deduced this: There is some disarray and very serious in-fighting going on within certain Masonic Brotherhoods.
This conversation ended abruptly and he got off the bus. I had only a moment to pout when I glanced out my window and was gifted with another incident to feed another of my unhealthy fascinations. I shall call this incident: Bangkok Spa Redux.
When I was still in New Orleans, I wrote an LJ post describing my obsession with the Bangkok Spa in the French Quarter. Here in San Fran, my morning bus route to work travels through an area of town rife with Bangkok Spa-type massage parlors and "health spas". It is obvious from first glance that these are definitely places of ill-repute. One in particular is my favorite - I don't even think it has an actual name, just a tacky neon light hanging askew announcing "MASSAGE", and a hand drawn arrow on a piece of cardboard for a sign. The arrow points to a buzzer on the door of a seedy run-down building. On various days I've seen skeevy-looking men standing out front of the gated door, ringing the buzzer and waiting. Unfortunately, the bus always pulls away from the stop before I get to see who opens the door. Someday I should just stake out in a nearby coffee shop and just watch. (My goals - they are high.)
Today I saw a woman ring the buzzer of the massage place. She definitely had the "going to work" aura about her as I could not imagine her going there to get a massage and she seemed none too enthusiastic about her looming day of happy endings and blowjobs. (I'm presumptuous, I know). She was a brassy blonde and looked hard-bitten and hard ridden. Think: Faye Dunaway's character in Barfly - except a little older. Once again I did not get to see who opened the door to let her in but I was also suddenly filled with the strong compulsion to jump off the bus, offer to take the woman to breakfast (or to a dive bar) and ask her to tell me stories of her massage parlor days.
Two unhealthy fascinations satisfied in one 40 minute bus ride! Yep, I suspect it's gonna be a good day today.
And I'm indulging a couple of them quite a bit lately. (Must be the holiday season - brings out the indulgence. For some it's food and drink - for me, well, anyway…)
The first unhealthy fascination is eavesdropping. It usually starts with accidentally overhearing a bit of someone's cell phone convo, or a couple people's one on one discussion while I'm riding on a bus, sitting having a quiet drink in a bar, wandering around a store - various places. The world is a cornucopia of voyeuristic possibility! If there seems to be any human drama associated with or anything slightly sordid about the discussion or convo, my behavior de-evolves quickly to a focused and determined eavesdropping. This is especially easy if I'm sitting near the eavesdropees on a bus - I'm a captive yet entertained audience! I have also discreetly trailed someone around a department store while they had a virulent but muted argument on their cell phone with someone they had clearly been having an affair with who was causing all sorts of covert mayhem (a la Fatal Attraction) with this person's family. It was challenging, this following and listening, and really interesting. I lost the trail of this person when they left the store suddenly and merged into the holiday shopping crowds. Frustration!
I had a great overhearing to eavesdropping experience just this morning - which segued very nicely into the other unhealthy fascination I will be writing about later in this post. On the bus to work this morn, I sat in front of a gentleman who I did not get a look at but shortly into the ride I heard him begin a cell phone conversation. It started out dull enough - sounded like work-speak so I played the "what does he do for a living" game for a few moments until his tone and the substance of the conversation took a sudden delicious turn. He was obviously trying to be discreet and was trying to use code words to discuss the issues but the phrase "Grand Master of the Lodge" slipped out during an argumentative moment. I was hooked. It was a good half hour of delightful eavesdropping wherein I deduced this: There is some disarray and very serious in-fighting going on within certain Masonic Brotherhoods.
This conversation ended abruptly and he got off the bus. I had only a moment to pout when I glanced out my window and was gifted with another incident to feed another of my unhealthy fascinations. I shall call this incident: Bangkok Spa Redux.
When I was still in New Orleans, I wrote an LJ post describing my obsession with the Bangkok Spa in the French Quarter. Here in San Fran, my morning bus route to work travels through an area of town rife with Bangkok Spa-type massage parlors and "health spas". It is obvious from first glance that these are definitely places of ill-repute. One in particular is my favorite - I don't even think it has an actual name, just a tacky neon light hanging askew announcing "MASSAGE", and a hand drawn arrow on a piece of cardboard for a sign. The arrow points to a buzzer on the door of a seedy run-down building. On various days I've seen skeevy-looking men standing out front of the gated door, ringing the buzzer and waiting. Unfortunately, the bus always pulls away from the stop before I get to see who opens the door. Someday I should just stake out in a nearby coffee shop and just watch. (My goals - they are high.)
Today I saw a woman ring the buzzer of the massage place. She definitely had the "going to work" aura about her as I could not imagine her going there to get a massage and she seemed none too enthusiastic about her looming day of happy endings and blowjobs. (I'm presumptuous, I know). She was a brassy blonde and looked hard-bitten and hard ridden. Think: Faye Dunaway's character in Barfly - except a little older. Once again I did not get to see who opened the door to let her in but I was also suddenly filled with the strong compulsion to jump off the bus, offer to take the woman to breakfast (or to a dive bar) and ask her to tell me stories of her massage parlor days.
Two unhealthy fascinations satisfied in one 40 minute bus ride! Yep, I suspect it's gonna be a good day today.