Tommie Hustle: High Maintenance?

I like to think that I'm a normal guy. I'm by no means affluent, I'm comfortable, and I’m not content. I come from the standard family unit two married white collar parents a brother, we worked hard to get what we have an where we are I'd like to think I'm a normal guy I don’t think of myself as someone who is a member of the bourgeoisie.

As I was flying to Iraq this time, I had a lady sit next to me from Zimbabwe and we traded stories about our lives where we were going, so on and so forth. She told me the most interesting story of how she lived in a hut on the plains of Africa and tended to packs of Lions. If she were Black I wouldn't have believed her but, she was white so that made it TOTALLY believable. It's always interesting to meet white Africans. They have a demeanor to themselves that comes for years of them telling people they are from Africa and people’s responses being "How can you be from Africa? You are white!"

We chatted about that for a while, then we talked about they joys of international travel. I said to her yeah I love how the hand out hot towels for your face and the heated mixed nuts in a ceramic bowl that we get and of course the free drinks I said internationally first and business class is the only way to travel.

She responded that she has never flown business or first class internationally. I responded I would never fly coach internationally. As the words came off my tongue I could hear my own utter revulsion and contempt for the concept. I immediately retorted before she could speak.

"That made me sound like jerk didn't it," I stammered "I mean I do only fly business or first class but, that's because that's the only way my company lets me travel, not that have a problem with coach I mean we all get there the same time right?"

I mean I really sounded like an utter tool, I might as well have said “Congress with the plebeians? Utter rubbish I tell you, that is poppycock my dear woman!"

She caught my shock of my tone but, she decided to have some fun at my expense. She said, “Oh my God you sound too high maintenance.”

I never thought of myself as high maintenance but, look at where I have been in the last few years. I've had a Gatsby-ish transformation. I mean I went from flat broke to now where I own three vehicles, all of which that have been purchased in the last three years (A sedan, a motorcycle, and a high performance European sports car). They have a combined mileage total of about 31,500 miles.

I go out to eat and drink and $100+ dinner and bar tabs don't phase me. I never look at the price of gas I just fill up. I have maids and landscapers tend to own a home that I don't live in or see. When I am in the states I split time between my home in Scottsdale, AZ and my parent home in Atlanta, GA and when I'm in Atlanta all I do is go out and be seen in the hottest spots.

I mean it is part of my personality to never accept less than the best for me but, I never saw myself as someone who isn’t grounded in the reality of the struggle or at least I think I am.

This comes full circle for another reason I was at a Krystals join back at my folks house (White Castle for you northern folks and a place that sells Sliders for those of you who know neither. I pull up in my Porsche and there is the lady there who looks about 42 or so filling out an application. She takes a hard look at me but, I’m kinda used to that when I’m in the P-ride not a big deal. So I order my food and the cashier says they will bring it out to me and a seat. Well, I sit next to the lady and she asked me if I went to my old high school. I said yea (I’m thinking she it the parent of someone I went to school with) then she said yeah, I remember you we went to school together. I was like really? When did you graduate, she was like in 1992 with you? I was like holy shit; I thought to myself you rolled craps of the life after high school table. I mean the lady looked to be a hard 10 years older than me. We chatted for a second and then she left the spot and went across the street to wait for the bus. I was filled with sadness for a bit, I know we all make our individual choices and that I had options that were not available to her but, here we are 15 years later and I’m riding clean and she is scrounging for 1.25 to catch the bus hoping to be a fry cook at a burger joint. At that point I really saw there were two Americas. But, if I had a choice, I choose the nice America.