Tabatha Deans

WORKING THE PHONES AND MAKING FRIENDS
With a a deadline looming for the Dumpster diving story, and my failed attempt at stalking divers, I fell back on an old news habit—I started working the phones.
Specifically, the random phone number programmed into my phone of people I’ve met since I moved to Denver. There’s the gentleman who stopped to chat with me in front of the office, a man who used to be a big-shot attorney before his fall from grace, and the REALLY drunk lesbian who groped me at the bar last week. All these people had given me their numbers, an invitation to call. Yet I haven’t. Okay, mostly because I’m not sure I want to form any kind of long-lasting relationship with any of them. Partly because I was shy, afraid and uncomfortable.
But, in the name of news, I bravely began dialing. My calls were well received. They all remembered me, (or at least pretended they did). None of them seemed at all surprised when I asked them if they were familiar with Dumpster diving, did they ever do it, of did they know anyone who did? I came away with several names/angles for the story, and enjoyed spending the afternoon talking with other people.
And I’m in love with my electronic book reader. As I began my ambitious goal of reading all 101 classics loaded on my gadget, I quickly began cursing as I ran across multiple words that I did not know the meaning of. Making a mental note to myself to buy a dictionary, I started fiddling with my reader. Sure enough,, not only did it have a dictionary included, but you could highlight the word in question and look it up immediately, without ever losing your place in the text. I’m officially taking back all the bad things I have said about electronic book readers.
Although now, I find myself in a state of analysis paralysis regarding the 101 great works. I can’t decide which to read first.

April 19, 2012 Posted by Tabatha Stewart | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

A DENVER VETERAN
This week marks the official one year mark of living on my own in Denver. As I made my morning trek down to the light rail station, I realized that I am no longer a newbie to this city, but am, in fact, a true blue, (and orange, for the Denver Broncos) resident.
I stood at the intersection of Broadway and 17th, a tricky intersection to cross because five roads actually meet. As a newbie, I patiently waited for the crossing walk sign to start blinking green, or cautiously followed as others looked both ways and crossed against the light. Today, much more familiar with the light, I looked both ways and crossed against the light. Several other people watched, then, believing they could trust my actions, followed me across the street.
As I rounded the corner of the plaza at the World Trade Center, I saw the shuttle bus stopped at the light. I could have waited for the next one to come along, but that would make me miss the 7:05 train I was headed for. Several other people were crossing the plaza, and I picked up my pace to a jog to catch the shuttle. Realizing I wasn’t going to make it, I broke out into a full run. I was a “runner,” as people on the inside of the bus/shuttle call it, and I sprinted toward the open doors of the shuttle, my backpack bouncing back and forth and throwing me off balance. A man on the other side of the plaza increased his brisk walk to a run, and, united, we reached the shuttle together—just as the doors were closing. I flipped my scarf in between the doors, hoping to trigger them to open, but no such luck.
The other runner and I frowned at each other, silently cursing our bad timing. Then, an unheard of event occurred. Once the shuttle doors are closed, the driver never opens them again until they reach the next stop. Today, the driver broke the unspoken rule and the doors opened for us. We smiled and hopped on the shuttle, where we were met with several smiles and “wow, that was close,” from the riders who had watched us run across the plaza.
I wasn’t really looking forward to my morning tasks. Once at the donation center, I was forced with making phone calls to several creditors, begging for leniency on my monthly obligations. I have run into a 45 day lag time before billing I submitted for some stories kicks in, so I’ve spent several days racking my brain and refiguring numbers to try to make everything work. With a minimum payment on everything, and after factoring in groceries, I was left with about a 50 dollar deficit, which was in essence, my transit money for the month.
I try hard to stay in good standing with my creditors, and my morning phone calls were not only productive, but relatively pleasant. Finished with the yucky business, I headed to Safeway for some t.v. dinners to eat at the center. I splurged on a one dollar “Scratch ‘n’ Sniff” lottery ticket, (The kind you scratch the symbols off and see if you won instantly.) As a rule, I only buy one when its issued as a “new” game, the theory being to use my beginner’s luck on each new ticket. Usually I win a dollar, just enough to cover my investment, but today, I won 40 dollars. Woohoo!

April 19, 2012 Posted by Tabatha Stewart | Uncategorized | Leave a comment