The American Public...

“Mister! Help me!” exclaimed a short, slender, middle aged, crazy-eyed woman as she ran up to me.

I've had an extensive retail career. I could fill a book about the American Public but this one particular encounter will stick with me for a while. A few years back I was doing holiday help at a hip skate-life retailer. It was the holiday season, on a Saturday, so the store was buzzing with shoppers trying to complete their wish list and get the hell out of there as fast as they could. I took pride in my 8 hour shift of greeting people. Why not? If I am going to stand here for 8 hours and say "Hi." to people all day might as well make it fun. I was doing my greeter ninja work...because heaven forbid your micro-managing floor leads see you let someone in without saying "Hi" and letting them know about the "sale" going on...it was hectic to say the least as this woman came running in. Her hair was a blonde birds nest, her make up was smeared, wearing ripped faded jeans and a ratty, ripped 80's band t-shirt, toting ripped plastic grocery bags with her belongings in it, she smelled of bourbon and cigarette smoke. Screaming “Help!” I looked in her eyes and saw them glazed over rolling in the back of her head...I could tell this was going to be a great interaction...and I prayed she wouldn't swallow her tongue.

In a very upbeat and excited voice I say “What can I do for you today?” giving her my FULL and undivided attention. I needed to hear everything, I needed to know what was going to come out of her foam-at-the-corners mouth. “There’s something wrong with my smartphone!” she was yelling to a store full of holiday shoppers. “May I see it?” holding out my hand playing into her craziness. I examined the phone to find out that the battery wasn’t in it, it had a cracked screen and was emitting the faint smell of dog urine. During the examination of her phone she whispers to herself and then tells me she has been up for 3 days...and loves the band BuckCherry. Amazing. This couldn't be going any better. Playing into her insanity further I said “hmm, looks fine to me but if you don’t mind can you tell me what else is going wrong here?” as she responded with a snappy “Sure can!” Yes...I smiled with delight in knowing that I was about to share in the magical story of this phone and it’s owners journey...and how it ended up with me at the front of this store. 

“It’s my god-damn boyfriend!” she tells me as I nod with my hand on my chin and arm around my chest agreeing with her “He is accessing my smartphone from jail! (Of course her boyfriend is in jail is all I thought…why wouldn’t this woman have a boyfriend in jail?) He is hacking in and making me go to BOOBIE WEBSITES!” She YELLS in the front of the store as parents hide their children’s faces from her and I’s direction. Everyone in the store is slowly but surely starting to acknowledge this interaction (and I want to believe they are as excited as I am to see what’s going to happen). “Oh No…Oh Jeez…We can’t have that…” I say as she continues “Yeah! Damn right! He is making my phone go to RIDE-MY-DICK.com or something like that and I don’t want to go there!” Continuing to YELL as parents are starting to take their families from the store “I see, yeah that’s no good, we can’t have that…please...go on.” I say with assurance as she goes on  “I would never go to RIDE-MY-DICK.com!” She states with confidence as I reply with “Uh huh…continue…” “If anything I would go to EAT-MY-PUSSY.com! That’s the site I’d be on if I was searching for porn-o!” She YELLS some more and flails her arms around to help make her point…or lack there of. “Oh my my!” I say as seriously as I can muster without my cheeks turning red...or laughing uncontrollably. “Miss I am going to go talk to my manager (call the cops) and see if there is anything we can do for you, stay right here.” “That is no problems son. Let me tell you something else, don’t ever get messed up with anyone that loves cocaine.” (Where this was coming from…I have no idea…but I love it.)

I was about to leave this interaction but she sucked me right back in and my full and undivided attention was all on her…again. “Oh? Is that right?” I respond as she launches into another problem she has “Yeah you’re damn straight! I ain’t no coke addict but I have been known to do a “bump” every now and then…” (My mind is on fire, this is amazing, thank you crack woman…I never want this conversation to end) “…But these damn coke fiends…” she continues “…They just love it!” as she flails her arms some more like a prehistoric bird to make her point “I mean if I buy all the coke…shouldn’t I be able to at least BLOW A LINE?!” she flails and screams some more as I respond with “Makes sense to me…if you buy the candy bar…shouldn’t you be able to eat it?” I say definitively “My point exactly.” she agrees “I don’t want to hold you up…go see if you can do something about this phone” She dismisses me.

I thank her for her time and tell her I am going to see if there is anything I can do while rushing to the back of the store grabbing any co-worker I can. When I reach the back with some of my fellow employees I tell them the story and that this woman is still in the store. After a few minutes of rolling on the ground laughing they tell me I have to get her out before she causes anymore of a scene. I compose myself and head back to the front of the store.

“Ma’am” she turns to me and almost trips, lazily, over a parent with a stroller, “I checked with some of my co-workers and the only thing I can tell you to do is go to the police. They can file a report if you think your boyfriend is hacking into your phone.” She stares at the phone I am holding (I think…either that or her heart stopped for a minute from overdose). When she snaps back to reality from her drug daydream she blurts out “I already been to the cops! Wanna know what they said?!” “I would LOVE to hear what they had to say” I respond. “They told me to take a nap!” She then looked over her shoulder and said she had to go. Just as quickly as she came into my life she was gone. She ran out of the store and never looked back. I went back to work greeting people and prayed something else would spice up the day.

It’s the little things in life that make it worthwhile. I have no idea where she is today but I hope this woman is still out there making others as happy as she made me. She taught me something that day that I will never forget. If you buy the blow, you should be able to do a line or two.

YourFriendMatt

A Walk to Remember...

The walk from the front door of my work building to the sunny California beach is three blocks. The streets are lined with restaurants, boutiques, and other hip shops to attract the people vacationing here to stop in and unload their wallets. Useless crap like Venice Beach ink splattered hoodies, Native American inspired rugs, The Gap, wheat grass juiceries, and the "doctors" office can be found anywhere within a 10 minute walk.

My walk, however, leads to the bluffs over looking the Pacific Ocean of yellow sand, million dollar homes, and mountain lined landscapes. It's breathtaking. At sunset the skies fill with an unlimited array of colors. Hues of pink, yellow, purple, and orange sometimes accompanied by white, fluffy clouds fill the sky. As the sun disappears behind the dark ocean and bright, twinkling stars come out it makes you want to stand up and clap as the sunset show wraps up...and then your interrupted by a crazy-eyed hobo with a shopping cart full of aluminum beer cans...

I made the mistake, as most new comers to the area do, of giving all the change in my pocket to anyone who asked. "It's not that big of deal." Inside my head, "You have enough to share. Look at him, he deserves it." I would say to myself "Maybe they really are going to buy food. You are doing a good deed." Reassuring myself over and over again...and then I realize I was going broke myself. Within a week I was down $40 and saw first hand my money go right to a liquor store after I gave someone change.

The homeless population is a very well kept secret in Southern California. Okay, maybe not that big of a secret. As time passes I am slowly but surely getting to a first name basis with some of them. No matter how deep our relationship goes, no matter how much we converse, the conversation always starts the same. They notice me walking by and remembering to ask me for a dollar like I owed it to them. Homeless Phil, a tall white bearded man in jeans and a "OBX" tee shirt, was about to take a sip from the water fountain the other day then paused. I strolled by on my way to the sunset and Phil slapped his forehead as if he almost forgot to scratch ask Matt for a dollar off his daily to-do list. "Hey, do you have that dollar?" Phil asks "What dollar could he possibly be asking for?" I thought as I responded with a stern "Phil. No." We have done this dance many times before. He turned with a friendly smile and said "All good, tomorrow maybe." continuing his drink from the fountain. I wave, keep smiling, and keep walking.

On the corner right before crossing to get to the bluffs Nancy, a voluptuous, tattered, cat and bag lady with a red Lakers hat, is waiting...and yelling at traffic. Normal. She puts on a crazy act (or at least is my assumption...and I assume this because she speaks to locals without yelling at them) to get the tourist to give her all their change. She quickly snaps to as she spots me out of her peripherals. "JESUS DIED FOR YOUR SINS! REPENT AND..."  She takes a quick break from speaking the Lord's good word. "Oh hey honey! Got that dollar today?" in a very different soft spoken, motherly voice. "Damn it." Once again inside my head "Nancy, looking good." I say "No dollar today." A smile breaks across her face and she turns to continue "TODAY IS THE DAY OF SALVATION!" She yells at a blue Ford Escape as it passes. I am making friends quickly here.

Finally reaching the bluffs I gaze at the sunset. No matter how many times I see it, no matter what mood I am in, or how stressful, important, or impactful my existence is...it all fades away. We are just specs compared to the awesome power of mother nature. The sun may rise where I come from but it sets here...and its amazing. When you get the chance to check out the sunset in Santa Monica look me up. I will introduce you to some friends of mine...you probably owe them that dollar you forgot about.

YourFriendMatt...com

I didn't go to school, I don't have a literature, journalism, or any other degree...or any piece of paper that qualifies me to write. But this is a blog. And most importantly my blog...so I can kinda do what I want. Like use words like "kinda" instead of "kind of." Please feel free to comment about how I misuse most words, punctuations, make ridiculous claims that can't be backed by any facts, curse to much, and can't spell. 

That being said and now that we have the proper expectations set...

I am Matt, a guy who values honesty, family, and friendship. During my 26 years on this planet I have built a positive lifestyle by surrounding myself with the best people I could find. This will be a place where I write down ideas, share stories and thoughts, display music and films I have written with my friends. I am a guy who likes to journal and write...If you are down with that then this is the place for you. I don't like taking life too seriously and try to laugh and smile as much as possible. 

I recently moved to Santa Monica to break out of my comfort zones and see what else the world has to offer. I love everyone at home in Philadelphia. They are my rock, support, and family. If all goes to hell I can make one call and have a safe place to stay there. Knowing that I wanted to take a shot and stand on my own two legs (3,000 miles away) to see what the hell I am capable of...plus the weather is nice here...Philadelphia is currently covered in 8 inches of snow.

Share the love, smile, and be positive.

YourFriendMatt

Tracy Copple...

"Crystals!" She yelled as I ran as fast as I could trying to escape the passioniate venture capitalist who wanted to see our band name in a "BeBe"- eske black tee shirt design. Who comes up with an idea like that for a rock band?...Tracy Copple.

I find myself with a very heavy heart as I write this. My very good friend and someone who believes in me when I was too scared to believe in myself has past. I am lucky enough to say that I have rarely felt these feelings and take it for granted. People pass everyday but when it is someone who you love and respect it's unimaginable. It's so cliche to say that you still think you can "pick up the phone or send a text to them and now you can't" but that is how it feels. She can't really be gone right? She is the "Unsinkable Tracy Copple", she's a nut, unbreakable, nothing can take her down. Right?

Tracy I want to thank you for always believing in me...and at the same time calling me out when I was being a total bullshitter. Thank you for doing everything in your power to keep me safe when you didn't have to...at all. You must have had an Oh Shit moment every time you saw my name come up on your caller id...why did you ever pick up? Thank you for taking care of my friends, whether they told you or not, they were grateful. Thank you for always trusting in me to follow through on what it was we were trying to accomplish. Thank you for all you taught me and the life lessons you never knew I was experiencing because of our time together. Thank you for showing me the world is a big place and giving me the confidence to think (and still think) that I can conquer it. Above all and most importantly thank you for being my friend. 

I am writing this as I sit in a tree overlooking the Pacific Ocean. 3,000 miles where we met and I know I wouldn't be sitting here if it wasn't for you. Thank you for always believing in me and I know I don't have to ask, I know you are watching over me and...one day when I least expect it somethig else will change the course of my life and I'll see your face. 

Love you girl. 

Your friend,

Matt

Welcome and thank you for checking in! This page is still under construction so please excuse me as things will be changing and added within the next few weeks. Please stay tuned and check out some of the music and videos posted around the site!