Uncle Charlie’s

Uncle Charlie’s is a very busy breakfast restaurant at the edge of my town. On the weekends it is always jammed, and people wait a long time outside to get a table. The food is excellent. It’s breakfast food, no frills. No fancy ingredients. Just really good breakfast food. I love simple breakfast food. Hash and sunny side eggs, home fries and toast. Puts me in a food coma every time. I love the simplicity of a good breakfast. Similarly, if I want Chinese food, I want dirty, gross, Americanized Chinese food. Pork Fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, scallion pancakes. Simple and delicious.

Screen fades to black and you see me opening Spotify in my car and putting on I Can’t Make You Love Me by Bonnie Raitt. It’s the prettiest song I’ve ever heard, and I’ll die on that hill. Plenty or songs better, but that song never leaves my top ten. Don’t care who knows it, don’t care I’m a 45-year-old man. It’s just not up for debate. I put the car in drive, fix my mirrors, that my youngest always changes to her heights, and head out for the days adventures.

I’ve had this knee pain for a bit but with a little time on my hands I figured I would tackle it. I booked an appointment with an Ortho doctor. Shortened because I really have zero clue how to say or write Orthopedist. Is Orthopedist, right? Sounds too close to something very inappropriate. I think they may need to hire a PR team to workshop a few different names. Orthoditrist? Orthonotpedafile? Anyway, yikes. Sorry about that.

The good doctor didn’t find anything wrong with the x-ray but sent me for an MRI. When the MRI turned up with nothing muscular, I was then told my primary care physician to get some blood work done to try and figure some things out. So, I scheduled blood work the next morning. The screen again fades to black…

The camera slowly fades back in showing me as I put my winter hat on and headed out the front door.  Confidently strolling to my car as The Ruff Ryder’s Anthem plays in the background.   I again fix the mirrors back to my normal site lines.  By the way, my daughter does have her own car, but who wants to drive that and pay for your own gas? I pull Spotify up and put on a new artist I have been researching to see if they get my approval before I try and be cool and tell my kids about them before they become popular.  Right now, that band is called Medium Build…. And you are welcome.  They rule.  My foot presses the brake, and I put the car back in drive and off I go to get blood.

Secret time, I can act tough and say I’m not afraid of needles.  But every phlebotomist knows differently.  I have to look away and honestly don’t mind when they do a little distraction move like I’m a 3-year-old.   They took a lot of blood that day.  But, as they say, not all heroes wear capes, and I made my way out the building back to my car as Nuthin’ But a “G” Thang plays in the background. 

As I got back in the car, without adjusting any mirrors I remembered that I fasted this morning for blood work and if I don’t get a coffee I may die from the headache.   Caffeine is a hell of a drug.  I start the drive home in silence.  Sometimes, I don’t know if this happens to you, but I just get lost in my thoughts and can just do a silent car ride without even knowing I am doing it.  I come to a bit and instead of heading left and home I decide to take a right and just drive.  As I get to the edge of town, I see the sign up ahead for Uncle Charlie’s.  I pulled into the parking lot and just, for the first time in my life, decided to sit at a restaurant for a meal by myself. 

“Hash breakfast and an ice coffee black” I say to the waitress before she can even put the menu down in front of me.  I look around and yes, the little breakfast place is filled with mostly 70–80-year-old couples, but I catch eyes with a young couple with a baby and I just smile.  Remembering a time, now long gone where that guy was me.

I finish my last bit of hash, slurp down the last sip of the refilled ice coffee and drop a few dollars on the table.   Winter hat back on as I head out the car.  A little less blood, a potential food coma about to set in some nice dehydrating coffee running through my veins.  The car starts and somehow Spotify starts to play It Was a Good Day by Ice Cube. 

A simple morning spent completely by myself.   Nothing special.  Nothing that would make my book someday.  Just a few moments where I was just able to breathe and appreciate the smallest of things.  Just a reminder that with all the craziness that life brings you got to be good to yourself and with yourself.  The food was great, but the company was better. 

I didn’t mess around and get a triple double like Ice Cube did, but what a great little day I had for myself. 

Forever the luckiest guy in any room.