Last night I was Bruce’s plus one at a fundraiser for one of his causes. The event was held in a stunningly-beautiful house in Cherry Creek situated on a double lot. The open-floor plan house with a sleek modern interior had doors opening onto an expansive patio and pool which easily accommodated the hundred or so attendees. The trans community was well represented at the art auction event. A local drag queen was the MC. I didn’t find any art I was interested in so I donated a couple of hundred bucks, which, paled in comparison to Bruce’s contribution as an event sponsor. Bruce also dropped a bundle on art in the auction. I met a few Bruce’s coworkers, one of which was a strikingly handsome man in his early thirties. He was most engaging which made the evening very enjoyable.
Bruce dropped me off a little before 10. I googled the house before I went to bed. It had recently sold for $7.5m. Given Cherry Creek real estate prices, the house is easily worth penny.
Bruce met me a gallery opening on Friday afternoon decked from head to toe in Ferragamo. He was wearing an exquisite pair of custom lace-up alligator shoes. The shoes were almost as expensive as the art. The shoes became a topic of conversation.
After the gallery opening, Bruce hosted a small cocktail party on his rooftop deck. Mike called me on the short drive to Bruce’s townhouse. He wanted to know the parking options as he was trying to decide which car to drive. The Bentley he recently acquired or his G-Wagon. I told him the G550 would be easier to park given the only option was on-street parking.
I arrived at Bruce’s house first and let myself in as his front door was unlocked. His house was a mess. His other guests were arriving at 6 and there was clutter everywhere. It was type of clutter that a person who grew up with domestic help would have, who never learned to clean up after themselves. When Bruce arrived I told him we needed to pick up the place. I pointed out his guests had to walk through four floors of clutter to get to the roof. Bruce didn’t care as the guests would be on the rooftop most of the night. We barely made a dent in mess when the first guests arrived. A handheld vacuum stayed mid-way up the second flight of stairs all night.
It was a most enjoyable evening even though Bruce only offered drinks. Not a nosh in sight. Mike and I were the only single guests. The other guys were couples. All were friendly and handsome with interesting tales to tell. Conversation was lively all night.
The guests departed for dinner just before 9. Mike was meeting his nephew at Capital Grille while I headed home. Before we parted ways at our cars, Mike remarked about the messy house, the sink full of dirty dishes and unkempt guest bathroom without a hand towel. It seems Bruce never learned about entertaining, which, is odd given his mother hosted lavish parties and fundraisers in the mansion he grew up in.
I spent the rest of night snacking while watching a Netflix dating show about young adults on the spectrum. The most interesting evening was a good way to kick off the weekend.
Pamela Joseph, Doritaenopsis (orchid), acrylic, gold leaf and mixed media on plexiglass, 40 x 45 x 3, 2002, $18,000, Michael Warren Contemporary Art.
Had a pricey lunch with Bruce today in the Highlands. Forty-three dollars for two avocado toast entrees and two ice teas. He picked me up in an Aston Martin he borrowed for the weekend. He let me drive it around the neighborhood. It’s a fun car to drive. The 12 cylinder engine packs a huge punch and sounds super sexy.
Last Saturday morning I got a text from a gym pal. Even though he was fully vaccinated, he tested positive for Covid. We had a conversation at the gym on Tuesday. Then it hit me. I may not have allergies due to the ongoing poor air quality from forest fires but may have Covid. I text Bruce to let him know as we hit the gallery openings on Friday night. He panics. We both start searching for rapid Covid test center. Everywhere we checked is booked until Monday. We settle for a drive thru test center which takes 24 to 36 hours to get the results.
I received the results on Sunday morning. I was negative, which was a relief. Bruce also tested negative. I am thankful for the friendly and efficient staff at the testing center. I’m also thankful the results were received a few hours shy of 24. And there was no charge to us. That’s a good thing.
I now work under a new VP who was brought in to oversee the conversion from traditional on-prem offers to cloud, along with managing Brand Protection, Intellectual Property theft and post-M&A software collaboration. It’s an odd collection of responsibilities for one VP to handle. She offered me a permanent position which I had to turn down due to that pesky out of court settlement and NDA I signed. She agreed to renew my contract for another year, which, is a good thing.
The Corporate Slave 