This posting will be to honour "Black History Month" , but for me it will be to also honour a major influence in my troubled teen year's ... Mr. Harmon Loft ... who passed away many year's ago. I can talk more openly now about Harmon as far as the help and guidance as a teen he gave me only because he is passed away. If I were to talk about him when he was alive in a public forum let's say ... he could have been possibly charged with aiding, abetting, harboring, etc a fugitive as well as a juvenile. But Harmon helped me quite a bit as a teen in trouble, he is also the one that gave me the contact I wrote about here to go to Montreal (QE, Canada) to evade authorities.
I met Harmon a couple year's before he actually gave me help, shining his shoe's at a Billiard's/ Pool Hall that he owned up in New York ... a small front business that had illegal gambling operation's as well in the back behind heavily fortified door's for those folk's that liked to bet and gamble. Harmon first gave me 50 cent's for the shine, I remember telling him that the wiseguy's (gangster's) paid at least a buck or two ... I told him ... "Where else can you get door to door service and a shine like this Sir? ..." But anywayz ... Harmon kind of chuckled on that ... and said something like ... "You remind me of myself when I was your age son ... your a hustler ... but I like that ...", the guy actually gave me a "5 spot" ($5 buck's)! He later invited me to set up a spot/ station in his pool hall to shine shoe's, which I did for a few month's, then lost contact with him for a couple year's. The time after when I lost contact was because I had dropped out of school (first month into the 9th grade), had trouble over and over with the law, ran away, etc. I had to get away from my familia, friend's and neighborhood ... I was too "hot" and knew I would get busted hanging where I was from, and I went to Harmon to seek some refuge, because familia/ friend's didnt know him and/ or his part of town, so no one could get intimidated by authorities to "talk". So basically ... Harmon gave me some help and gave me some odd job's making deliveries for him and his associate's ... let's just say I delivered package's, and envelope's, etc. I didnt ask what was in them, or cared. But enough for that.
Harmon during the time I knew him most importantly gave me alot of advice on the side, alway's telling me thing's about "life" and "survival" ... he was kind of like a philosopher in a way, at least that is what I seen him as. One of the thing's he told me that I never let go was something like "Never be ashamed where you come from ... and never forget where you come from ...". One of the thing's Harmon used to alway's point out to me here and there was all these thing's like street/ traffic light's, light bulb's and other stuff that black folk's invented (Harmon was African American from Harlem/ NYC) ... which I never knew, and never remember hearing a thing about it in school as a kid in the 1960's. So when I think of Harmon ... I alway's think of his knowledge of black inventor's too, or at least bringing up these thing's to me.
So ... in honour of "Black History Month" ... I wanted to post this to also honour a man who may not made history himself ... but for me was a part of history. He was a sort of philosophical mentor to me, and a man I will never forget for all the help he gave me as a troubled kid. Having the opportunity to live in an internet era where I can write about these thing's and keep a public open journal to honour those who done so much for me and inspired me as a kid. This posting is for you Harmon, Thank You so much Sir!
SENECA VILLAGE @ CENTRAL PARK: ... A look back at the mid 19th Century New York City community ... (For HARMON LOFT PT.2)
***** A LIST OF BLACK INVENTORS & SCIENTISTS HERE *****
"GREAT BLACK INVENTOR'S PART ONE" ... THANX TO "ONETRUEPROPHET22"
"GREAT BLACK INVENTOR'S PART TWO"
POST NOTE: Some may look at what I wrote about Harmon as being "bad influence" on a kid, so I figured to add this post note. It is common thought for many to think of "right and wrong" as they are taught by what culture, society, era they live in, and so easy by using "word's" to twist or just interpret what it mean's. Harmon is a man who helped me when I needed it, he did not twist my arm to do anything I didnt willingly ask to participate in, he was a small businessman ... and yes, also catered to vice, such as illegal gambling, but also there is "legal" gambling in that state as well as every other state damn near, whether it's just betting at the horse race track's or even all the state and/ or multi state mega lotteries, many dont even see the scam's to the lottery for instance, how they sell them as "proceed's going to education" or some other smokescreen charitable type bullshit, yet those who run them, also drive kid's into bankruptcy situation's trying to further their education before the age of 30 ... the only difference is ... those in power decide what is right/ wrong, and take so called "bad" vice's and make them "good" (like what Las Vegas done as I posted in the last posting , as far as letting so called gangster's do all the thinking and leg work, then later buying them out, then selling it as Disneyland and now "good") ... or what is so called "bad" influence on a kid for instance. We live in such a twisted thinking way in our society ... that many dont even look at these thing's, they just hear someone or something is "wrong" ... jump on the bandwagon and pigeonhole everything that remotely is affiliated and anyone. Harmon was one of the most straight up and stand up men you could want to meet.
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I had a great African-American teacher back in high school. Mr. Shelton challenged many of my redneck assumptions and set me on the path to a more enlighted view of the world.
ReplyDeleteCan't tell him that now, he passed back in 2002.
Thanx for sharing Bum ... I had to re- comment for legal reason's, Later Guy
ReplyDelete