Hey There Underdog

You Win the Bride / Astropuppees












No one actually liked Professor Arnold or his Intro class. His classes filled for two simple reasons. One he drew the preferred time slot of 1:00-2:30 Tuesdays and Thursdays. This was a good time as it was late enough in the day to sleep in, but not so late as to interfere with evening plans. Therefore, if you wanted to actually try to attend a class and maybe get that GPA to reasonable, this was your choice.



Second, the class was a stadium seating auditorium with 120 others. As one of the many baseball hat wearing, pony tail flicking, flannel, denim or sweat suited youth, you were a number, nothing more. Don’t ask a question, sit in different seats and you didn’t even have to make it to that Thursday afternoon and you’d still do fine.


Of course, this didn’t stop Professor Arnold from his well rehearsed first day speech. “You all forget that I am standing here looking out at all of you. I can see each and every one of you. I know if you’re paying attention. I know if you’re taking notes. I know if you’re looking down the shirt of the girl in front of you…” It went on for twenty minutes. “So you all best better remember …”


It was all well and good that his opening day speech professed this attention, the truth was, he didn’t know his students. He couldn’t. All but the scared freshmen figured this out pretty quickly.


Annie sat listening to this speech for the third semester. She was Professor Arnold’s “teaching assistant,” which really meant slave, at least in his mind. “It’s money. It’s money. It’s money.” She wrote in her notebook as he droned on.


“You can’t hide behind your baseball cap, I know each and every one of you…”


The last semester the man had actually called her at home at 7:00 pm to yell at her that she wasn’t in her on campus office. He had just finished his grades and wanted her to enter them in the computer. After he had demanded to know why she was home, and she had explained that her office hours, the hours she worked for him on that day were 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM and she was not driving the thirty minutes in to enter his grades, though she’d be happy to do it the next day during her work hours. He had called her incompetent and hung up on her.


“It’s rent. It’s food.” Her notes switched as she occasionally glanced up as if she were actually taking notes on this crap as he had instructed her to each of the past three semesters.


When this got old, Annie started to gaze at the students in the room. Most looked alike. She was looking for one in particular, though. They had gotten a memo from some office on campus announcing that this class would have a blind student. Professor Arnold had passed the memo on to Annie. It would of course fall to her to provide notes, clarification, running between offices, etc. anything that might be needed.


The student was easy to find. She sat front row center. She was clearly blind, her dark glasses out of place in the dull room, but she was beautiful. She was a young woman with gorgeous blonde hair, slender and dressed with impeccable neatness in a well coordinated outfit. An equally beautiful German Shepard sat calmly underneath her seat panting in the heat of the room. She sat in the front row, a tape recorder in her lap.


At the end of class, there was no one left in the room who did not notice this student. She attracted the attention of every male. The dog attracted the attention of every female. Well, Annie thought, at least this will be interesting to watch.


The second day of class, Annie watched with amusement as, again, every young man was keen to help this young woman, while every young woman seemed to be in love with her dog. It was quite a commotion as she took her seat front row center, set up her tape recorder, explained what it was to her neighbors, settled her dog under the seat.


At the stroke of 1:00, Professor Arnold began his lecture. Annie again pretended to take notes. Not only did she know the material, but it was verbatim the same lecture she’d heard last semester. And the semester before that.


Not long in the blind woman raised her hand. Nothing. She eventually gave up. A little while later, her hand went up again. She was ignored. Annie sighed. This was not uncommon either. Still later, the young woman’s arm rose again, this time, she called out in a clear voice, “Excuse me, Professor?”


Suddenly there was no rustle of squirm. All were silent. All alert.


“What?” Professor Arnold turned, the annoyance in his voice.


“Excuse me Professor, I’m sorry to bother you, but would you mind if you are writing terminology on the board to spell it out as you go?” She asked politely.


“What’s the matter, can’t you see it from there?” Professor Arnold asked snidely.


120 bodies took a sharp inhale of breath and froze.


“No, as a matter of fact I can’t.” The woman answered just as sweetly and without missing a beat.



Post Script: True story. Names have been changed as after my second year of working for this man, I started to check in with friends and alibi myself whereever I went because I was afraid if he met with an unnatural death I'd be a suspect. Three years after this I heard he developed an illness that amoung other things caused him to go blind.

I'm Not Wonder Woman

Sky High / soundtrack










And here is another script I wish I wrote. Okay, it is a campy, teen movie, but… how can you not like it? A hamster helps save the day. It made side kicks cool. It has romance, teen angst, action, a great bad guy er girl, a wonderful premise, and aside from all the superhero stuff, it is completely believable.



It is a movie that had made me spend a fair amount of driving time wondering, what would be my super power of choice? Having considered this, I consistently come up with the same choice: I’d like rock to be able to communicate with me. Or maybe sand. I know this is a little unusual. But imagine if a statue could talk. Or if you could set your hand on the sidewalk and have it tell you directions or if some one is coming or had been there recently. Plus, I think this is a reasonable superpower as it allows for greatness but also confusion, complication and complexity.


Yes, I know I have some strange tendencies. Your point?


By extension, I wonder: Is it better to be a super hero of villain? And perhaps this is one of those questions that is telling. Like Superman or Bat man? There are clearly personality types that pick one over the other. I’m sure there is some internet quiz that highlights this. (I have not looked.)


This album also has a version of one my all time favorite songs: “I’ll Stop the World And Melt With You.” One of the best songs ever. If I were stuck on an island with limited MP3s this song would be one I’d choose. I’ve yet to hear a bad version of it. (If you don’t know, it’s now been co-opted by a chocolate ad, and I’m still okay with it.)

Closer I am to fine

Indigo Girls

I awoke with a start. Some one was screaming. Multiple some ones were screaming and the commotion in the room was frenetic. I bolted upright, seconds before being it with something cold and wet… Shaving cream. It was being sprayed everywhere.

Two squealing girls with cans in both hands had in a matter of seconds covered the room and its contents, us included. Mimi, the French Poodle girl in the opposite bed was screaming and hugging one of them. They were friends. Great.

For the next few minutes the squeals continued until the cans were emptied.  Then Mimi, went off to shower and out with her friends while, the mousy girl we shared a room with and I cleaned up.  There was no help.  No appology.  Never even a thank you.


My first weekend in a college dorm. I left a few days later.

Nothing OC here

So,  for the last two days traveling, I thought I could get Blogger to just post pre scheduled entries.  It did yesterday apparently, but not the day before.  Weird.  So, today, I posted the day before's, but got to thinking...  that makes the numbers of 1 post per day day off.  Nothing I can do about the dates, really, but at least my numbers should be right. (Okay, there is a little obsessiveness in that, but wouldn't one have to be a little obessive to be doing this at all?)  So, I've decided to post what I was going to post today too, so that the number of posts will be correct...

Now I'll just go off to wash my hands and touch things in sequence... (just kidding.)

Traveling is a funny thing. When I’m preparing to go, there is always a bit of nervousness: about the trip itself and what one will find at their destination. Then, when you’re there, there is usually a mixed reaction. On the one hand, its different and unusual – places to see, foods to eat, accents, expressions, in a word culture. At the same time, I am often struck more by the similarities. Can we travel anywhere in the world today and not see McDonalds? KFC? Walmart? I’m saddened by this.


This is usually followed by a complete sense of awe at just how many people are there are in the world. Go anywhere and you seen tons of them. Way too many to count. Think about every car in a parking lot or highway as at least one human and the quantity gets mind boggling.

Inevitably when traveling I reach the point where I’ve had enough. I just want to go home. This too is a funny thing. First, there is the timing issue. To time it right that that ‘I want to go home’ feeling coincides with actually going home is important. Staying too long or not long enough is hard. But no matter what, I find even when I want to be home, the timing is right, once I am home, I’m lost.

It’s not that I want to do anything I don’t. I’m usually dead tired. Yesterday, coming home I eventually gave in, went to lay down for a ‘little nap’ and got up 17 hours later. But I also don’t feel right doing nothing. It’s quite the predicament.

So, I’m spending today in this state of limbo.

OP 8

Nine Objects of Desire / Suzanne Vega









Without expectation, Jack had walked up to the main door of the science building and gave the glass a brief tug. Much to his surprise the door opened with easy and he glanced back at his companions smiling.



“This door wouldn’t have been open in Southern California.” He laughed. “You know where you’re lab is?” He asked holding the door open as the other two caught up.


“The basement.” Lead laughed. “It’s always in the basement.”


This time Lead took the lead down a flight of stairs into a well-lit hallway, spotted with wooden doors. Although it was cinderblock construction, it held none of the institutional feel Ally associated with education. The walls were painted a clean white, marked occasionally with bulletin boards advertising adventures first in chemistry and then biology as they move to the far end of the building.


“We’re looking for Room 21.” Lead said looking for room numbers. “Here we go.” He stopped in front of the last wooden door in the hallway. He tried the door but it was locked. Peering in through the slat window, it looked like any animal lab he’d ever been in. “That doesn’t look so bad.” He shrugged, stepping aside to let the others look.


“It looks like a lab.” Jack laughed.


It didn’t look like any lab, it looked like a lab Ally had seen in college once when lost, but she refrained from comment. Simply from walking through what little of the campus she had, she was pretty sure, this was like no grade school experience she’d ever had.


“Shall we find you’re house?” Jack shrugged.


“Ok.” Lead looked at little overwhelmed, but also a little less scared as he pulled out his map and conferred with Jack.


Ally read the bulletin board advertising a program in which a junior or senior might spend a semester in the Caribbean. In a second they were climbing the stairs nearest them to exit at the far end of the building from where they had entered.


“I’m thinking I can build a temporary habitat on that far wall.” Lead started a conversation with Jack that quickly turned to a discussion of wood, Plexiglas, and building techniques that Ally tuned out. Back outside it took Ally a second to realize the music she was hearing was not a recording, but a performance group in rehearsal.


“Hey they’re pretty good.” Jack said to her tossing his head in the direction of where “Let the River Run” was being sung strong and clear. “Better than ours.” Ally nodded not at all sure what to say. Her school’s glee club had never been mistaken for a recording.


Walking down another heavily tree lined side street they emerged back out on the road they had walked up a short time before. They started to walk down the other side of the hill. Now paying more attention, Ally noted the various decorations on some of the houses clearly indicating student housing. Still she had never even seen sorority houses appear so neat.


“My guess would be that these are Junior’s housing. Freshmen are usually put off by the library and seniors by gym.” Jack glanced at the houses noting the décor as Ally had.


“Do we ask why?” Lead glanced at his brother as they made their way further down the hill.


“Try to keep the freshman near the academics and close to campus. Sophomores can be further away, they’re cocky and know what they’re doing. Seniors are noisy. Juniors are ok, they’re the best company for faculty.” Jack smiled.


“Actually, I understand, they have a lot of day students. Most in fact and that even the borders often go home for the weekend. It’s one of the “issues” they’re dealing with.” Lead glanced back at his brother.


“Makes sense. It’s pretty quiet here, even for a Sunday.” Jack nodded back.

Couldn't have said it better

Couldn't Have Said It  Better / Meat Loaf









This is actually one of my favorite Meat Loaf albums.  I missed the tour with this, and I'm still disappointed.  I don't think most people have even heard of this particular one.  It's a shame really.  Surprisingly too, it is not a Jim Steinman (his album will come up within the year too.)    He does a cover of Dylan's Forever Young on this album too, which is really good.

If all goes as planned, today as this posts, I shall be on a plane coming home.  I will get back to this as I was tomorrow.

OP 7

Monster is Loose / Meat Loaf










For a change it was a warm Fall day, with the sun bright in the sky and the leaves glimmering yellow, orange and red. Ally, Jack and Lead had taken Ally’s car, though all agreed it was a shame they couldn’t all fit in Jack’s Miata.



“Ya know, little brother. I think you need to grow up and get a car that can seat more than two.” Lead had teased when Ally arrived the next morning to pick them up.


“And furniture.” Ally added glancing from the driver’s seat in her rearview mirror at Jack who had been forced to sit in the back.


“Any thing else?” He asked back meeting her eyes in the mirror.


“Probably.” She grinned. “I’ll get back to you.”


Taking a slight detour for a diner where the three ate breakfast, they arrived at the school late morning. Lead had a campus map the school had sent in preparations for the visit with significant locations marked: his house, the lab, the dinning hall. According to the map, the lower and middle schools sat in two buildings on the far side of campus from the direction they had approached. Ally parked on the outskirts just after seeing the large sign announcing the school. The three emerged from the car by a large red sign indicating Administrative Offices in gold letters. Behind it was a large Victorian house, painted lavender with blue trim.


“Nice house.” Ally noted the wooden porch swing and finely landscaped walkway.


“Eh.” Jack shrugged and looked around trying to decide which way to head. “If this is Admin, that’s probably a main classroom building for Upper School.” Jack pointed across the street and up a steep grassy hill to a large rectangular building the center of which supported a clock tower and spire. Without hesitation Jack headed in that general direction. Lead checked the map.


“Hate it when he’s right.” He commented quietly to Ally and followed his brother, leaving Ally to trail behind both men.


At the top of the Hill the campus became slightly more condensed. The large classroom building opened to a small grassy quad. On the right was a parking lot. Trees and houses lined each side of the street further up. A few students sat on the grass and the steps of buildings.


“That’s probably your science building.” Jack pointed at a glass and steel structure across the quad from the classroom building. He led them onto the leaves and grass of the quad. “There’s an art building, behind those houses.” He pointed to a building that looked like it had been poured from concrete. “That’s the Library.” He pointed to the other end of the quad where another modern looking structure of wood and glass sat. “Athletics and performing arts are probably further down over the hill.” Ally looked at Lead who had been following Jack with his map. He nodded at her behind his brother’s back and Jack continued. “The houses back on the street are probably dorms and faculty housing.”


“Wow.” Ally looked around at the brick, ivy, glass and steel that surrounded her.


“Amazing.” Lead looked at Jack. “Are you sure you’ve never been here before?”


“Pretty standard issue.” Jack shrugged. “Let’s see if we can get into the science building. They’re tougher than art, but not usually impossible.” He turned with purpose.


“Did you go to boarding school?” Lead fell into step with Ally as they trailed behind Jack.


“No.” Ally had folded her arms across her chest and was looking around rather astonished as she followed.


“Me either.” Lead sighed, running a head through his hair.

OP6

Yes I Am / Melissa Etheridge






“Hey?” Jack called to Lead who was spilling more food on the counter than was making the plate.


“Sorry, I’m making a mess here, but I’ll get it.”


“I’m not worried. Al thinks I should talk to you.”


“Oh yeah? About what?”


“I don’t know.” Jack leaned against the counter, crossing his arms and legs before him. “Give me a clue. I know, you know, I’m just teasing you.” Lead nodded. “So what’s she noticing that I’m not?” Jack smiled.


“Who says she is?” Lead smiled back.


“Nah. She’s good. I trust her. If she thinks we need to talk. We do. I just don’t know what about, yet.” Jack squinted at Lead as if he could discern what Ally was referring to by studying the man before him.


Lead snorted, glancing toward the dinning room then back at Jack. He ripped off some paper towel and started wiping the counter.


“It doesn’t bother you that your girlfriend might be reading your brother better than you?” Lead taunted.


Jack smiled. Given Lead’s response, he knew Ally was right, something was bothering his brother, even if he wasn’t seeing what.


“Not when she’s right.” Jack shrugged not biting. “I’m glad of it actually.” Lead sighed heavily, as Jack continued. “So…? What’s up?”


“A school Jack? What was I thinking? What do I know about kids? What if…” Lead shook his head. “I’m really uptight about it.”


“You’ll be fine. You’re good with kids. The nieces and nephews adore you…”


“They adore all of us. They adore you. You ready to go off to a school?” Lead interrupted and Jack offered a conciliatory shrug.


“You said you weren’t teaching right? So you work with the little critters and you have really short helpers.” Jack grinned as Lead started to laugh. “You live and breathe for those little animals; you could talk about them in your sleep. In fact, you probably do.” Jack laughed.


“You’re no help.” Lead snorted, but was laughing.


“You’ll be fine. You always are. Didn’t you lecture at the university a few times?” Jack asked as his brother fussed with the plate before him.


“Yeah. A couple, but that’s different.”


“How?”


“College is adults. These are … kids.”


“Do you remember being a kid?” Jack sighed.


“Kind of.”


“Do you remember ever thinking you were a kid?”


“No.”


“So, you just treat these kids like any one else. It’ll be fine.” Jack met Leads eyes. “Just don’t use big words.” A slow grin came to both men.


“Well I’ve been talking with you all weekend, so I should be primed.” Lead laughed.


“That’s the spirit.” Jack laughed following his brother back into the dinning room. “Thank you.” He whispered to Ally as he settled himself in next to her on the floor.


“Hey guys, you willing to take a ride out to this school tomorrow and check out the place before my official arrival?” Lead asked glancing nervously between Jack and Ally.


“Sure.” They answered in unison without so much as a glance between them. Lead was impressed.

Aha

Hunting High and Low / Aha

Okay, so this is not a great album, but one of my favorite songs of all times and definately my favorite video is Take On Me. I can't tell you exactly why I adore these - song or video, but I have worn out the album. I guess it's the romance of that appeals. The notion of illustration come to life, maybe.

It is a song of youth, summer, and escape.

As I am on vacation, I know this blog has been slow for a bit. We are going to suffer through another half a week or so of Oppossum Project then we'll be back to our regularly scheduled programing. For those of you who are Jack and Ally fans, they will probably return off an on, but just not as regularly. But for now..

I am in Wisconsin.  Jack and Ally will be here tomorrow.

op5

Keep on Loving you / Reba














“That was way too quick for a Jack Hernandez good night.” Lead teased when Jack returned. “I can take the car, you could stay here…”



“It’s fine.” Jack interrupted tersely.


“I’m just saying, knowing you…”


“Gez Thom …” Jack began. “I’ll make you a deal. I won’t push you about you’re lack of a love life if you don’t tease me about mine. Deal?”


“Sure.” Lead laughed. “You must really like her to be this sensitive.”


“I do.” Jack answered shortly.


“I like her too, bro. You might have actually done good this time.”


“Glad you approve.” Jack answered snidely, though his smile clearly indicated he was pleased with his brother’s blessing.






Ally, Jack and Lead spent a relaxing Saturday touring Boston’s museums and restaurants with only a slight bit of bickering. Arriving at the end of the day at a small seafood restaurant by the harbor run by Hernandez family friends, to find owners Sophie and Manual’s closed with a sign indicating they were on vacation. The original plan afoul, none of them were too enthusiastic about a night on the town. The three ended up at Jack’s apartment with take out and a movie.


“Jack did so much with this place.” Lead joked as they entered the large two story brownstone that was Jack’s home. “He removed all the furniture…” Ally giggled.


“Hey, I didn’t remove the furniture. I didn’t inherit the furniture and as I recall, half of it is with you.” Jack called out from the kitchen where he was taking out plates.


“This is true.” Lead conceded to Ally in a whisper as he stood in the large living room empty aside from the stereo system, cd cabinet and standing lamp. “It’s a shame you never saw the place when our aunt owned it. It was quite impressive.”


“It’s still quite impressive.” Ally laughed glancing around, thinking for the hundredth time that her entire apartment would fit on the first floor of Jack’s place, never mind the hardwood floors and crown modeling. “I don’t understand why none of you wanted it but Jack.”


“Far a field for any of us.” Lead shrugged. “Jack’s the only one that had any real attachment to Boston. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice city, but… the whole New England thing…” Lead shook his head. “Jack always liked that Norman Rockwell image.”


Ally nodded knowing exactly to what Lead was referring. Jack had an unshakable idealistic view of perfect New England towns, with colonial houses, white picket fences and roasted turkey on the table as happy families sat down for grace.


“That’s a sincere scowl.” Lead laughed shaking Ally from the image in her mind.


“I don’t share Jack’s …idealism.” Ally smiled and shrugged.


“Hmmph.” Lead’s brow furrowed as he stared at Ally. It was not the first time that day that her comments had surprised him.


“You guys want to eat and watch a movie?” Jack called from the kitchen interrupting them before either could say anything more.


“Ah… and there is reason number 408 why staying here is not a pleasure.” Lead said quietly to Al, who smiled and followed Lead into the dinning room that currently served as television room.


The room was empty aside from a large screen television, dvd player, the matching floor lamp from the living room and a couple of dozen pillows. The dvd was on pause and Jack was entering from the kitchen with a plate of food in hand.


“And you want to know why I wouldn’t want to stay here?” Lead grumbled, arranging against the wall his share of the large pillows that served as a sofa. “If you got real furniture, you might even think about having it in the living room.” Lead tossed his head toward the large empty room to his right.


“You get used to it.” Jack shrugged and folded himself down to the floor. “No. You don’t.” Ally said flatly entering the kitchen to get food.


“Al never complains.”


“He means he never listens to Ally’s complaining.” She stuck her head back into the room and snorted.


“I listen. You never complain.” Jack yelled into her. “She never complains.” Jack looked up at Lead who was standing before him.


“Somehow… I can’t believe that.” Lead shook his head grinning over Jack, his hands on his hips.


“He just said he thinks you complain.” Jack teased Ally who had entered the room and was folding herself on to the floor.


“Hey, I said, I didn’t think Ally didn’t complain about a lack of sofa.” Lead qualified quickly as Ally rolled her eyes ignoring both men.


“That’s ok… in a day you’ll be living in the lap of luxury, teaching at Quincy Academy and you’ll forget all about your poor baby brother...” Jack sat arranging his own pillows, completely oblivious to Lead’s wince as he mentioned the school.


“I’m going to get food.” Lead turned abruptly heading toward the kitchen.


Jack scowled as Ally glanced between Jack and at Lead’s back as he entered the large kitchen. She shook her head, and tossed her head toward the kitchen. Jack looked to the door and back at Ally, who tipped her head sideways.

OP 4

My December / Kelly Clarkson









“Al’s quite fond of zoos.” Jack laughed as Ally blushed.



“Among other places.” She quipped back, though it was clear she had understood Jack had teased her with fondness.


“Hey, some zoos are quite nice.” Lead winked at Ally, who smiled busying herself with her food, marveling again at the family resemblance and wondering if others saw such resemblance between her and her brother, Scott.


“So, you guys have the weekend off? I thought Secret Agents like you worked 24-7,” Lead laughed.


“Sometimes.” Jack spoke, but both he and Ally nodded. “Though even law enforcement can have some down time.”


“So who’s out protecting us from evil?” Lead smirked.


“Other superheroes.” Ally smiled. “We don’t go back till Monday, so let’s


not think about that, okay?”


“Okay.” Lead sighed, “I just don’t want to feel like the world is unsafe on account of me or anything.”


“Actually the world is unsafe because our partner Harry had a wedding to go to.” Ally shrugged, helping herself to another plate.


“I thought you two were partners?” Lead glanced at his brother.


“We’re triplets these days. It’s been…how long you figure?” Jack glanced to Ally.


“It’s been about a month. Maybe a month and half.” Ally shrugged as Jack checked the date on his watch, it was October 11. “Since September something.” Ally smiled at Jack. “I know it feels longer.”


“That’s a good thing.” Jack playfully pushed her shoulder.


“Yeah, yeah.” Ally answered teasing him.


Lead smiled and relaxed watching the exchange. He’d spent his entire family life being teased for being shy with women, while Jack made up for his lost time. However, as Lead watched Jack and Ally over dinner, he felt a pang of jealousy. They appeared far more like an elderly married couple, intuitively aware of each other rather than the ‘we’re working things out’ kind of couple Jack had described.


“So, what do you want to do tomorrow?” Jack asked his brother.


“Sleep in.” Lead laughed immediately. “But then I really want to go to the Aquarium. You two up for it?”


“Well, I don’t know about him, but I’d love to! I love the Aquarium.” Ally answered without looking up from her plate. Again Lead and Jack smiled as their eyes met across the table.


“Well, I’m not letting you two alone together, so I guess it’s the Aquarium.” Jack pushed aside his plate as Ally glanced at him to check that he was teasing. “Which reminds me,” Jack continued with the barest trace of a smile, “Since you’re in town, we know some really nice women, who I’m…”


“No.” Lead interrupted.


“I was not a party to this.” Ally said to Lead quietly, sensing the tension rising again.


“This is an old argument, Ally. My brother is under the mistaken impression I need his assistance to find a date.”


“When is the last time you went out? With a woman, for fun.” Jack persisted.


“None of your damn business.”


“Is there some poor gal, pining away down under that you’re not talking about?”


“Jack…” Lead’s voice held warning and his brother sighed.


“Fine. But if...”


“No.” Lead’s voice still held the warning as Jack shrugged and reached for the check. “So, when was the last time you were at the Aquarium?” Lead smiled, turning to Ally clearly changing the topic.

OP 3

Rumors Fleetwood Mac














It was four years since Lead had been in Boston and like all cities, construction projects and shifting businesses changed the landscape significantly, providing distracting conversation. However, once seated in the restaurant, the discussion again came round to the circumstances of Lead’s current visit.



“Well, it’s a bit complicated.” Lead sighed, leaning back taking a sip of tea. “I’ve been conversing with this man, Mathew Challahan for a couple of years now on e-mail and by phone. He’s the head of the board at the zoo. They’ve been trying very hard to revitalize the place and make it animal friendly. He contacted me initially about a wallaby problem they were having. One of the poor devils was sick, anyway, we got it all worked out and we’ve been in contact ever since. It’s been a few years now. I guess it was about a year and half ago, he talked to me about wanting to bring over some wombats, but there was some concern about the local possum population. We’ve been working together and put in a couple of grants, and well the end of the story is, here I am.” Lead shrugged.


“If you’d told me…” Jack began.


“There wasn’t anything to tell.” Lead cut him off. “I called you right after I got the announcement we won the funds.” Lead laughed. “You’d think you were the older brother.”


“So what’s the deal with the school?” Ally asked.


“Well, Quincy Academy is an Independent Co-educational institution, grades k-12…” Lead shifted in his chair in a manner Ally recognized in Jack as nervousness. “K-8 is a day school, but the upper school, which is grades 9-12 admits borders. It offers a college prep curriculum, with most of the students going to Ivy League schools…”


“You sound like a view book.” Jack interrupted, teasing and completely oblivious to his brother’s tension. “Are you going to teach? Kindergarten Zoologist?”


“No. There are no formal teaching responsibilities.” Lead answered dryly. “The school has a lab. I’ll probably do a few guest lectures kind of thing and the kids will work with me with the animals and getting the habitat ready. I’ll live in an apartment on campus and I can take meals in the dinning room. I’ve talked on the phone with the headmistress a few times. I can pick up keys from the secretary after 8:00 am Monday. And I have a face to face appointment with the headmistress at 11. I’m sure it will be fine.” Lead ran a hand through his hair.


“Fine? You didn’t go to boarding school.” Jack laughed still oblivious to Lead’s growing tension.


“So, what’s a wombat like?” Ally interrupted changing the subject. It was painful to watch how nervous Lead was about the whole situation. That Jack seemed to not have a clue was mind-boggling.


“It’s a cute little furry guy.” Lead lit up. “A relative of the possum, but a lot cuter. Common wombats look like a cross between a hedgehog and a guinea pig, but the Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat is more like a cross between a kola and…” Lead scowled trying to think, finally leaning on the table, he very seriously added, “well, and kind of like a small hippo.”


“Oh?” Ally replied the image appearing in her mind nightmarish. She was thankful that Lead’s enthusiasm had caused him not to notice, but charge ahead now that he was in more comfortable territory.


“The common wombat is actually most closely related to the kola. Though more solitary and largely nocturnal, during the day they burrow up to 20 meters, which can be a real challenge for spectators. The Southern Wombat is more communal, but still uses an extensive burrowing system.”


“So, who’s coming to the zoo?” Ally asked a little overwhelmed.


“We’re going to try to create a successful habitat for a few Common


Wombats, but,” Lead grinned as plates of steaming food were placed before them, “you can’t possibly care about this.”


“True.” Jack nodded reaching for a dish.


”Actually, it’s very interesting.” Ally glared at Jack, who merely laughed. “So, what do they eat?”


“Plants. A couple should be out of quarantine and arriving in a week or so, they’ll be staying in the lab for a while. I’ll give you a call for a personal introduction, if you like.”


“Really?” Ally was wide eyed. “Oh, that’d be SO cool.” She shook her head while placing two heaping spoonfuls of orange chicken on her plate.


Lead and Jack both smiled, their eyes meeting across the table. Lead gave a firm, brief nod at his brother. He liked Ally a lot. Her interest was genuine and she possessed none of the obnoxious arrogance that Jack’s last flame, Gwen, had displayed with pride. In fact, it seemed that the two women couldn’t be further apart from each other.


It was no wonder Jack couldn’t remember the wombats, Lead thought. They had talked a little about the project, argued greatly about living arrangements and why Lead hadn’t informed Jack he was coming sooner, and then spent at least twice that much time discussing Ally. Lead couldn’t remember a time when his brother had been so thoroughly enchanted by a woman. Though, after Gwen, he’d been more than a little doubtful about his brother’s judgment. But having met Ally, he was starting to understand, though their relationship still seemed a bit puzzling.

Girls just want to have fun

She's So Unusual / Cyndi Lauper












The idea of running away and having an adventure had been very appealing. And at first it was just like she expected. The windows down, the wind blowing her hair about as the car sped down the interstate. Even the radio was playing good songs. But after a couple of hours the thrill was wearing off.



Now it with the sun setting, sitting in the tiny motel room, none of it seemed as worldly. It should have though, she thought. Every day one rode in the car, but it was special to be in the motel.


She looked around the little room. It was bigger than her one at home,, which was sad if she thought about it. The room was maybe 9 X9 square. A shot gun room, her gran would have said, as it had one small window in the front next to the door and another identical one parallel in the back. In between was one chair, one night stand, one bed and a door for the bath. It took up the whole wall. A tv was hanging up in the air in the corner, it would fit any where else. Still, it was cozy. And most important it was clean.


For a while she wondered about who had stayed in this room before. Traveling salesmen? Newly weds? She didn’t think families, too small. Those thoughts though quickly turned back to the cleaning and things she didn’t want to think about it.


With a sigh she forced herself to lay down, close her eyes. In a moment she was asleep.

Out of the Ashes pt 2

Watermark / Art Garfukel









“You bought the damn car, not my fault it don’t have a VIN number.”



I hear the words like I am standing at the scene. The man was dirty, inside and out. Smug. He’d known the car was hot and that Randy would never be able to register it when Randy had forked over the 2 grand.


It was all around a bad situation. Randy was an idiot. He’d bought enough cars, he should have known. Not to mention, at that point everyone, but apparently me, knew that if you dealt with a Bosie brother it was a shady deal.


What Randy was thinking for any part of this would eternally be unclear. Yet there we were, Zach, Randy, me, standing around a parking lot with Randy whining that the car couldn’t be registered and what was he going to do? Boise arrogantly pointing out it was a case of buyer beware.


Anger and frustration caused me to intercede. It surprised everyone there, but when the explosion happened, he happened with vengeance. I cringe at the memory, though I never have remembered what I said to Boise and neither Zach nor Randy would tell me, albeit for different reasons. I do remember it was threatening. Zach laughed about it for years later.


“Damn Q, that was f***ing stupid, but ballsy, I’ll give you that.” And he’d laugh for a full minute, always refusing to tell me exactly what I’d said. Though I never forgot it was Zach who pulled me away, not Randy. It was Zach who physical held me off, who cooed in my ear that this Neanderthal would think nothing of hurting me, if not now, later and was a car worth it? It wasn’t even my car.


******


A loud snap from the fire brought my attention back to the present as I watched another beam collapse and a new spray of sparks shoot towards the sky. The volunteers now simply spraying down the grass around the structure so the fire wouldn’t spread.


“I still can’t believe he married Miss. Lennox.” Leah shook her head. “I mean, besides the fact that she was our English teacher, she was always so romantic and poetic. I can’t imagine …” Leah’s voice trailed off as she shook her head.


“Zach could be very sweet.” I shrug, avoiding the real nature of her question.


“He was always handing you a comb and telling you to tuck in your shirt.” Leah grimaced.


“And didn’t I always need to comb my hair and tuck in my shirt?” I laughed.


“Not the point.” She smiled at me.


“Zach never forgot my birthday or Valentine’s day and we weren’t even going out.” I say defensively.


“No,” she snorts, “he was too busy dating our English teacher.” She rolls her eyes at me and returns her stare at the fire.

Out of the Ashes pt 1

Breakaway / Art Garfunkel









The fire is raging. It is consuming the dry wooden structure at such a rate that complete annihilation is a foregone conclusion. However, the volunteers are still rushing about, dragging hoses, yelling orders, feeling important, and probably believing they are in control.



Leah and I stand apart from the crowd. I’m sure people have recognized us, but no one has come to say hello. While we don’t look that different from the past, our combination together would be almost undeniable. Our flower print cotton dresses blow in the breeze below matching denim jackets. Our cross-armed stance mimic each other accept when one of us brushes a strand of hair out our face. Our differences in height and hair color separate us and intrinsically identify us to everyone else.


The Halloween twins. Leah 5’9 since junior high, and me wearing heels to reach 5’2. Her red orange hair matched by complexion and her propensity to wear peach was always in distinction to my contrasting black and white manifestations. Even as we stand here now, her dress is shades of orange and mine black and gray.


“Such a shame … the loss of Woodward’s ski lodge. It won’t be the same.” She sighs.


I glance at her puzzled. I know neither of us has spent a moment of our life on a ski slope, let alone this hill the town dubbed a mountain for some contractor’s greed. The fire crackles and spits, spending a spray of sparks into the air as another beam of the lodge shifts.


“I never came up here. You?” She asks, glancing my way.


“Came up a lot in the summers with Zach.” I nod. It’s why I’m standing watching the grassy knoll catch fire. Whenever I’m in town alone, I come here to visit. Of course, I come hoping that luck will place Zach here too, but it has never happened.


*******
“But I don’t want to.” The annoyed whine of a 9 year old girl attracts my attention. She’s standing cross-armed glaring at her sister who groans. Near her, I see myself, Zach and his younger sister, Alison, standing in the parking lot.


“I don’t know why you brought us out here Zachy.” Alison’s tone and pose with her brother match the girl’s. A quick calculation places Alison now around the same age as the groaning sister.


“I told you.” Zach answers patronizingly. “I’ve brought you two out here to teach you two how to fight.”


“But I don’t want to…” Alison interrupts.


“I don’t care if you want to.” Zach’s tone is sharp. “Girls in this world should know how. Ok Q, swing at him me.” Zach orders me.


I smile as I watch my self shake my head and toe the sandy ground. Zach is the only person ever to call me Q, a playful mix of reference to the James Bond character and Suzy-Q, which he mistakenly assumed annoyed me.


“Common Q, you know you want to.” Zach pushes my shoulder, hard. “You always want to.” He laughs. “ I know I can piss you off … wanna see me?”


I watch myself swing at him from a far. I see he was right. It was all wrong. He taught us both well that day. As I turn back to the fire, I wonder if Alison ever reaped the benefit from those lessons and I hope not.






“Zach was always so…Rambo. He became a Marine or something didn’t he?” Leah glances at me.


“Army – Airborne Ranger.”


“I knew it was some solider of fortune thing.” Leah shakes her head. “He was such a boy.”


I smile. In many ways she is correct, yet I wonder what she’d think to know it was Zach I called when I was in trouble because he always came. I trusted Zach with my darkest secrets because he never told. Zach protected me, even from my self.

Maxfields

Heads & Tales / Harry Chapin











Elizabeth and Victoria stood shoulder to shoulder, purses clasped tightly in front of them and stared at the Maxfield Parish painting. It was the sister’s favorite and had been for the over thirty years they had been visiting the museum.

The spinsters liked coming once every few weeks. They would stop at favorites, visiting with them like old neighbors, which in a way they were. They would consider the new acquisitions, deciding if the particular piece was going to go into the notable category or the easily passed by category. They almost always agreed.


Some times, a particular piece would spark and interesting conversation and they stayed on in the café for lunch. Other times, it was not the museum itself that house the focus of interest and conversation, but the others who visited their particular neighbor.


Today, as the sisters sighed at the nostalgia of farm house twilight, it was clear to both of them that the real focus and the subject of a near future conversation was going to be the man equally entranced by a painting three down.


He was short, especially for a man, standing maybe 5’4”? This in and of itself would not have been notable. The sisters, each at 5’1” hardly noticed this or cared, it was first his jacket that caught their attention. It was an unusually loud hound’s tooth pattern. Thankfully his pants were black and his shirt white, because the jacket alone was enough. As he turned slightly one could also see a plan black tie.


Victoria had read once that wearing black and white made one appear smarter. Therefore that was the colors of choice when going on a job interview. It didn’t seem to work for this gentlemen. Although, maybe it did and he would have been more of a sight in a different outfit.


It was not merely the black and white check patterned jacket that made him noticeable, but that this pattern covered a sizable expanse. The man was not small in girth as he was in height. Likewise, his dark hair was tufting out of a black bowler hat.


At was a striking image. The out fit detracting from the man himself, causing Elizabeth to have to consciously shift her focus to his face to judge an age. Sadly this did not work. Not necessarily because the man looked particularly ageless, he did not. A second glance placed him in that ubiquitous range of 30-50-something. Her initial glance had been hijacked by a relatively large, rhinestone earring that formed the letters NY.


Well, yes, clearly he was the type to come from NY, but it seemed odd to have that sparkly jewelry on the pudgy man with hat and hound’s tooth. She was dying to find a way to get to his other side and see if the other ear had a match.

The Magical World of Ogres

Labyrinth / soundtrack









Mr. Snuggles was not sure about the feasibility of Mouse Soup. It sounded good, of course, but keeping the creatures in the pot he thought would be difficult. More over, he could not think of a way to accomplish this, there was no way he could explain it to Mrs. Snuggles. This was giving him a headache.

The role of Mr. Snuggles, played by Lu Lu V.

Anyone remember the TV show Slacker Cats? I really liked that show. Okay, so I know this is a rather lame writing post. All I can say is brilliance will come… maybe, eventually, some day. But today (I write at night, so yesterday) I am brain dead and living in a surreal world.


I can also report that today I learned not only about professional cleaning supplies, but about professional cleaning supplies salesmen. They, like other kinds of salesmen, really, really want to come visit you and “discuss” things. Yeah, right. Those who have worked with me know exactly how I feel about venders coming in and taking time to “discuss.” And we’re talking about janitorial supplies! What is there really to discuss. We have a soap dispenser, it takes 800 mil of soap in a box. I want the mildest, most non-allergic, cheapest option. I don’t want it to smell. I don’t care what color it is…. What is there to talk about? The benefits of 1-ply or 2?


But what really is odd, is when one is on the phone with such a vender, saying, no… I am not going to set up a meeting to discuss my needs. I am simply looking for pricing… and they get mad at you! I actually had a person today tell me if I wouldn’t set up the meeting so he could “explain” things to me, than there was no way I could order from the company. Gee, what WILL I do? There’s only 30 bizzillion others online. Would the money I save from this company actually amount to more than my salary for the hour or so I’d be stuck talking to him? And what about mental duress spending an hour discussing cleaning supplies? I don’t think so.

Opossum Project 2

Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits










It seemed to Ally that Jack’s brother must have intentionally waited to be the last person off the plane. By that point she was sick of waiting. She’d waited at the doctor’s only to have what she already knew confirmed. She’d waited for Jack after her run, only to be told he’d been side tracked and never checked online for any of the information he said he’d look for. They’d waited in line to get into the parking lot. Now she was waiting again.



When the black haired, olive skinned, handsome man, finally came out of the airplane tunnel she would have known him anywhere. He was the spitting image of Jack, only older, but there was no doubt of the family resemblance.


“Thank you for flying with us, Mr. Hernandez.” A blonde haired stewardess winked at she passed him on the concord. He smiled shyly and blushed, causing Ally to think there were at least some differences between the brothers.


“Hey Bro? How was your trip?” Jack greeted his brother.


“Hey, fine. Good.” The two men hugged.


“Good, ‘cause you look awful.” Jack laughed.


“You try flying from Australia to L.A. and then on to Boston, and well see how you look.”


Ally smiled at the mix of Australian and Argentinean accent. She understood why the stewardess had winked at him.


“Thom, I’d like you to meet Allison Kay. My brother, Thom.” Jack gestured between them.


“Ally.” She extended her hand. “Nice to meet you.”


“Same here.” He took Ally’s hand surprised by her firm grip. The small, black haired, green-eyed woman was not what he was expecting. “Please, call me Lead,” he smiled the heart melting Hernandez smile.


“Lead?” Ally glanced quickly at Jack who offered an almost imperceptible shrug.


“Work nickname, but it’s stuck.” Lead gave an awkward shrug, glancing at the floor. “We should get the luggage.” He glanced toward baggage check and the three hesitantly fell into step in that direction, with Lead in the middle.


“Lead’s a unique name.” Ally offered trying to make conversation. This was not the family reunion she had imaged. “Does it refer to the element?” She asked, puzzled. Jack had told her his brother did ‘kangaroo research’ and when pressed finally admitted he had a doctorate in Zoology and specialized in marsupials, but after that, Jack was no help. Although not Ally’s strongest subject, she wasn’t seeing any connection between lead and pouched beasts.


“No,” Lead laughed relaxing slightly, “It’s from the Gymnobelideus leadbeateri.” He paused to glance at Ally who looked at him with expectation, so he continued. “The Leadbeater’s Possum. I did my dissertation on them and then was involved in quiet an extensive research project, the name stuck and now it’s what I answer to…” Lead glanced around the airport quickly. “Well, this place hasn’t really changed much.” He added changing the topic.


“Does Mom know?” Jack laughed, but there was an edge to his voice that Ally had never heard before.


“So you’re Jack’s partner?” Lead asked Ally, answering his brother’s question with a brief look. “You don’t look like an Agent.”


“Yeah, well watch out, she can kick your…”


“So, Jack tells me you’re in town for a while.” Ally interrupted Jack, who was finding great amusement in the verbal dance. “You’re going to be working at a school?”


“Yeah. Um. Not really in town, exactly, but close.” Lead shrugged and ran a hand through his hair, a gesture Ally had come to recognize in Jack as frustration, but Lead looked outright terrified. “The school’s out in Quincy.” Lead shrugged again, looking around the baggage claim area for his flight number.


“I meant to ask you,” Jack began following his brother toward a luggage carousel. “What does a private school in Quincy have to do with the zoo?”


“They share a Board Head.” Lead tossed over his shoulder. “The school, the zoo, and the lab jointly filed the grant for the Wombat Project.” Lead responded as if all this should make perfect sense to Ally and Jack.


“Wombats?” Ally asked glancing at Jack, wondering what else he’d not mentioned.


“Yeah, for the zoo? Didn’t Jack tell you?”


“Wait. You never told me about wombats.” Jack shook his head, “I would have remembered wombats. You said they were getting some new animals at the zoo and you were coming to help them have happy homes and….” Jack stood with his hands on his hips.


“I don’t think I said ‘happy homes,’” Lead interrupted, mirroring Jack’s stance.


Ally shuddered. It was like seeing some living mirror, only with one side of reflection being 6 years older than the other side. She studied the two brothers the resemblance was eerie.


“It’s not an exact quote.” The annoyance in Jack’s voice was clear. “You said new animals at the zoo and that you’d be working with this school, which was why you won’t stay at the house, which I still say, you’re more than welcome…” Jack was shaking his head.


“Why should I stay with you in Auntie’s cold drafty old place, with a bad commute and no furniture,” Lead interrupted still mirroring Jack, “when I can have my own furnished place in walking distance from a lab?”


“At a school?” Jack asked incredulously. His brother was a confirmed bachelor, married to his work. As far as Jack knew, the man had never had a date, let alone a girlfriend or serious relationship. Although they had both played with the nieces and nephews, it was inconceivable for Jack that his brother might live among kids.


“I’m just a guest at the school…” Lead shook his head. “Hey that’s me.” He nodded to two extremely large suitcases coming out of the baggage shoot. Each was plastered with a bumper sticker reading, “I break for Kangaroos.” Ally swallowed her smirk as each brother grabbed a bag and hefted it off the conveyor belt.


“I don’t know what you’re so sore about. I’m going to stay at your place for the weekend.” Lead sighed letting the bag drop at his feet.


“You could just stay there,” Jack began.


“Usted me maneja loco.” Lead sighed. “How many good reasons do you need? I’ll even get free meals and housekeeping and….”


“Do you have more luggage?” Ally interrupted and when it was confirmed that they had all Lead had brought by plane, she rushed the brothers out to the car, announcing she was starving and they could fight about this in route.