06:00 – Shit, shower, shave. One hour commute to my telemarketing job.
07:15 – Exactly seven and one half hours until I can be myself again.
15:30 – Boss’ office. Told to improve or I will be replaced.
17:00 – Drive to next job, eat fast food while editing client’s videotape.
23:30 – Watch David Letterman.
02:30 – Wake up, startled. Run three paper routes.
05:00 – Car, coffee, commute. Back to telemarketing job for Saturday shift.
06:00 – Cannot find office. I usually take MAX from a Park and Ride, but it doesn’t run at this hour.
06:30 – Still driving around downtown, looking for landmarks and parking. Three young men stand on a steep porch — one throws a package through a waiting car window. The driver sees me. I ignore it.
06:45 – I have no idea where I am. I slow down to get a better look at the buildings. The same car pulls up the opposite side of street. A kid runs the package up a flight of stairs. The driver and I make eye contact. My heart pounds. I slam on the accelerator.
07:00 – I park. I’m tired.
15:30 – End of shift, my boss tells me he’ll give me another week. I tell him he can have his week back, I won’t need it.
15:45 – I pull into traffic. The car drives funny. The two rear tires are flat. Still really tired.
19:00 – Tires replaced, commute finished, I fall into bed.
Just reading this wore me out!
Angel, sorry it wore you out. But thanks for reading!
What a strange, funny little story, just loved the voice, the whole way the narrator saw his tightly circumscribed world as a time-line. very good piece
Thank you, Susan. I admit it was a strange approach for such a short form, but we’re having fun.
Wow. Poor guy. It’s really hard working several jobs like that. Even without any explanation, I felt sorry for him.
Some days you seize the day, sometimes the day seizes you. I actually adapted this for the theme based on a short story of mine called, “Drive.”
Think a magazine would publish it if I rewrite it based on this? LOL Never know.
Well, you had me with ‘Shit, shower, shave’, so I liked it a lot, especially “my boss tells me he’ll give me another week. I tell him he can have his week back, I won’t need it.”
Thank you for reading. I really appreciate your comment. Yeah, sometimes it feels good to tell people where to…
but I digress.
What Matt said. Very tight and taut, non-nonsense approach to a day. Super story. Peace…
Thanks, Linda. I love how your posts always end on such a nice note. And thank you for reading also.
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