Steven's Story
S — “When she goes anyplace the eyes are on her. And she makes sure I know it, and keeps me looking at her. It’s bloody demeaning.
And then she can drop it instantly and be stone cold formal. And then I feel like I’m three years old. And then she turns on the charm, and 30 seconds later I’m hard as a rock.
It’s like she knows what emotion you are having before you have it. It’s magic. I need to resist it, but I don’t know how. It scares the shit out of me.
Southwick: So have you told her any of this?
S: “How?”
Southwick: “easy, ask her what she really wants from you. What does she expect? Long term, short term. You know, that kind of thing. It is the basis of her actions. She wants you to do, be, or have something.”
S: “Oh, that again. We talk about that all the time. What I want to do with my life…”
Southwick: “And that is?”
S: “Well, I wanted to do my graduate work here in Temperate MicroClimate Variations in Speech Patterns of the St. John’s residents. But the funding dried up.”
Southwick: “And what was fascinating about Speech Patterns? Of who?”
S: “Well, it was bollox stupid anyway, the only reason I accepted the position was it was funded by the Bernie Maddoff Relief… What didIknow about Bernie Maddoff, your American Markets are not my concern.”
Southwick: “So you didn’t really know what you wanted to do, or what you want to do. And now you are in a program to study ‘Agricultural Training of Mixed DNA Chimera’ ”
S: “Yup.”
Southwick: “Kind of makes it hard to leave a nice nest with The Cougar. Free everything, all for the playing. Wanna trade lives?”
S: “Sure, what kind life you got?”
Southwick: “Well, I meditate a lot. I channel beings high and low from the facets of the 23rd crystal.”
S: “Umm. I’ll stick with what I got.”
Southwick: “So what is this Agricultural Training DNA stuff?”
S: “We give commands to spider mammal cross breeds to farm Green Elephants in the tops of the cedar trees in Forest Park.”
Southwick: “Oh Yeah, I knewthat, kinda. Big name for bugs that grow quasi-legal plants: ‘Agricultural Training of Mixed DNA Chimera’ – Sounds like there is money behind this.”
Southwick: “But the bottom line is that you need to get something and she’ll be happy to let you go get it and ‘grow up’ as she puts it. But YOU need to figure out what that is.”
S: “I don’t think I shall wait any longer. Maybe take the next offer that will get me enough bread to live normally in this backward country so I can limp through my original degree. Now unfunded, fuck you very much Mr. Maddoff.
Just then Bambi Brew walks by Slim’s and sits as Southwick stands;
Southwick: “Be careful, my friend, Happy hour is over, and I must go. Bambi, have you met Steven? Pip-Pip Rightie-o.”
S: “Yes… Um Goodbye.“
S to Bambi: “Pip-Pip Rightie-o? That went out with Terry-Thomas.”
Bambi: “Yeah, that’s old Southwick. He thinks he means well. Maybe he does.”
They talk – A few minutes later:
Bambi: “So you can actually send these bugs out to water, fertilize, spray, groom and harvest?”
Steven: “Yes, exactly. And the big ones use the little ones in exactly the same way. Many legs make quick work.”
Bambi: “And you want to be on your own?”
Steven: “Yes, of course.”
Bambi: “I know a guy over by Pier Park. He can set you up.”
Steven: “Oh, no, if you don’t have the right documents and grant approvals, you get sent to the most secret of secret prisons. They do NOT want anybody talking about these things publically.”
Bambi: “Not this guy. He is a master. Believe me. He is the master of the police shell game. We got protection.”
Next: The mysterious Tag:Tmyweb:protector}}}.