(pens seem magically to appear tucked in over his left ear – his usual way was tucking them in was over his right – sometimes  unknown to him  he walked around with pens above both ears and when he wore his hair long their red caps showed and people consistently helpfully-intended would pluck at the capsYou got something in your hair not realising what it was or that a pen was attached

                                                                                                    when he wore slacks he always had two three paper leaves folded up in his back pocket so when he was moved by minutiae intrigued he could write it down
he kept his front pockets for coins his right for folded cash his drivers license and debitcard slipped inside secured within the denominations
(as close to church as he would ever get willingly) )

as he walked to-days minutiae occurred in a word    oracle

though he didnt think of it in its usual definitionbut of the definition he learned rather affixed to it as a kid as he slaughtered the neighborhood kids in stoopball with his presumed uncanny ability to catch the step-edge and launch the rubber ball beyond the home run line marked on the sidewalk behind themblasting it over his inert opponent  whose only reaction was to watch it go byebye  putting the game utterly beyond reach or cinching a win in the ninth
a walk-off homer

it was pure hand-eye coordination
                          he was curiously blessed(as close to church as he would ever get willingly) with an accurate and strong throwing arm

they  all the neighborhood kids  devised and agreed to a 9-run slaughter rule at the end of five innings so he could be onto the next kid and not waste time playing futile games

one day while throwing against either concrete or wood stepshe couldnt remember – each kids house had a stoop hence the notion(it was only a notion) of homefield advantage – and while throwing the ball against the stairs the vanquished homefield kid went into his house and returned carrying a Magic 8-Ball he received for his recent birthday

he never saw a Magic 8-Ball before

the kid went on an on trying desperately to gain back some esteem from his slaughter-rule loss about a very curious notion that the 8-Ball was an oracle  it could foretell the future

breathlessly he went on about how you had to concentrateReally concentrate  hard  I mean hard  then ask a question that can be answered Yes or No  And the eight-ball will tell you It is certainIt is decidedly soWithout a doubtYes definitelyYou may rely on itAs I see it, yesMost likelyOutlook goodYesSigns point to yesReply hazy try againAsk again laterBetter not tell you nowCannot predict nowConcentrate and ask againDon’t count on itMy reply is noMy sources say noOutlook not so goodVery doubtful

You memorised all its answers

I did

Because

Because I think as an oracle it likes that I want to know everything about it

Ah  Makes sense

Yah  Doesnt it
            Here watch  he closed his eyes tightreally tight  it looked excruciating   we all stood around him  quiet  you could hear the birdcalls the hum of the traffic on Harlem a block over behind us the neighbor ladys clothes whipping on the clothesline   Eight-ball  Will Joe win this next game too  the kid he was onto next rolled his eyes but didnt say a thing

Without a doubt it foretold

See

he shrugged  he quit counting how many games in a row hed won in his current streak  the neighborhood kids played to play of course but seemed to play to be therebe around when someone did beat him 

but nobody was holding their breath

for Joe it was like that too in pool or playing table-top hockey

it didnt seem to matter on whose table or whose hockey game they played

he rarely lost

he was too agile too coordinated too fast

hand-eye coordination

playing every game to win he lost when someone beat him

then  hed start the next streak

some of the older kids in the neighborhoodreally upset by their losses egged him into backyard boxing matches  gloves  a ring laid out on the grass with a clothesline

it was a different game

he was small

he got rocked plenty of times

his streak then was losing

then he learned it too saw things before they happened  and rocked back

hand-eye coordination(and staying out of the way of desperate haymakers)

Without a doubt  the Magic 8-Ball said

then one night sleeping over on the front porch of the neighborhood kid who owned the 8-Ball he put it through its paces

he didnt believe(as close to church as he would ever get willingly)

Ya gotta believe in the oracle if ya want it to work

It always works right for you

It does  If I have doubts about anything Ill go to it and ask

Where do you keep it

I keep it on my study desk beside my transistor radio

It doesnt foul up your radioI mean you said it has sourcesthat struck me strangea plastic ball having sourceswhat sources

Mystical sources

What

Mystical  Do you know mystical

I dont

That means that the magic eight-ball provides a sense of mystery and awe  its fascinating

Okay  For you maybe

Then its not going to work for you

But it works for you

Yes  It does

Howbout I think hard of a question then write it down for you to ask it

I dont know 
It works for you It doesnt have eyeballs

Hmm  Well    Lets try

then question after question asking questions he knew the answers to he confounded his playfriendshook his faith in the Magic 8-Ball  and as every wrong answer revealed itself he began sputtering Or  he rephrased the questions  Or     he tried to offer ridiculous explanationsOr 

it became ugly

the boy asked him to leave

he didnt want him over at his house any longer

with tears in his eyes he said You should go home I dont want you here 

Or

Whaddaya mean or

You know how often you said or to me to make some room for your eight balls wrong answers

If I said or I said or so you could see there were other possibilities

But there werent

Nonot to you

Yes  Not to me

You should go  My mom will call your mom

Then have her tell my mom Im on my wayI aint waiting

YahOkay

Yeah   Your oracle to me is an OR oracle  An oracle

Dont say that

I cant help myself 
                         Oracle(as close to church as he would ever get willingly)

1254,  Day-between-Two-Ts,  19  4. 17
1135,  Thursday,  20  4. 17(4/20)
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