he whipped up a liver sausage
sandwich onion slabs ground mustard greens kale an spinach multigrain sourdough
laid it in a graniteware pie tin beside it placed garlic pickle spears and root chips opened a cold beer poured three fingers of Klontarf and went into the livingroom sat on the sofa
to watch Swept Away a film by Lina Wertmuller
he watched it in Italianread the
subtitles
not five in he stopped
he set his sandwich down took a
pull from his beerthen a sip of his Irish then he killed the film
he thought he could watch it
he was mistaken
he left the sandwich half
eatenleft the pickles and chips
he stared at the blackened
screenlistened to the electronic static
the film wasfilm is transistional it locked him in a time warp that didnt budge TimeStandingStill
he took his girlfriendlater to be
his wife to Swept Away one of their
first dates
he immediately became engrossed enmeshed
absorbed by the film he didnt notice if
she was enjoying it or not she didnt
know of his capacity to singularly focus on film he went off in its world traipsing across the
screen as a minor characteran aside a ghost a spook dates before had left him in theatres films then were twin bills he wasnt aware they were gone until
at the first films endcredits running he turned to talk with them during the
intermission
he took that time then to go into
the lobby and telephone their homestalk wth their parentsusually their fathers
to confirm they were home safe Yah, she
called, I came and picked her up. So what the hell? he thanked them curtly without answering
their What the hell he had told his
dates what the films were that they were going to see if they didnt want to see the filmsexperience
them they should have said No. said Maybe
another film, some other time?
he anted-up gas money their
tickets their popcorn or candy their soft drinks and they slip away on him
hell maybe that was a test mebbe
afterwards he didnt approached the girls who
left him in the theatre to call Mommy or Daddy
if they yapped about him at
school it stayed in their cliques which
meant nothing to him
Cece didnt leave he she drove she could havecould have left him high and drynot that he would see it as
high and dry he always twisted
thingstortured them into a better light had she left him she would only have inconvenienced him a little
actually she would have given
him an unexpected experiencehe relished unexpected
he usually bullied unexpected
unexpected didnt expect him
either
Swept Away was shown in a camp
Art house in Coconut Grove
she did watch itshe talked to him
of its sociopolitical awareness its
frank humourous sexuality
American films werent there yet they were Shoot em ups! Bang BANG YOURE DEAD because
thats what Americans did Vietnam all these many years later was finally petering outon the ropes its fat
cats were either losing money or not making enough JesusChrist pull the miserable plug Lets fuck with Latin America Gold in dem der hills
when he asked her out for another
foreign film she said No thank you.
Maybe some other film, some other time. she
knew he was going whether she went with him or not which he did
later that night she picked him
up at the Art house and took him across the Rickenbacker to Key Biscayne
they had chilled Pouilly-Fuisse snacked
on chicken slices of papaya off the trees in her backyard
they smoked a joint played on the blanket held the beach until the sun rose
as he killed Swept Away he recognised that another film he wouldnt watch by himself was the farcical remake of Journey to the Center of the Earth (aww
yeah in 3D No) Brendan Frasers --
later of Mummy fame – coming out vehicle he resented when film became a vehicle remakes left him cold only sex had sequels however
his invitation was titillating Spike had
accepted she was coming Spike was the
tongue-in-cheek nickname a mutual friend had given her thats another story
he was very attracted her thats why he
acceded despite their mutual friend touting heof all people had amended his way and conceded to see the
remake
if Spike wasnt in the mix he wouldnt
have gone anywhere near the theatre
then as it was they watched an altogether different film from everyone else as they sat side by side in the small town Art Deco theatre enjoyed something on another planein an alternate reality thrilled in a psychic commentariat that they took turns whispering from beginning to end they irritated everyone sitting around themtook Hushes Would you be quiet? but they couldnt help themselves if they tried
then as it was they watched an altogether different film from everyone else as they sat side by side in the small town Art Deco theatre enjoyed something on another planein an alternate reality thrilled in a psychic commentariat that they took turns whispering from beginning to end they irritated everyone sitting around themtook Hushes Would you be quiet? but they couldnt help themselves if they tried
he went to
many films he wouldnt have if it hadnt been for Spikes presence and film by film by film he became more
enamoured with her
finally Spike boned up and
wondered how they might get in touch if they wanted to spend time together
separate of the group secretly
he almost swallowed his tongue Spike asked him for his number he obliged and as he wandered awayhe had a bus to catch she asked him if hed like her
number duh he was that smooth
they were inseparable since
only recent circumstances illnessesfamily illnesses put them at a physical distance
they made what time they could to spend
time together
you learn to be happy with what you
have
not with what you want
odd couples
Swept Away
a remade Journey to the Center of
the Earth
hed never see either again
his memory burned holes through them
1101, Day-between-Two-Ts, 25 4.
18
1520, Thursday,
26 4. 18
Siegel – Schwall Band Do You Remember https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dp2JXchVv8
