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StrAngels: Russell
"Just as I’m reaching my hand out to open the fridge I stumble. My body falls forward and the side of my face slaps up against the door. I had to reach my arms out to give the fridge a bear hug in order to keep myself from falling down.” Though the bus was somewhat heated small puffs of Russell’s breath were visible in front of him as he spoke. “Sir, I’m just trying to keep to myself, trying to relax.” The sixty year old woman sitting to his right turned her head to look out the window. “The magnets and drawings her kids made—Carrie and Ronnie that’s their names, her kids’ names—their drawings fell to the ground.” Russell paused to laugh. “So I start picking them up and putting everything in order. She comes flying into the kitchen going off on me about how I need to be more careful. I pointed out to her that I tripped over her shoes that she left there in the kitchen. Then she starts yellin’ at me for not paying attention and telling me how I should’ve known they were there. So I don’t say anything back, I just pick up the shoes and put them in the closet. When I get back to the kitchen I asked her why she took her shoes off in the kitchen. I didn’t want her to get more mad. I was just askin’. So then she….” “Excuse me sir.” “Yes ma’am.” Russell smiled at her before putting his cupped hands to his mouth and blowing hard into them. “I don’t mean any offense by this. But, I’m really not in the mood for conversation right now. I understand you have some issues that you want to talk about and I wish you the best for your situation. But, I’m on my way home from work. In my profession I spend the better of my day socializing with people and listening to their problems. I hope you understand…this is my alone time.” She politely smiled at him. “Really? What a coincidence! I work at the Creamy Dreamy. I’m the night manager actually. So in my job I gotta deal with people and their problems all the time. What profession are you in?” The woman paused and sighed before picking up her handbag. She slowly stood from her seat. “Is this your stop? Can I help you to the exit?” Russell offered as he scooted back to give her room. She completely ignored him as she moved the grip of her hand from silver pole to silver pole down the center aisle before finding a new seat five rows ahead of him. Two stops later a tall skinny teenage guy got on the bus. Russell moved over to the window seat. “I’m in the doghouse man!” Russell said as the kid sat next to him. “What?” The strange kid gave him a confused look trying to figure out if Russell was talking to him. “And it’s all over shoes, dude, can you believe it--her shoes! So I’m going to the fridge to get some milk and….” ***** Russell pulled his coat together tight at the center of his chest. He looked around and smiled through the chill. It was the first time he had gotten off at the newly added stop on the bus route. Prior to today he had to walk five blocks to get to his apartment building. With the new stop he was only going to have a block and a half to walk. A paper posted on the green pole of the streetlight caught Russell’s eye. “LOST DOG” read the top. It had the color picture of a small black and white Shih Tzu. He started laughing when he noticed that the dog’s name was listed as “Russell”. When he realized that the date the dog first went missing was only three days ago he instinctively began twisting his head around as if he’d magically be able to spot the dog somewhere nearby. After a couple minutes his cheeks began to burn from the fierce wind. He continued his trek home. ***** “Okay people…we’ve got a big day ahead of us!” Russell put his hands at the sides of his blue and white stripped uniform as he paced back and forth in front of his team—two cashiers and three kitchen attendants. Not a single one of them at or above the age of twenty. “Mr. Waston sent out an e-mail stating that sales are up the past two weekends versus last year. And last year’s comparable week to this week was the biggest week of the month! Do you know what that means?” Russell paused as he asked the group. Nobody answered. They didn’t even acknowledge that a question had been asked. “Amber…how about you…do you know what that means?” Russell pointed to the short thin cashier. Her dark hair poked out from underneath the sides of her blue and white striped hat as she snapped her gum while staring back at him. “Amber?” “Russell…it’s Friday night. We know we’re gonna be busy. I don’t think we need sales figures from old man Waston to tell us that. Can we just go out to work already!” Amber crossed her arms as the other teens grumbled and nodded in agreement. “Good point Amber, good point! Man…I am so proud you guys, my team. You are so in tune with your jobs. You know how it rolls! On top of that you’re all eager and ready to go to work! I like it, I like it! Give me some!” Russell got excited and walked across the row to give each person a high five. “Okay…before you get to work I’ve got one more thing. I also got an e-mail from 1st shift, from Randy. I guess when they came in this morning the nozzle filters on the soda fountain were not cleaned. Now…this is the basics people…the fundamentals!” Russell got back to pacing before them. His head down—eyes looking at the floor tiles as he spoke. “I cleaned the nozzle filters last night…I clean them every night.” “Well, James. I know you do. But, this morning one of his team members had a customer complain about a floatie in their drink. After they investigated they found out that the filter for the lemon-lime spout was not properly cleaned. Now I probably wouldn’t be making such a big deal about it but this time he copied Mr. Waston on the e-mail. This is getting serious, people!” Russell looked around avoiding eye contact with James as he spoke. “So…I missed one filter and you’re going to let them nit-pick me! They’re supposed to empty all the garbages at the end of their shift and every day, every day the back kitchen one is filled to the brim and I get stuck emptying it! Nobody says anything about that!” James stood from his slouch against the metal sink counter. “Really?” Russell pulled a small spiral notebook from his back pocket. He flipped it open before putting his black pen to the pad and started scribbling notes. “I’ll take care of this James. I’ll be sending out an e-mail for sure and I myself just might copy Mr. Waston, don’t you worry! Now what garbage can do you have to empty every night?” Russell focused on the pad as he asked. “The back kitchen one….the one you’re standing right next to.” The group of them began laughing as Russell turned to the left and looked at the large gray can with plastic and cardboard bulging out from the top—a few straw wrappers and empty cups were strewn across the floor next to the can. “Okay…good…this is good stuff people! We’re improving teamwork between the shifts! I’ll get the word out. And James, don’t you worry about this can. I’ll empty it myself today.” Russell returned his notepad to his back pocket. “Alright team, big night...big night…let’s go out and get ‘em!” He clapped as his team sluggishly moved from their spots to straighten their uniforms and gravitate toward their assigned areas. Russell stared at the overflowing can. Something hit him on the back left side of his head. He heard some muffled chuckling behind him as it happened. Russell looked to the ground--it was an onion ring. He slowly knelt down to pick it up. He added it to the garbage can without turning around to see who had thrown it at him. ***** “So…I was thinking I could stop by after I get off tonight. It looks like we’re going to have a bunch of leftovers of those corndogs that you like. I should be able to bring by a bunch for you and the kids!” Russell spoke into the beige receiver of the phone as he looked through the doorway out to the kitchen area. James and Kevin were playing “deep fryer basketball”—tossing chicken nuggets from across the room into the deep fryer seeing who could get the tallest splash of oil to hit the white wall behind it. “Look…Russell. I think we should call it quits. It’s not working out between us.” “But Olga…I…I thought you wanted me to move in with you and the kids. I already told my landlord I was moving out. I’m sorry about the thing with your shoes! Don’t you worry…I’ll be more careful and watch where I’m going when I move in, I promise!” “It’s not about you stepping on my shoes. It’s…it’s…just in general…a lot of things. It just isn’t working between us. Don’t call me again.” She hung up the phone. Russell slowly placed the receiver back on the phone’s base. He looked across the desk top. The picture frames that crowded it were of Randy and his girlfriend—prom, homecoming, a night out in the city. Over in the corner against the wall was a birthday card that Olga had given Russell last month. He reached over Randy’s field of pictures to pick it up. He folded it closed and placed it face down on the desk so that he didn’t have to look at the crazy blue cartoonish “30” on top of a goofy pink and white cake. ***** THE E-MAIL: First Draft 9:35pm (not sent) To: Randy Bennett CC: Mr. John Waston From: Russell H. Sidders Attachment: trashcan.jpeg (picture of the overflowing back kitchen trash can)
Randy,
Today one of my team members pointed out to me that the trash cans are often not emptied as per the written process and duties set forth by Mr. Waston for the “Creamy Dreamy Shift Regulations”--page 22, second paragraph. Tonight I personally witnessed this and have attached a picture. I hope that you can cover this with your team and correct the situation as soon as possible.
Sincerely, Russell Sidders 2nd Shift Creamy Dreamy Manager
THE E-MAIL: Revised Version 10:40pm (not sent) To: Randy Bennett From: Russell H. Sidders
Hey Randy,
Today one of my team members pointed out to me that the trash cans were not emptied. I personally witnessed the condition and emptied the trash myself. I know we are the same team and I hope that you can cover this with your team members. Thanks for your help with this!
Later, Russell THE E-MAIL: Final Draft Midnight (sent) To: Randy Bennett CC: Mr. John Waston From: Russell H. Sidders Attachment: fountainfilters.jpeg
Randy,
I covered the issue you brought up today about the soda fountain filters not being cleaned. Every member of my team understands and this issue will no longer happen anymore. I have attached a picture of all the filters laid out and cleaned. I have posted the picture in the break room area in the back so that they can use this as an example of your expectations. Your team is doing a great job and we owe it to you as partners to make sure we provide the same. Keep me posted if any other issues arise.
Sincerely, Russell Sidders 2nd Shift Creamy Dreamy Manager
***** The front hall of the apartment complex felt like it was the most heated place in the building. Russell wasn’t sure if it really was or if it just felt that way because it was the first place you got to after braving the elements. Either way he sighed in relief as he entered and walked toward the stairway. A posting on the cluttered bulletin board filled with items for sale and community announcements caught his eye. At the center of a whirlwind mess of different sized colored sheets of construction paper, a plain white sheet with the words “FOUND DOG” at the top caught his eyes. Russell read the notice. It stated that the dog was an older black and white haired Shih Tzu. Russell tore off a small tab at the bottom that had a contact phone number scribbled across it. He put it in his pocket and continued up the stairs. ***** The next morning Russell went down to the apartment building’s office. He sat across the desk from the building manager looking around at the orange and brown ‘70s décor. “What do you need?” “I…I know I was going to move out at the end of the month but I had something happen. You’ll never believe it. I was going to get a glass of milk at Olga’s house. And…and for some reason she left her shoes in the kitchen. I didn’t see them and almost fell. Well, I kinda did fall but not completely….” “Sidders!” The manager interrupted. “So you’re telling me you want to stay in the apartment, that right?” “Yes…yes…that’s right sir.” “Do you have next month’s rent?” “No…no I don’t because my plans fell through. Probably because of her shoes but she wouldn’t admit it. I had given her the money I was going to use for rent so she could get some things she needed for the house to get it ready for me when I moved in. But, I’ll have the rent for you on the first, I promise!” “I don’t know Sidders; you’ve missed the mark before. That’s why I had to change our agreement. You know you are required to have it a week before the start of the following month.” “I’ll get back on that program…just because of the situation I’ll have to give it to you on the 1st for this month. But that will only be for this month.” Russell sat forward and put his elbows on the edge of the brown desk. “Alright. I promised the apartment to a couple that I interviewed today. But they didn’t give me a deposit. If you can bring the deposit down to the office by Friday morning I’ll hold it for you. I’m gonna stick to this time line! You got me?” “Yeah…I hear you. It, it might be a bit tough for me to come up with the deposit. I don’t get paid until the 1st.” “I just gave you your deposit back two days ago! You didn’t go and piss it all away renting another crazy bird statue did ya?” “Oh…oh no!! I forgot that you returned my old deposit. I still have it upstairs in my underwear drawer. I’ve still got it and I’ll bring it right back down. Don’t you worry!” ***** Russell slugged around the kitchen getting the coffee maker set up. While waiting for the brewing to take place he picked up the kitchen wall phone. “Hello.” The voice of a woman came through the receiver. “Yes…This is Russell Sidders. I saw your posting in the hall of the Beadle Street Apartment Building for a found dog.” “Yes…yes…I found him hiding by the dumpster in the alley a few days ago. The poor thing was freezing to death! Are you missing a dog?” “Call him ‘Russell’ and see how he reacts.” “Okay. Hold on one moment.” The clunk of the phone being put down was followed up by a muffled “Russell, here boy…here boy, Russell!” A minute later the lady was back on the phone. “His ears perked right up when I said the name…It’s him! The dog responds to Russell! Where do you live?” “Actually I live right inside the Beadle Street Building!” Russell pumped his fist in the air as his eyes watered up a bit. “That’s great!” The woman returned. “I’ll be right over; I’m only like two blocks away.” “Whoah! Wait a minute lady! Russell’s not my dog. I just saw a sign for a lost dog on a streetlight the other day. The dog’s description matched up with your flyer in my hall, that’s why I’m calling.” Russell frantically motioned his free hand in the air. “Oh, okay. Do you have a number or address from the flyer?” The woman asked. “No I don’t. But you can go check out the flyer to get the phone number. I think it has the address on it too. The flyer is on a light post down on 3rd street about a half a block south of the Matchright Street bus stop—you know that new bus stop they added. You have no idea how awesome it is for me that they put that new stop on the route. I used to have to walk like five blocks to get home, but now I only have to walk like a block and a half. Right now with this weather like it is…” “I didn’t know they added a new bus stop.” “Really? You know what. It’s only a block and a half away. I’ll go get the number and call you right back!” Russell rambled off and hung up the phone before she could respond. He pushed himself into his coat before heading back out into the cold. ***** “1-815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 1-815-274-92641-815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264, 815-274.” Russell mouthed the numbers over and over down the block before he burst through the door of the apartment building. Olga stood before him at the foot of the stairs. “Give me a pen! 815-274-9264, 815-274-9264!” He shouted as he reached his hand out in her direction. “What?” She questioned before swinging her shiny black purse off her shoulder and cracking it open. Olga quickly found a pen and handed it over. Russell continued to mouth the digits aloud as he wrote the phone number on the back of his hand. “What are you doing here?” He asked as he gave her back the pen. “I wanted to say that I’m sorry. I’m sorry for the way I acted toward you last week when you ruined the way I had the front of the fridge decorated. And I’m sorry about the phone call when I hung up on you. I was in…in a bad mood. I wanted to apologize in person.” Olga, with her large round frame covered by a long black coat, lifted her arms in the air. “So…does this mean that you still want me to move in with you next month?” Russell asked as he cautiously stepped toward her. “Yes…yes…of course yes!” Olga’s round cheeks jumped up as they shared a tight hug. ***** “Can I get you something to drink…a soda or some lemonade?” Russell asked. “No…no I can’t drink anything cold.”
“Okay. Hey…I’ve got a lot to fill you in on! Randy has been a real
piece of work at work lately. He actually copied Mr. Waston on an e-mail! On a
nasty e-mail about the filters! But don’t you worry, I’m gonna get him back by
taking the higher ground! Also I think…I think I found someone’s lost dog for
them. Very cool!” Russell showed the inked phone number on the back of his hand
to Olga before sitting next to her on the ragged burgundy couch. “What’s wrong honey?” Russell quickly put his soda can on the warped dark brown coffee table before them as he stared intently at Olga’s mouth. “Is that tooth bothering you again?” “It’s getting worse. It hurts me every minute of every day and the pain is getting stronger.” Olga said as tears began to slowly run from her eyes. “I have to get it pulled.” “Did you go to the dentist?” Russell asked as he put his arm on her shoulder and began to softly move it in circles around the side of her back. “Yeah, but without insurance, it’s gonna cost me too much. So I went to that little dentist place in the strip mall by my house. He’ll do it without insurance as a one shot deal for a hundred and fifty dollars. But, where am I gonna get that kind of money?” Olga winced after speaking. Russell thought for a minute before jumping up from the couch. He went to the bedroom and yanked the top drawer open. He pushed his socks and underwear aside to find a white envelope. Russell ripped into it and pulled out the stack of bills. He counted out 8 twenties. “Here” “What’s this?” Olga asked as she stared at Russell’s extended handful of twenties. “I don’t have any tens. So this is a hundred and sixty dollars. The extra few bucks should take care of taxes but if you don’t need it for that use it for something else. Maybe you could get something for Carrie and Ronnie.” “I…I can’t take this from you Russell.” Olga pushed the money back with her left hand. “Olga, it’s extra money. Get that tooth pulled. I don’t want to see you in this pain. You need to take it. I insist!” ***** The crew usually gathered together by the back dumpster to have a few smokes before work. James was nowhere to be found. Russell walked to the back of the Creamy Dreamy near the drive-thru three or four times to see if he had shown up yet. The other two back kitchen staffers were there as were both cashiers. Russell went over to the manager’s desk and flipped through his calendar book to make sure that he had scheduled James for tonight’s shift. He did have him scheduled. “Everything okay, bro?” Randy asked as he walked behind the frantic Russell to grab his coat from the wall hook. “Yeah, don’t you worry…I’m good.” Russell said as he shut the book. “Alright alright! Hey buddy, for your start up meeting, thank everyone for having those soda fountain filters clean. They’re on top of it. Good job bro!” Randy put two quick pats on Russell’s back before he left the managers’ office. Russell took a deep breath before he leaned over past Randy’s picture farm and picked up the Birthday card that he had gotten from Olga. He opened it and stood it back up in its place near the back wall. Russell stared at the cartoonish front and smiled—forgetting his concern about missing a team member for the evening. He hopped up and down a couple times before taking a deep breath and swiftly walking from the managers’ office past the overflowing back kitchen garbage can to give his start up meeting. ***** “Hello.” “Hello…I have some good news for you!” “Who are you?” The gravel voiced male slowly asked. “This is Russell Sidders. I do believe sir that I’ve found your dog…I’ve found Russell!” “No…no…no…that’s not my damn flea bag! That…that damn thing is older than me for chrissakes!” “I’m sorry sir?” Russell looked at the back of his hand. Having been there for the past twenty four hours the letters were smudged 815-274-9264. 815-274-9264. He looked closely to make sure he had dialed the right number. “It’s my son’s dog. He’s out shopping with his family right now. Where are you?” “I’m at work. But I live at the Beadle apartment building on Beadle Street.” “What’s your name again? Siddons?” “It’s Sidders…Russell.” “Alright, I got your name down and I’ll let my son and his ornery-ass wife know that you got their damn dog.” “No…sir, I don’t have the dog! I have the number of the lady that has the dog. Hold on one minute and I’ll get it for you so you can pass it on to them.” Russell put the beige receiver down on the manager’s desk as he stood up. He reached around to pull the brown slip from the back pocket of his blue and white striped pants. “Russell you need to get to the front line…James is here!” Amber shouted as she ran into the manager’s office. “Great!” Russell looked up to the clock. “Two hours after start of shift. I’m glad he’s here but I’m going to have to mark him down for a late. I’ve got something to take care of real quick and then I’ll be right out there.” He sat back down and picked up the phone receiver. “No Russell…you really need to get out here now! We think he’s drunk!” “What?” Russell put the phone down and stood up. He dropped the brown paper phone number on the top of the desk as he walked over to Amber. “What makes you think that? The smell of his breath, is he stumbling or slurring his words?” Russell put his blue and white stripped hat on before putting his hands on his hips. “No…none of that.” Amber squinted as she spoke. “We think he’s drunk because he’s wearing a pink tutu over his uniform, dragging around a life-sized alligator stuffed-animal and is standing on the front counter pissing all over the soda fountain.” ***** Russell pulled the last two pictures that he had hanging on the living room wall and put them in a box he had positioned on the couch. Just as he was about to tape it shut the door-bell rang. “Hello, Mr. Sidders. You called me the other day about the missing dog.” A woman wearing a red hat in a red coat stood in the doorway—a small black and white Shih Tzu in her arms. “Yes, I am. Is…is that Russell!” The dog turned its head and looked at him. The lady proceeded to hand the dog over to Russell. He smiled down at the dog as they locked eyes. “I think he’s sick. I’m not sure how long he was out in the cold but being as old as he is, I think you’ll need to get him checked out.” “Wait a minute lady. Like I told you on the phone this isn’t my dog. It’s the dog of some people who I don’t even know. They got a flyer not too far from here down by the new bus stop.” “Sir, I know…I know you said it wasn’t your dog but I can’t keep him at my place any longer. I can’t have pets in my apartment.” “I…I…I’m not allowed to have pets here either.” “My cat is not really getting along with him. Also, I’m allergic to dogs. I’ve gotta go I really can’t keep him any longer. Sorry!” She dashed away from the front of the door to run down the hall. “How do you have a cat if your apartment….your building doesn’t allow pets?” Russell softly questioned the empty hallway. After shutting the door he put the dog down. He sat on his hind legs for a minute before he stood up and started walking around the room. The dog sniffed everything in front of him as he shivered. Russell went to the kitchen and pulled out a bowl from the cabinet--grabbed a carton of lemonade from the fridge and filled it up. He then took some crackers from a box and crumpled them up onto a plate. He put them on the floor and shouted out “Here boy!” a couple of times before going over to the wall phone. Russell looked at the back of his hand. The number had been almost completely washed away. After the first 4 numbers he couldn’t make out the rest. He paused to close his eyes and think for a minute. After two attempts to dial the owners of the dog he got the number correct. “Hello.” It was the same gravel-voiced old man that answered when he called from work the night before. “Hello. I’ve got great news! I have Russell here in my possession at my house.” “Russell?” “Your dog Russell, we spoke the other day.” “Not my damn dog!” The man shouted back. “Sir…I know but could you tell your son and his wife that I have him here. I’ll give you my address so they can come by and pick him up.” “Can’t do that my friend. They left this morning for vacation.”
“Why did they go on vacation when they knew I found their dog?” “I’m sorry sir. I was at work when I last called and a serious issue came up. When do they come back?” “They’ll be back in two weeks.” The old man let out a barrage of coughs. “Is there a chance you could come pick him up? They don’t allow pets in my apartment.” “You can carve that damn mutt up and make it a floor mat for all that I care! Call back in two weeks.” The man hung up the phone. ***** “So I’ll need your name tag and…and…and your smock as well.” Russell tried to keep his hands from shaking as he asked James to return his official blue and white Creamy Dreamy-issued uniform. “I can’t believe this! You guys are gonna fire me for missing a day of work!” James stood from his chair “You reported to work while intoxicated James.” “I never punched in, so technically I never did report to work. At the very worst I was a rowdy customer.” James argued. “Mr. Waston’s e-mail says that we’re going easy on you. In the closing paragraph he even said you’re very lucky that there was no permanent damage to the deep fryer and that there were no customers here or we would indeed be pressing criminal charges.” Russell moved his eyes around looking across the floor tile. “Criminal Charges? Whatever, man! I’ll go work at the Chickie Chickie. They got better food there anyway! I’m outta here man!” James turned and darted out of the managers’ office.
***** At the end of the shift Russell picked up 5 burger patties from under the heating lamp and placed them in a Styrofoam container before tossing the rest of them in the garbage. He used a plastic Spork to mash and scramble the meat until it became a nice little pile of ground beef. From the fridge in the back he pulled out a gallon of milk and filled two large cups. “Amber, come here for a minute.” “Yes, Russell.” “Ring me up for two Super-size drinks.” ***** A short chubby Hispanic woman sat next to Russell on the bus. She looked down at the cups he was trying to carefully hold on his lap. Small drops of milk lined the sides of the cups and his hands. Russell moved them out on the tops of his knees to avoid more spillage from the shaking of the bus. He looked up at her. When their eyes met she gave him a muted smile. “I found a dog. He won’t drink the lemonade I gave him. Well...actually I didn’t find the dog. I found a poster about him. Well…actually I found two posters about him.” Russell began rambling. The woman nodded. Her eyes quickly blinked as she seemed to be listening to him. “Actually it was right near the bus stop where I saw the first flyer about the dog. He’s a nice dog. He doesn’t do much. I shouldn’t even have him but when my girlfriend came over I didn’t call back the lady who found the dog right away. And that led to a big mix-up. Then my girlfriend was there and her tooth was hurting but she had broken up with me a little bit before that but now we’re back together. I made her mad when I was going to get some milk from the fridge and there were some shoes there on the kitchen floor. Just as I’m reaching my hand out to open the fridge I stumble. My body falls forward and the side of my face slaps up against the door. I had to reach my arms out to give the fridge a bear hug in order to keep myself from….” ***** Russell called out for the dog a couple times. He walked slowly into the living room. There was a soft wheezing whimper coming from the dog’s nose. “Don’t you worry buddy! I got some goodies for you tonight!” Russell placed the Styrofoam container burger meat in the microwave. He picked up the untouched bowl of lemonade. He dumped it out and rinsed it before re-filling the bowl from one of the cups of milk. Russell tossed a small chunk of meat in his mouth to make sure it wasn’t too hot before he put the Styrofoam container and bowl of milk down on the floor. A couple seconds later the little dog was at the bowl slurping it up. Russell smiled and nodded before he turned back to the wall phone and picked up the receiver.
“Hello.” “Its past midnight can you call me in the morning?” A groggy-voiced Olga responded. “Yeah, I’ll call you in the morning. But right now I just wanted to say I’ve got a lot of great news. I fixed the problem with the dog. I’ve got him eating and drinking now. Also, me and Randy are getting along a lot better now at work. I told you that taking the high road was the right thing to do! The best news is that I’ve only got the bedroom left to pack. Randy said I can use his truck this weekend for a couple hours so I can move all my stuff over to your place.” “Yeah…about that. I’m sorry Russell but I think we’re going to have to put that whole ‘you moving in with me thing’ on hold again. I’m…I’m just not ready and I don’t think the kids are ready either. It’s not your fault Russell so don’t beat yourself up about it. Ron called me today. We had a really good, long talk. He’s going to come by and see the kids soon. He really sounded like he was serious this time. I just think I need a little more time to think about things to look at my life.” “Okay.” Russell stated softly as he stared at the wall next to the phone receiver mount. There was a point where he could see the overlap on the warped green and brown flower patterned wallpaper. After noticing a place where it was peeling up a bit, he pressed his index finger against the edge to try and push it back down. “Russell….you still there?” “Yeah…yeah Olga. I’m still here. How…uhhh…how’s your tooth feeling?” “Oh…it’s good. There’s a small pain since he pulled it. But it’s nothing compared to how bad it was hurting. The guy at the strip mall says it’ll go away completely in a couple days. Thank you so much for helping me with that. I will pay you back Russell. It’ll take me awhile but in a couple weeks I should be able to start giving you some of it back.” “No, Olga. I won’t hear of it. Don’t you worry about that money. You don’t have to pay me back. I’m just happy you feel better. Do you still want me to call you in the morning?” Russell moved his finger up and down the dislodged wall paper as he spoke. “Actually Russell, that’s not a good idea.” “Okay. How about maybe then this weekend I could come over for dinner with you and the kids or you guys could come over here to eat.” “Russell I don’t think that’s a good idea. I really need some time to get my mind straightened out” “Oh…Okay…well can I call you to talk this weekend or maybe next week.” “How about you call me next week or actually, call me in two weeks if you want to talk.” “Okay.” “Goodnight Russell.” He went over to the junk drawer in the kitchen and plucked out a clear tape dispenser. Russell tore off a two inch-length piece of tape and applied it to the piece of wallpaper that was sticking out. *****
“So Russell, dude, this is a hard thing for me to do.” Randy ran his
hand through the frosted blonde top of his two-toned hair as his face reddened.
“I’m writing you up for the incident that happened the other day when your guy
reported to work drunk.” “Technically, the 1st shift manager ranks above the 2nd shift manager. On top of that Mr. Waston sent me an e-mail instructing me to write you up on this Final Warning. Sorry, dude but I gotta cover this with you bro.” “So…I’m being written up because James came to work drunk?” Russell questioned as he looked over the front page of the write-up. “Actually no. You’re being written up because it was reported that you were on a personal phone call when it happened. The associate that reported it also noted that you are often back here on personal phone calls. Had you been up to speed with what was going on with your team you might have been able to stop the incident before James lodged the head of the stuffed alligator into the deep fryer. Next time you have any incidents like this or violate Creamy Dreamy policy you will be terminated.” Russell took a minute to look over the write-up before he signed it. “You’ll be alright, dude. You can do a good job and get past this! I’ve got faith in you bro!” Randy put the write-up into a manila envelope as he stood from the desk. “Oh…I almost forgot. I’m not going to be able to let you borrow my truck this weekend. Something came up and me and Rachel are going to go down south to hang with some of her friends. Hope it doesn’t jack up your plans too much bro!” Randy patted Russell on the shoulder as he walked past him. “It won’t jack my plans up. I won’t be needing the truck this weekend after all.” “Good deal bro!” Randy walked past the overflowing back kitchen garbage can to go flirt with Amber at the front counter. Russell switched seats over to the cheap leather chair behind the computer. He logged into his e-mail as he started thinking about how the night would go being a person short once again. After skimming through his inbox, he reached over Randy’s field of pictures to pick up the birthday card that he had gotten from Olga. He firmly gripped the top of it-- ready to tear it in half, if not tear it completely to shreds. Just before he was about to jerk his hands in opposite directions, he calmed. Russell pulled out his keys and unlocked his drawer on the bottom right hand of the cold grey metal desk. He took a quick glance at Olga’s signature and the cute little smiling heart she’d drawn on the inside before folding the card shut and putting it away in the drawer that was assigned to him by Mr. Waston on the day of his orientation. ***** Last night the shaking and whimpering continued—worse than before. In the morning the dog wouldn’t even look at the Styrofoam container filled this time with a mixture of corndog and scrambled up french-fries. The telephone rang. “Hello.” Russell answered. “Hey, Sidders…you haven’t brought the deposit down to the office yet.” The building manager stated. “I thought you were giving me until Friday morning to bring it down.” Russell asked as he looked over at the dog lying near the bowl of milk. “I know I did but I’m getting calls from that couple who wants your apartment. They’re ready to slap down a deposit right now.” “I’ll have it to you Friday morning as we agreed. Is that okay?” Russell asked. “Yeah…since that’s the agreement I made with you it’s okay. But you need to know what you’re up against here. These people have the money and are ready to rock. If you don’t have it Friday—you’re out, no ifs, ands or buts, you got it Sidders?” “Okay.” Russell picked the dog up from the kitchen floor and moved him on to the carpet in the corner of his bedroom. He brought the Styrofoam container and bowl of milk near him. The dog just laid flat wheezing without giving any type of reaction to the relocation or the food. “Hello.” The gravelly voiced old man answered. “It’s me, the guy that has your son’s dog. I have a question about….” “I told you to call back in two weeks!” He interrupted. “Sir, I know you did. The only reason I’m calling is because the dog, Russell, he seems like he’s sick, really sick. He’s pretty old. I was wondering if you knew if he was sick before he got lost and if your son had any medicine for him. You wouldn’t have to do anything…don’t you worry about that. I could come over and pick up the medicine myself.” “How in the sam-hell would I know if that thing has medicine? You need to call back when my son gets home like I told ya. You can let the damn dog choke to death and turn it into a pair of socks for all I care. Stop bothering me!” He hung up the phone. Russell pulled the phone book out from a kitchen drawer and flipped through it to find the nearest veterinarian. Attagrance Animal Hospital was eight blocks from the new Matchright Street bus stop. He immediately ran to the closet and pulled out his old black duffel bag. After lining the bottom of the bag with a few towels he picked up the dog and gingerly placed him inside. He took a final towel and put it over the dog’s back before tucking it underneath his sides to form a small, tight blanket around him. He slowly zipped up the bag and left a small two inch opening to allow air to get in. After about a fifteen minute wait the bus arrived. Russell nervously went up the stairs and placed his coins in the machine. The driver dropped his pad just as he was about tear off the ticket. When the bus driver leaned over to pick it up Russell quickly jerked the duffel bag back—accidentally slamming it up against the front wall of the bus. The dog let out a weakened yelp. “What do you have in that bag?” The driver asked. “I…” Russell froze as he moved the bag close to his right leg. “Come on man!!! Let’s get this line moving it’s freezing out here! Damn it!” A teen standing behind Russell shouted out. The driver leaned back. Looking past Russell he gave the kid a dirty stare before he pulled the ticket off the pad--punched a hole in it and handed it to him without taking his eyes off of the assumed ruffian in waiting. When Russell found a seat he carefully placed the duffel bag on his lap. He unzipped it a little further and put his left hand inside to softly pet the back of the dog’s head. A soft whimper came from the dog as it shivered.
Two stops later a family got on the bus. The mother and father sat in
the row ahead of him. Their 6 year-old daughter took the empty seat next to
Russell. The mother turned around and handed her a coloring book. The girl
pulled the dirty pink glove from her right hand and stuffed it in her coat
pocket before pulling out a small pack of crayons. She grabbed a red crayon and
began to randomly scribble across the front of a fire truck. “Yes, I can keep a secret.” The little girl returned in a whisper of her own. Her cheeks reddened as she revealed a cute smile with a gap at the front of her mouth—a half tooth poking out from the top. Russell looked around cautiously to make sure that nobody was looking in their direction. He then moved the zipper back to the half-way point and pulled the side of the bag down just enough to reveal the dog to the little girl. Her eyes opened wide as she put her gloved left hand over her mouth and started kicking her small dangling legs. The girl shoved her crayon into her coat pocket before placing her right hand on the back of the dog’s head to slowly pet it. “Is he asleep?” She asked in a hushed voice. “No. He’s awake but he’s sick.” Russell returned. “Huh?” The girl let out as she slowly pulled her hand back. Her eyes saddened as she looked down at the blue towel moving up and down along the dog’s side with every slow, wheezing breath. “Don’t you worry though…” Russell leaned over to the girl. “…I’m bringing him right now to the hospital to get him all better.” Russell whispered before putting his index finger to his lips. “Shhhh!” “Shhh!” The little girl imitated him by putting her index finger to her lips and making the same noise. Russell winked at her while carefully moving the zipper back to close the bag. The girl smiled and winked back before putting her hand on the side of the black bag to calmly pet the exterior as if it were the dog himself. ***** There were birds, dogs, cats and hamsters all secured in different forms around the circle-shaped waiting room. The stench wasn’t entirely bad but it was loud. It was an odd combination of all the animals’ scents. The warmth of the room didn’t feel artificial. It was like there was no heating unit whatsoever. It seemed as if the room was naturally heated by the bodies of the animals and their concerned owners. Russell flipped through an issue of “Crazy Cat Quarterly” while he occasionally surveyed the area. There was an older man in his fifties with a cat in a blue carrier across from him. Russell noticed how the small white feline walked around nervously in circles within its confinement. There was a lady sitting next to Russell with a bird cage. The bird remained calm—staring straight at the wall oblivious to the varied domestic wildlife rustling about the waiting room. “I don’t have any pets or any kids.” He stated to the bird lady. “Oh…so you just come here to hang out then?” She joked. “My girlfriend has two kids from another guy. He’s a real jerk. But the kids…the kids are great. Carrie and Ronnie that’s their names, her kids’ names. I’d like to get them a pet someday.” “That’s nice.” The woman nodded at him before turning her attention back to the cage. She started whistling in an attempt to get her bird’s attention. “Hey, you’re a bird person!” Russell turned his body right to fully face the woman. “I kinda got them a pet one time and it was a bird! You’ll appreciate this. This past summer I rented a twenty foot tall chicken statue and had it placed on Olga’s front lawn. You should have seen their faces when they got home!” “You rented a chicken statue?” The woman pulled her attention away from the birdcage. “Yeah! It was really cool. I saw it at this place that had all kinds of crazy stuff. They had mechanical equipment and statues of all kinds for rent. They even had a 30 foot Abraham Lincoln! It cost me too much money but she likes chicken a lot. She goes to eat at the Chickie Chickie more than she comes to see me at the Creamy Dreamy. They brought it over on a really cool truck that was a kind of long flat bed tow truck and plopped it down on her front lawn. They let us keep it there for two hours before coming back to pick it up.” “Was this for hers or one of the kids’ birthday or an anniversary or something?” The woman asked. “No I just thought it would be a fun, funny thing to do. I brought over my boom box and put in a CD of that ‘chicken dance’ song—you know the one they play at weddings. Dah nuah nuah nuah na na na, Dah nuah nuah nuah na na na ….” “Ha Ha…yeah yeah I know that song!” “I could tell that Olga was really mad at first but when the kids ran out from her van and started jumping around she warmed up to it. We all did the chicken dance and were cracking up the whole time. Some of the neighbors thought we were nuts but a couple of them actually came over and got a pretty good laugh themselves. They took a lot of pictures. We took some really cool pictures too. Actually, I’ve got a couple on me.” Russell pulled out his wallet and removed two folded up 5 x 7 pictures. He handed them to the lady. One was of the two kids and Russell with their arms folded up like chicken wings smiling and dancing. The other was of Olga and the kids posing with the ridiculous yellow and orange statue. “It was fun.” Russell stated in solemn tone as he stared down at the crumpled white creases crossing the glossy visages. “It looks like it!” The woman handed the pictures back to him. “Just as I’m reaching my hand out to open the fridge I stumble. My body falls forward and the side of my face slaps up against the door. I had to reach my arms out to give the fridge a bear hug in order to keep myself….” “Excuse me sir?” The woman said. “I was at her house and all I wanted was to go get a glass of milk. I had to reach my arms out to give fridge a bear hug in order to keep myself from falling down. I guess she had left her shoes there on the floor and I didn’t see them. So when I was going for…” “Mr. Sidders?” A young sandy blonde-haired nurse came into the waiting room. “That’s me!” Russell jumped up from his seat as he struggled to get his wallet into the back pocket of his jeans. “You brought in the Shih Tzu, correct?” She asked as she flipped through the pages on top of her clipboard. “Yes! Yes…his name is Russell! Did he make it?” “I’m sorry…make…it?” The nurse asked. “Is he still alive?” “Oh…yes…yes of course sir. Russell is alive. He’s recovering but he is in some bad shape overall. Your dog has a case of Canine Parvovirus--‘Parvo’. Basically it is a doggie flu. It is treatable but with your dog’s age the results of his treatment are uncertain.” “Oh my Lord!” Russell put his right hand over his mouth as his eyes watered up. “Relax sir, we gave him a shot of vitamin B-12 and he’s doing just fine. The shot costs fifty dollars. You can go pay the cashier and in few minutes we’ll have him out to you and ready to go. You will have to bring him back here for the shot every day for the next ten days. After that we’ll evaluate the status of the Parvo and see if we need to continue the regiment.” “Okay.” “You will need to keep an eye on the symptoms and let us know if you are seeing them occur in any type of irregular pattern.” “Okay.” “Let us know if the canine experiences any excessive vomiting, fever or bloody diarrhea.” “Okay.” “My best to you and your pet.” The nurse patted Russell on the bicep twice before walking past him to the waiting room. “Mrs. Backerlin?” She flipped through the pages on her clipboard as she shouted. Russell turned his head to see that Mrs. Backerlin was the bird woman. He smiled at her as she walked past him with the nurse to bring the cage through the swinging doors leading back to the hospital rooms. “I need to pay my dog’s bill.” Russell stated to the man in blue scrubs standing behind the cash register. “Your last name, sir?” “Sidders. I brought in the Shih Tzu.” “Got it. Give me a minute to pull it up here on the computer.” The man punched some keys as he smiled. Russell turned his head back to the waiting room. The white cat in the blue pet holder had stopped pacing around in circles and was now lying down and letting out a groan that was a mixture of a meow and a hiss. The sound of the cat’s wail stood out above the other animal noises and people chattering. “Alright, that’ll be $138.75.” The man stated as the printer shakily jerked out the bill. “138 dollars! The lady told me that it was only going to be fifty dollars!” Russell leaned over the counter to try and get an upside down look at the receipt that was emerging from the printer. “This is the first time that you’ve brought your pet here. The fifty dollars that she quoted you was for the shot. There is a sixty dollar registration fee and a twenty six dollar charge for the check up and diagnosis of your pet’s condition. The good news is that those charges are a onetime hit. When you come back tomorrow for the next B-12 shot we will only be charging you for the flat fee of fifty dollars for the shot.” Russell reached around to his back pocket to pull out his white envelope. He counted out seven twenty dollar bills and laid them across the counter. ***** “You’re late!” Randy was leaning against the back dumpster hovering over Amber as he shouted out. Russell continued past them to enter the back door of the Creamy Dreamy.
“Hey! Didn’t you hear me back there?” Randy asked. Russell ignored him as he walked to the wall left of the desk to grab his blue apron. He pulled the top string of it over his head before tying the side strings behind his back. “Russell, I’m talking to you…you’re pretty late here.” Randy grabbed Russell’s shoulder and pulled him back so that he could look him in the face. “I had to get your shift going for you since you weren’t here on time! I needed to get out of here, I got things to do, bro!” “Things like hanging out with my cashier while she’s on the clock, keeping her out back by the dumpster and leaving the front line under-staffed.” Russell stated as he put his blue and white striped hat on. “Hey bro! Me and Amber are just friends. There’s nothing going on between us.” Randy calmly patted the same shoulder that he roughly pulled back a moment ago. “I didn’t say there was anything going on between you two.” Russell stated as he picked up the prom photo of Randy and his girl Rachel.
“Hey bro!” Randy shouted out as he ripped the picture frame from
Russell’s hand. “Look, man. I gotta keep my options open. I need to broaden
my horizons. Amber’s a good girl. She knows about me and Rachel and how things
are not going so good between us….hey….Amber and me. Me and Amber….look I’ve
known her family since we were kids and it’s nothing new. I’ve known her damn
near all my life. So…” “Good…good Russell. But I still have to report you as being late today.” Randy stated as he pulled his apron off and hung it on the hook. “Okay.”. “Okay? Don’t you remember the write up I covered with you the other day? It was a final write up on procedures/ policies because of the fountain filters and that whole thing with James. When I report this late you could be fired.” “Okay.” Russell responded as he looked through his e-mails. “Alright, bro. I gotta get outta here. You’re all set up for a good night.” Randy patted Russell on the back before leaving the managers’ office. “Hey, Randy. Can I ask you for a favor?” Russell stood up and followed him into the back kitchen. “Sorry bro, but I gotta report you for being late. It wouldn’t be right for me to not report it. If I didn’t report it I could get fired because your whole team knows about it.” Randy responded as he walked past the overflowing garbage can. “No…it’s not about me being late. I was wondering, can I borrow 300 dollars from you?” Russell stated softly as he twisted his head around to make sure nobody else was nearby. “300 DOLLARS!!” Randy turned around and walked back to the doorway. “Dude are you serious?” “Yeah, I am serious. Don’t you worry, though! I’ll pay it back as soon as we get our paychecks on the 1st.” Russell pleaded. “Hey bro, I’d like to help you but I can’t.” “Look…Randy…I really need this help from you. I’m going to be homeless if I don’t put down a deposit on Friday morning. I will pay you back I promise. It’s very hard for me to ask this from you but I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t really, really need it.” Russell looked all around the kitchen avoiding eye contact as he spoke. “Bro, like I said, I would if I could. But me and my buddies were messing around in the basement last weekend and broke my dad’s stereo. Him and my moms are gonna make me pay for half of the cost to replace it. Can you believe that? It’s so not cool of them but if I want to keep living there I have to cough up the dough. Sorry man but I’m strapped.”
***** In the morning the dog was lively. He ate the ground beef and slurped up the milk—explored the apartment with as much liveliness as he could muster. Russell looked down at the dog’s head. His left ear was black fur but he had some browning strands. He wondered if this was the Shih Tzu’s version of grey hair. Russell wanted to give the dog a bath but was worried that it would make him sicker than he already was. The apartment was warm but barely warm. The phone rang. “Hello Mr. Sidders this is Nurse Cynthia from the Attagrance Animal Hospital.” “Okay.” “I’m just calling to confirm an appointment for your Shih Tzu Russell set for 1pm this afternoon.” “I’m sorry but Russell will not be able to make it. I need to be at work by 2pm and I don’t think that I can get to your hospital and back to work in time.” Russell looked down at the dog sniffing the side edge of his burgundy couch. “Sir, based on our records your dog has an acute case of Parvo and will need to be in today for the B-12 shot. If he doesn’t make it in we’ll have to start the ten day shot cycle all over from the beginning.” “I think that he’ll be good. He’s back to his old self again, eating and moving around the house. I think the shot he got yesterday worked out great!” “Sir, when it comes to Parvo we have to administer continuous injections to keep a constant flow of B-12 through his system in order to…” Russell slowly placed the receiver on the wall phone base before she could finish her statement. ***** Randy called off sick and his back up didn’t give much detail in his shift handoff. On the other hand, the back kitchen garbage can—along with the others—was completely emptied at the end of the shift in accordance with the Creamy Dreamy regulations found on page 22 in the second paragraph. Amber was nowhere to be found. Russell walked through the back door to the drive-thru three or four times to check and see if she had shown up. Amber was the only one missing by the back dumpster where they hung out to have a few smokes before work. The other three back kitchen staffers were there as was the other cashier. Russell went over to the manager’s desk and flipped through his calendar book to make sure that he had scheduled Amber for tonight’s shift. He did have her scheduled. After putting his blue and white striped hat on Russell hopped up and down three times before leaving the office to get ready for his start up meeting.
***** The wheezing got louder as a soft whine started to push through the noise that the dog was making. Russell pulled his covers back and slowly sat up on the edge of the bed. He felt around to try and find out where the dog was. He jumped up when he realized that the dog had either fallen from or jumped off the bed. He followed, in the darkness, the sound of the shrieking whine to find him on the floor at the other side of the bed. Russell gingerly picked the dog up and placed him on the bed. He could feel his heavy breathing as he did this. He paused as he tried to figure out what he should do next. The dog coughed hard two times. Immediately following this the dog let out a loud awkward groan that didn’t sound like anything Russell had heard from him before. He quickly flipped the light switch on. The dog lay on its side, his stomach moving in and out at a rapid pace. There was a small splash of blood on the covers near the dog’s head. The white beard-like fur surrounding his pudgy black nose was sprinkled with red specs. Russell ran to his dresser and yanked out a pair of jeans. He jammed himself into them before stepping into his shoes without tying them. After putting on his coat he scooped up the dog and charged out of his apartment. The brisk wind burned his ears as he quickly jogged through the frozen darkness toward the bus stop. He took cover at the side of a large fence to help block the wind as he carefully tucked the dog inside his coat. He zipped it up to the chest point as he stared down at the wheezing dog. When the bus arrived Russell damn near tripped as he ran up the stairs before dropping coins into the machine. “Hey bud, what do you got there in your coat?” The driver asked before handing over the ticket. “It’s a dog.” Russell pulled the zipper of his coat down enough for the driver to see him. “No animals allowed on the bus. I’m going to have to ask you to exit.” “Sir, I understand the rule but this dog is sick and I need to get him to the Attagance Animal Hospital right away. It’s only about eight blocks away—only a couple of stops from here.” “I don’t think so, bud.” “Sir, please I’m begging you!” Russell’s eyes watered up as he looked back at the seats around the bus. “Its empty, nobody is here but me and you. I’ll sit toward the end of the bus by the back exit in case anyone gets on.” “Okay, but it’s going to cost you a more than just the fare.” Russell nodded. He put his right arm under the bottom his coat to hold the dog up as he reached around to pull out the envelope from his back pocket. He struggled while balancing the dog to get the bill out and hand it over. “Twenty bucks? I could get fired for this—on the spot! And all you’re offering me is twenty bucks! Get off my bus.” The driver reached his hand out to return the bill. “Wait…wait!” Russell scrambled to pull out another twenty. The driver nodded and handed him his ticket after stuffing the bills into the shirt pocket of his uniform. ***** At the Attagance Animal Hospital entrance Russell read the white vinyl sign stating that it opened at 8am on Fridays. He proceeded to push the doorbell. Looking through the glass window into the darkened office he could hear the muffled buzz coming from behind the front counter. There wasn’t any movement going on in the offices. Russell stepped back and looked up to see if there was any action or light coming from the windows on the upper levels of the building. He returned to the door and pushed the buzzer again. “Come on, come on,COME ONNNNN!!!!!!” He shouted as he pushed his frozen finger against the black button over and over again. Tears streamed down the side of his cheeks as mucus slugged from his nose over the top of his upper lip. Russell slowly walked around the corner of the block to enter the alley. He quickly got between two dumpsters that lined the back wall of the building. Letting his back drag against the brick he slowly slid down to sit on the frozen asphalt. The fierce wind caused the metal dumpsters to create random loud clanking noises on each side of him. A shaky handed inspection /of the envelope proved that he had sixty dollars left—enough for the B-12 shot with a little left over. Russell smiled and looked down through the opening of his coat. The dog slowly tilted his head to the left. His glistening dark eyes shifted upward to stare at him. He let out two hard wheezes before his head quietly dropped down to the side of Russell’s stomach. He zipped his coat up enough to cover the dog from the bits of wind that the dumpsters were failing to block. “J..ju..jus…just over an hour until this place opens up.” Russell’s face shook and his teeth chattered as he spoke. “We’re going to be alright, Russell. Don’t…don’t you worry.”
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