Author Archives: Al

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Bev and Leslie planned another soireé two weeks after the strike. Jeanne wanted to bring Larry, the guy from her high school who’d loaned us his couch the night before the Uni Hall occupation, and his roommate Sam, … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! “Hello?” As soon as I heard Mike’s voice on the other end, I broke down. “They came marching up the steps…pounding on the door…it was awful…dragging them out…handcuffed, by the hair, down the steps. I saw…I saw the … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Wednesday was Mike’s birthday. I had planned on calling him that evening, in anticipation of a weekend together in Cambridge. Coming out of psych lab, I daydreamed about what I’d say, what kind of card I’d make him. … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Spring break that year, I stayed at Bev and Leslie’s place, thankful for the solitude. So much riled my brain that week. Women’s literature, with Dr. Shulmeister, opened a new arena of intrigue, providing a sense of mystery … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Mike stayed over that Sunday, going with Jeanne and I to Leslie’s for brunch. She and Bev had upgraded their place settings, or maybe someone’s parents, after experiencing the mismatched plates, cups and utensils, had bought them a … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Priscilla said, “Boom!” every time her daughter, Kimberly, knocked down the letter blocks. After only three tries Kimmie started giggling as she mouthed, “Bmm-m-m”, crashing the three-high stack with a wild sweep of her right arm. Priscilla sitting … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! In December, Mike unexpectedly came up to Cambridge on a snowy Friday evening. I got the call from our house mother as I sat studying for Child Development, cozy in my flannel nightgown and crocheted quilt, a hand-me … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! A few weeks later, on a Friday afternoon, Leslie found me in Hilles Library, indiscriminately underlining Kagan’s Birth to Maturity. With her usual abruptness, she asked, “Janie, know where Jeanne and Marcia are?” I pointed my head behind … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! That semester, Bev and Leslie moved into an off-off campus apartment. Once a single family home, each of the three stories had been carved into a separate unit with tiny bedrooms, kitchen, bath, and a dining/living area flowing … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! That languid week after Labor Day, Mike and I spent most afternoons at his house or mine. Walking around my neighborhood, sitting on the edge of his pool, watching each other pack for school, we caught up on … Continue reading →