Author Archives: Al

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! In the ER, they shaved my temple before sewing up the two-inch long gash left by someone who must not have been wearing sneakers. The nurses were thoughtful enough to collect the hair after they cut if off, … Continue reading →

!!!***WORKING DRAFT***!!! My parents insisted I find something, anything, that would “look good on my resume” during August. “Honey, you can’t just sit around all day here. Your friends from school, Lizzie, J, P, all of them, have jobs. Mike … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Once again, we spent every evening we could together, the week or so before I left for the Vineyard. Days when he worked early, Mike would come to my house, and watch the TV news with us, before … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! “I remember…some smells of you, of us.” We were lying on my bed, side-by-side, playing a new game we’d just invented: “What do I remember?” It didn’t matter who’d started it, the idea was to come up with … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Saturday morning, Mike arrived jittery, his usual calm replaced with a pensive anxiety. I held off on the present and birthday “card” while he explained. “There were people all over the bridge, I could barely get onto Mem. … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! As Jack hitched the derelict Dodge to the Buick, he launched into a story. “Mike, did I ever tell you about the time my brother and I had to drive down to Colorado to rescue my sister?” Not … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! “I don’t know if this is the car I’d want to be seen in, Mike.” Driving west on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Mike had the pale green Dodge Coronet working hard up the Appalachian hills. His beloved red Lancer … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! “Hey, Janie, here we are!” Jeanne waved me over to her table, where she was finishing dinner with Marcia and two other girls I didn’t know. “Oh, this is Bev and Leslie. They’re juniors, they promised to help … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! CHAPTER FOUR I place my trust apart from me Mike and I took another trip to New York to see a play, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead. After opening at the Alvin in October, word of mouth forced … Continue reading →

!!!!!*****WORKING DRAFT*****!!!!! Mike came to Cambridge during reading period, spending the first three weekends in January with me. Mornings, after I had sneaked breakfast up to him, we went over to Widener Library for three hours of study and review, … Continue reading →