Bad to Basics4
Looking onto a mirror, I see the usual, a man in his young forties, tall and in good shape, a few flecks of grey hair around the ears. I look myself in my hazel green eyes and think, another date with Phoebe, what's it been six months or so. She must have had a good run with Jason since I haven't seen her in so long. I met her first after Jason left for Hong Kong and now again after they break-up. Do I detect a pattern here?
Coming out of my thoughts, I start talking to myself in the mirror, "Oh well, anytime spent with Phoebe is good time," as he checks out his afternoon shadow and picks up his electric shaver and turns it on.
It's a nice day out for San Francisco in February; the sun's out and the temperature is in the low sixties. I turn into an alley just after I get to Glide Memorial and head for a back entrance but decide to wait for Phoebe back out on the street. It was a nice brisk nine or ten block walk from my coffee shop/ apartment, which is upstairs in the same building as my shop, on the north fringe of the Financial district only two blocks from Chinatown to the 'theater' district better know as the Tenderloin. I can look down the street from Glide Memorial and see the 'Golden Gate Theater" and the California Hotel in which I first met Phoebe and Paige. Ok, it was in an alley behind the hotel, but that's another story.
I look back down the street I walked up and spot Phoebe walking up the street towards me. When she spots me I wave at her, and she waves back. She makes her way across the street, and when she gets to me, I say, "We should have met at my shop and walked up together. We have so much to catch up on."
"Hello to you too," Phoebe replies, "And what's to talk about. I screwed up and he broke up with me."
"But you still work for his publication, don't you?"
"Yeah, but the one I work for is just one of a dozen that he owns, and I never worked directly for Jason."
We walk back into the alley and down some stairs. Margie, an older woman thin and drawn in the face but with a lot of energy, greets us as we walk into the kitchen, "Hello Jack, how are you?"
"As well as can be expected for a man of my age."
"Your age," Margie replies, "I've known you over ten years and you haven't seemed to age one bit."
"This is my friend, Phoebe; she's going to help serve tonight."
"Oh yeah, I remember you, you helped a couple of times last summer, didn't you?"
"Yeah, that's right. Sorry I haven't been here in the interim," Phoebe replies.
"Aren't you some kind of columnist or something, an advice columnist if I'm remembering correctly?"
"Yes," Phoebe says, "But I'm here just to help."
"No publicity stunts this time." Margie says, "You and Reverend Cecil haven't cooked up anything this time."
"No, Cecil doesn't even know I'm here."
"Well good, let's get to work; we have hungry people to feed," Margie commands as she turns and pushes away a cart that has a large pot on it.
Later that evening Phoebe and I emerge back on to the street. When we reach the corner, I ask, "Shall we walk back to your car or should we take a cab, my nickel."
"Ok," Phoebe replies, "I'm almost as close to home as I am to work from here, but if I walk home, I'll have to get a ride to work in the morning, either that or take Muni."
Well, I suggest we head down to the Golden Gate Theater. It'll be easier to catch a cab from there."
We head down the street towards the theater, but before we get there we hear a woman scream, "What the?" coming from down an alley around a corner.
Phoebe and I look at each other; Phoebe takes off running towards the sound of the scream. I'm thinking, I should have foreseen this, haven't we been here before?
Running after Phoebe, I turn a corner into an alley and see Phoebe doing a flying kick into head of this grayish-skinned humanoid with claws and hairless. The creature goes sprawling into a near by wall. I know see that it was on top of a young woman who lies limply on the ground. Phoebe lands deftly on the ground between the creature and the woman in a fighting stance.
I say, "Watch out for its claws, just one minor scratch, and you'll be paralyzed."
The ghoulish thing gets up and starts moving slowly towards Phoebe, but Phoebe in the last moment squats down and does a sweeping kick that trips the thing up again. This time instead of getting up it reaches out and scratches Phoebe in the knee. Phoebe barely says, "Oh no!" before she falls to the ground limp.
Having had enough of this, I move in front of the ghoul and raise my right palm forward, and it freezes where it is. I call out, "Screwy, you get your malicious troublemaking butt here, now!"
A few moments later, Screwy shimmers into the alley and says, "What?"
"You can remove this ghoul from here at once."
"Hah," Screwy replies, "I don't take orders from you."
"You want to meet your destiny right now." I say as I look into his eyes.
"Ok," as he averts his eyes from my gaze, "Sheeze, ruin all my fun why don't you."
As I watch Screwy, he walks over to the frozen ghoul, and when he touched it, they both shimmer out.
By the time, Phoebe has motor skills again; I have her and the other girl leaning against a wall with blankets around them. Phoebe asks, "Thanks for the blanket and all, but I'm missing something and what was that thing, anyway?"
"It was a ghoul, they exist somewhere between living and undead. They're easy to kill if you have acid or fire otherwise, they regenerate quickly. They feed on human flesh, dead or alive."
"Ok," Phoebe replies, "More than I needed right now. How's the girl?"
"She'll be alright, but she's still paralyzed. As soon as you can walk, we'll carry her to the street where we can catch a cab."
"Hello, I'm Jack," I say to the other girl who can hear just not reply, "You're pretty lucky that my friend and I were around. If you were looking for the darker side of life, I'd say you found it." She is dressed all in black clothing and has a gothic make-up job. "I know you can't respond, but you can hear me. We'll take care of you until you can move on your own."
The girl moves her mouth slowly at first then speaks, "Wow, that was a trip, can we do it again?"
"Do it again? You almost died, and you're welcome, too."
"Why does it matter to you whether I live or die?" She snidely retorts.
"Oh brother, we cared enough to save you now whether we care enough in the future is up to you."
"Anyway, you seem to know a lot about the darker side of life, just the kind of information I'm interested in, can you teach me?"
"Well, if you want to learn more you can follow us." Phoebe chimes in.
"Ok, can both of you walk yet?" I ask.
They both nod their heads and slowly get to their feet. We all slowly make our way back out to the street.
Looking onto a mirror, I see the usual, a man in his young forties, tall and in good shape, a few flecks of grey hair around the ears. I look myself in my hazel green eyes and think, another date with Phoebe, what's it been six months or so. She must have had a good run with Jason since I haven't seen her in so long. I met her first after Jason left for Hong Kong and now again after they break-up. Do I detect a pattern here?
Coming out of my thoughts, I start talking to myself in the mirror, "Oh well, anytime spent with Phoebe is good time," as he checks out his afternoon shadow and picks up his electric shaver and turns it on.
It's a nice day out for San Francisco in February; the sun's out and the temperature is in the low sixties. I turn into an alley just after I get to Glide Memorial and head for a back entrance but decide to wait for Phoebe back out on the street. It was a nice brisk nine or ten block walk from my coffee shop/ apartment, which is upstairs in the same building as my shop, on the north fringe of the Financial district only two blocks from Chinatown to the 'theater' district better know as the Tenderloin. I can look down the street from Glide Memorial and see the 'Golden Gate Theater" and the California Hotel in which I first met Phoebe and Paige. Ok, it was in an alley behind the hotel, but that's another story.
I look back down the street I walked up and spot Phoebe walking up the street towards me. When she spots me I wave at her, and she waves back. She makes her way across the street, and when she gets to me, I say, "We should have met at my shop and walked up together. We have so much to catch up on."
"Hello to you too," Phoebe replies, "And what's to talk about. I screwed up and he broke up with me."
"But you still work for his publication, don't you?"
"Yeah, but the one I work for is just one of a dozen that he owns, and I never worked directly for Jason."
We walk back into the alley and down some stairs. Margie, an older woman thin and drawn in the face but with a lot of energy, greets us as we walk into the kitchen, "Hello Jack, how are you?"
"As well as can be expected for a man of my age."
"Your age," Margie replies, "I've known you over ten years and you haven't seemed to age one bit."
"This is my friend, Phoebe; she's going to help serve tonight."
"Oh yeah, I remember you, you helped a couple of times last summer, didn't you?"
"Yeah, that's right. Sorry I haven't been here in the interim," Phoebe replies.
"Aren't you some kind of columnist or something, an advice columnist if I'm remembering correctly?"
"Yes," Phoebe says, "But I'm here just to help."
"No publicity stunts this time." Margie says, "You and Reverend Cecil haven't cooked up anything this time."
"No, Cecil doesn't even know I'm here."
"Well good, let's get to work; we have hungry people to feed," Margie commands as she turns and pushes away a cart that has a large pot on it.
Later that evening Phoebe and I emerge back on to the street. When we reach the corner, I ask, "Shall we walk back to your car or should we take a cab, my nickel."
"Ok," Phoebe replies, "I'm almost as close to home as I am to work from here, but if I walk home, I'll have to get a ride to work in the morning, either that or take Muni."
Well, I suggest we head down to the Golden Gate Theater. It'll be easier to catch a cab from there."
We head down the street towards the theater, but before we get there we hear a woman scream, "What the?" coming from down an alley around a corner.
Phoebe and I look at each other; Phoebe takes off running towards the sound of the scream. I'm thinking, I should have foreseen this, haven't we been here before?
Running after Phoebe, I turn a corner into an alley and see Phoebe doing a flying kick into head of this grayish-skinned humanoid with claws and hairless. The creature goes sprawling into a near by wall. I know see that it was on top of a young woman who lies limply on the ground. Phoebe lands deftly on the ground between the creature and the woman in a fighting stance.
I say, "Watch out for its claws, just one minor scratch, and you'll be paralyzed."
The ghoulish thing gets up and starts moving slowly towards Phoebe, but Phoebe in the last moment squats down and does a sweeping kick that trips the thing up again. This time instead of getting up it reaches out and scratches Phoebe in the knee. Phoebe barely says, "Oh no!" before she falls to the ground limp.
Having had enough of this, I move in front of the ghoul and raise my right palm forward, and it freezes where it is. I call out, "Screwy, you get your malicious troublemaking butt here, now!"
A few moments later, Screwy shimmers into the alley and says, "What?"
"You can remove this ghoul from here at once."
"Hah," Screwy replies, "I don't take orders from you."
"You want to meet your destiny right now." I say as I look into his eyes.
"Ok," as he averts his eyes from my gaze, "Sheeze, ruin all my fun why don't you."
As I watch Screwy, he walks over to the frozen ghoul, and when he touched it, they both shimmer out.
By the time, Phoebe has motor skills again; I have her and the other girl leaning against a wall with blankets around them. Phoebe asks, "Thanks for the blanket and all, but I'm missing something and what was that thing, anyway?"
"It was a ghoul, they exist somewhere between living and undead. They're easy to kill if you have acid or fire otherwise, they regenerate quickly. They feed on human flesh, dead or alive."
"Ok," Phoebe replies, "More than I needed right now. How's the girl?"
"She'll be alright, but she's still paralyzed. As soon as you can walk, we'll carry her to the street where we can catch a cab."
"Hello, I'm Jack," I say to the other girl who can hear just not reply, "You're pretty lucky that my friend and I were around. If you were looking for the darker side of life, I'd say you found it." She is dressed all in black clothing and has a gothic make-up job. "I know you can't respond, but you can hear me. We'll take care of you until you can move on your own."
The girl moves her mouth slowly at first then speaks, "Wow, that was a trip, can we do it again?"
"Do it again? You almost died, and you're welcome, too."
"Why does it matter to you whether I live or die?" She snidely retorts.
"Oh brother, we cared enough to save you now whether we care enough in the future is up to you."
"Anyway, you seem to know a lot about the darker side of life, just the kind of information I'm interested in, can you teach me?"
"Well, if you want to learn more you can follow us." Phoebe chimes in.
"Ok, can both of you walk yet?" I ask.
They both nod their heads and slowly get to their feet. We all slowly make our way back out to the street.
