Yesterday Herkamer was hurrying to leave a gas station that had fuel hoses covered with bags after a woman yelled that there was a mad man in the parking lot. Herkamer had lost it from trying to fulfill “the list” that his wife Gertrude gave him early on a Saturday morning.
Herkamer drove away from the station quickly, and as he sped down the road, he passed a blazing police car with its lights flashing and siren sounding. As the car passed, Herkamer noticed that it was the same officer inside that had stopped him earlier, so Herkamer sped up a little more. He raced back to the first gas station to finally find the “opened” sign flashing outside. He promptly purchase some fuel, and hurried out of the parking lot. For now it seemed he was safe, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he traveled toward his home.
As Herkamer arrived in his driveway, he noticed Gertrude on the front steps. She was tapping her foot and had a wooden spoon in her hand. For a moment Herkamer had flashbacks to when his mother would greet him at the door right after he did something wrong. A shutter ran through his body as he remembered those wooden spoon whippings. He drove the car closer to the house and could see that Gertrude was already talking.
When he got out of the car, Gertrude continued in sentence as though he had been listening to her, “and why isn't this grass cut already? Did you think that you could just go off and leave without saying a word? What is wrong with you Herkamer? You must be one of the laziest men I have ever seen. My mother was right,” she continued as she rolled her eyes to the heavens, “He's nothing but a bum, and you are marrying beneath you, she would say.” Gertrude continued looking toward the sky, and said, “Mother, Oh Mother, I am so sorry I didn't listen to you. Why didn't I listen to you?”
Herkamer bit his lip and slowly walked around to the back of the car where the gas can was, opened the trunk, and lifted out the heavy can. He lifted it toward Gertrude as if to say, “Does this look lazy?” and continued about his work. Herkamer knew it was folly to engage in conversation with Gertrude at this time, so he walked toward the mower to fill it with gasoline. Gertrude followed him, and was still yapping when they were stopped in their tracks by a coiled rattlesnake that was impeding the path to the mower. Gertrude stopped talking immediately, and Herkamer wished for a yard full of rattlesnakes if they had that effect.
Herkamer slowly walked backwards and toward the storage shed, and Gertrude who had now climbed upon Herkamer's back...
Stay tuned for more of the story tomorrow. Same blog time. Same blog spot. Until tomorrow...Why Say More?
No comments:
Post a Comment