Short Story: Waiting

Hi Sandy,

I’m waiting for the morning to start. Bill is still sleeping. Had to sneak out. Didn’t want to disturb his beauty sleep. Ha, ha! Like sleep could remove his beer belly and love handles.

I shouldn’t complain. You know Marie. Her husband Smitty got hurt last December. Hasn’t worked since. It’s just awful. The roofing company he works for will not pay a cent until they have their people investigate the accident. You can imagine how long that’s going to take!!!

Oh, well. Linda Mahoney at the post office, you remember her, is quitting her job. She whispered this to me on Tuesday when I went in to mail your gift. She looked like she had been crying. Everyone always thought she had a thing for the UPS driver. I think his wife found out and raised hell.

How’s Larry doing? Bill said he talked to him at Home Depot getting supplies for his workshop. Bill said Larry was getting tired of the commute to Livermore Labs. That drive is the pits. But what are you going to do. You have to go where they pay the most money.

It’s been real hard on Bill having to change jobs after the layoff. Not much call for chemists anywhere, not that he minds working at Home Depot. At least he’s a manager, and you know, things could be a lot worse.

Anyway, I was wondering if you got your birthday gift on time and if you liked it. I know you collect those glass figurines and when I saw that crystal ballerina at Macy’s, I just thought to myself, that looks like Sandy! I hope it fits into your collection.

Well, Bill just woke up and I guess it’s time for the daily schedule to begin. I do envy your going to work every day and going out to lunch with friends.

I think about how we grew up in Sacramento and went to LA together. That was a hoot! Remember the frig that died with four porterhouse steaks in it that we had just gotten the night before with our tips from the Snack Shack?!

Sometimes I wish I had stayed my senior year, finished my degree, but Bill and I were crazy about each other and I was pregnant with Cheryl. Then, you know Bill’s mom offered to help us buy a home. Feels like a hundred years ago.

Sandy, do you ever have regrets? I mean deep regrets in the heart that have no words. Sometimes I feel like I was headed in one direction and then, hell, I don’t know what happened. So many of my days are alike. Most of the time I forget what day it is.

My girls get so impatient with my forgetting their swim meets and dance recitals. But you know nothing seems very important. Even Bill rolls his eyes at me. He says I’m unintentionally funny.

But I was funny. I was the funny one in our group and smart like you. I’m beginning to think maybe I wasn’t smart enough. So Sandy, what does a woman do when she wakes up and finds she’s living some other woman’s life? You know me, just kidding!

Send me a quick e-mail when you can. Hope to hear from you soon.

Love ya,
Amanda