[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
had the first time they had met.
Linda wound up staying till closing time again. Dennis and Andrea
seemed to have deserted her and she talked with Andy for the most part
170
when the band wasn t playing. While the band was on stage though it
was hard to get a word out of him. That was okay, Linda enjoyed the
opportunity to just listen without any interruptions. Andy had asked
her for her phone number and when she gave it to him he then asked
her if there was a point in calling her. Because if there wasn t why put
themselves in an awkward situation over the phone? She was a bit
surprised at his directness but it did make sense. He had wound up
asking her out for a date before she got a chance to leave, suggesting
something other than hearing the band again because he would like to
be able to converse with her and he just didn t do that when the band
was playing. Again she thought he was awfully direct but once more it
all made sense.
They dated off and on for several months, sometimes going to hear
Andrea's band after dinner somewhere else. He never did talk much at
those times but at least he would dance with her, and he really seemed
to enjoy that. Andrea always gave them a big hello when she saw them
and Linda found herself looking forward to talking with her on nights
that she stayed till the band was finished.
She liked Andy. He was thoughtful and pleasant, and he seemed to
really like her, but there was something a bit strange about him.
Strange in a different way than Dennis. Dennis seemed to somehow
belong in a slightly different world. Andy on the other hand seemed to
fit in just fine but he would make leaps in conversation that left her
confused and had a way of talking to her as if she was a lifelong friend
long before she felt that sort of closeness in return. His relationship
with Andrea was a puzzle. If she had been asked to describe it she
would still have had to say that they seemed like brother and sister, but
Dennis had told her that the two of them been lovers sporadically over
the years. She had come to figure out that her meeting Andy had been
a ploy on the part of Dennis and Andrea and that Dennis in particular
had been playing matchmaker for the two of them. It was obvious that
any interest he had seemed to show in Linda herself had been a
subterfuge on his part. She wondered why he hadn't just come out and
told her about his plan but since she liked Andy she didn t really mind;
she didn t think that there would have been any kind of a future with
Dennis anyway. He had admitted this all to her when she confronted
him with it but whenever she asked him more about Andy and the
Andy-Andrea relationship he lapsed into long vague commentaries that
didn t make a whole lot of sense. He had introduced her to Andy in an
effort to have more of Andrea for himself, but that had been a complete
failure, not that Linda really cared. She was happy with the way things
171
were going with Andy although she did not have a clear idea as to what
she would want in the future or where the relationship might go.
Andy himself had told her a fair amount about his relationship with
Andrea and also about another woman who s name didn t seem to be
forthcoming. The woman who s odd clothing enigmatically occupied a
small corner of Andy s closet. The clothing never seemed to move
from it s spot in the closet and the woman never appeared even if her
presence was always felt. He seemed to enjoy talking about both these
women and Dennis as well a great deal. However when she came right
out and asked him this other woman s name he had replied that she
lived in the mountains a few hours away. He didn t really seem to be
avoiding her question or misunderstanding her. It was just another one
of the many times that he seemed to think he had explained himself
perfectly while managing to make no sense at all. Andrea and
occasionally Dennis would refer to this mysterious person from time to
time as well but Linda still had no clear idea of who this woman was.
She had a moment one day of wondering if the woman was still alive or
even more bizarrely if she didn't exist at all, but that seemed far fetched
even for these strange people. She decided the truth was probably far
less dramatic and merely yet another aspect of the three of them,
Dennis, Andy, and Andrea, that wasn't going to make any sense to her
but didn't really matter. What she found most surprising was the
friendship between Dennis and Andy. They seemed so different from
each other, such an unlikely pair of friends.
If Dennis and Andy were confusing to her, Andrea bewildered her
completely when she tried to think about her. She had an animation
and strength about her that was just plain fun to be around. She seemed
to be a gentle and kind woman and there was an unspoken air about her
that suggested that she had made peace with some unknown but truly
fearsome inner demon. But at the same time there was also something
truly frightening in her somewhere. Linda didn't think this was
surprising, not after some of the things Andy had told Linda about her.
Something that revealed itself fleetingly in her eyes, her body language,
her music. Something that Linda had come to accept, knowing that
whatever it was she was safe from it. But there was were other things,
other puzzles. Not scary. Just bewildering. How could someone so
apparently simple be so complex?
She thought of one of the songs she had Andrea perform soon after
they first met. She'd been with Andy and Dennis and they'd seemed to
enjoy it greatly. She'd only heard it that once and although at the time
she'd thought it was just another tongue in cheek blues something about
it had dug a burrow into her mind.
172
Andrea had started off with her introduction, one of those little talks
she liked to give to introduce a song that seemed to be part of her
performance. "You know folks, yesterday was my birthday. At least I
think it was my birthday. I've always been a bit confused about that.
But anyway a couple of friends of mine said come over to dinner. We
made you something special for your day. So I started to worry a bit,
because my idea of something special is sometimes a bit too special for
anyone. So when I got there they had made me this food, you know
they'd been working on it all day, and it made me think of a song I
wrote a while ago. See they made me rattlesnake stew and this song is
called Rattlesnake Blues. Now this is a song that I don't do but once a
year. Because every year I want to give myself a little treat for living
this long. This is how it starts."
She'd started out with a long playful solo on the trumpet, followed
by a couple of other equally enjoyable statements by other members of
the band. Then the vocal with alternate offerings between the choruses
by various members of the band:
I woke up one morning
there was a rattlesnake on my welcome mat.
I woke up one sunny morning
To see a rattlesnake sleeping on my welcome mat,
He woke up and said please let me in
I ll eat up all your mice and rats
I said the rats have drove me crazy
And the mice have kept me up all night
Yes the rats have made me crazy
And the mice won t let me sleep at night
So come on in, Mr. Snake
I m too tired to put up any fight.
Soon the mice and rats were gone
And the snake had gotten big and fat
Yes the mice and rats were gone
And the snake had gotten greedy and fat
He said you ve got nothing left for me
But I believe I ll have your cat.
I said no Mr. Snake
My kitty cat is not for you
I said oh no Mr. Snake
173
This kitty cat is not for you.
He smiled and shook his tail at me
Now what s a girl to do?
There were more solos and Linda thought that it was a cute song
but not something to be saved for once a year. Then came the last [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl chiara76.opx.pl
had the first time they had met.
Linda wound up staying till closing time again. Dennis and Andrea
seemed to have deserted her and she talked with Andy for the most part
170
when the band wasn t playing. While the band was on stage though it
was hard to get a word out of him. That was okay, Linda enjoyed the
opportunity to just listen without any interruptions. Andy had asked
her for her phone number and when she gave it to him he then asked
her if there was a point in calling her. Because if there wasn t why put
themselves in an awkward situation over the phone? She was a bit
surprised at his directness but it did make sense. He had wound up
asking her out for a date before she got a chance to leave, suggesting
something other than hearing the band again because he would like to
be able to converse with her and he just didn t do that when the band
was playing. Again she thought he was awfully direct but once more it
all made sense.
They dated off and on for several months, sometimes going to hear
Andrea's band after dinner somewhere else. He never did talk much at
those times but at least he would dance with her, and he really seemed
to enjoy that. Andrea always gave them a big hello when she saw them
and Linda found herself looking forward to talking with her on nights
that she stayed till the band was finished.
She liked Andy. He was thoughtful and pleasant, and he seemed to
really like her, but there was something a bit strange about him.
Strange in a different way than Dennis. Dennis seemed to somehow
belong in a slightly different world. Andy on the other hand seemed to
fit in just fine but he would make leaps in conversation that left her
confused and had a way of talking to her as if she was a lifelong friend
long before she felt that sort of closeness in return. His relationship
with Andrea was a puzzle. If she had been asked to describe it she
would still have had to say that they seemed like brother and sister, but
Dennis had told her that the two of them been lovers sporadically over
the years. She had come to figure out that her meeting Andy had been
a ploy on the part of Dennis and Andrea and that Dennis in particular
had been playing matchmaker for the two of them. It was obvious that
any interest he had seemed to show in Linda herself had been a
subterfuge on his part. She wondered why he hadn't just come out and
told her about his plan but since she liked Andy she didn t really mind;
she didn t think that there would have been any kind of a future with
Dennis anyway. He had admitted this all to her when she confronted
him with it but whenever she asked him more about Andy and the
Andy-Andrea relationship he lapsed into long vague commentaries that
didn t make a whole lot of sense. He had introduced her to Andy in an
effort to have more of Andrea for himself, but that had been a complete
failure, not that Linda really cared. She was happy with the way things
171
were going with Andy although she did not have a clear idea as to what
she would want in the future or where the relationship might go.
Andy himself had told her a fair amount about his relationship with
Andrea and also about another woman who s name didn t seem to be
forthcoming. The woman who s odd clothing enigmatically occupied a
small corner of Andy s closet. The clothing never seemed to move
from it s spot in the closet and the woman never appeared even if her
presence was always felt. He seemed to enjoy talking about both these
women and Dennis as well a great deal. However when she came right
out and asked him this other woman s name he had replied that she
lived in the mountains a few hours away. He didn t really seem to be
avoiding her question or misunderstanding her. It was just another one
of the many times that he seemed to think he had explained himself
perfectly while managing to make no sense at all. Andrea and
occasionally Dennis would refer to this mysterious person from time to
time as well but Linda still had no clear idea of who this woman was.
She had a moment one day of wondering if the woman was still alive or
even more bizarrely if she didn't exist at all, but that seemed far fetched
even for these strange people. She decided the truth was probably far
less dramatic and merely yet another aspect of the three of them,
Dennis, Andy, and Andrea, that wasn't going to make any sense to her
but didn't really matter. What she found most surprising was the
friendship between Dennis and Andy. They seemed so different from
each other, such an unlikely pair of friends.
If Dennis and Andy were confusing to her, Andrea bewildered her
completely when she tried to think about her. She had an animation
and strength about her that was just plain fun to be around. She seemed
to be a gentle and kind woman and there was an unspoken air about her
that suggested that she had made peace with some unknown but truly
fearsome inner demon. But at the same time there was also something
truly frightening in her somewhere. Linda didn't think this was
surprising, not after some of the things Andy had told Linda about her.
Something that revealed itself fleetingly in her eyes, her body language,
her music. Something that Linda had come to accept, knowing that
whatever it was she was safe from it. But there was were other things,
other puzzles. Not scary. Just bewildering. How could someone so
apparently simple be so complex?
She thought of one of the songs she had Andrea perform soon after
they first met. She'd been with Andy and Dennis and they'd seemed to
enjoy it greatly. She'd only heard it that once and although at the time
she'd thought it was just another tongue in cheek blues something about
it had dug a burrow into her mind.
172
Andrea had started off with her introduction, one of those little talks
she liked to give to introduce a song that seemed to be part of her
performance. "You know folks, yesterday was my birthday. At least I
think it was my birthday. I've always been a bit confused about that.
But anyway a couple of friends of mine said come over to dinner. We
made you something special for your day. So I started to worry a bit,
because my idea of something special is sometimes a bit too special for
anyone. So when I got there they had made me this food, you know
they'd been working on it all day, and it made me think of a song I
wrote a while ago. See they made me rattlesnake stew and this song is
called Rattlesnake Blues. Now this is a song that I don't do but once a
year. Because every year I want to give myself a little treat for living
this long. This is how it starts."
She'd started out with a long playful solo on the trumpet, followed
by a couple of other equally enjoyable statements by other members of
the band. Then the vocal with alternate offerings between the choruses
by various members of the band:
I woke up one morning
there was a rattlesnake on my welcome mat.
I woke up one sunny morning
To see a rattlesnake sleeping on my welcome mat,
He woke up and said please let me in
I ll eat up all your mice and rats
I said the rats have drove me crazy
And the mice have kept me up all night
Yes the rats have made me crazy
And the mice won t let me sleep at night
So come on in, Mr. Snake
I m too tired to put up any fight.
Soon the mice and rats were gone
And the snake had gotten big and fat
Yes the mice and rats were gone
And the snake had gotten greedy and fat
He said you ve got nothing left for me
But I believe I ll have your cat.
I said no Mr. Snake
My kitty cat is not for you
I said oh no Mr. Snake
173
This kitty cat is not for you.
He smiled and shook his tail at me
Now what s a girl to do?
There were more solos and Linda thought that it was a cute song
but not something to be saved for once a year. Then came the last [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]