Doc's Place

Chapter 3 | Part 3

Monday, October 1, 1984

"What's your name again?" asks the little guy.

"Jill Price," I tell him. "Call me Jill. Be back in a while, Louise." Turn to him and say, "Your car?"

"In the garage," he says as we walk down the hall and through the door. "You seem to know what you want, Jill. Name's Dick." He offers his hand.

"I know exactly what I want," I tell him as I shake his hand. "Do I see you about pulling that shit out of the office?"

He grins and shakes his head. "Yes," he says, "We'll stop by the other warehouse. Let those guys know to pull it out of your office and replace it with the stuff we'll tag at Galeti Way." On the way, Dick explains that he is the purchasing manager. He has one clerk named Sally who just started. If I want any supplies, I just sign them out with Sally or him from his office near the restrooms.

Tell him I want the west and south walls covered in thick corkboard from the ceiling to table level. Need a roll of newsprint, red and black marking pens and a box of pushpins.

When the conversation runs out of steam, I wait to hear what Dick talks about when we don't talk business. After ten seconds of silence, Dick asks, "So, did you watch the Raiders game yesterday?"

Ever since my stint in the Air Force, I've been a fan of professional baseball and football. "With my godson," I tell him. "He's a Raiders fan and hates the Broncos, so he was pissed." After we rave about that for a while, he asks who will win the game tonight. "Bengals won't beat the Steelers at home, Dick."

"Have to agree with you there," says Dick. "Think the Rams will take the conference this year?"

Shaking my head, I say, "The only ones who might do that are the Bears, but I don't see how anyone can beat the 49ers with the running backs and wide receivers they have. Not to mention Joe Montana."

"Hate the frickin' 49ers," mumbles Dick as he brakes gently for the turn into Galeti Way. We make our way through old slot machines, four big light stands, signs, mirrors, bars, nickelodeons and gaming tables to some kitchen furnishings. We find two maple tables in fine condition with smooth surfaces. He tapes sheets of paper on them and then takes me to a variety of office and desk chairs. Find a good one and push it over by the tables. He takes me to some drafting tables. We remove a light from one of them and leave it on one of the maple tables. Finally, we put a tall trashcan beside the tables.

We drive to the other warehouse, where Dick tells me to wait in the car while he chats with the supervisor for a few minutes. He comes out to tell me it's all set up for this afternoon.

"How come you didn't just phone in the work order, Dick?" I ask.

"If it involves the warehouse, you go through them," is all Dick says.

"You make them sound . . . independent," I tell him.

"Super and I have a beer every night after work," he mumbles and then says nothing more during the drive back to Doc's.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License

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Doc's Place Chat
© 2008, Michel Grover.
Chapter 3 | Part 3
Spring 2008

Mic :

In the left frame, I'm posting Doc's Place, one of my copyrighted stories. I'll post a part of a chapter, wait for a while so people may leave comments or questions and then post those I find interesting.

Jules :

God, the woman is absolutely scope locked on her hit list. See how she starts digging for information on the warehouse people?

Suze :

Tenacious is the word. By her own schedule, she only has a week to burn the warehouse crew.

Lucia :

"You make them sound . . . independent," she says. The way she says it so casually just sends shivers up my spine. It reminds me of a gardener with a pair of hedge clippers who sees a sprig sticking out. Snip! Gone.

Alice :

Which is just about how much Jill cares about that warehouse crew. Once they're gone, she won't give them another thought. She'll just move inexorably to her next objective.

Amalie :

Benny and Doug, have you two guys begun to get into Jill's purpose, despite how slowly the story action seems to be moving?

Benny :

Yeah I guess, if Alice would quit using words like inexorably that I have to look up and then the definition doesn't help that much either.

Alice :

Inevitably, relentlessly.

Benny :

Okay, relentless I know, tks.

Alice :

You're welcome. I'll try to be more careful about my choice of words in the future.

Benny :

Wait, are you being nice to me?

Alice :

Well, you are a dear and I like how you comment on the story.

Benny :

Okay, well I been thinking about that—the story, I mean. Lucia compared Jill focusing on the warehouse crew to a gardener trimming the hedge. Can we make a similar comparison between how Jill replaces the furniture in her office and how she's already starting to manipulate things at Doc's Place?

Lucia :

Oh . . . my god, that didn't even occur to me.

Cyril :

Well done, Benny. I believe you have something there.

Alice :

Go ahead, dear. Tell us what you mean.

Benny :

For example, Jill takes one look at her furniture and says this won't work. It's as though she's sending a message right away that I don't care how you had it before. Most of this stuff's coming out and new stuff's coming in. If you don't like it, tough.

Lucia :

Benny, I could smother you with kisses.

Jules :

Kid's a natural.

Alice :

What else about replacing the furniture compares with what Jill's doing, Benny?

Benny :

Well, and I'm not sure about this part because it's kind of a stretch, but I noticed that people are sort of standing around and waiting for somebody to tell them what to do, like so much furniture. All of a sudden, Jill comes marching, striding in and says this is out, that moves over there and by god, why in the hell aren't you morons jumping when I want something?

Alan :

Benny, you're one smart little bastard, no offense to you or your parents.

Benny :

Shit, that ain' offensive where I live. Another thing, probably nothin.

Suze :

Follow the vein as far as it takes you, Benny.

Benny :

It has to do with Jill's look. It's like a ray, not a death ray, but a change ray. Wherever she looks, whatever she looks at, whoever she sees, it's like a spotlight saying: you're next.

Lucia :

That's it. I'm buying a plane ticket, going to fly over there and have sex with you right now, Benny.

Jules :

Kid's only 12, Lucia, ya freakin' perv.

Lucia :

Sorry, I forgot. Sorry, Benny. Sorry, everyone.

Benny :

Bet even Alice thinks you people are weird.

Alice :

Yes she does, but you had more to say about that. What about Jill's look?

Benny :

She just looks like she's thinking something and people jump to do it. Not just Dick in purchasing but Peter and Stephanie were that way just after meeting her. And look at her life. Jill's got Ume, Keiko, that Donna over SIA and so on, just jumping to fill her slightest wish. Your wish is my command, bitch, is how they act. It's as if she's some kind of minor deity who they don't have to respect. Jus have to do what da bitch want, know what I'm sayin?

Maria :

I'm stunned. You're 12, Benny?

Benny :

Yeah but I have a speech impediment on account of my cleft palate so people don't understand what I say. Course you people don't know that so it makes no difference.

Cyril :

Take it from us, Benny. You are among the most eloquent of men.

Suze :

I'm sobbing. I'm sobbing.

Maria :

Me too.

Mic :

What tipped you off about our Benny, Amalie?

Amalie :

Benny, you write carefully until you're confident and then you slip into the neighborhood patois, speaking style.

Benny :

Vernacular, I know.

Amalie :

You're also hesitant to bring up things until you know people will listen and then you just let it flow. I must admit that I just thought you were shy and perhaps you are in person, but the sharpness of your intellect pokes through like shards of glass under silk.

Cyril :

As does yours, if different metaphorically speaking, Amalie.

Amalie :

Thank you for drawing him out, Alice.

Alice :

As a matter of fact, have you finished yet, Benny dear?

Benny :

Just that Stephanie said in the last session that we're coming around to Jill's way of thinking, pulling for her and all. Bitch got us jumpin too.

Carlo :

Damned if you ain't right about that too, Benny.

Ian :

Of course, the understanding Jill and I share is due to the special bond we have, which I'm sure has been obvious to most of you for some time now.

Raj :

Bond on a pigass, bastardrat Ian.

Lucia :

Before we lose this train of thought, I'd like to add that this message/medium is going out to the entire world, where even now, it may be too late to stop the inevitability of the conclusion imagined by Jill more than 35yrs ago.

Jules :

All hail our new masters.