Oscar never went anywhere but it was good just to have the time off. All too often he had heard people say what a pie job teaching was. He was in the thick of it and begged to differ.
Esther wanted to get to know more about this part of Kentucky. It was their intention to spend several days with a map, just driving around.
Oscar was just about ready to leave when that thunderous pounding came to his door.
He swung it open, “why can’t you ring the doorbell?” He pointed it out. “I do have one.”
Oat stumbled through the door, “Mr. Fan-see pants has ah door,” he hiccupped.
“Bell.”
“Are you drunk? You’ve lost some of your trash talk.”
He tried to grin sheepishly but instead ended up looking like someone had stepped on his toe. “Noooooo,” he waved at an invisible gnat that wasn’t buzzing around his head.
Oscar quickly text Esther to come over and to please hurry; the last thing he wanted was to be alone with his drunk brother.
When Esther got there, neither of the two men were sitting down. Oat didn’t even know she was in the world.
“Ya,” Oat pointed a dirty finger at Oscar as he tried to stand. “Rat-bassss,tard.”
“Excuse me.”
“Maw,” he hiccupped again. “Told me what ya DID.”
“And what did I do?”
“Ya tuk it all.” He batted at the invisible gnat again. “Ever-thang dad had, you tuk it.”
“Dad didn’t have anything to take, except debt. There was nothing to take.”
Esther text Chet and told him that Oat was at Oscar’s house and very drunk. They might need some help. Oscar watched her out of the corner of his eye as his brother raved on.
“Lie!” He screamed. “Pack ah lies. Maw told me ya left us pen-e-less, busted.”
“That’s not true.”
Oat pointed at him. “You calling maw a lar?”
“I’m saying someone doesn’t have their facts straight.”
“Ya big shot ain’t ja? This house, that truck ya got. Your fan-cie school.”
“And I paid for it all. Dad didn’t put one red cent toward any of it?”
“LAR!” He roared. “You tuk ever-thang.” He took a swing at Oscar but was too far away. The force of his own swing just about caused him to fall. “We strug-gle; while Mr. Big S-Shot lives,” he hiccupped again. “In style.” He pointed around the room, still not seeing Esther.
“Perhaps if you got a job and added to the income of your household, you and your family would have nice things.”
Oat took another swing at Oscar, still missing him. “Stands still, rat bassss-tard.”
“What did mom tell you I did?” Oscar was getting madder by the second.
Esther mouthed at him, ‘don’t get mad.’ He swallowed hard, trying to fight back his anger.
“Ya tuk all dad’s green.”
“Dad got two checks: social security and black lung. He kept the smaller of the two, the social security for things he wanted and gave the other one to mom.”
“LAR!”
“I’m sorry that you believe a false truth.”
Esther mouthed to him again, ‘breathe.’
He was trying. He almost sat down but Esther discouraged it.
“What do you want?” Oscar finally asked.
“Hon-est.”
“You are too drunk to know the truth.”
Oat lunged at his brother. Oscar was trying so hard not to get mad that he wasn’t paying attention to his brother’s features. Oat pushed him backwards on the couch. Esther; however, was paying attention. She was able to pull Oat off Oscar and pin him to the floor. Oscar’s nose was bleeding. She let Oat up once he stopped struggling. “Get out of my house. Don’t ever come back.”
Describe the most ambitious DIY project you’ve ever taken on.
I’m all about DIY projects. Fixing cracks in the carport.Mowing the yard.Making a u shape extention to my driveway.During the Covid lockdown, my family had a paint party and we painted; then another friend helped me install cabinets in my kitchen.All the flooring in my house, I’ve replaced.
From trimming trees to pressure washing the house, sometimes you just gotta do it.
On Easter Sunday they went to church, after church Chet and Bell came back over. He had just finished changing clothes when Chet rang the bell. When he opened the door, Chet and Bell both raised their Easter egg baskets and yelled, “where’s the eggs?”
Oscar let them in and was more than confused. Esther walked in through the back door and kissed him on the cheek. Your basket is on the porch.
“My basket?”
“I have hidden two dozen eggs on the porch and in the back yard. There is one prize egg.”
Oscar’s face lit up like a Christmas tree; “you didn’t?”
She wiggled, “I did.”
He grabbed her and hugged her up. They all marched to the back porch singing Here Comes Peter Cottontail. Not only had Esther hid eggs, she had made a picnic of egg salad sandwiches, chips, cupcakes, water, and lemonade.
She sat on the steps and laughed as the three friends hunted for the hidden eggs. Esther had to direct them to find the last four.
They all sat at the table to eat. “Where is the fun in this for you dear?” Oscar asked.
“I had much rather hide them and watch you all try to find them as I had to hunt them.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to hide them?”
“I‘m positive.”
“You know this is the first Easter I remember in years that it has been warm enough to sit outside and eat.” Bell commented.
“That’s true,” Chet smiled. “Easter’s are usually cold and rainy.”
Oscar raised his glass for a toast. “Here’s to a perfect Easter.”
Esther giggled, “so who got the prize egg?”
They all started picking through their eggs looking for it.
“Is this it?” Chet asked. He held up a plastic metallic blue egg. It sparkled and shined in the sun.
“Open it and see.”
He did and inside was two movie tickets. “Cool.”
Bell laughed, “we haven’t been to the movies in years.”
“Well now it’s time to go.” Esther smiled.
As they wrapped up the evening, Esther gave Chet and Bell a giant Easter egg full of jelly beans.
They all said their good byes.
Oscar laid on the couch and open his arms for Esther. “Thank you.”
She smiled as she cuddled closer. “You are most welcome. Will you tell me when you get tired of my childish behavior?”
“Why would I get tired of it?” He kissed the top of her head.
“Sometimes I think I am trying to relive my childhood. Don’t get me wrong, my grandparents did a great job raising me. But there is so much that I didn’t get to do. I hope you don’t think that I am one giant child.”
“I never thought that at all.” He laced his fingers through hers. “Perhaps we can relive it together. I have had more fun since I’ve met you than I’ve had in my life time.”
She smiled, “I know that we will have issues that we don’t see eye to eye over. That’s just life. And I hate to think what our first real fight is going to look like.”
He cut her off, “who says we have to have a real fight?”
You lookin’ at me?! You’re here to buy milk or cheese. I’m looking at you!
*This little statue was sitting over the dairy case at a grocery I was in. I got so tickled at the expression on its face that I had to take a picture. I’m sure everyone around me thought I was nuts. You had to look up to see it. Honestly, how many people stop to look up?
Poetry & More 