Submitted Work

1507-D

Mrs. Shaw said it just rained and rained. Nearly brought the water up above the drains and levies built with the waters direction and destiny in mind. Said, it was out of sorts for this area and that we were lucky to live on the third level and not the first. Told us how all this happened before we got there, before her kids moved out of state. The rain brings out all kinds of insects looking for a piece of dry land she said.

We moved just a month ago. My wife drove our car while I drove the moving truck. She drove in front because it was my idea to move. Her rationale was that she shouldn’t have to stare at my decision for any longer than she already had to.

The apartment was perfect in so many ways that the first night we swore we heard a ghost, a gas leak and movements from the neighbors above us that were those of occupants who sold drugs. I am good with “pros and cons,” so I made a list. We decided that we didn’t have any kids so that a ghost would be okay. We never smoked so our lungs should sustain a gas leak for longer than most and last, we knew very little about the drug trade. I gave the list to my wife who said, if only we could tell more about a place from its online pictures.

There are times when I’ll go a whole hour without looking up from my computer. We live by the Pacific Ocean so the weather can dramatically change during that hour. The transformation can make you feel like you lost a day, or left too much unfinished. When this occurs, I like to switch my clothes even though the temperature inside hasn’t changed at all. We struggle with water coming in when it rains, but surprisingly it doesn’t seem to work both ways. Our heating bill is significantly less now than it was before we moved.

Just yesterday a couple moved into the apartment next to us. They brought over oatmeal cookies and asked about how we ended up in San Francisco. I thought it best to start at the beginning. To explain my desire to be closer to the baseball team I sold season tickets for and then to head to the end which was always that we were looking for a change of scenery. I left out the middle. The part about my mom, her parents and the car accident. Their first vacation together. I don’t think if my wife had been there she would have added the middle. Our walls are thin, and from our bed she could hear my account of the story.


-Alex King



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