Cowtown Life Alone

Cowtown Life Alone
a short story by Diana Weeks

I woke eager to work the newspaper crossword puzzle… to get my ninety year old brain… to wake up. I get up but stand still to let my legs get set for walking… then go to the front door and peep out at the sky. It’s so blue. The paper is barely in the yard.

I miss my kind neighbor who always brought my paper to my door. His mean son put him in a nursing home when his wife died. I returned to my room for house shoes and robe, retrieved my paper and punched the button to start the coffee dripping. I don’t like to drink coffee…but I love to smell it. That’s why I don’t like zapping bacon in my microwave…it changes and contains the tantalizing aroma.

My special morning chair cushion conforms perfectly to my behind. The lamp illuminates my lap. My coffee cup and crossword dictionary sit on the small table in easy reach. Ah …”moved out” seven down…”evicted”…There’s so much of that going on…foreclosures everywhere…and three of my grandsons are out of work. “Early morning food” …”eggs”…over two dollars a dozen…but who won an Oscar in Hud?

The rest of the paper is full of news about the TV stations going to digital broadcasting. What was wrong with the air? My grandson, David, who’s in film school in Denton, came over and connected my government discounted converter…but since June 12th my set is acting up. I can’t afford cable and don’t want a hundred stations. There’s such a thing as too much communication.

My neighbor Anne, had a heart by-pass… can’t garden yet…she loved to work in her yard…especially the front yard… in her shorts. The homes across the street are rented to TCU students who whistle. She’s says “I have great legs. Whistles cheer me up”. She is only seventy.

Everyday when I finish the paper… I walk next door to give it to Anne. I ring the bell…I can hear her TV…her daughter bought her hearing aids …but she won’t wear them. I look in her window and don’t see her. I move to another window and cup my hands around my eyes. I knock on her back door. Nothing.

I hurry back home and get the extra house key I keep for her. I return and knock…unlock the door and go in calling her name. I’m startled to find her at her computer playing poker and listening to music on ear phones. I hug her. “I thought you were knocked out or dead…”

Anne grinned. “Ginny, I’m learning to win; I’ve already won a two-dollar and fifty-seven cent credit. I have a breakfast casserole in the oven that should be ready…stay and eat some. I eagerly agree…and look around.

“Your TV looks good, did you go on cable?” I ask.

Anne laughed…”No, my daughter fixed mine with an old antenna…I’ll bet you still have one too”.

“I think it’s on the top shelf of my hall closet. You know my late husband couldn’t throw anything away”.

“After we eat…we’ll go over and I’ll attach it for you”.

“You can’t be climbing…” I say.

“I’ll hold the step ladder steady for you”…she teases. We giggle like teenagers.

“My niece and her husband are in town “ I brag.…”They’re taking me to supper today…I’ll see if he can get my TV picture right”.

Anne opened her oven and it expelled the fragrance of butter, eggs, cheese…and sausage… foods to risk dying for. We eat with gusto.

THE END
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