Online Scripts

Owner/Editor bravenewworldjune2007@yahoo.com

I need writers. Richard

Comments are at the bottom of the page.

"Nightpeople"

Cast....In order of appearance.

Richard...All Episodes.
Ken.......Episode One.
George......."....."
Mark........."....."
Robyn........"....."
Cindy........"....."
Erica........"....."....(also in episode six)
Jim.......Episode two
Mark........."....."....(not the same Mark as the Mark in episode one)
Wylie........"....."....(also in episode eight)
Matt......Episode three.
Lakshmi...Episode four.
Laree.....Episode five
Bijou.....Episode six
Lundy........"....."
Erica........".....".....(also in episode one)
Sean........."....."
Kristy....Episode seven
Brenda....Episode eight
Wylie........".....".....(also in episode two)
John........."....."
Jim.......Episode nine
Eric........."....."
Robert......."....."
Happiness.Episode ten

"Nightpeople"...Episode one

Cast ...In order of appearsance.
Richard
Ken
George
Mark
Robyn
Cindy
Erica

Narrator
Richard

It's nightime. I enter a diner and take a seat at the counter. A server comes over and I order a steak diner. She leaves. Ken enters, walks over and stands next to me.

ME; "I just got here a minute ago."

KEN; "Yeah, and you're in my fucking seat, Jack-off."

I get up and move to a booth.



Later. Same night. I'm in the same booth. George sits down opposite me.

ME; "It's hot outside. I'm glad to get this nice AC."

GEORGE; "Sounds corny and boring... sorry."

He gets up and leaves. The server brings my steak.



Later. Same night. I'm in the same booth. Mark sit's down opposite me.

MARK; "Do you have a minute? Or maybe a few more after that?"

ME; "I'll be here the rest of the night."

MARK: "Meeting anyone?"

ME; "I see people, I know, all night long but I don't have any appointments."

MARK: "Well, okay then.. Mmm, were you one of those people who never wanted to become an adult? Who just wanted to stay free-spirited and happy and free from the vaguest notion of rent or taxes or work?" "And in a weird sort of way, that you could exist in blissful ignorance about the world around, and that you only had your little bubble universe to care about?"

ME; "Different things happened. I don't recall all the details. Really, I just kept on trucking - doing whatever came next. I don't really remember what I was thinking about."

MARK: "And that's really the saddest part isn't it, that we've lost so many years to circumstance and we've never had the chance to make a choice. We just went with the flow. And here we are now. All washed up."

ME; "I suppose, but right now I'm just trying to get through the night. I'm not trying to relive my life-of-hell."

MARK; "Okay."

He leaves. The server clears away the empty plates.



Same night. Later. Robyn's sitting, by herself, in a booth. I get up, walk over and sit down opposite her.

ME: "Have you had a busy evening?"

ROBYN: "Yes, but my evenings are usually busy, you know that. What about you, Ricky? Been busy?"

ME; "I was at at the Boat Bar, before I came here, watching strippers. People don't get bored when strippers are around. There's always something funny-crazy going on. What else - with a roomful of naked women."

ROBYN: "Well, to some, a roomful of beautiful, naked women might be a horrible reminder of how someone's failed physically at life. But, don't let me get insecure on you, Ricky, I'm sure you had a good time."

ME; "Some people never pass-up an opportunity to proselytize." "What've you been doing?"

ROBYN: "Oh, hanging out, having fun, you know. It's so easy to let myself just live in a blur, you know? Sometimes I forget to stop myself."

Me; "I'm more relaxed. I spend hours here, eating and talking. I always meet plenty of people, mainly writers, but other people too."

ROBYN;"I write."

ME;"What do you write about."

ROBYN: "Well, fantasy mostly. I try to fill the need for people who lack entertainment in their lives. Who wants to read about reality! We're already living, you know?"

ME; "That's an idea that I've had on my mind for a long time. I repeat it to myself over and over again and I never find an answer. Still, fantasy usually bores me. I write about real things. The idea of context intrigues me. I find context in the things that people say to me. Then I put something I'm thinking abou next to it. I can't pull a story out of my own head."

ROBYN: "Well, most writers pull things out of their asses, so I guess you're off to a good start. I'm prtty sure I use writing to play out scenarios I've only dreamed of actually happening.... I suppose that's what makes it fun for me. But I do see what you're saying. Context is important, when it comes to reality." She laughs.
..
ME; "Can you elaborate on the laughter part of that?"

ROBYN: "Well... fantasy, you know? It's not really based on context. And really, when you think about it, so much of life falls out of context with everything else going on. Imagine a, let's see.. a big real estate women, very professional, on top of her game... bam! She's pregnant. Where's the context in that?"

ME; "You said a moment ago that context is important when it comes to reality and then you laughed and then I asked you why you laughed and then you said something about a pregnant real estate women. I still don't get the joke. Do you mean it's a joke to write about reality?"

ROBYN:" No, nothing like that. All I'm saying is that reality isn't really based on context, because life isn't all that contextual. Everything that happens to us, planned or not, doesn't always follow a pattern, or a 'set of rules' that maps out each person ' area of context.' Make sense?"

ME; "Not to me. I don't know what you're talking about. A person writes to context, that's all. You can tell when someone says something out of context, it doesn't fit in. You say, 'That's out of context' and the person, more than likely, will say; 'Yeah, I know.'"

ROBYN; "I suppose. I'm going back to the blur, See ya."

She leaves.



Same night. Later. I've moved back to the counter. Cindy enters the diner and sits down next to me.

ME; "Hi, Cindy. I caught a furniture van today and made $100 It was a long job, 14 hours, and a great workout. What have you been up-to?"

CINDY: "Nothing really. But I like it that way. Gives me space to think. What brings you here at 3am?"

ME; "I'm always here at 3am. What do you think about?"

CINDY: "I think about stories, where that person has been and where he is going."

A server ccomes over and Cindy orders a cappuccino.

ME; "I think about logic sequences and what I'ill say when someone says a certain thing to me. Do you ever do that?"

The server comes back with Cindy's cappuccino and leaves.

CINDY: "It's a curious thing cos there is no logical way to deduce an emotional response. There's so much backstory and surrounding circumstances. I like the idea of randomness!"

ME; "Do you use logic in discussions and arguements?"

CINDY: "That's true. You're so logical... " She sips the cappuccino. "So what do you do when you're not working out logic sequences?"

ME; "I'm trying to write a story about strippers but I can't get interviews and I can't pull the story out of my head. I'm kind of stuck."

CINDY: "Why can't you get any interviews? 'Cos you're shy?'

ME; "I'm not shy. They just don't give interviews. The last one I tried to interveiw said she had a wonderful story and she wanted, up-front and sight-unseen, $50,000 for it."

She finishes her cappuccino

CINDY; "Bye."

She leaves.



Same night. Later. I've moved to a booth. Erica enters the diner and sits down opposite me.

"Hi."

"Hello."

A server comes over, Erica picks up the menu and reads it.

ERICA; "G'evening maam, yes I will have the Albacore Tuna plate with an english muffin on the side and a lemon-water."
"Wow, Richard, did you look at this menu? They have a variety of delicious things to sample and at the right prices. Have you tried the albacore tuna plate ?"

ME; "I've been looking at the menu for years. I've had the tuna plate."

ERICA; "How many years have you been coming here?"

ME; "10. Do you like Fellini films?"

ERICA; "You know Richard, in all of my 42 years on this planet, I have never seen a film by Fellini. What did he offer as entertainment?"

ME; "He was an Italian director. He's dead now. He was very funny. His characterizations were always perfect. The persos in the films, with one exception, were completely stupid and worthless. The exception was always exactly the opposite. Sometimes Fellini played the part, sometimes someone else did. "

ERICA;"Was he mystical?"

ME; "Some people thought so. I didn't. Have you ever seen an art film?"

ERICA; "No, I don't believe I have. But what constitutes an 'art' film anyway?'

ME; "Any film shown in an 'art' film theatre. People, who go to them, know them when they see them. They're 'high' brow rather than 'low' brow or 'no' brow. Art films are a genre."

ERICA: "I saw the movie MindWalk. It was playing at the Museum of Art in Cleveland, Ohio one year and when I watched it again for a 'Psychology of Film' class for my baccalaureate degree, I was intrigued at how the philosopher, the lawyer and the scientist all came together, in unison, from an artistic perspective. They saw the world in which we live as a myriad of flaws and great design, despite the encouragement of intellectual design. Have you ever seen that one?"

ME; "No, I missed it. It sounds good though. Do you like Pink Floyd?"

ERICA: "They're one of my favorite groups." Their much older stuff, like before 1968 was very unusual for the times, don't you agree? I mean the lyrics were one thing but the harmonizing, riffs and melody were 'out of this world' and usually evoked a certain sense of 'euphoria.'"

ME; "They're psychedelic too. In one of the songs the lead singer says 'There's a lunatic in my head.' What do you think he means by that?"

ERICA: "It depends on who was voicing those lyrics--if Gilmore then a more rational thought comes to mind. The 'lunatic' is the mental contender in the boxing ring of logic versus fantasy, and Gilmore's version is a strict courageous fighter able to withstand adversity; but if it is Water's singing the lament, his 'lunatic' is a suffering spirit, an essence that is left behind from abandonment showing little regard for positive human interaction. He becomes the crazy isolated 'sick-man' led by the ring through his nose society sneered down at."

The server returns with the tuna plate.

ME; "I didn't know society was the arbitrator of all things. I've always felt I'm living in a Giant Lunitic Asylum inhabited by Strange Life Forms."

ERICA: "Society does not make the final decision about how we act, how we live, what we wear, what we say--but you certainly cannot argue that the influence of others is there." "Right?" "You have an interesting imagination. As expanded as your ideas and thoughts are on the 'employment of people', now their music of choice, I wonder if you are not also a galaxy wanderer?"

ME; "I wish. I would think you'd be curious why I believe the world is a Giant Lunitic Asylum inhabited by Strange Life Forms. How do you feel about that? Would you like to know?"

ERICA; "Okay, I am slightly curious what makes you think this is one huge lunatic asylum?'

ME; "Good. This is a subject I can really warm up to. And it's a long story too. I'll start off with this. You watch TV and it's like the same story over and over again. The same basic plot with lots of small variations thrown in. It looks like the story tellers are trying to maintain 'moron' happiness."

ERICA: "I don't really watch 'enough' television to state anything really positive or negative. I can honestly tell you though between soaps and late-night drama, television producers need to find way better material. The stories are not necessarily the same, but boring, violent, un-stimulating and certainly nothing I would let my kids watch, if I had any. I read books and write my own stories. How much television do you absorb?"

ME; "I watch PBS and the Discovery Channel, I like Seinfeld and something you probably never seen, Reno 911. People who watch boring programs are proably suffering from severe mental deteriation. An example would be my mother. One time she told me she was reading a boring book. I said to put it aside and get another book. She argued back, 'the author had gone to a lot of trouble to write it.' She also believed St. Peter would open the Pearly Gates for her when she explained to Him she had been a good role-model. Raving lunitics are running the whole show."

ERICA: "Are you also calling your mother a 'raving lunatic' who just believed in something that made her feel better?" I wouldn't go so far as to say the entire planet of people are raving lunatics but there are many examples of them. It is a combination of dna, social influence, religious motivation and personal feeling of self-worth. If being stupid pays, then someone might opt for stupidity, if not they do something else. But I don't believe everyone is raving mad."

ME; "They are though. Mom was a real psycho nut but she never got caught, -which just shows the intelligence of the society we're living in. People thought she had good ideas even when she was obviously insane. I told her all the time she was a nut and she always said the same thing; "I'm beginning to believe you." But then she'd change her 'mind.' She didn't bedieve in God, Heaven and St. Peter because it made her feel good. She really believed things like that happen."
"Here's an idea. If people think crazies like Mom are sane, then on the other side, they must think perfectly sane people are crazy."

ERICA: "But in order to really believe and not doubt yourself she examined and applied how it made her feel, the emotional response confirming the thought confirming the belief God, Heaven and St. Peter were real rather than concepts of our illustrious imagination."
"The mind is fascinating. Those that only use the part that is concerned with survival--i.e. enough food, water, shelter, and the basic necessity to get laid every now and then (both genders not just males)--are far away from what the 'raving lunatic' mind of perhaps your mom, boss, chaplain, teacher etc, is expanded. It is not closed nor left to be held in contempt of intelligence versus ignorance. To choose the belief that none of those things really exist but are only concepts because our mind produced it that way shows advancement of the race in itself. Don't you agree?"

ME; "Are you saying delusional stupid morons are an advanced form of life? I certainly agree they're stange - that's what I've been saying. Apparently we have diametrically opposed veiwpoints about The Stange Life Forms. You think they're silver and gold and I think they're shit."

ERICA: "Basically what I am saying Richard, is that obviously some that have not 'evolved to understand' the level the moron (or so you call) is on, will always be a step behind those that are using more of their intellect than less. To call someone that thinks differently and possibly more 'out there' than you normally would is then equally considered "both a moron and full of shit."
"Hmmmm, doesn't say much about your intellect if you can negate those that are just different and not sucked up by the 'robotic modes of thought' where they are told to believe something that both separates and ignores instead of embraces and integrates. With the way you think, no wonder harmony can never be achieved. Your a separatist!"

ME; "Well, that's just fascinating and also interlectual mumbo-jumbo. The 'morons' are just 'morons' - not 'special' morons, as you have them. I agree with you that they're very much 'out there,' they're a Strange Life Form."

ERICA; "I don't think we're making much progress. Do you? I mean, we are going around and around and frankly I really don't get why you bother if the world, according to Richard, is of free-thinkers and do-gooders that are doing no good at all cept being a 'bunch of moronic idiots full of shit'. Perhaps we need to address a different issue."

ME; "The 'morons' are the only subject I'm really familiar with. The 'morons' are my hobby."

ERICA: "Funny your hobby is 'morons' and yet you are not one. I see where people, any people in any field holding a particular position whether professional or industrial (white collar or blue collar) can be 'morons'.
Your fascination with them is intriguing, I suppose. Okay, lets discuss 'them morons' further. Is there a difference in their attitude, demanor, behavior or all that just too stupid?"

ME; "We can start by defining 'morons.' Can we agree that TV wrestling is watched exclusivly by 'morons.' "

ERICA: "Nope we are going to have to disagree because I define 'moron' differently than you do. "The mind takes in what it wants for a multitude of reasons. If someone watches wrestling because they cannot be an 'adrenaline junkie like a wrestler is' it offers them a rush just watching. Not as strong, but satisfying. How is that an act of a 'moron'"

ME; "You know, the mind doesn't take in what it needs or wants. It doesn't do anything independant of the individual. It just looks at things. And TV wrestling fans are looking at stupidity."

ERICA: "Sure the mind does take in what it needs or wants because the person thinking it, deems it so. However, as far as entertainment value or any value besides an 'adrenaline rush', wrestling should be considered a stupid sport to watch. I geuss morons are rather a humorous bunch. Agree?"

ME; "It's not really a sport. It's a pretended sport. Also, I find it very peculiar that there are people around who say to themselves; 'I need an 'adrenaline rush' and this is it.' Have you checked your theory? I'd like to create a 'moron meter' so that we can more throughly discuss that subject. On a scale of 1 to 10 I'd like to put TV wrestling fans at #10, the stupidest. Is that okay with you?"

ERICA: It's your idea. So, it's truly up to you where the 'wrestling watching population' should go, bottom or top. I agree, bottom-feeders."

ME; "I think all sports are boring, To me, watching a sporting event is like watching grass grow. What's the point? Why would someone want to watch other people move a ball from one end of a field to the other? I just don't get it. What do you think about that?"

ERICA: "For you it is like watching grass grow but for the masses that flip on the television for a sporting event, engage in a different venue of 'enetertainment'. It is presented to them without personally experiencing the injuries or the victories, nevertheless, they enjoy it."
"If nothing else on television stimulates their 'brain' at least it sparks something inside of them so they don't go through life truly 'bored' all the time. Do you still believe watching any form of 'entertainment', sports or other, is 'moronic behavior'? I mean what else have they got to do . . ., besides work, church, their family?"

ME; "I watch some TV. And I also read a lot but it's hard to find a good book. I suppose you're right. The 'moronic' masses don't really have anything else to do except watch 'moronic' TV. I'll put the 'moronic' masses at #9 on my 'moron'-meter. I really appreciate your help. This is the most work I've ever done on the 'moron' meter."

ERICA; "I'm sooooooooooooo glad I helped with the 'moron meter! ' "

ME; "I still have 8 spaces to go. Have you noticed that public speakers and media people use 'special' voice tones when they talk to the public? Their voices rise and fall in a familiar way. It's a language in itself. They seem to say; 'You're really a very 'special' moron and I know you're going to like what I'm tellimg you.' I call these people the 'puppet-masters.'"

ERICA: "8 spaces?, you mean on the 'moron meter'? Oh okay well lets see if we can fill them according to presentation, diction, the tone of voice used to cajole, purpose and finally resolution, of some sort.""You mention the voices of these public speakers, coaches if you will, that use a bit of lilting, utilizing various degrees of the vocal scal, diction, a dialogue element that attracts something. used to manipulate the public feeding off the material. Yes I have heard it, been pulled in by it AND even used it myself for the purpose of teaching."
"This type of vocal instruction keeps the public attention glued by way of visual and auditory, maybe even taste if they are given food and beverage--but nevertheless sustained to keep a 'captivated audience'. I know that language, I can speak it but most importantly when I communicate it, I evoke an almost equal response using a similar tone. It is excitement."
"Ah yes the 'puppet-master' (good movie), the one that holds the strings and watches the audience laugh or grovel for more and for the most part--controls the mind of the attentive. Yes, quite familiar with those sorts also. But their role is both served best hot or cold and in terms of truth, well hopefully what they demonstrate should be real if they want to teach, educate, enlighten, even entertain . . ."

ME; "Thanks for the word 'lilt,' I forgot about that one. They use catch words - like 'fiercely independant. Have you noticed that the puppet masters usually sound like they're talking to an audience of 'morons?' Another thing; they sound like they're trying to be nice to the 'stupids;' i.e. not say anything to disturb them. Maybe they're trying to keep them calm?"

ERICA; "Keep them calm about what ? I am not sure if all of the 'public speakers' and 'mass media influentials' talk to the public as if they were stupid; however some of the language, tone and choice of accompanying gesticulation (hand movements, body language and of course 'tools' a speaker uses to assuage his or her listeners) are intended for reaching an understanding of what the presenter is presenting."
"I think I have explained this a little more with the hopes of uncovering the mystery of speaking to the public about something that is 'craved', whether that be better health, healthcare for ones family, better pay at the job, etc etc."

ME: "Keep them calm about everything. If the puppet-masters didn't keep talking the whole society would instantly disinagrate. The 'morons' are happy to believe that someone like them is running things. Something like that. It gets complicated. The 'morons' hear soothing, familiar sounds and remain calm. They're listening to the lilt and catch words. Lilt, with catch words, is a language of its own. I don't think the audience would understand anything at all without it. Do you think that's true?"

ERICA; "Yes. For the most part I really believe the gesturing along with diction stirs the caluldron. I mean if the visuals stood alone and stated a hundred convincing words, imagine how much easier it would be if the words of that 'special language' plus the lilt, a speaker could articulate her/his objective."
"The lilt and catch phrases are soothing if a positive energy flows through the event, presentation, show or performance as a whole. If not, then fear can actually swallow up those hungry, 'morons'. . . then it does become complicated as you say. Heck the 'human condition' was meant to be complicated, nothing easy about living."
"Placing them in a gentle uproar is also a goal besides stoking a calmed spirit; but yes the 'morons' do have a challenge set before them when a puppet-master has them 'jump hoops outside of the box'. It makes these average people feel coerced but not threatened because a mass of 'morons' just like them are participating by hearing the same 'tone'."
"Sometimes however, Richard, people can't always agree that even if someone with a brain is running things that the 'morons' best interest is served. If it's not then we need to replace the puppet-masters. Right? But with whom? Is anyone really qualified to change the power of thought when resistance is so much a part of the human psyche?"

ME; "I had a unique experience I'd like to relate. As you know, I'm very interested in concepts. I was having a conversation with a girl and I was telling her why something would work or wouldn't work. I forget the details. And she said to me; 'I don't think- with-words. It's just a waste of time, I know what to do without that.'And she told me what she would do in those circumstances. It turned out that she'd gotten all her ideas from other people. She'd never thought out anything by herself. Except things like; 'Should I go to the store at 5pm or 6pm. I pointed this out to her and she said; "But they're good ideas and I don't need anything else.' I told her; 'But you do, these are not good ideas, they're lousy ideas and you're going to ruin everything for yourself and the people around you. You'll accomplish the opposite of what you're trying to accomplish.' She wouldn't relent and continued to insist that this was the way to go. I couldn't get her to change her mind. Have you ever had a conversation like that - where someone said; 'I don't think-with-words.' "

ERICA: "Yes, as a matter of fact I have but when she said that I asked her exactly what she meant. She claimed that words just misconstrue the purpose; therefore creating visuals was easier for her to assign value or not to any given topic. If she saw it would work using her methods, she would implement, if not, she disregarded the whole thing." "It was so aggravating to hear her sound 'stupid' when honestly all she had to do was think for herself, leaving her less vulnerable to being ignored." "I figure it has a lot to do with low self-esteem and the confidence one has in their own thought processes."
"I'm not on a roll right now - don't have the right mind-power to make more sense of this. I hope I've given you more 'food for thought.' I think we'll talk further about this."

ME; "Has it occured to you, that person might be completely stupid and that the source of her problem has nothing to do with low self esteem and lack of confidence? There are billions and billions of 'morons' out there who are bursting at the seams with those 2 qualities."

ERICA:"Yes, that's occured to me. I don't let on that I think they're acting stupid because they don't even know any better. Once you point out that they are not thinking for themselves, all of a sudden they do . . ."
"It is simply easier as I see it, to adopt someone else's opinions for sake of not looking stupid, although you and I know it is better to think for ourself so that if we 'sound stupid' at least its not because we are a parrot but just a 'moron'"
"When you were talking to that girl and she said, "I know what to do without that", it brings to mind that many things we do are out of conditioned response. It is autommatic, requiring very little if any additional 'thinking'. You say she wouldn't relent and continued to insist that this was the way to go. This is a sign of stubborness running deep and fear to use our own mental faculties. The latter actually being work to some so they just adopt everyone elses mumbo-jumbo! It is so destructive and totally 'moronic'"

ME; "Okay. Can you tell me more about the incident you were speaking of just a few minutes ago? It's something about a women, words and visuals. She said words just confuse things."

ERICA: "Some women think in pictures and words while others just think with associations to those words. The woman that I spoke of was stubborn in her mindset, obviously not using her intellectual possibilities but the less correct ones from other people--keeping herself free from thinking at all".
"The visuals are offered to those that need clarification of the idea being presented to them. Words can misconstrue but feelings and pictures help to clarify. She couldn't because even her imagination was stifled because she adopts the thoughts of others instead of using her own."
"As a woman, I find talking to anyone takes a certain finesse as I read my recipient before I engage in conversation. Facial expressions, body language and overall interest in where they are all weigh heavily on how I would approach them. If they seem 'stupid' I don't let on that I believe so, but rather approach things gently and with the least amount of confusion or cause of irritability. I see stupidity as an escape to use ones intellect, you choose to be ignorant--not born that way !"

ME; "What I'm really interested in is the specific rather than the general. What was it she was trying to explain? Was she making a film? Please tell me the whole story, with all the details."

ERICA: "There is no story to tell. That is just the way she approaches any and all situations. She uses imagery instead of words, or so she says; 'no words to describe that which she is trying to accomplish.' I believe it was more an answer on how she thinks rather than how she articulates information. Sorry if that isn't satisfactory to your scenario but I am at a loss for continuance ."

ME; "It's just incredible that someone would say; 'there're no words to descibe what I'm doing.' When I was in high school there were students there who couldn't write compositions and they always said the same thing that your friend said; 'There are no words to describe what happened to me.' They never learned how to put 2 words together. They couln't write a sentance. And just recently I was walking down the street with someone and he seemed to be trying to invent his own language. I told him I didn't know what he was talking about. What was your friends subject?"

ERICA: "My friends subject was about disciplining children between the decades of 1930-1960. She claims 'there are just no words for what us children had to be subjected to by our parents'--I interjected and said, "sure there are words. But perhaps your emotional constructs run so deep and shackle you so much, that you have been stifled by fear for how to interpret those actions accordingly. She looked at me in horror and disbelief because I was born later 60 and did not have to deal with labor-intensive parents so I could not relate".
"People can't find the right words because they have not expanded their simple vocabulary. This is not saying they are stupid or of 'moron mentality', just at an incredible disadvanatge. Do you agree?"

ME; "No, not at all.. They're really just stupid. They were born like that. People don't need a large vocabulary to explain things. They can just start talking and then continue untill they're finished."
"I have another story for you. This is really exceptional. I told someone he'd changed the context of a story. He came back with; God made everything, including conversations, and He made it all to serve His greater glory and that's what he, the speaker, had done when he rearanged the parts and pieces of the story. What do you think of that? Is that stupid or what?"

ERICA: "I don't believe that someone who has faith in a higher power is 'stupid'; however misinformed, totally !" "Some people need a venue that is not their own, provided by history such as the bible and talk of god is, to make sense of non-sensical information. If a person uses that window of opportunity to free themselves from the shackles society and organized religion, then they get sucked into a vacuum. Not becoming 'stupid' but controlled by the masses. Seems like the world today is doing a great job of proving one cannot think for themself nor wants to because if they have something like a 'god concept' at their dosposal, nothing is their fault or gain. Do you get that?"

ME; "No. I have no idea what you're talking about. As far as I know, you said they're not stupid. But, that just isn't true. You're always talking about weird stuff like this. You always change just simple 'moron' into special 'morons' who are looking and finding something - no one knows what. Apparently you have a direct line into the 'moron' brain and you've figured out what they're looking for and finding. But you have yet to explain it to me. I don't get it. You can tell me again if you want to. The 2 of us could possibly write 'Uncovering the Mysteries of the 'Moron' Brain.' Except, no one really knows the mysteries of the 'moron' brain. And that will always be true."

ERICA: "Let me explain what I describe 'stupid' as being--It is choosing not to know better or different or for yourself (i.e. adopting someone else's opinions and views on everything), because its easier just agreeing or disagreeing with the masses." "Why do you think this is 'weird stuff' by the way?" "If we are to unlock the 'secret of human consciousness', don't you feel we should agree there are classes of stupid people as well as smart people?"

ME; "Well it's weird because you have the brain talking to itself about itself. According to you; it needs explanations and adrenline rushes. We've been over this before and I pointed out that the brain just sits there thinking about things. It doesn't really need things." "I think it's pretty stupid for someone to change the context of a story because God likes it better that way. Can we agree that that's stupid?"

ERICA: "I thought I had mentioned that the brain doesn't even think for itself, it just collects signals that as education, parents, elders and peers we have picked up on as "how to think." The brain just is a relay center, the mind (different from physical brain) is the key to some of the levels of the 'moron-meter' we are trying to comprehend in the simplest terms to reiterate to those less fortunate. Do you agree?"
"The person changed the concept because he had a sense of betrayal forming when the story might have not been to the way he was raised to appreciate 'god' in some way. I geuss you are perfectly allowed to consider someone doing that as a 'stupid' move but go in their shoes, sense what they sense, feel what they do. Can you ?" "Not likely, because it is their personal glory or despair. Get that part don't you?"
"I will agree with you that this person sounded stupid to you; although I understand it is not his fault entirely and hope you see past that type of compartmentalization." "A very limited, even primitive kind of thinking based on human need, little energy and frequencies and signals going to a brain that walks around, half dead . . . do you agree ?" "It is sad."

ME; "It's pretty sad people have to put-up with 'morons.' You feel sorry for them but I don't. I feel sorry for their victims."
"I'm interested in something you said several minutes ago. You said; 'The 'morons' have to be coerced but not threatened.' How does that work? I think, in the Bible, it says; 'You must compell them to go to church.' I guess what you're talking about is about the same?"

ERICA: "I feel sorry for both and glad that you and I agree on this facet. Now let us move on to the next query, shall we? The coercion is through indoctrination, which begins at birth to two parents of the same religious background or different". "Either way, the child adopts from being taken to church, maybe experiencing holy communion, or going even to Sunday school, the religious bible construct from those parents and having little or no choice in the matter till they get older, makes compelling to keep attending church for the remainder of ones life." "This is what happened to me as a child thinking by way of attending church that I was 'pleasing' someone other than myself. A 'higher power' I could not see, touch, hear or understand even through a priest, preacher, deacon, or even rabbi (cause for a year or so dating a jewish guy, I had the opportunity of 'temple'." "It is all the same in every organized religious faction that 'fear' of the lord is placed gently but firmly in the minds of gullible youths who grow up believing what the masses believed and never sensing their personal relationship with faith."
"I don't go to church anymore, in fact haven't been in any 'house of god' or 'allah' or 'buddha' or whatever you wish to name him or her--because I see no point, in over eight years." "How about you, do you attend any church ?" As a youngster I can't say you are considered a 'moron' when following your parents authority, what choice do you have then?" "But as you grow older and into your own personhood, I would think the 'moron' characteristics would start to fade and you could begin reaching your own nirvana using all you have experienced up to that point. So I know what we are both talking about is the same; although described a little differently. I am very glad we are on the same page here and the idea of writing how 'evolution' is evolving, sounds fascinating!"

ME; "I stoped going to church as soon as I could. My father made me go. I hated it. It was just so boring and stupid. When I was 15 I told him that was the end of it. He left the house when I was 16 and I hardly saw him after that."
"Religious types think they're good people and everyone else believes that too but really the only thing they do good is pass out baloney sandwiches to homeless people. Why do you feel sorry for them?"

ERICA: "Why I personally feel sorry for them is simple. The people that place so much faith in an organized religious category don't want to think for themselves. I already told you that what a priest or deacon or rabbi or preacher tells them is honored because according to those 'believers' the word of those priests, deacons, rabbis or preachers are 'special' in some way. To me they are just scholared and not necessarily in the right way. But to each his or her own, right?"

ME; "Okay, I understand that. But I still don't see why you feel sorry for them. Sorrow is a real emotion and a very strong emotion. I just don't see it happening here. Do you see what I mean? Why would anyone feel sorry for them? They're not suffering in their delusions. On the contrary, they make others suffer."


ERICA: "Yes. However, what else can you feel for someone who just moves with the crowd because it is either hip, easier or because one is indoctrinated to do so by way of family or spouse? instead of following their own self-directed course without being lied to, coerced or bribed?"
"You have to agree the bible is just a book, right ? Not some set of standards set in stone that have no room for modification or true delineation of the contents therein ? I suppose empathy is more appropriate than sympathy which leads me to understand you a whole lot better."
"They can make others sufer should those that are following want to do this, but really they are truly at a disadvantage by adopting the whole 'organized religion gammette".
"Don't you agree there? The homeless people are just part of the human race and don't you think its our job, the ones that do think for ourselves, to teach these 'automatons' a new perspective to help them begin using their own given intellect?"

ME; "The crux of our disagreement is that you think, by some unknown means, you're going to explain something to the 'automata.' And I know that'll never happen."

ERICA: "It is apparent that you perceive homeless people differently than I do. Some choose to be less attractive, less socially adept, less intelligent and more annoying, more needy, and certainly more 'out of touch' with typical society norms, i.e.. owning or renting a place to live, being able to maintain on ones own merit and NOT depending on handouts. It is not all their fault that something they worked for was taken away from them".
"The poor sloppy people are at an extreme disadvantage because they have not been given the resources in their community to get the adequate help they need. Now is this their fault, ours, or the beautiful government and god they choose to look to when things go terribly wrong?"
"They have manipulated good caring decent people into being concerned over them when they should not be. That is calculated, thought out abuse of the genuine kind soul. Agree ?"
"The crux of our disagreement is that we cannot agree on an ability to perhaps change someones thinking. "I realize the 'automaton' has a genuine problem and I believe that is called stubbornness. You are familiar with being stubborn, right"
"So if it is just a mental construct that can be changed no matter how deeply ingrained the 'stupid gene' is, there is hope. You have got to understand that each human being is capable of change. I don't care how many times one ignores doing so, the fact that they can is there."
"Do you agree or disagree, again ?" "I geuss the reason I am so adamant about this now nearing 43 years young, I see how easy it was to become an 'automated' being rather than a full complete being that uses her own mind based on what her higher self explains is necessary to move forward, for." "Get it . . . ?"

ME; "Well, as usual, I don't agree. The 'stupids' are just stupid and never the twain shall meet - meaning, their brains will never meet anything that makes sense."
"At this point I'd like to point out the inequity done by the 'puppet -masters.' Why is it they never talk about how stupid the "stupids' are? They know the 'stupids' are stupid. But they never say anything about it. They just keep making stupid programs for them. Don't you think it's best to tell the 'stupids' they're stupid? What's the point of keeping it a secret? Bring it out in the open where it can be discussed. Say to the 'stupids;' 'You're stupid.' What's wrong with that?"
"There's an interesting problem here though. The 'stupids' don't know they're stupd. They think they're geniuses. Of course, everyone else knows they're stupid."

ERICA: "Well as usual, I disagree that 'stupid' people can't be guided into becoming more informed and hopefully smarter, people."
"The 'puppet- masters' have been known to point out to less informed individuals, what programs are out there. If there is some confusion, questions are allowed and answered according to need, not intellect." "It really is not the 'puppet- masters' job to re-educate the public and they don't fail if they have; but we both know if an interested listener does not get it the first time, they might after the second or third run of the same schematic because repetition results in finally learning."
"I don't believe that the 'stupids' don't know they are stupid; I feel they do and are embarassed to admit it; while the 'puppet-masters' have no problem leaving that info out because they do not want to insult a less advantaged, non-intellectually-gifted individual."
"That is being smarter than the masses to some, but to me, a grave mistake. Ignoring the 'stupids' is just fueling the downfall of human kind. Those that can and do think for themselves, using whatever program, are willing to teach the uninformed--should the uninformed seek that knowledge."
"Perhaps stupid and genius are closely related since either category is extreme from the other. You either 'know it all', or think you know it all, or you know nothing".
"There has to be a middle-ground in which the puppet-masters make sense of their genius stuff and the 'stupids' make less sense of the nonsense they take in as 'food for thought'. "Richard, we can go around and around with this and only clearly state the obvious: stubbornness lacks curiosity and you certainly cannot disagree that if one is stubborn they are stuck. Right ?"

ME; "They're stubborn because they're stupid not the other way around."
"We agree that wrestling fans are stupid. So, can you show me in what way wrestling fans are geniuses? You said something about genius and stupidity being the same thing. This is a really strange concept. The very opposite of logic and honesty."
"I really don't believe the 'stupids' will ever be able to handle a certain kind of problem. You know, they simply can't get pass the point that God made everything. They'll never, never change. We seem to be stuck here. You think they can change and I know they can't."
"You said something interesting a minute ago. You said; 'The 'stupids' know they're stupid and want to change. Have they actually said to you; 'I know I'm a stupid person but show me where I'm wrong.' ? Such a question would prove they're hopelessly insane. Which they are."

ERICA: "Ah, so you admit it takes some intellect to decide to avoid stuff rather than absorb it, right? Yes.. I did not argue with you that watching wrestling is not the most intellectually stimulating, nor the least IMHO, sport to watch."
"I say a fan is genius because if only a fan, not an actual participant, if clever enough to get the type of adrenaline rush his or her body needs to feel 'alive', that is far from stupid behavior. Agree?" "Genius and Stupid are on the same continuum of mental faculty and personality development, usually at opposite extremes. Not the same at all except in degree of intensity. UNLESS one can fuse the extremes into rational creative outlets, a cognitive dissonance manifests." "I am not sure how logic and honesty are 'opposite' when these idealogies run parallel to thought. So please explain that one to me" "Oh yes they can get past the point that God made everything when they begin reading or paying attention to toher sources of information. Lacking knowledge and resources to give it makes stupid stay; bringing in the proper awreness makes stupid become a whole lot smarter ! Innovation, my dear . . . it is innovation !"
"Asking means they are curious in how to change people like yourselves concept of them, which is starting to be repetitively ridiculous. You keep sounding off such negative energy about these people you refer to as 'stupid' while I refer to them as 'disadvantaged.because I see change, you see stagnancy."

ME; "I want to return to your arguement that the 'stupids' know they're stupid. That just can't happen. If the 'stupids knew they were stupid then they wouldn't be stupid - they'd be smart. It's a given that the 'stupids' can never know they're stupid. Do you have a specific example of a 'stupid' coming to you and saying; 'I'm a really stupid person. Show me where I'm wrong.' I don't think that ever really happened. If the 'stupids knew they where stupid then they'd be smart. But they're not smart - they're stupid. You just imagined the 'stupids' know they're stupid."
"Another point, you speak of the 'stupids' as being 'disadvantaged.' We're not talking about a bunch of drooling idiots but almost everyone except the 'puppet-masters.' People don't usually discribe them as 'disadvantaged.'"

ERICA: "When you say "stupids can never know they're stupid" is the wrong assumption to make regarding the human intellect. I do know quite a few people who admit to not knowing all there is to know, and even a few of those admit they have reacted in a stupid manner or adopted a stupid way of perceiving something but it is because it was just easier to go with the flow, than argue."
"Those people today are now no better off than they were yesterday because they choose to stay stupid and do nothing different. That is still using intellect, only a very small irrational portion of it, by adopting choice over doing nothing at all, which is still a choice, they remain disadvantaged." "
The definition of stupid clearly misidentifies the nature of stupidity, you have a choice to rise above stupid but if it is less time-consuming, thought-provoking and seemingly like work, why get smart or smarter ?" "Just like we are doing now, discussing the stupid ones, are we giving creedence to encouraging stupidity ? I think so . . . So how about stopping using the term stupid and adopt the 'disadvantage' theme?"
"Of course people don't describe themselves as being disadvantaged because they refuse to believe they are."
"I am both a student of puppet-masters and a puppet-master (maybe so because of the teaching and speaking) and never have I told someone they are stupid, don't like the term itself. I have pointed out though that anyone who is uninformed about better choices, is ignorant and not only by choice but by force. If a community lacks resources for best health, water, food, safety and environmental concerns being addressed--than a population of very disadvantaged people is being encouraged to maintain a less than knowledgeable outlook for self-sustainment. Oh how easily the govt can control them now . . . !"

ME; "Well. the 'stupids' always find some excuse for not thuinking. The girl who wouln't think-with-words said it was just a waste of time - she had better things to do. My point is that the 'stupids will never think-with-words. You and the other 'puppet-masters' are wasting your time and mine and millions of other's trying to get the 'stupids' to think. The 'stupids' are never going to think. I'd like to see all the 'puppet-masters', including yourself, resign from your positions of power and confess that you don't know what your doing. Your reign is a reign of horror. The sooner you and the others resign, the better. You shouldn't waste a minute."

ERICA: "Honestly Richard, after having discussed this whole concept of stupidity versus intellect, I have decided to no longer be the 'puppet-master' in your little scenario that places an extreme urgency in 'quitting' what I do. My reign is not one of horror, but rather to open peoples eyes to the horrors before them. Since you wish to remain sitting here in this cafe with your eyes closed, so be it. I am not giving you anymore 'food for thought', because you are not hungry for real change just rehashing past and present mistake-making." "Good day . . ."

ME; "This is just so typical."

She gets up and walks away. I leave the diner a little later.

End of Episode One.




"Nightpeople".....Episode Two

Cast....In order of appearance.
Richard
Mark....(not the same Mark as in episode one)
Wylie

Narrator
Richard

Later. Same night. I'm still sitting at the counter. Mark walks in and sits down beside me.

ME; "I have a blog about a spaceplane."

MARK; "That sounds very interesting Richard. What powers it?"

ME; "Ordinary jet engines. But in the upper atmosphere and the vacumn of space the engines use liquid oxygen. The novelty of thIs spaceplane isn't in the design but in the method. It takes off from the equator and flys easward. Once it reaches a hight of seven miles it's no longer held aloft by the dynamics of the air but it's own momentum - much like an artillery shell. It skips in long arcs and gains speed in the vacuum.The arcs get longer and higher as the plane gains speed. Ultimately it goes into orbit"
"If you missed some of that I can explain it again."

MORK; "That's ok, I think I've got it. It sounds like it would have many advantages over the older rocket systems with all of the volatile fuel on board. I would think it would be safer."

ME; "It's a one stage spaceplane. It could go to the moon, put down a lander, pick up the lander and return.- all in one stage. Yet no one wants to build it. People in the space buisness don't pay any attention to me at all. It's really frustrating. I'd lke to find someone who would build it. Do you know of anyone?"

MARK; "As a matter of fact Richard, I do. I met him back when I was doing research for NASA. His name is Martin Shepard. He is an Aeronautical Engineer working for them in the R&D department. He was working on alternive ways to land and lift off again from a planet. I am sure he could help you out. Should I let him know that you will be contacting him?"

ME' "Okay. How will I contact him?"

MARK; How about I do this, I will give him your information and and your ideas and he will contact you if he is interested. I think he will get in touch with you. Because he told me he is looking for a new project."

ME; "Good. Do you know a private party who might build it?

MARK; " Mr. Shepard will be able to help you with that too. He also runs an independent shop that does experimental ship building."

ME; "Okay. I just need 2 million dollars. But people hold on to their money."

MARK; "I know of an investor by the name of Washburn. I have never done business with him, so I can't completely vouch for him. But I know that he likes to put money into high tech projects. Here's his card. It can't hurt to see what he says."

ME; "Okay." I take the card. "Are you working on another book?"

MARK; "Yes Richard, I am. It is a Science Fiction Mystery that has Murder, Clones, Robots, Stonehenge and a Madman."

ME' "Can you tell me something about it?"

MARK; "Well I can tell you it involves a time jumping Madman that goes to the past to try to destroy the Future."

ME;; "How does time travel work?"

MARK; "This guy by the name of Washburn yeah, I know same name .Anyway, he discovers the time travel secrets from the Druids. There is a draw back to this kind of trip. It will eventually tear down the body due to chronometric pressures. I would not advise this as a mode of transportation. It could be very dangerous in the long term"

ME "I don't do demensional transportations so I'm not worried about it. Robots are usually interesting. What do yours' do?"

MARK; "In one chapter of the book this guy goes to a Robot rental shop to get a maintainence droid to do some work at his home. At the same time he was investigating a fire and explosion in a shop where a rogue robot might be involved."

ME;"So what happens then?" "Does he get the same droid?"

MARK; "Don't know. Still writing it, I haven't gotten that far yet."

ME; "What are the clones doing?"

MARK; "Come on Richard. If I tell you the whole story you won't want to read the book when I get it done."

ME; "Okay. It was just something to talk about." "Do you really understand how my spaceplane works. And why am I having such a hard time getting it built? It's cheap. effective, one stage and it can take off from an ordinary runway."

MARK; "It might be something they could use in space. Have you contacted NASA with your ideas? Going back to my writing again, I would like to tell you about the first and the second book that I had published."

ME; "Strictly speakings, it's not somethgign to use in space. But something to go into space. No. I haven't contacted NASA . I felt no one would pay attention to me. I have the plans for it in a well advertised blog. People in the space industry have accees to it. I assume, some of them have read it. But there's just no interest in it. Amd when I say 'no interest' I mean absolute zero. It's a one stage spaceplane that can go to the moon and back. What do they want? Maybe they don't understand it. Do you?"

MARK; "Yes Richard, I think I do understand it. I think it would have great posibilites in the space program. Especially since they are looking for alternitive ways to take off and land. You just have to get your ideas to the right person."

ME; "The 'right person' is very much overdue." "You said you wanted to talk about your books."

MARK; " Yeah, my first book that was published in 2003 was called "Transference." It' a story about the Earth becoming unstable and unable to support life, and an underground Academy of Space and Science which was in the process of training people to survive in space if the worst happened. Which it did."

ME; "The world-coming-to-an-end is a very popular subject these days. I could never write POP. I consider the puplic to be a mass of morons." "So what happens to your Academy of Space and Science?"

MARK; "Keep in mind this is my first book." "The Academy was busy training the Students and Adults for what could happen. And then unexpectedly, it did. They already had the colonization ship finished for months. They moved everyone, students, Scientists and volunteers on board .And before the Earth shattered like the shell of an egg they took off in search of a new home."

ME; "Do they stay in the same solar system."

MARK; "That is a good question Richard. After months of traveling through space looking for an Earth-like planet they encountered a kaleidoscopic storm in space. It drew them along with other matter from space into the maelstrom. When the storm subsided they were orbiting a planet much like Earth. After investagating the Commander and Lt. Commander found that it would support life"

ME; "Do they have a shuttle craft? Can they beam down? Do they have an android like Data? How many people are there? Do they make a campfire. Do they have a barbeque? Do they have tents? Do they skinny dip. Did someone think to bring grape roots for a vinyard? Do they love Jesus? Do they talk about how hard they work while others are lazy and stupid? Is there a psychiatrist on board?"

MARK; "Wow, you ask a lot of questions Richard. Let me start off by saying this. They do belive that a higher power has guided them there and made them a safe new home out of the kaos of the storm that they encountered. Secondly, it is nothing like Star Trek! They do have recon and exploration crafts that they check out the new planet with. They do have a Maintainance Droid more like R2D2 named FRED. He has a definate personality of his own, but still a machine. They landed the whole ship, so they have what they brought with them, the Eco-Pods that survived the trip and the storm. They are alive and well in a new world that they will make."

ME; "Are there grape roots in the eco-pod?. Do they plant them? Do they talk about the vinyards and vintage wines they're someday going to have?"

MARK; "If they have wine it is probibly synthetic and part of the ships supplys. If that ran out I'm sure they planted some fruit. It was never really discussed. The pods automaticly opened up once they were in the pre-designated location. Aqua-pod near the water, Desert pod in the most arid part of the planet ect. There were three pods that made it, plus they used the supplys they had on the ship."

ME; "How long were they on the spaceship? How many people are there?"

MARK; "The 1000 crew and the volunteers were on board for what seemed like many months until they found Alpha Tara."

ME;."What do they do there?"

MARK; "They live. That is where the story ends."

ME; "What do they do on the spaceship - beside being buffeted by storms?"

MARK;; " Richard I guess you will have to read the book if you want to know more. Although, it may be hard to get now because my contract with PublishAmerica was up in April. Transference has been in rewrites since then. If you would like, I can tell you something about Crimson Enigma now."

ME; "You know, I thought you were going to tell me the whole story. Why don't you want to do that? I'm just talking to you for something to do. I'm not going to buy it."

MARK; "It sounds like what you are doing is picking my brain for story ideas that you can write later. I hope this is not the case, because my books are protected! This is getting very old now. I'm out!"

He leaves.


Later. Same night. I'm still at the counter. Wylie sits down next to me.

ME;"It's cold outside. huh?"

WYLIE; " It sure is. That is why I came in here - to get some hot tea. I have always been a night owl. Ever since I was a boy. I always wondered about that, but I think it's because of my star-sign. I am a Cancer - we are called "Moon Children". "

ME; "I'm Sagittarius but I'm not interest in archery. You told me you make films. What are they about?"

WYLIE: "So far, I have three produced, and online. All are "SNL"-style comedy shorts. One is "Caveman Comedian", which depicts the first-ever stand-up comic. His signature line: "Once you go Neanderthal, you never go back to Cro-Magnon!" Another is "To Catch a Comedian,"( http://www.FunnyorDie.com ) which - as the title suggests, is a parody of "To Catch a Predator", the NBC Dateline show. The producer is "Two Loose Screws Video Prods. I actually know a man who was caught in one of those online stings, not done by the "Dateline" crew. This person was an administrator at a school I attended a long time ago. One day I picked up the paper to find his mug shot on the front page! And no, he didn't put any kind of 'moves' on any of the students, while I was attending the school. Apparently, none of us were his type. Life can be funny, that way."

A server comes over and Wylie orders a cup of tea.

ME; "How do you catch a comedian?"

WYLIE: "You have to be clever, Richard. One must lay a trap filled with honey, fresh jokes, and guaranteed slots at the top-shelf comedy clubs in town, and then cover the trap with twigs. lol But really - the premise of "To Catch a Comedian" is that a would-be comic is lured to the house to meet the teen girl (actually a decoy). So the host goes over his chat log, which include lame attempts at humor as he clumsily tries to seduce the 'teen'. 'Steve' (the comedian) then leaves, only to get arrested by a pair of donut-munching cops outside. Our next project is a parody of 'Twilight'."

ME; "It sounds funny." "Humor doesn't interest me very much. I want to tell the story about how the world is a Giant Lunitic Asylum."

The server returns with Wylie's cup of tea.

WYLIE: "That is an extreme way of looking at life, Richard. I am not sure it's very healthy. True, there is lunacy in this world, but there are plenty of other things too. There is love, and charity, and dignity, and the many pleasures - both big and small - that we can experience as human beings. The best way to look at this planet is as a big learning center. What is the meaning of life? We will always ponder that, and never come up with the answer. My take is that we die, we return to a kind of giant cosmic womb, where it's pure bliss. It's like an existential promotion."

ME; "You're a comedian. I can understand how you would think like that. I'm not funny, so I have to do other things than make jokes all the time." "'Return to a cosmic womb, find pure blis,' ha , ha, ha. That's a good one."

WYLIE: " It's true that I do have a strong 'comic' sensibility, but I didn' intend to be funny. I will turn this around - what do you think happens when we die? You can say "Oh, our bodies simply decompose", but is that the whole story? What about our souls?"

ME; "Our bodies decompos - -that's really the whole story. The rest is a tragic mental disorder."

WYLIE: "That seems kind of nihilistic to me. Would you call yourself a nihilist?"

ME; "No. I'm not political. It's just that I see humanity as stupid and insane. And very tragic. I think I would call myself a realist. You know, things like God just can't happen."

WYLIE: "Nihilism has nothing to do with politics, or political beliefs. The terms means "belief in nothing". And if you don't believe in God, then you are an athiest, not a 'realist'. And it seems to me that yes, life can be disappointing, it can be difficult, and other people's behavior can seem odd, and even repellent in some cases. But what is the alternative? To have no existence at all? What if life, as we knew it, not only didn't exist but never had? What if we had only a giant cosmic void where this planet and all it's inhabitants stood? You could say "hey, that might be an improvement!", but there would be no joy or relief in that. There wouldn't be anything at all. Something to consider."

Me; "I don't know what you're talking about."

WYLIE: "OK, I will try and explain further. How do you explain our existence? Why, in this gigantic galaxy, is there a planet called Earth, that sustains thousands of different living species? This is the great cosmic "how did we get here/ What does it all mean?' question / dilemma that virtually all human beings ponder. Does that make sense? Oh, this hot tea is really good, I will ask for a second cup."

He gestures to a server for another cup of tea.

ME; "I don't ponder. I'm ponder free and proud of it. I suppose you could call me a 'nonponder' or a 'unponder' or a 'anti-ponder' or a 'deponder.' Do you ponder continuously? It sounds like it. What's the ratio of your ponder to your joke? Perhaps they're one and the same? I think so."

The server brings the tea.

WYLIE: "I think we are reaching an impasse with this topic. I suggest we try a new one, altogether. What is your favorite kind / kinds of music, and who are your fave artists?"

ME; "Really, lots of them. I've lived with their music for a long time. The one that's the most vivid to me is Pink Floyd and The Dark Side of the Moon."

WYLIE: "I also own that CD. It's pretty solid, but my favorite Floyd release is their debut album - "Piper at the Gates of Dawn". It's too bad that Syd went off the deep end mentally; his talent shines through on that album. My favorite track on "Dark Side" is "Time".

ME; "What did Syd do that was crazy? Did he leave the band?"

WYLIE: "He was a late-sixties drug-abuse casualty. He actually was asked to leave the band, c. '68. David Gilmour was his replacement. There is little doubt he had mental illness, made worse by his drug habits. His solo album (which I haven't heard) was called "The Madcap laughs". He was mostly reclusive, but gave his Pink Floyd bandmates a nice bit of irony when he paid a surprise visit to the studio where they were recording their "Wish You Were Here" LP in '75. The reason it's ironic - the album itself was a tribute to Barrett. He died a few years ago, at sixty."

ME; "I'm glad I'm not a drug casualty. What do you think about the drug war? It's just so perfectly stupid. Don't you think?"

WYLIE: "The 'drug war' is not stupid, it is well-intentioned. The problem is, it also requires a lot of time, money, and manpower to wage. And the illegal stuff out there can be continually replinished. I think the US ought to do adopt two new policies. One is to legalize and tax marijuana. (And for the record, I don't use pot myself.) The second is that if we want to go after the 'harder' drugs, we have to attack closer to the sources of the drugs themselves. We can partner with the countries known for illicit drug trades, to find and raze the fields where the drugs (and their ingredients) are grown. Let me give an analogy - cutting off an animal's head is going to kill it a lot quicker then cutting off it's tail

ME; "I don't think it's well intentioned either."

WYLIE: "That is an interesting comment. Are you saying that we should be OK with drug abuse?"

ME; "Yes. That's what I'm saying - OK with drug abuse."

WYLIE: "On what grounds should we be 'OK with drug abuse'? on 'freedom' ones? Or are we supposed to think that drugs aren't bad for us at all?:

ME; "The Drug War is 1000 times worse than the drug problem. Acceapt the problem and let the cure go. The prohibited drugs are not as bad as they're made out to be. 99% of what the drug critics say is just overblown hype. The critics play to an audience of hysterical morons - and so we get a Drug War."

WYLIE: "What evidence do we have that all drugs are safe? I once got food poisoning from a bad order of fried chicken. (I have since become a vegetarian.) If a popular fast-food product can cause sickness, then why give the 'pass' to hard drugs?"

ME; "I've stated my position. I'm finished with it."

WYLIE: "That is fine. I am going to pay my bill, and then call it a night. Thanks for the late-night company, and we will probably meet up again another time."

ME; "Okay, Goodnight."

He drparts. I leave the diner a little later.

End of Episode Two




"Nightpeople".......Episode Three

Cast...In order of appearance.
Richard
Matt

Narrator
Richard


It's nightime. I'm sitting in a diner booth. Matt sits down opposite me.

ME; "Did you tell me you do voice practicing?"

MATT: "I do some voice acting as a hobby. I've been around microphones all my life and I love to perform."

A server comes over and Matt orders a cup of coffee.

ME "What did you do to be around microphones all your life?"

MATT: Everything. School musicals and school and church choirs when I was a kid. I gave the morning announcements over the PA system when I was in high school. I was the morning guy on a little local radio station my senior year in high school. College radio was my main activity for my university years. And I had a dick and fart joke podcast with some friends for four years that got pretty popular. When that ended I was looking for the next thing I could do on the mike and discovered the world of audio drama that is amazingly popular online. I built a sound booth in my basement and I have a ball taking all the roles that come my way. Let me know if I talk about myself too much. I know this stuff isn't huge for everybody, but I don't go bowling, I don't hunt, i don't really even watch much T.V. I play on the internet and record roles for audio projects. I'm not sure what I would have done if I'd been born 10 years earlier."

The server returns with a cup of coffee.

ME; "Do you remember the dick and fart jokes?"

MATT: No one joke stands out in particular. We haven't done a show in two years. The whole thing was like sitting on the porch with your friends and having drinks and swapping stories, and we didn't worry about keeping it particularly high-brow. But it was done well, we put a lot of work into production and promotion to make a quality show, and people responded. We still show up in the top 100 for audio comedy on iTunes and we haven't done a show in two years, which I think converts to 150 years in Internet time, right? To kind of answer your question, though, one stunt we did that particularly stands out for me was when I lost a bet and they waxed the hair from my back and a patch from my chest. I still rub my chest when I think of that one. You should check that out sometime, it's still on YouTube."

ME; "So, after college you did audio plays. Do any of them stand out as exceptional?"

MATT: "There have been a number of fun projects. I have narrated for the Escape Pod podcast several times and look forward to doing that more. I've had the pleasure of being in several Bill Hollweg productions for Broken Sea, and he's such a genius that any work with him is a pleasure. I'm really excited for a SciFi audio drama he has coming out with me as a captain of a space ship -- that one's called 2109. I'm also in an upcoming audio adaptation of the story the movie The Thing is based on. That's called Who Goes There and I'm very excited to hear how that one comes out. Can I ask you a question?"

ME; "Okay, ask away."

MATT; "As a voice actor, I'm a bit fascinated with accents. Forgive me If I'm being rude, but may I ask where yours is from?"

ME; "Right here, in New York City. I was born on Staten Island."

MATT: "Cool, I'll have to put that in my mental catalog. Your accent is subtle, but noticeable. I have friends in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Long Island, but none of them speak quite the same. I don't get to NYC nearly often enough, so I have to soak it all in with deep breaths. True accents are getting rarer these days with mass media pushing "Midwest Generic" as the dominant accent, so finding a true native speaker is a blessing. I still treasure when I can go to Pittsburgh and come across a true speaker of Pittsburghese. There's nothing better than sitting down at a table at an Eat 'N Park and having the waitress ask, "What kinda pop yins guys want?" Oh +sigh+ so delicious.."

ME; "I've never been there. Did anyone ever write a song about Pittsburg?"

MATT: "Not a lot of mainstream songs, anyway. And not any in recent history that I can think of. Pittsburgh is one of the cities that always got called out in those 80s rock tunes that listed the names of a lot of towns, presumably so they could get the people in those places really fired up when they played concerts there."

ME; "That's too bad. It must be hard on the Pittsburgians not to have their own song."

MATT: "No, we thrive on being the underdog. It's one of the many things that makes Pittsburgh the best city ever built, hands down."

ME; "Okay. When did you come to NYC?"

MATT: "I've been here several times. The first was when I was 14 and passing through to JFK airport for a flight to Russia for three weeks. Then, in college I was here with a group of friends for a college radio conference. I came here several times on business. A couple years ago, I came here to be on the game show Chain Reaction. Now I live here."

ME; "I never saw the show. What's it about?"

MATT: "It's a show on the Game Show Network with word association questions. The potential prize wasn't huge, but it doesn't really matter since we didn't win anyway. It was a fun time, though. A very unique experience."

ME; "Have you ever seen a Fellini film?"

MATT: Not that I recall. Are you a big fan?

ME; "Yes, but I haven't seen a Fellini film in years. I don't go to movies any moe. I watch the PBS channels on TV."

MATT:"I make it to the movies about twice per year. Don't really watch much TV, I spend most of my time online or with my kids. Speaking of PBS -- I did my internship at the PBS station in Pittsburgh. Met Mr. Rogers in the elevator a couple times. He was one of the most genuinely nice people I've ever met."

ME; "I'm not a Mr. Rogers kind of person. I'm not Mainstream."

MATT: "I doubt much of anything on PBS could be called 'mainstream.' :

ME "Everthing on PBS is Mainstream."

MATT: "Interesting. 'Mainstream' carries connotations of popularity to me, and PBS has had the worst ratings of all of the networks since before TV broadcast in color."

Matt motions to a server for a refill..

ME; "It's still 'Mainstream.' The personnel propagandize a cultual idenity to the ignorant/superstitious masses."

The server refills his cup. And places a bill in front of him.

MATT: "Wow, that's bleak. You must be a riot at parties."

Matt's eyes roll and he winks and smiles to assure it's all in good-natured sarcasm. Then he sighs.

"Ahh, well. Everybody has an agenda, my friend. The best we can hope for is to find more people to group with who have agendas similar to our own. I'm sure Fred Rogers had his own agendas, but what I saw gelled with my own values. I watch old videos of him testifying before Congress for various children's issues and the pure altruism I see is breathtaking. If I can leave this world knowing I left that mark on one person, life will have had meaning."

ME; "Some of us live on the Planet of the Damned where the horrors of life are very real and instantaneous. Others of us get to live in a time rift in the cosmos where happy smiley things happen."

MATT: "Perhaps. Or perhaps one's life is framed in the fashion one determines. What's your story? Tell me about your horrors. Did you eat breakfast from a dumpster this morning? Do you need to prostitute yourself for drug money? I'm not a rich man, but you're welcome to what's in my wallet. I hope that helps ease your burden."

ME; "I'm solvent. I don't need money or drugs. And I don't have to reveal my life to anyone. But speaking of drugs and horrors. That's what the Drug War is. And it's entirely unneccessary. Recreational drugs could be made legal without any major ill effects. But that's not going to happen because of the ignorance and superstitions of the masses. You won't find any happy smiling faces in the Drug War."

MATT: "I concur. I wouldn't say I'm a drug advocate by any means, but I do think decriminalization would be a positive move. The number of people in jail for long periods of time for getting caught with their personal stash at a moment when they weren't even using is out of control. But it's a symptom of a larger problem. You can't get dumb laws off the books as long as there are corporate-owned prisons. It's a shame too, because multiple countries have proven that you can legalize marijuana and heroin, save a TON of tax money, and see little to no ill effect among the population."

ME; "A Drug War is something that happens to people who are ineffectual in the brain department. A people who are, in effect, vegetables."

MATT: "On the contrary, the people that have been waging this war have been very calculating. 'Ineffectual' isn't the right word. 'Psychotic' may be more apt."

ME; "Right, psychotic is more apt. These are really sick people."

MATT: "Speaking of sick, I wish I could take a couple days and camp with everybody on Wall Street to demonstrate against those psychopaths up there. I can't believe that's getting so little media coverage, it's such an amazing protest."

ME; "What are they protesting against?"

MATT: "It's a group of ultra progressives protesting all of the issues surrounding the US economic collapse: how investment firms caused a global crisis but suffered no punishment or regulation; the housing crisis; the unemployment crisis; et cetera."

ME; "I thought the banks and investment companies did that. They held morgages that couldn't be paid. The homeowners were bad risks. Wall street is Stock Brokers. They sell investments in manufacturing and services. They don't loan money to homeowners. They had nothing to do with the housing crisis or the downturn in the economy. So why would someone think the cure is to increase their regulations? Why would someone go to Wall Street to protest?"

MATT: "Well, I think the actual location is largely symbolic, and it's a location where a protest can garner national attention, which would be somewhat more difficult at some local branch office in Nebraska. However, the investment companies in question all hold offices there as well, and the actual collapse was sped along and amplified by stock trading based on speculation of those investments and those investment companies. Also, as Alan Greenspan said when he was testifying before Congress about the collapse, the laws we had in place before the crisis made some assumptions that investment firms and traders would not stoop to certain depths because the overall negative effect would hurt them more then help them in the end. However, they managed to prove that there are actually no depths to which they will not stoop. It's true that the root of the whole crisis isn't buried in Wall Street, but the branches touch an awful lot of the buildings there."

ME; "Of course it's true the Wall Streeters would stoop to anything. It's really naive to think they wouldn't."

MATT: "Well, that's always going to be a shortcoming of law. You have to start with base-level assumptions to work from. Personally, I think it would be cool if people who dipped below the base level assumptions of what a human would do could be re-classified as non-human, neutered and forced to live the remainder of their lives in a special moron zoo where people can take their kids to teach them about civility. But that's just me. I'm a giver."

Me; "I'll have to think about that one for awhile. How long will you be in the City?"

MATT: "Just a couple days. I can't stand to be away from my family for too long."

ME; "What do you like best about New York?"

MATT: The 24-hour atmosphere. I'm a night person."

ME; "I like the dark vacant streets." "Just to look at though - not to be there. I know they're dangerous."

MATT: "II can dig that. I find the dark very welcoming. And one might think it strange, but I feel like people are more welcoming at night. More honest. More openly happy. It's like we know that those of us that are left standing after 3AM are in a club with our own meeting place -- which is the whole world, but made ours by the fact that we're the only ones out in it."

ME; "The night group and the day group are in a different mindset. The day group has parents with their kids. At 3AM the kids are home in bed."

MATT; "They're at home. With kids, though, there's only about a 50/50 shot that they're sleeping. My own did irreparable damage to my sleeping pattern."

ME; "What happened?"

MATT: "Since I'm the night-owl, my wife and I decided that I would cover the late-night shift with the kids when they were babies, which was fine. But I sleep better if it's in one go and I'm hard to wake once I'm down, so I got in the habit of just staying up until 1 AM. That's a bit rough when you get up at 5:30 to get ready for work. That was tedious but live-able with my son, but my daughter spent a good 18 months before reliably sleeping through the night and she had a tendency to wake up at 1 AM, which meant I had to extend my shift until she was out. After doing it so long, I got accustomed to feeling my second wind late and not going to bed until late. Now I pretty much just live on 4 hours of sleep per day which has made me borderline narcoleptic. I can't do anything for more than 5 minutes or I'm almost guaranteed to nod off."

ME; "Unless i'm working, I usually sleep during the day. I wake-up at Noon or 1 or 2PM."

MATT:" In a perfectly sleep-scheduled world, I would work from 11 AM to 8 PM. That would give me more night time to enjoy and still sleep."

ME; "Have you made any films?"

MATT: "Nothing more important than a YouTube video. I've interviewed a number of directors for various B-movies, but I've never been in anything significant. You?"

ME; "I've never made a film." "Have you ever written a script?"

MATT: "Not yet. At some point I will. My writing in general is woefully behind. I keep a list of ideas for stories that grows constantly but never seems to see fulfillment."

ME; "What do you want to accompltsh with your writing?"

MATT; "Different things. Some of those ideas I picture as scripts for audio dramas, some will make good short stories, and there's at least one on the list that's big enough for a series of novels."

ME; "Are they secret ideas?"

MATT: "I keep them in a list online so I can add to them no matter where I am, and so I can share them with collaborators easily."

ME; "Well, can you share them with me now?"

MATT: "You mean, you want an example?"

ME; "That's what I mean."

MATT: "It''s just a list of incomplete ideas. Like one of them is for a serial audio drama based around a single character. I call it 'The Dispatcher' and it's just the calls coming in an out from a guy who acts as a dispatcher for an agency of assassins. Calls from customers, calls giving assassins their missions -- like a show centered around the Jane Cusak character in the movie Gross Pointe Blank."

ME; "I don't really understand writers fascination with violence. I'm interested in how people think. I always have been. When I was college age I wanted to study psychology but I couldn't afford to go to college. And my grades weren't good enough to get a scholarship."

MATT: "Well, I'm sure some violence would appear in that series too, but it hasn't really been a part of my thinking at all. I'm more intrigued with the idea of how people are really all the same no matter how absurd or extreme their situations may be. I imagine the dispatcher as a problem solver, and the clients and assassins as having the whole gamut of personalities. The fact that it's an illegal activity gives the problem solving an added depth, and it vents my id a bit. Since I gave up the podcast, I've had fewer outlets for that."

ME; "I don't believe we're all the same. We're all unique. And people who kill strangers are sociopaths."

MATT: "Perhaps."

ME; "Perhaps and perhaps not? Why 'perhaps not?'"

MATT: "I agree that people are unique, but I would also argue that aspects of personalities can be similar like the parts of people's faces and bodies. The further away you stand, the more folks look alike. I don't mean that in a bad way, it's shared experience and disposition that decides how much you identify with and enjoy a story"

ME; "The shared experience and disposition, of which you're so fascinated with, is sickness. The entire society is sick. Culture is sickness."

MATT: "Are you going to kill me? I feel like I've mistakenly allowed the villain in a psycho-thriller movie to share my table."

ME; "Very funny. But mixed up. I was sitting here first."

MATT: "Too true. I feel I've overstayed my welcome as I often do. My social grace is somewhat lacking. Regardless, just one clarification before I go -- were you suggesting the things about people that make them similar are inherently bad? Do you imagine a world where each person is completely unique and autonomous is even possible or would work if it was? That seems terribly unimaginative and shortsighted to me."

ME; "That's what i'm talking about. Conformity is a sickness. Each individual is unique. In what way is what I said unimaginative and shortsighted?"
"I never said you'd overstayed your welcome. That was your idea. You're quite welcome to stay."

MATT: "Conformity is natural. Some degree of conformity is even necessary for a species to thrive. Our ability to sit here and talk to each other is based on commonly held understandings for how people should behave with each other."
"Uniqueness is beautiful and worth celebrating, but there's a balance to be had. And, frankly, most people that consider themselves 'non conformist' are only conforming to a smaller group."

ME; "We use ideas when we talk to each other. I don't need someone to tell me what's going on. I can figure it out for myself. And it doesn't have anything to do with 'commonly-held-beliefs. I don't have any commonly held beliefs. No one agrees with me about anything. And the feeling is mutual".
"This whole arguement started when I told you your Dispatcher was a sociopath. You disagreeded. I still think he's a sociopath. Can your Dispatcher be changed into a nice person because we have commonly held beliefs? Well, yes. But just in your very vivid imagination. Not really."
"In any case writers have a terrible fascination with homicide which they share with the public. It's sick. Arguements about commonly held beliefs isn't going to change that either."

MATT: "Then I apologize, for you may truly be the world's one actual conformist."
"As for the Dispatcher, I didn't argue that he wasn't a sociopath, he may be, I don't know. In the half scene I've written, he's very helpful. We didn't even talk about him. You said people that kill people are sociopath. I agree. So are most politicians and salesmen. But the Dispatcher didn't kill anyone. At least not yet...Perhaps I'll work that into the story too, though to fit the model, it would have to happen on the phone and that could be hard to pull off."
"I don't have a particular fascination with violence. The original drive was to come up with a situation where a drama could be acted out in one location with only one weekly actor. There aren't a lot of jobs that offer that kind of scene. A janitor maybe or maybe a film or art producer that spends most of the time in his car -- that could be interesting, actually. Though, he may get into an accident in an episode, which would reveal me to be a neanderthal again. I should probably just admit that I'm a violent simpleton and leave it rest there."

ME; "Yes, I think so. I concur.
"I don't understand how I'm the worlds only conformist. Don't you need a pair of conformists to create conformity. One like the other. There can never be just one conformist because then he isn't likje anyone else. That's why I said 'I did it by myself.'"
"Lets work on your prdicament. Why not put your Hero in an airplane where he talks to the plane, a controller, his friends, his cat, all of them? The cat will be in a cat carrier, straped in the co-poilot seat and facing the pilot/Hero. The cats name is Tabatha. The title of the series is 'Tabatha is my Co-pilot.' What do you thunk?"

MATT: "Forgive me, I meant to say "...the world's one actual non-conformist." It's just like me to blow the punchline."
"As for the story, I didn't have a predicament. You asked for an example from my list, and I gave it. You have some very interesting ideas there, though."

ME; "Which idea do you like best? I like the cat in the co-pilots seat. And the title; 'Tabatha is my Co-pilot.' Can you add something? We could write the story right now."

MATT: "Sure. I assume in your version, Tabitha is the assassin. So I guess the plane should be going to Mexico to smuggle drugs, and Tabs is hitching a ride to get to a political target in Mexico City."

ME; "Tabatha is a cat in a cat carrier. The carrier is belted onto the co-pilot seat. She faces the pilot. Except for the cat, the pilot is alone in the aircraft, He's not smuggling drugs. He's just flying the plane. The audience doesn't know where he's flying to or from. The audio contains the sound of aero engines. The cat says; 'Meow, Meow.' Your turn. Say something to Tabs?"

MATT: "Okay...so...the pilot looks at Tabitha and shouts, "Shut up you nagging flea farm! I'm sure the stitches hurt from where I sewed that bomb into your gut, but I gave you plenty of novocaine, and it won't matter in an hour anyway -- HAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHA!" Then, Tabitha starts chewing on the stitches, fighting through the pain until she's got them all tugged out and her stomach lays open like an unzipped fanny pack. At the cost of an amazing amount of pain to herself, she bends over and pulls the bomb from the wound and studies it. She doesn't have the fingers and tools to properly disarm it, but she realizes that if she bites it in the right place it will detonate. She closes her eyes, clears her mind, makes herself peaceful, and chomps down on that mutha, blowing that Cessna right the hell out of the sky."
"You're right, this might work. More a one-off than a series, though."

ME; "You're sick."

MATT: "Perhaps."

ME; "Perhaps and perhaps not? Why perhaps not?"

MATT: "I'm not licensed to make that assessment."

ME; "You don't have to be. Anyone can discuss these things. That's freedom of speach.
And it's constitutionally protected. Now tell me why you think it's funny to blow up cats. You can talk. It's just in your imagination the police and the head doctors will be mad at you because you told me about your funny feelings."

MATT: "I don't think it's funny at all. Cats are my preferred pet, actually. Love 'em."

ME; "But in the story you blew up poor Tabs. And laughed about it. Do you think you should believe one thing and write about another? That's sick."

MATT: "That's an odd standard. By that definition just about every writer is sick. Most of humanity for that matter."

ME; "And it's all true. You have to write what you feel or you're a sicky. You have to tell the truth, as you know it to be."

MATT: "'Sick' implies a deviation from the norm. If you put the majority of humanity in a group, then what is left is 'sick.' In a world where all fiction is deviant, I'll gladly lead the freak parade."

ME; "The norm has nothing to do with it. Sick is just sick. In any case, you're welcome to march in the freak parade. It's not where I'm going."

MATT: "That's very insightful. I didn't catch your last name, was it 'Funk' or 'Wagnall?"

ME; "It is very insightfull. It's all anyone can say about it."

MATT: "Okay."

I motion to a server, she comes over and I order a cheesburger, fries and a coke.

ME; "Do you take Amtrack to get here?"

MATT: "When I can afford it. The express from Philly is nice, but it's $150 round trip."

ME; "How do you usually get here?"

MATT: "Daydream."

ME; "I meant what sort of vehicle did you travel in to get from Pittsburg to NYC?"

MATT: "If I was blessed enough to be in the promised land of Pittsburgh, wild horses couldn't drag me to NYC. Since I live near Philly now, a car ride to New York is fairly quick and there's less chance of being shot than at home."

ME; "Isn't it hard to find a place to park?"

MATT: "Parking's not hard to find. It's hard to pay for. But a half dozen visits over three decades of my life isn't going to break me."

ME; "I haven't driven in years."

MATT:"Yeah, that's what it's like to live in one of the 80-100 cities in the country with significant mass transit. Of course, you also have a smoker's increase of cancer risk just from being there. Plusses and minuses all around."

ME; "Smog is harmless."

MATT: "Well, yeah. Anybody who breathes directly from the tailpipe of their car knows that"

ME' "Have you tried it?"

MATT: "No, I admit there are some things I take on faith. People die running their cars in garages, people smarter than I attribute it to the fumes, I'm willing to believe the smart folk rather than assume the dead might have just had a severe allergic reaction to being near bicycles and cardboard boxes."

ME; "I don't care about smog - in the overview or the details."

MATT: "I feel the same way about Kim Kardashian."

ME; "I'm not familar with her work. Does she make movies? I don't go to movies."

MATT: "Nothing so valiant. She's the new Paris Hilton -- famous for being famous and icky."

Me; "What does she do that's 'icky?'"

MATT: "Everything. She's the full repulsive package."

ME; "What's she doing that you find repulsive?"

MATT: "It's not worth discussion. What leads to fame can be interesting. Fame itself is not, and often nor are the people who have it."

ME; "Okay. What does she do that makes her 'press-worthy?'"

Matt makes a snoring sound.

Me; "Do you even know why some people are press-worthy and others aren't?"

MATT: "Do you really hope to learn communications theory from me? I thought New York had colleges."

The server returns with my order.

ME; "I'll drop the subject. I thought you knew something about fame. You said the path to fame might be interesting but fame itself wasn't. So I asked you how she got to be press-worthy. You spoke like you knew what was going on in press land. So, of course, I asked you what happened. That's all. But if you don't want to share your expertise it's okay."

MATT: "Great."

I turn my attention to the cheeseburger and fries. Matt turns his to his bill, picks it up, studies it, takes it to a cashier and exits the diner.
A little later I do the same.

End of Episode Three




"Nightpeople".....Episode Four

Cast....In order of appearance
Richard
Lakshmi

Narrator
Richard


It's nightime. I'm sitting at a diner counter. Lakshmi takesa a seat next to me.

ME; "Hi. You know. I've never been outside of New York City."

LAKSHMI; "Never been outside of NYC? However must THAT feel???

ME; "Your English is very good - almost perfect. And it's kind of American rather than English."

LAKSHMI; "Thanks Richard. I've studies only in English, in fact we speak in English at home most of the time. I guess globalization, reading and tv did the rest!"

ME; "Are you employed in a computer related industry? I know India has a leading role in programing."

LAKSHMI; "No. I don't belong to the IT industry. What do you do? Also you didn't tell me how come you have never been outside of NYC!"

ME; "I'm a furniture mover. I never left NYC because I didn't have to. I was never curious about the rest of the world because everything's here."

LAKSHMI; "By furniture mover, you mean like a logistics company/ packers and movers?. Many places now are self sufficient, but haven't you been curious to see the rest of the US even if not the world?"

Me; "I mean I carry furnitue around. I take it out of a building and put it in a furniture van. I don't want to see the rest of the country. Like I said, everything's here."

LAKSHMI; "Interesting to meet someone as content as you. I not only want to keep traveling to other countries, but want to explore the nook and cranny of my own. I wonder what it is that makes a person want to travel or not, what are your thoughts on this?"

ME; "I'm not exactly content. I just can't think of anything else to do. Regarding your question. I don't know. Life's full of mysteries. We're surrounded by them."

LAKSHMI; "Yes, we are surrounded by mysteries. It is like a dynamic puzzle. We need to read the clues, and find direction. Its all up to us. Where we look, what we find, how we read the hints and then the most important of 'em all - how we choose to act!"

ME' "Well, that's just mind-boggling. We better get on it ASAP."

LAKSHMI; "Yes. Tell me something, in your job as a furniture mover you must get a chance to see various apartment buildings. What correlation do you see between the furniture and the apartments?"

ME; "Just what you would expect. Is this a trick question? The better the apartment, the better the furniture."

LAKSHMI; "Of course, but what I meant was, did you notice anything unique?"

ME; "No."

LAKSHMI; "What is the most interesting and boring part of your job?"

ME; "It's never really boring. There's always something to do. It's interesting to put it all together and have it come out right. The best part of the job is when it's finished. Then I can sit in the truck cab, get a ride back to the warehouse, get paid and go home."

LAKSHMI; "Has the reccession affected you and your line of business in any way?"

ME; "No." "Are you part of the Indian film industry?"

LAKSHMI; "No. Why would you think that?"

ME; "I just wondered. Do you write stories?"

LAKSHMI; "I do write stories, how about you? And how much do you know about the indian film industry?, it would be interesting to know a non indian's perspective on this"

ME; "I know very little. I know it's really big. Do they have a city called Bollywood."

LAKSHMI; "Do you write stories?...as for bollywood, no its not a city...its what the hindi film industry is colloquially called"

ME; "Sometimes I write - not so often. At times I've filled up several notebooks.

LAKSHMI; "What have you written about...what inspires you to write?"

ME; "At one time I wanted to write a story about strippers. But I've lost interest in it now. I had to get interveiws and I was never able to. They're just impossible to talk to. They enjoy funny talk. One of them told me she wanted $50,000 for her story, up-front and sight-unseen. I think they have an interesting story but no one will ever hear it."

LAKSHMI; "Hey that sounds interesting. what does sight unseen mean? how do you mean they talk funny?"

ME; "Sight unseen means I'm to pay them for the story before I see it. And that's what I meant when I said they talk funny. I told the woman she could tell me her story for free and have the pleasure of talking about herself. It seemed to me to be a resonable offer. She didn't think so and now no one will know her. It's probably fun to be known by lots of people. Then again, maybe it isn't."

LAKSHMI; "I kind of understand where she is coming from. In their line of business they could have been used and abused by lots of people. It must be difficcult for them to trust people, even well meaning ones, and to do anything without getting paid first. It would really be interesting to hear their story. Hope someone offers them enough money, in terms of book sale profits, to get them to tell it some day"

ME; "Then you have to get into contracts and end up in court. It's just an impossible situation. They don't have to get paid anything. No one pays me for a story about moving furniture. I just move it. If someone asked I would just tell them. Or invite them to spend the day with me. I'm just talking. It's nothing. Who's going to pay someone for nothing? Of course, no one is interested in furniture moving. But the strippers, you wonder how they got there? What they talk about? Who their friends are? What do they do? How do they cope with thier social envirement? Especially, what do they say to people to explain their prediliction to get up in front of a roomful of strangers and get naked. I've talked to them about that and they say that they like it. That it's fun. They don't like their jobs though because eveyone is rotten to them. And they can't get a different job because potential employers all believe that they're not qualified to do anything else. They're stuck where they are. They can't get out"

LAKSHMI; "Like you said everyone is rotten to them, so why should they go out of their way and giveaway their life stories for nothing in return?"

ME; "I'm not rotten to them. As I said, all their doing is talking. People don't get paid for that. It's just fun, They get to talk about themselves to someone who wants to listen. Their not really 'going out of thier way,' They spend all day long talking to 'morons' about absolutely nothing."

LAKSHMI; "I didnt mean you were rotten to them. All i'm saying is look at her experiences. People are rotten to them, which probably makes it tough for them to trust anyone with their true story that is personal to them. What may be fun for you/me maybe too personal even traumatic for them to re tell or relive! And maybe talking about absolutely nothing to morons all day is their way of escaping the lows of their profession. It is not her need here to tell her story. So it is only fair that she puts whatever price tag she wishes to it."

ME; "It's not painfull to them to relate their experiences. They talk about everything that happens to them. But not when I have a pencil and paper handy. It's not at all personal or tramatic to them. It's just stuff that happened. When they talk to 'morons' it's not because they're escaping from reality - they just can't get away. They don't have any great need to tell their story. I didn't say that they did. I said they'd have fun talking about themselves and that's true. People can't put a price tag on talking unless the subject is secret or technical or historic. Their subject isn't any of those. It's just what they do and what happens to them. Again, people can't get paid for just talking. The world isn't like that."

LAKSHMI; "oh people get paid for talking, ALL the time. most tabloids make money on such paid talks. even tv channels, events, print media pay people to talk. the talker has the right to decide if he/she should get paid to talk or not. especially if it is his/her story to tell. not sure if these can be judged, put into boxes and given names. the reason a paper and pen makes them change their mind could be because they feel the listerner is probably going to quote them somewhere for money, fame, thesis etc. i think it is absolutely fine if they decide they dont want to be part of anything more than casual banter if they are not getting paid."

ME; "Others may do as they wish. But I wouldn't pay a dime for someones' casual banter."

LAKSHMI; "were you born and brought up in NYC?...tell me about the city...how has the "melting pot" culture changed over the year?"

ME; "I was born and raised here. It's more Asian now. Years ago it was just the Irish, Italians and Jews. People are just people though. I don't have any interesr in racial and cultural indenity. And, from the media, we hear about these 2 subjects continuously. They're a broken record. Over and over again, racial and cultural idenity. They never shut-up about it."

LAKSHMI; "i too don't like the idea of making all news racially colored , an unintended pun, and racial profiling i think it's legitimate only when analysing crime, or to create a level playing field for disadvantaged communities"

ME; "In what way are people disadvantaged?"

LAKSHMI; 'i meant under privileged"

ME; "Who's under privileged? I don't have any privileges. Nobody making Telivision shows about me. Do you mean poor people? Same thing. The 'Puppet Masters' have a strange agenda. Always something about Culture and Race. Who needs it? I don't."

LAKSHMI; "yes, poor people"

ME; "Which poor people?"

LAKSHMI; "which poor people were you referring to when you said poor people?"

ME; "You said 'they help the poor people.' Which poor people do you think they help?"

LAKSHMI; "poor people ie economially deprived, they need support to access opportunities. it helps to find out if a particular race/community suffers more than others, such data can help in analysis and later in development"

ME; "It's all a scam. It's all run by business types that see an opportunity to provide a service. They get politicians to cooperate with them. The media comes in and makes it all look really nice. Nn good comes from it."

LAKSHMI; "what is it that you are calling a scam?...now please dont explain what a scam is...i mean, give me a contextual example, "

ME; "I'm all out of contextual examples. A 'scam' is a trick where someone gets fooled."

LAKSHMI; "in that case, i don't really get what you are saying. i'll need an example to understand it"

ME; "I really don't know what you're talking about. I explained everything. I said, a scam is when you fool people. That's all I know about it."

LAKSHMI; "you said "it is all a scam"...what were you referring to?...like i said earlier, please dont explain the meaning of scam, i know what it means!"

ME; "Oh, I see what you're talking about. You mean; 'How is it a scam?' It's money wasted. Money's moved from one place to another. What was wrong with where it was?" Very few 'poor people actually get any benifit from it. Most of the money goes to the people who handle it."

LAKSHMI; "yes, and that means we need better governance of the funds and more transparency. the efforts to support the deprived cant stop, just because we have corrupt handlers. we need to figure out better ways to handle the handlers"

ME; "I don't much care about the poor or the rich. Can we talk about somethig else?"

LAKSHMI; "sure, what do you care about?"

ME; "It's not that I'm for things. I'm against things. I'm agaist culture. I think it's just another word for mental disorders."

LAKSHMI; "what exactly do you not like about culture?'

ME; "Good question. It always a substitute for making sense."

LAKSHMI; "isnt culture inevitable, where humans exist?"

ME; "A good point again but someone should tell them it's nonsense."

LAKSHMI; "a lot of things are nonsense in this world, telling their practioners that they are so, doesnt usually make them go away"

ME; "Agreed. But a record of the event should be made. Stupidity shouldn't go unoticed."

LAKSHMI; "true, and it doesnt always go unnoticed. There is a balance which takes place on its own, over a period of time. there is a law that takes over when imbalance goes on for too long. eg. nature's wrath being uneahsed upon us, for all the damage we have done to it, or occupy wall street a protest against the excesses of captalism etc. etc. things get set right eventually"

ME; "I'm not telking about that kind of 'stupidity.' I'm talking about the stupidity of almost everyone. That's what I meant when I said Culture is a substitue for making sense. I'm talking about eternal and total stupidity - not stupidity as an exception."

LAKSHMI; "not sure what you mean. culture is at the bottom of everything. it is the money culture which led to the excesses of capitalism which led to occupy wall street. it is the cluture of consumersim which led to rampant thoughtless growth that led to unsustainable development, which led to global warming et al !!"

ME; "I'm not talking about all of that. That's just a symptom of the disease. As I said, a bit before, culture is always a substitute for making sense. Culture is the result of crarzyness and stupidity."

LAKSHMI; "ah! that is an interesting thought. maybe we'll get to the bottom of it someday. as for now good night, take care. am sure we'll run into each other some other time"

ME; "I enjoyed our conversation. I'm ususlly here in the nightime. Goodnight."

He departs. I leave the diner a few minutes later.

End of Episode Four




"Nightpeople"......Episode Five

Cast......In order of appearance
Richard
Laree

Narrator
Richard



It's nightime. I'm sitting in a diner booth. Laree sits down opposite me. She places her coat next to her.

LAREE; "Hi."

ME; "What have you been doing? I've been here for hours."

LAREE; "I quit drinking, so decided to go Buffalo Wing hopping...they say this city has the best in the world, What do you think Rich?"

ME; "I'll have some too."

I motion to a server. She comes over and I order Buffalo Wings.

LAREE; "You know you don't have to patronize me Rich, you've probably had lots of Buffallo wings in your life, it's kind of a personal thing to me"

ME; 'I like them too. How did Buffallo Wings get to be a personal thing with you?"

LAREE; "I can't really explain it, but I'm sure you have a few things in your life that you can't quite articulate...so why did you want to meet me here tonight?"

ME; "Just to talk. You can pick a subject if you want to."

LAREE' "Let's talk about tomorrow, I want to do something different besides wake up and pass the time...any ideas?"

ME; "I'll probably come here tomorrow. I like it here."

LAREE; "You do seem to spend a lot of time here, I don't get it."

ME; "I was born. I have to be somewhere. I can't go to a distant planet where I could find something normal. So I'm here. This place has the advantage of food and drink. And it's warm and safe too."

LAREE; "Yeah, well to tell you the truth, I'm a little sick and tired of being warm and safe! I need to do something with my life and quick."

ME; "You have an urgent life. You can't just sit. You always have to be doing something. What do you have to do right now?"

The server returns with our Buffalo Wings and places them on the table.

"Do you have an urgent need to eat your favorite food?"

LAREE; "Yes, I do have an urgent need to eat that food, but then once I have, it's like I have to move on to the next thing, I can't just sit here like you night after night, same food, same waitress It makes me feel ..... empty. Don't you ever feel empty Richard?"

ME; "There's nothing out there. We're doomed. The only thing that can help you is a cat or two or three or four."

She's eating the wings. I dig in too.

LAREE; "There is something out there...otherwise I wouldn't want it so bad. I have to say these chicken wings are by far the best I've tasted. So what are you doing after this?"

ME; "I don't have any plans. What do you want to do?"

LAREE; "Hey...you want to go test drive a car?"

ME; "I don't have a license. I can drive but I haven't driven in years. I really wouldn't want to test drive a car anyway. I'm really not into excitement. I talk to people. I'm interested in what they think about and how they think things out. It's just a thing. I can't explain it - it's much like how you feel about Buffalo Wings."

LAREE; "Is that how my life is going to be remembered the girl who liked buffalo wings?"

ME; "I think so. I'll order some more. They're the only happiness you have."

I motion to the server to bring more wings. She nods 'Yes.'"

LAREE; "I got an idea...how about we have a Lord of the Rings marathon tonight, and we can make our own chicken wings?"

ME; "What's a Lord of the Rings marathon?"

LAREE; "The movie trilogy...seriously, you had to ask?"

ME; "Oh. I've never seen it. We can do that if you want to."

LAREE; "You never heard of it, huh. So what kind of movies do you like, ones where two people sit across from each other and talk all night? Personally, I like a little action."

ME; "I've heard of it. What I said was, I haven't seen it. I don't have any interest in action films but if you want me to watch it with you it's okay."

LAREE; "I don't want to force you. How about we just go for a walk around the city, untill we get tired, make fun of people and get buffalo wings?"

ME; "Okay." "I don't make fun of people. We can walk around if you want to."

The server brings the second order of wings and places them on the table.

ME; "We were just talking about getting wings and here they are."

LAREE; "Yes, here they are. What do you mean you don't make fun of people-I don't believe that for a minute. Admit it Rich...you're a passive aggressive critic that laughs silently behind unassuming gesture."

ME; "Really? Well, that's just incredible. I didn't know I did that. Maybe you're right though. Okay, I'm ready to make unassuming gestures. Do you want to get these wings to go?"

LAREE; "Good idea, let's take them to go."

ME; "I'll take them to the server and ask her to fix them up."

I go see the sever, the cashier, the server again and return to Laree. We grab our coats and exit the diner.

ME; "Where are we going?"

LAREE; "We're just walking. How did we ever meet anyway?"

ME; "At the subway station on Cristopher Street and Sheridan Square.

LAREE; "That's right, the subway...itjust seems like we've known each other for much longer. Anyplace in particular you can think of that would be fun to walk to? I just don't know this area as well as you do."

ME; "Just walk around I suppose. Do you live near here?"

LAREE; "Not to far, would you like to come over and see some of my artwork?"

ME; "Sure. I like art. Is it what peoplke call contemporary?"

LAREE; "Not at all, I'd say it's a cross between Monet...and Tarantino."

ME; "I know Monet is an impressionist from the late 1800s. I'm not familiar with Tarantino. I tried art. I wasn't very good at it."

We continue walking. We turns a corner. We're quiet. There're people on the street. We walk. She stops at an old brownstone, opens her purse, extracts a key, walks up a set of steps to the front door, opens it and enters the vestibule of the building. I follow her. The door swings shut behind us. She uses another key to open a second door which enters into the first floor hallway with a staircase on the left. We walk up 5 flight of stairs and down a hall. She stops at a door, opens it and walks in. She holds the door, as I walk past her into the apartment, and then closes and locks it. She turns on the lights and walks past me into the kitchen. I hand her the buffalo wings. There are stacks of canvases in the room. I go over and look at them. It's like she said, they're impressionist and something else.

She comes over and stands a little to my side.

LAREE; "Do you see anything you like."

ME; "They're appealing and fun. I can't buy anything right now."

AREE; "Can I get you something to drink?"

ME; "Do you have a Coke, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper? Nothing Diet."

LAREE; "Sorry, I don't drink soda. How about some ice tea or coffee?"

ME; "Ice tea sounds good, thankyou."

There's a couch against one of the walls. I place my coat on it. Laree hangs hers in a closet and goes into the kitchen again. I sit down on the couch.

Laree yells from the kitchen

"So are you married, girlfriend, kids?"

ME; "No, none of those."

She reenters the studioroom.

LAREE; "Well, here's your tea. So what do you do to entertain yourself?

I set the tea down on a little coffee table in front of the couch. She sits down at the other end of the couch. She has tea too.

ME; "I though you knew. I mostly hang out at the diner. I don't go to concerts or singles bars or discos. I don't look for sex partners. I don't belong to any organizations. I don't engage in any political activites. You spoke the truth when you said I'm silently laughing at all of them with unassuming gestures. I'm really amazingly different but people don't usually notice."
"What about you? You want to do more than just pass the time of day. You have an urgent need to do things. What do you want to do?"

LAREE; "I don't want to sit around waiting for my turn to die, I guess I want to make a difference in the world. You seem almost inhuman?"

ME; "Oh, that's what you're talking about. Making a difference. That's what everyone talks about. You're a conformist. You can't make a difference if you want to make a difference because then you're a conformist. People who are all the same must always do the same things over and over again. Conformists can never change anything. It's the nature of conformaty."

LAREE;"I suppose you're right. It's funny the harder one tries to non-conform they become a conformist in the sense that they secretly want to be a non-conformist just like everyone else. How do you think I should cure myself of that annoying behavior?"

Me; "Just stop saying you want to make a difference. Can you do that?"

LAREE; "Do nothing...NO, I can't do that. Why would you choose to just do nothing?"

ME; "What do you think you're doing? It's all in your imagination. You just like to think you're doing something. It's mass hysteria. You're a conformist. And, as we just finished talking about, conformist can't change anything just because they're like everyone else."
"Anyway, what do you think you're doing? There's nothing to do. It's just so incredible that you continue to believe you're doing saomething when your really not."

LAREE; "I don't think you've heard a word I said Rich, I want to do something...don't you get that?"

ME; "I've been listening to you. You didn't answered my question. What do you want to change? And how are you going to change this mystery thing of yours? You don't understand you're just parroting other people words. The words of the ruling interlectuals, writers, theatre, movie and TV people. And the Preacher Man. They want you to be a conformist. It's how they make thier living. Without a scam, they'd all starve to death. They certainly can't do any real work. What do you want to change anyway?"

LAREE; "I guess that's what I'm trying to figure out, and you're not helping me feel any better about it. How about we just watch a movie or something, my head hurts."

ME; "Okay. Do you ever watch the History Channel?"

LAREE; "You want to watch the History Channel? I think I need to start drinking again."

ME; "You pick something."

LAREE; "Really! I'm surprised you agreed to that."

ME; "I can't argue with you. You threatened to go back to drinking if you had to watch the Discovery Channel."

LAREE; "You mean the History Channel. OK. I'm going to heat up the chiicken wings. Just get whatever you wan't."

She gets up and goes into the kitchen. I turn on the TV and go to the History Channel. They're showing a story about an Orson Wells radio broadcast of the 1930s. Laree returns with the chicken wings. She puts them on the coffee table and sits.

ME; "This looks interesting. It's about a radio show of the 1930s. It was done by Orson Wells. The radio show sounded like a news broadcast. It was about an alien invasion. People thought it was real - that aliens were coming up the street. They got in their cars and ran away."

Laree; "Talk about a bunch of sheep! Can you believe people actually thought we were being invaded by aliens?"

ME; "That is weird. I can understand why people would want to leave this Planet of the Damned, but I can't understand why anyone would want to come here."

LAREE; "That was the funniest thing you said all night! I think they just want our bodies, that's what most aliens want from us."

ME; "What are they going to do with them?"

LAREE; "I think they like to use us as hosts, it's how they get their kicks."

ME; "I suppose."

LAREE; "The thought is intriguing but when it comes right down to it, I would never want to be violated or abducted by an alien."

ME; "Do you think that's worse than being abducted or violated by humans."

LAREE; "Good point, I've never actually met one but something tells me they would treat us like bug specimens. Do you ever wonder why the US has the highest volume of sightings?"

ME; "Why do you think that is?"

LAREE; "Possibly, that our media system has created in us a thirst for sensationalism like no other country."

ME; "I suppose that's true."

We're quiet for awhile - just watching the film version of 'War of the Worlds.'

LAREE; "Orson Welles seems like an interesting character, kind of a dark person. Who's your favorite director? Pass the wings please."

I push the wings over to her end of the coffee table
.
ME; "I don't really have one. I used to, years ago, before I got dissalusioned with the works of Hollywood. Who are yours'?"

LAREE; "I like Quinton Tarintino, because he's fearless. Who was the one you liked before you got all cynical?"

ME; "Now that I thnk of it I do have a favorite director. He's dead now. He's Italian. I'm speaking of Fellini. I've never seen the films of Tarintino. I proably wouln't like them. It's been years since I've seen a film I like. I don't go to movies anymore or watch anything on TV exceapt the History Channel and a few others."

LAREE; "Fellini was magical! What was your favorite movie of his?"

ME; "All of them. Do you have them?"

LAREE; "La Dolce Vita was one of my favorites, amazing cinematography for it's time. It seems the Italians have always been pretty good with their cameras, they have a real eye for beauty."

ME; "I'd really like to see it again. Can you click something and get it?"

LAREE; "Damn we're out of chicken wings Rich! I can't watch a movie without them."

ME; "I could go to a grocery store and get some."

LAREE; "You're a doll, sure you don't mind?"

ME; "It's okay. I'll be back in a little while."

I leave, go to a grocery store and buy 4 pounds of frozen chicken wings. I return. Laree buzzes me in, I climb the stairs again, walk down the hall to her door and ring. She lets me in and I hand her the chiken wings.

Laree takes them into the kitchen.

I go to the studioroom and sit down on the couch again. There's something new on the TV. I put on the History Channel again. War of the Worlds is gone. Now there's a story about the fifteenth century explorer Magellan.

She reenters the studioroom and sits.

LAREE; "Well they should be ready in about 30 minutes. What are you watching now?"


ME; "It's about a fifteenth century explorer. He's the first person to sail around the world. Kind of. He gets killed in the Philippines but some of his crew make it back. One of his ships makes it back. He started with 5. He sailed Westward from Spain. Just like Columbus. They were at it for a couple of years. His name is Magellan."

LAREE; "Sounds pretty interesting, I can't imagine being stuck on a boat that long."

ME; "They didn't have anything else to do. You start out, you do some things - the next thing you know you're on a boat for 2 years. Life can be like that. You just never know."

LAREE; "You know I kind of like that idea, guess that's the real adventure not having it all planned out."

ME; "I've had lots of adventures - all of them horrible."

LAREE; "Really, I would love to hear one of them?"

ME; "I can't possibly accomatedate you. It would just be too painful for me. My life is not an open book. You can talk about your own adventures if you want to."

LAEEE; "Oh, come on Rich, just one.

ME' "I can't."

We're quiet now - just watching Magellan on TV.

LAREE; "I'm going to go check on the wings.

ME; "Okay."

She returns from the kitchen with a spoonfull of sauce and hands it to me.

LAREE; "Tell me what you think of this blackberry chipolata sauce, kind of sacreligious to use it on wings around this town."

I swallow the sauce and hand the spoon back to her.

ME; "It tastes really good Laree."

LAREE;,"That's all you can say?"

ME; "What do you want me to say?"

She goes back to the kitchen, returns with a platter of wings, sets them on the coffee table and sits again.

Magellan gets killed in the Phillippines. His crew sails away. There're looking for the Spice Islands - islands occupied by the Portugese. Soon, most of these ill fated voyagers will follow the fate of their heroic captain.

We watch TV and eat the wings. Magellan is gone. Now we're watching a story about the first roller berings. It's pretty interesting. Roller berings were invented by the Kelts 200 years b.c.e. They made them out of hardwoods. Archeologists, digging in an old tomb, discovered them in the wheels of a Chiftains chariot.

ME; "Do you like The Chiftains Chariot - or would you rather empty a bottle? Ha, ha."

LAREE; "I would rather empty a bottle of Irish whiskey."

ME; "You're really funny Laree. You make me laugh. Watch whatever you want. I'm okay with it."

LAREE; "Let's just channel surf for a few minutes."

ME; "We could listen to music. Do you have a Pink Floyd album?"

LAREE; "Ha..I'm surprised I never would have guessed you're a Pink Floyd Fan? I don't have any of their music, how about Depeche Mode?"

ME; "I never heard of them but put it on."

She puts on the album and we listen.

ME;"This is torture."

LAREE; "Well...I have some Death Cab for Cutie, do you like them?"

We listen.

ME; "Do they make you feel less empty?"

LAREE; "They make me want to learn how to play a musical instrument, do you play any?"

ME; "No. Why do you want to do that?"

LAREE' "I don't really, I just said they make me feel like wanting to play one, you know in the moment type thing."

ME; "Tell me about Tarantino."

She doesn't say anything. I get up, grab my coat and exit the apartment. I go down the stairs to the street and home.

End of Episode Five



"Nightpeople....Episode Six

Cast;..... In order of appearance.
Richard
Bijou
Lundy
Erica (also in episode one)
Sean

Narrator
Richard

It's nightime. I walk into an all-night diner and see Bijou sittihg at the counter. I take the seat next to her.

BIJOU; "I was wondering when you'd show up. Steer clear of the coffee. They must have made it this morning.

I motion to the waitress for a cup of coffee.

ME; "Fresh, old. It's all the same to me. I caught a truck this morning and made $150."

The waitress places a cup of coffee in front of me.

BIJOU; "Get out! I'd be feeling fresh myself with $150 in my pocket. Come on....details, dude."

ME; "Just load a truck. The best part of it is getting paid and going home. What did you do today?"

BIJOU; ""That must be like figuring out a rubic's cube. Congrats! Me, same old. Still looking for a real job. I did get cast in a student film, no pay of course. The premise sounds fun. Sort of a marine type Edward Scissorhands. The kid has lobster claws. I play his supportive Mom. What else did I do? Oh, I started writing a new story. It's about my pillow obsession. Still haven't heard about the last one I submitted. I fished out my dog's sweater for this cold weather. That's it. Want to catch a movie?"

ME; "I don't go to movies. I'm anti-pop culture. Do you want something to eat? I'm going to get something."

BIJOU; "That's fair. Are you anti-pop food as well? What did you have in mind? Anything except ultra vegan is fine by me. Let's see, how about asian something?"

ME; "Okay, There're lots of asian places around. But I can't possibly eat Japanese."

We get up, put on our coats and go to the cashier. I pay the combined bills and we exit the diner.

ME; "Lets' go this way. Okay?"

I motion to the right. She nods 'Yes.' We walk.

ME; "What's with your pillow obsession?"

She laughs.

BIJOU; "It's just a humorous piece about the fact I have nine pillows on my bed. Pillow Man, as I call him, doesn't snore and so forth. Nothing heavy. So, if you don't go to movies, I suppose television's out, too. That leaves books, art, and theater? What about documentaries? Sports? Hmm?"

ME; "I don't like sports. I like the History Channel and the PBS Channels. I like books but I'm too busy to read now. I used to read a lot. I like art but I just glance at it and go to something else. Theatre is just more POP. Who are they trying to kid? Not me."

We walk and look around for a suitable asian restaurant,

BIJOU; "Well, here's what I can say. My ex is a playwright and he completely agrees with your opinion of the current state of theater. As for myself, I'm just glad sports is an area of life that requires none of my attention. To me the History Channel could be called the War Channel, still it can be informative. I subscribed to TV5, the French channel. It is great to see (and hear) their perspective about everything. Is that a Thai place?"

ME; "I guess. Do you want to go in? I'm not in a hurry. We can look around some more if you want to. I don't know anything at all about asian food. I know what an egg roll looks like and that's about it. They eat a lot of rice."

BIJOU; "If you're up for a walk, we could try one of those Indian restaurants in a row on East 6th Street. It's as if a bus from Delhi stopped on one block and everyone got off and opened a restaurant. They eat a lot of rice, too though. By the way, what were you loading into the truck?"

ME; " I'm having trouble visualizing myself at a table with a plate of Indian food. I don't really like rice so much. Can you suggest something?"

We're standing now.

BIJOU; ""It's your turn to suggest a place to eat, my dear. A burger, fries and salad are OK. Or, there are a plethora of trendy places on the Lower East Side. It is your call. What do you like? "

ME; "Lets go back to the diner and I'll get a burger, fries and a salad for each of us."

BIJOU; "Well, that takes us full circle. OK. Thank you. I'll try their tea this time."

We head back to the diner. We're quiet now. We get there, go in, sit in a booth, get burgers, fries and salads and eat.

She gets a phone call and talks for awhile.

BIJOU. "Richard, a couple of things, like a job, have come up, so, I'm bowing out. Best to you.

ME; "Best to you too, Bijou."

She departs.



Later. Same night. I've moved to a booth. Lundy enters the diner, walks over and sits down opposite me. .

ME; "Hi, What have you been doing?"

LUNDY; "I've been walking around trying to clear my head."

ME; "The cold night air is very refreashing."

A server comes over.

LUNDY; "I'll have a salad with gorgonzola cheese and coffee."

ME; "I'll have a steak, medium rare, baked potato and salad, with oil and vinegar. And an iced tea. Thankyou."

The server leaves.

ME; "I spent another day in and on a furniture van. We were in Brooklyn."

LUNDY; "So what were you thinking about all day?"

ME' "Absolutely nothing. My mind was a total blank. There were people, trucks, money, trains and then I was home."

LUNDY; "Maybe there's only so much mental storm to go around. My head has been swirling."

ME; "Perhaps your head is a tornado?"

LUNDY; "I think it's a snowstorm, because even after the blowing stops and it all calms down, there seems to be a lot left to slog through."

The server returns with Lundy's coffee and my iced tea.

ME; "Now you have something warm to put your hands around. Do you think, perhaps, Global Warming is the cause of your cerebral cortex weather extremes?"

LUNDY: "The climate crisis is definitely one of the many things my head is swirling with. I'm wondering if by 50 years from now we're all going to feel as though we're living in a kiln."

ME; "These are certainly desperate times. I just keep trucking. It's really all we can do. Our fate is in the hands of the 'Puppet Masters.'"

The server brings Lundy's french toast.

LUNDY: "So you really don't believe we have any power at all?"

ME; "Only the Puppet Masters have power. And you can't talk to them about anything at all. They have they're own MAD agenda."

LUNDY: "I'm looking for their Achilles Heel. I couldn't enjoy my life if I thought we were just doomed to ride this carbon current like a nosediving plane right into the ground... Had any interesting dreams lately?"

ME; "No. Do you mean by 'carbon current' carbon copy? Carbon copy equals parroting? People parrot the Puppet Masters?"

LUNDY: "No, I mean the rushing current of carbon that is pouring into the atmosphere. The powerful people seem like they'd rather die, or at least have their grandchildren die, than consider breaking their addiction to luxury. So they're just going along with business as usual, and instructing the senators and congressman that they own to do the same. We've got a find a way to get off their suicide plane."

ME; "I have no interest at all in Global Warming. We have to talk about something else. What did you mean when you said your head was continually swirling. I don't have a swirling head. How do you make it swirl? What does it swirl with? This is phenomena I haven't heard about. The Man with the Swirling Head. There might be a screenplay here. So, tell me more."

LUNDY: "My head swirls with Global Warming. They aren't separable. It also swirls with a Peruvian woman living in Spain who was a mother to me when I was little, with how to make friendships last and grow, with how to get the IRS to leave me alone. It's effortless; it swirls all by itself with these things. I would be happy to be in a movie about it."

ME;"You refer to your history as something that swirls in your head. You think about those things and then they swirl. I have memories but I don't describe them as swirling. There're just there and then one is replaced with the other. This goes on continuously thoughout ones life. For me, these pictures don't change at a suffient speed that I would refer to my head as swirling. But, I suppose, one could."
"In the meantime, while you're here with me, please don't mention Global Warming. This subject is just so painfully boring. Please, no more Global Warming."

LUNDY: "My parents spent much of their lives pretending that dramatic, life-changing events going on around them weren't happening. Hearts would be broken right before their eyes, perhaps broken by them, and they would ask you to please pass the applesauce."

ME; "Same here. I always refer to mine as a Matched Pair of Turds. They provided their children with so much misery that we're barely functional. At the same time, they were accepted by society as role-models."

LUNDY: "I deal a lot with the issue of people who look great in public and so no one is willing to listen when you try to tell them how these people are causing suffering out of the public eye."

ME; "In what way are you conected to The Wonderful People?"

LUNDY: "My field is domestic violence. So I deal all the time with men who degrade, demean, and terrorize women and children, and everyone in town insists, 'But he's a great guy! He comes to church! He coaches Little League! He pats dogs on the head! He went to college! The woman and children are obviously lying!' And a lot of times even the judges side with the abuser, despite huge evidence, because he just seems too nice."

ME; "I know. Nothing can be done about it. The entire society, from top to bottom, is oozing with every mental illness know to mankind. The media hides the truth. You can't get any help there. The Media are 'Friends of the Morons '"

LUNDY: "This is the best gorgonzola salad I ever had. What a great place!"

The server brings my steak dinner.

ME; "Did you hear me, when I said the Media are The Friends of the Morons?"

LUNDY: "I don't like video screens. The quality of light makes me irritable, and it conveys emptiness. To me the media are only part of the problem; almost anything that we're sitting and watching on a screen is going to make us passive and a little depressed. so it gets harder to take action. Yet people find a way; the Occupy movement has been largely organized on screen I guess."

ME; "The Media hides reality. They never talk about how stupid and crazy people are. They never criticise relegion. On the contrary, they portray relegion as a wonderful thing. So really, how good can it get?"

LUNDY: "So, I'm curious. If people are stupid and crazy, why does it interest you to sit eating and talking with me, with all of these people coming and going around us? Wouldn't it be better to be in the company of a horse, riding through the woods? Or to be alone?"

ME; "It was really you that brought up the subject.of stupid crazy people. You said; 'everyone in town thinks domestic terrorizers are nice guys, even though they're obviously guilty, because they go to church. That's a pretty good discription of stupid crazy people."

LUNDY: "You didn't answer my question."

ME; "I'm certainly not going to go and live in the woods just because people are crazy and stupid. Why don't you go live in the woods?"

LUNDY: "I like people. And I admire them."

ME; "Well la-de-da. Your're your mommies good boy."

LUNDY: "You still didn't answer my question. Why are you speaking with me?"

ME; "I don't know what could be going on in your swirlling head. I was sitting here, you came in and sat opposite me. I said Hi. Then you said something and I said something. We kept on going like that - back and forth. And that's how we came to be talking to each other. You're like a child, asking the same dopey question over and over again. Don't you know why I'm talking to you? Why do I have to tell you? I'm talking to you because you sat down opposite me. Okay?"

LUNDY: "I don't think so. I think there's so much more going on than that. Anyhow, it's been a great learning experience for me, and I'm always eager to learn things."

ME; "Good. I want to work on the screenplay I spoke of a little while ago. I call it The Man with the Swirling Head. This is just a working title. It can be changed later. What I see here is something like the Dustin Hoffan film where he plays an autistic. I need lots of details. You told me a walk in the cold night air clears your head. How does that work? Does the swirling stop? Slow down?"

LUNDY: "It just started swirling again. I think it was the gorgonzola in my salad. I need to head out onto the street and see where it takes me."

ME; "Okay."

LUNDY; "I'll get in touch after a breather and we can do "The Return of the Man With the Swirling Head".

ME; "Good."

He rushes away.



Later. Same night. I've moved to the counter. Erica enters the diner. I haven't seen her in several months. (Erica - episode one) She comes over.
.
ERICA' "Hi there. It has been an interesting few months since I've been in here last. How are you?"

ME; "I'm okay."

She sits down next to me, picks up a menu and pursues it.

ERICA; "Did they change the menu, as my tuna plate is missing . .

A server comes over.

ERICA; To the server. "Hi there. I think I will just have an iced lemon-water and a grilled swiss and portabello mushroom melt."
"Richard, what are you indulging in tonight?"

ME; To the server. "I'll have a steak, medium rare. a baked potato and a salad with oil and vinegar. Thanks."

The server leaves.

ME; "Thankyou for the steak dinner."

ERICA; "You're welcome."

We're quiet for awhile.

ERICA; "Hope your thanksgiving was great, I worked and earned well over $200!"

We're quiet again. The server returns with our orders.

We eat.

ERICA; "How is your steak dinner?"

ME; "Oh, very nice."

ERICA; "Tomorrow night I am catering a house party taking care of the bartending, food service, and anything the hostess of the party might need assistance with.

We finish eating.

ERICA; "I'm going, Richard. It's been nice seeing you again"

ME; "Nice to see you again too."

She stands up.

ERICA; "Goodnight."

ME; "Goodnight."

She leaves.



Later. Same night. I'm still at the counter. I wave a server over and order a cheeseburger, fries and a coke. She leaves.

She returns with the order. Sean walks in and takes a seat next to me.

ME; "Hi. Sean."

SEAN; "Hi Richard."

ME; "Have you had a busy evening?"

SEAN; "I have indeeeeeed! been busy this evening. I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off, trying to find a lady. I mean, you know me, I'm always trying."

ME; "Yeah. It's sad, poor humanity - just genitals with legs, arms and a head."

SEAN; "I'm going to disagree with you in regards to me but agree with you in general about humanity. men are indeed walking dicks with ears and (myself included) a bad hair cut and women want nothing more than to grab up some money to pop out as many babies as they can. Ah! but me....I fancy me self as a "Don Juan!" every woman has a beauty; that small something about them that makes me want to know what it is, but alas, here we are a couple of.......well, ya know. how's the coffee tonight? I need some in order to get home, but in the mean time......"

A seaver comes over. Sean orders a cup of coffee. She gives him a cup of coffee and leaves.

ME; "Maybe you'll see something you like, in here?"

SEAN; "Or perhaps I'll just go home and search craigslist until I've found what I seek; be it all dirty to most. I must say I've had some great encounters on that site; hahahaha! Or perhaps, I'll just sit here and talk to you for awhile and go home un-sated and unfulfilled as far as that goes, but then again...who knows??! it is the witching hour and I am inspired! let us drink coffee and eat, for tomorrow we may not survive the onslought."

ME; "You didn't order anything to eat."

SEAN; "I think the boooze just hit me. So after this cup of coffee I'm going home. thanks for the conversation but it's good night for me. Sweet dreams princess."

ME; "See ya."

He leaves.

End of episode six.



"Nightpeople".....Episode seven

Cast in order of appearance
Richard
Kristy

Narattor
Richard


It's nightime. I'm sitting at a diner counter. A girl, I know, is sitting several seats away. I go over and sit down next to her.

ME; "Hi Kristy."

KRISTY; "Hey. What are you still doing here?"

ME; "I'm always here. Where do you always go?"

KRISTY; "Oh, me bad. I always go to Tastee Diner. Do you know Tastee's?"

ME; "I've been there. Did you say you're bad because Tastee's menu isn't approved of by the health food persucuters?"

KRISTY; "Ha. No! Me bad because i never come here. Though they may not recover from a health food evaluation, they do have a nice staff. More or less... some are nice at being mean."

ME; "Lots of people are mean. What do they do to you?"

KRISTY; "Oh, they ignore me and don't return phone calls. Jeez, what else? Hm, guess it all boils down to your straight ignoring. Perhaps I should say ignorance?:

ME; "Ahhhh. What do you want to talk to them about?"

KRISTY; "Oh, it depends on the person. One maybe, why don't you want to be friends? Another, why do you avoid me? Hm, none of this is making me look very good. Anyway, I've developed this radical spirituality out of it. Let people be. Do whatever they want. Whoever's in front of me, love them."

ME; "That is pretty spiritual. How do you do that? I don't love the people in front of me. I'm just carefull not to bump in to them and get killed."

KRISTY; "Ha, you have to do it with a smile. I actually move yards out of the way to not get killed and bump people on the street. But for relationships that really matter, I find that letting them do what they want, and deciding that I want what they want, actually helps. I go crazy some evenings, thinking about how she or he disrespected me or whatever. Then I think, what do I want? Usually, it's to be free. To be left alone. So I always get what I want."

ME; "I failed spirituality 101. And I hardly ever manage a smile. It's hard to be left alone. People always have idiot criticisms. And then you lose things."

KRISTY; "Lose things... what do you mean?"

ME; "I don't mean like, lose your keys or something like that. I mean you get pressed down. You lose out on job opportunities for one. But other things too. And there's nothing you can do about it."

KRISTY; "Yeah, it sucks. There's really nothing you can do. But wait for this world to explode with new possibilities for stuff. What kind of job opportunities are you looking for?"

ME; "I'd like to be a computer repair person. I've never been able to get a school grant. Something always went wrong with it."

KRISTY; "Have you thought about Kickstarter?"

ME; "I'm on Kickstarter about something else. They weren't helpfull.. I gave up on school funding."

KRISTY; "Ah, you're trying to fund school? There's the Foundation Center downtown that has grants for that. They are super helpful. Have you heard of it?"

ME; "I've probably been there. I've been to all of them."

KRISTY; "What do you work at?"

ME; "I'm a furniture mover. It pays okay but I'd really like to work on computers."

KRISTY; "Hm. Any relation between furniture and computers?"

ME; "No. I think I might be good at fixing them. I managed to keep my Yahoo Classic when everyone else was hounded into using new faster Yahoo. A friend of mine told me it once took her 49 minutes just to send a message with her newer faster Yahoo. Someone else told me he called them, so to put him back on Classic, and they told him;'Too bad.' "

KRISTY; "Jeez. I've never even heard of Yahoo Classic. I pretty much caught wind of Gmail and loved it. Sounds the way you talk about it you could sell your Yahoo Classic."

ME; "I never had Gmail. I have a Hotmail address too. I never tried to sell my Yahoo Classics. Yahoo hounds you continuously to switch to newer faster Yahoo. Then when you do, you get something you can't even use. And they won't let you back on. I always found something I could click to get back on. It wasn't easy. You really had to look. A lot of people never found the correct click and now they're doomed to newer faster Yahoo. Their stories are really sad."

KRISTY; "Ha, wow, that sounds like a tragedy. Like a race horse that's bounded. And you found the little click? So that's what I need to do. Find what clicks to keep me going classic."

ME; "Go to Help. Maybe. I can't remember all of it exactly. You have to carefully read every word. It'll say; 'If you don't like your newer faster safer Yahoo click here. You click the words 'click here.' And it shoots you back to Classic."

KRISTY; "Way cool. I wonder how they do it where it doesn't cause problems? Is there some way they avoid glitches? I should switch back to the old Google for sure. So, you want to fix computers? Do you want to fix glitches, too?"

ME; "Well, that's all part of it. I can't fix glitches. You have to go to school for that. I just recently went to Stapes to have someone go into the computer tool bar and my set-ups and click something. I coiuldn't do it. The problem was a pop-up that wouldn't let me change screens."
fixed.he probem was this pop-up that keep me feom clicking anything."

KRISTY; "Such a bummer. That stuff is so simple sometimes, and yet we don't know it. I owe all I know to the IT guy at work, who's kind enough to help me with stuff. If you know enough, maybe you could get a job at Apple? Those guys love computers. I saw an ad for it where you can work at the Genius bar, with just enough experience with computers, but you don't have to know everything."

ME; "I didn't know the solution was in the set-ups or even how to go to the set-ups. I'm going to get instructions, one hour at a time, from the Staples girl."

KRISTY; "Ha. Well there's your education for ya!"

ME; "Yeah, I figured it out. Maybe someday I'll have my entire apartment filled with computer parts? That'll be neat, huh?"

KRISTY; "Totally! I can imagine... you'd have the motherboard as your floor tiles... then the circuitry could light up your place. Pretty cool! If only you could cook with the heat! Well, at the very least your place will be very warm. You could tell people you're striving for that early IBM look."

ME; "Yeah. What does your place look like?"

KRISTY; "It's a small apartment. 750 square feet. It's supposed to be a 2-bedroom. But the second room is a shoebox."

ME; "Oh. I have a small apartment too. It's sparsly furnished - just a few functional things. I don't even have cable. I have an Analog TV with a converter box. I get lots of stations though."

KRISTY' "Hey, that's cool. I used to have analog too, with lots of stations. I loved WETA and Howard University television. Then they told me I had to get the cable box. And make a switch to digital. I now get all these channels but end up watching Al Jezeera."

ME; "I've never seen it. Apparently it's a station with a different viewpoint."

KRISTY; "Yeah. You should have seen the footage during Eygpt. The uprising. They had it on day and night. All night long I watched it. It was super cool to see the real deal, the live footage."

ME "That sounds really neat. I know they put on some really horrible stuff, Lots of blood and gore. Have you ever seen that?"

KRISTY; "Oooh, no. I did see that video of that girl, though. The one online on YouTube. God. That was so terrible. Ooh, when I think about it I feel terrible."

ME; "I don't look at horrible things. I'm glad I didn't see it."

KRISTY; "Yeah. It was really sad. I barely watch my TV lately. I was just thinking about that. How I spend all my time on my computer, my Mac."

ME; "Have you noticed how many people can't use them at all? And when they talk about them, it's really sick - like they have a screw loose."

KRISTY; "What, you mean how people talk about Macs?"

ME; "No. The way they talk about computers- people that can't use them. It's vey weird. Maybe you haven't noticed."
"I have a new Hp laptop with Windows 7. It has this terrrific feature on it. 'Go Online.' So I clicked it, did a set-up and now I have free internet. I go to 'hunnybunnyhub.' Have you ever heard of it?"

KRISTY; "Wow! I have noticed people don't know about computers. But I haven't heard about hunnybunny or going online to set up free internet. That's amazing!"

ME; "I didn't either untill it happened. If you don't have a 'Go Online' feature on your computer you're probably condemned to pay for an internet connection. I'm sorry. I'd help you if I could. Even the people at Staples hadn't heard of 'hunnybunnyhub' and the Sharing Center.".
"I bought my 'magic' computer from a salesperson named Hoke. He said it had a lot of usefull features. I didn't see 'Go Online.' untill I got home and looked in the tool bar. I clicked it and nothing happened, I clicked it again and again. Same thing - nothing. And then, a black page came up. And on it were the words;; 'You are not connected to the Internet.' And 'Get Connected.' That was the beginning of the set-up. I kept clicking and then it said; 'Connections are available.' And gave me a long list of connections. I clicked 'hunnybunnyhub.' It said, 'connecting to 'hunnybunnyhub.' And a blue line streaked across a little box over and over again. And then it was over. And it said' 'You are connected to the internet.' I was on the internet for free. I was awed and felt very special."

KRISTY; "That's way cool. You know what, though? You might be using someone else's internet. It could be someone else's connection. Like your neighbors! That list you see... could be all the people in your apartment. Do you live in an apartment complex?"

ME; "That's just what happened. I joined a Computer Sharing Center. Do you have access to such a thing?"

KRISTY; "No. I never even heard of it. What is it?"

ME; "It's free internet. But you have to find it. People join the Computer Sharing Center and then you get to send signals to their router. That's really all I know about it. It was just something on my computer when I bought it. Like I said; I have a Magic computer - like a Genie in a bottle. I can't tell you where to look because I don't know where to look."
"A Netgear Wireless Adapter CD-Rom will allow you to see a Sharing Center. Also a TrendNet."

KRISTY; "Whoa, that's cool. I will have to look into that. Right now I have a Mac which I love. I mean, I really love it. But this networking center is great. You'd think Apple would come up with something like that. But as far as business goes, they'd probably get a lot of flack."

ME; "Haven't you ever used a wireless adapter?"

KRISTY; "Oh, yeah. I have a Verizon wireless device I use to connect to the Internet. Is that what you mean?"

KRISTY; "Oh, yeah. I have a Verizon wireless device I use to connect to the Internet. Is that what you mean?"

ME; "I'm not familar with the Verizon wireless adapter. Have you ever used a Netgear or Trendnet wireless adapter?"

KRISTY; "No. I'm not sure what I have. I think it's a hotspot. It's this little black thing that connects me to the internet."

ME; "That's a good discription of your predicament. Is the little black thing connected to your tower or is it on the floor?"

KRISTY; "It's on the floor. I think it's wireless. Goes by a satellite."

ME; "That's a router. It sends a signal to a modem which sends it to a tower or satelite. Do you have a little black thing sticking in the tower? If so, it could be either a wireless adapter or a mouse pick-up. A wireless adapter sends a signal to a router. It can send a signal to your router or someone elses router. It has a range of 400 feet."

KRISTY; "Hmm. My account is called Verizon Wireless. It's a little black thing, but doesn't have a usb drive except to charge it. It searches for a signal on my laptop. I'm not sure about a tower or how it works."

ME; "The fog is clearing. You have an internal wireless adapter. Now you have to find it. nd find out what it does. At the lower right hand corner of your screen you should have a little blue icon that looks like steps, viewed from the side? That's the wireless adapter. Do you have that?"

KRISTY; "Oh, no. It's not internal. It's a small black box I bought at Best Buy. On my laptop, there's a wireless sensor thing that scans for area signals. When at Starbucks, for example, I always sign in to ATT&T. At Quartermaine Coffee, it's their service. So I get internet at home with this little black box, this Verizon wireless thing."

ME; "The wireless sensor thing that's that's in your laptop and scans for area signals is a wireless adapter. You can, perhaps, use it to go online at the Sharing Center. What does it's icon look like?" Do you pay Verizon for internet sevice? Is the Verizon wireless thing also the little black box you got at Best Buy?"

KRISTY; "Hm, I'll have to try that. I like your sharing center idea. What I have now I pay for, $50 a month. It's this thing I bought at Best Buy that enable me to do that."

ME; "What does your wireless adapter icon look like. Does it look like blue steps seen from the side?"

KRISTY' "No, it's like this pyramid thing. With black lines. The lines show up black when I have a connection, and gray when I don't."

ME; "When you don't have a connection, what does it say - not counting 'you dont have a connection?' Is the icon located at the lower right hand side of your screen?"

KRISTY; "It's at the top righthand corner and doesn't say anything. If I scroll over it a dropdown list comes, saying Airport On or Off or something like that"

ME; "You can get to a free Local Area Network with a Netgear Wireless Adapter and CD-Rom. That's all I can think of."

KRISTY; "Wow, totally cool. I'll have to check that out when I go home."

ME;"You have to buy it first."

KRISTY; "Oh, okay. Well, I'll check that online site you mentioned, and see if I can sign up."'

Me; "I don't mean that. I mean you have buy a Netgear Wireless Adapter. A CD-Rom comes with it. It's the CD-Rom that's important.

KRISTY; 'Oh, weren't you saying I can go online and sign up, and find a sharing center?"

ME; "You need a a program to get online. It can be built into your computer or you can purchase it. Apparently, your Mac doesn't have it. You have to get a specific CD-Rom that comes with a Netgear Wireless Adapter.

KRISTY; "Oh, OK, I'll have to look into that. How cool, thanks!"

ME; "Sure. Let me know how it turns out."

KRISTY; "Mmm, yum. I usually like to get breakfast foods, like eggs and pancakes."

I wave to a seaver. She comes over.

ME; To the seaver. "I'll have a steak, medium rare, a baked potato and a salad with oil and vinegar."

KRISTY; To the seaver. "And I'll have your lite French Toast, and two eggs over medium."

The seaver leaves.

ME; "Did you go to college?"

KRISTY; "Yes, I studied art at Santa Cruz. I could have gone to any college, to study art. But I chose that school because it looked so fun to go there. I know that sounds bad. But when I visited, I saw all these beautiful people, hanging out in the quad, and I was like, "I could go here?" and I did. It was so much fun."

ME; "Did you have scholorships?"

KRISTY' "No. But I got residency because my dad lived out there. So it cost like $6,000 a year. I did get scholarships to other schools, I had a full scholarship to Cleveland Institute of Art. I had scholarships to other schools as well, and even a $12,000 scholarship to any school in Maryland. But, to my mom's dismay, I chose that school."

ME; "What was the very first art you made?"

KRISTY; "Ooh, well the first painting I ever did was with a friend, we painted a still-life. I drew as a kid, drew pictures of people. But I think the first piece of art I made was in high school."

ME' "Were you just a Freshman then? You must have advanced quite rapididly to get all those scholorships later on?"

KRISTY; "Oh, yeah. I had a great art teacher. He had us all going as kids looking at the masters, and critiquing them. He'd show us how an image was made, by drawing the negative space. It was so cool, we were really lucky."

ME; "So you graduated from college with an art degree. What happened then?"

KRISTY; "Oh, well, then I moved back home. I had all these friends tell me I should move here and there. But I felt like I needed to get my act together. So I moved home. I'm really glad I did. I ended up staying here, and meeting all sorts of friends. And I really like it here."

ME; "Did you ever get a job where you use your art skills?"

KRISTY; "Yeah, after I came back I lucked out and got a job doing free lance painting. I worked for a company called Hargrove. Out in Lanham, Maryland. It was great. I painted on sets for MTV and BET for trade shows. And even worked on floats for the Macy's parade. It was great!"

ME; "That's neat. Did you ever do a gallery show?"

KRISTY; "Yes. I have one now at The American Center for Physics. And will have another one at the Arts Club in Washington."

www.kristysimmonsart.com.

ME' "Terrific."

KRISTY; "Yeah, I'd love to know your thoughts. I gave this speech at The American Center for Physics, too. It was really fun. There was a whole room full of people there, and I was pretty nervous. My speech was about The Space Between, which was the title of the exhibit. It was really cool to think about my work, and how it was an inkling that made them, my inner inkling of what I wanted to do. And how that is "the space between" in art making."

ME; "I tried art. I wasn.t very good at it. I occasionally go to galleries and museums but I just glance at the works. I know the difference between professioal and amateur and that's about it. I don't really have any thoughts about art. I suppose you do limited edition prints?"

KRISTY; "Yeah, how did you know?"

ME; "Most artists do, even the big ones. It's easy to convert them into cash."

KRISTY; "Ha. That's funny. I only started selling prints recently. Because I went digital."

ME; "Rembrandt sold prints."

KRISTY; "He made them on a press. That was more popular then. I guess I went digital and realized to make editions makes my art more accessible."

ME; "Do you find the prints are handy for getting quick cash?"

KRISTY; "Ha, I wish. Not really. Not yet".

She smiles.

The seaver returns with our orders.

ME; "Do you write too?"

KRISTY; "Yes. I'm a screenwriter and a playwright. I've studied a lot and love the craft. What about you?"

ME; "I tried to write but nothing really happened. I could write something if I got interviews or with someone else in a conversational style. Would I recognize any of the titles."

KRISTY; "No, unfortunately not. I have one I'm revising called The Upset Is Optional, and a screenplay called Lifting The Veil."

ME; "Come to think of it - I just recently wrote a short story. Do you want to hear it? It's only 1000 words. It has a beginning a middle and an end though."

KRISTY;,"I'd love to."

ME; "Okay." "I have a friend named Sean. He's on mental disability now. At one time he was a on-the-road salesman and made $50,000 a year. He lived, with his wife, Eva, in a $1/4 million home. His wife is a beutifull russian girl. He met her here in the US. She had a job in graphics. She was trained by the Soviet state. At one time, in her youth, she was a Young Pioneer. A kid with a red bandanna around her neck. The Soviet State discinagrated and she came to the US. Later, she brought her mother and younger sister here. Sean and she traveled back and forth to Russia and got married. They had 2 children together."
"Sean and Eva lived together for 10 years. Eva was friendly with Seans family - a mother and 3 sisters. She got them on her side and together they committed Sean to a mental institution. The police came to his home, he came out to talk to them and they put him in a straight jacket. He was a model patient, never caused any disturbances, cooperated with the doctors and was released in 10 days. He filled out papers and the goverment gave him a disability check. Eva divorced him. She got the kids, the house, a business and child support from the goverment. Sean got visitation rights, which never worked out. Eva and he went back and forth to court with nothing resolved. But in any case, he doesn't see them anymore. He's scared they'll cause a disturbance and get him committed again. He tried to call them. Eva said; 'Why do I want to talk to a phycho - because I'm stupid?' Then he tried to talk to the kids. Both of them said the same thing; 'Why do I want to talk to a phycho - because I'm stupid?'"

KRISTY; "Oh my god. That's terrible. I mean, she really took advantage of your friend. You know what? Publish that story and you could get your friend's kids back. I mean, they really put a scam on him."

ME;"He's a phycho. What about your screenplay? Do you want to talk about it or is it a secret?"

KRISTY; "Well, I suppose I should keep it a secret. But it's an ensemble piece and I had a reading at my writer's group that went well."

ME; "Are all of your stories secret?"

KRISTY; "No, I usually give a log line. So the log line for my screenplay is, imagine what would happen if the world experiences a moment of oneness. It then follows six characters from that. I had a screenplay before that that I wrote, the log line was, "what would happen if a girl matched everyone in an online dating site?"

ME; "A Logjam. Okay, what would happen?"

KRISTY' "Ha, that's funny. Well, the screenplay was pretty bad, but what happened was I met people, went online, and now I realize I've got to work on it. There's more I can do, now that I know more."

ME; "Well, good."

KRISTI; "Yeah, it's very satisfying. Making up characters, and writing scenes. I really love it. It's hard work, though. Writing is like no other art form. I think because the left brain is involved, and there are more associations, on a level say than you have with painting. With stories, it relates to your past, but with painting, and colors and textures, it hits you in another area."

ME; "Do you ever write real stories? That way, you don't have to dream stuff up. You just remember it and put it on a screen."

KRISTY; "Yeah, sometimes I do. I agree, that's fun. But with the screenplay and some other things I've written, it's fun to dream stuff up."

ME; "I can't imagine a character. I can only remember something someone did or that happened to them. Did you ever think that the characters you imagine might be figments of your imagination and in fact, no one in the world is really like that?"

KRISTY; "Ha, well so far I've based characters on people I know. I haven't made up characters entirely yet. I'll take a person and augment one of their characteristics."

ME; "The plot thickens. Tell me about one of these augmented characters."

KRISTY; "Ah, cool. Well one character was based on an X-boyfriend I had. He was sort of a metrosexual. Really cute. I had a character who I based on him to come out with similar wit."

ME; "You have a character that's metrosexual. That's one sentence. Where did you find the rest of him?"

KRISTY; "Ha, well, he emerged in the dialogue and the action. He was quite different, he was a scientist."

ME; "What does he talk about? And what does he do?"

KRISTY; "He talks about how much he hates coming home, because his family is so difficult. The story's about a family coping with their mother's death. It's funny though. It's about this blue light that visits this family and gives them insights."

ME; "Well, that's just really precious. I'm an atheist. I hate to hear anything about God or Jesus or magic blue lights."

KRISTY; "Ha, well this play isn't religious. It's not magical either, it's more surreal. I play with absurdity in it. And use the philosophy of the blue light to play with the characters.

ME; "Do you mean; it can't really happen but it's a good idea - like Our Heavenly Father? That would make it relegious."

KRISTY; "Hmm, I don't know what you mean. What do you mean? Oh wait, you mean like, the Heavenly Father is a good idea but isn't truly in existence? No, it's not like that. It's basic stuff, like forgiveness, and how people act when they try and apply that."

ME; "That's relegion. That's what the Christians are always talking about - Forgiveness. You're just calling relegion something else. The airways are filled with it - relegion in disguise."

KRISTY; "Ha, no... there is an essential spirituality... not religion. I think you'd find forgiveness a basic human nature before religion came about. It's basic for survival."

ME; "If it's so basic, what do you have to write a play about it for. Is it necessary to tell people who they are? I haven't noticed any forgiveness. Humanity is basically stupid and mean. Your little lectures and preaching isn't going to change that."

"What, specifically, happens in your play? There's the Hero and he's tortured with unforgiveness but he sees the blue light and he's saved. Now he forgives everyone. He lays in front of the front door and people walk all over him as they enter. He smiles. Like you he's found spirituality. Is that how it goes? Something like that? A few things moved around but basically the same thing. You know, whenever I hear someone talk about spirituality I know I'm going to hear a really off-the-wall conversation. Just like this, where a griving family who lost their wonderfull Mommy, was saved by a blue light Do you have any shame?"

KRISTY; "Ha, wow. Well, it's not like you describe... you'll have to read it. But, for me, spirituality isn't a doormat. It brings me peace, a tremendous amount;"

ME; "I can't very well read it, can I? So tell me about it. What is this so called peace you've found? What would you be like without it? Why was it necessary for you to find peace? What was happening to you that made you angry? Maybe you're just imagining that you found peace? I mean, after all, It's just an emotion and maybe not even that."

KRISTY' "Hm, I don't know what you mean. What I mean by peace is a reflection of a choice I make each day, so I can go to bed at night. I know it's not something I imagine, because there's, mostly mild, pain or suffering I'm going through to get there."

ME; "Do you remember anything about these, mostly mild, painfull choices? Apparently, you're following Christian Dogma and Loving your Enimies. Maybe you love the pain? You call this state of mind 'peace.' How do you know it's peace or anything else. It seems to be a mental exorcise you just like to do. Maybe you're a robot made-up by your mom and dad?"

KRISTY; "Ha, that's funny. People might call me a robot. But, it is my mind. I direct my thoughts with my mind to create peace."

ME; "As I understand it; you decide you're going to love people and then you abrogate your will and do everything they want. You like everything they like. You dislike everything they dislike. After that, you cry yourself to sleep. Did you ever think you're not really holding on but falling into the great abyss? If you chose to be a vegtable, what kind of vegtable would it be?"

KRISTY; "That sounds crazy! It's not as one-sided as that. Do you really think I live that way? Do I look like a vegetable to you?"

ME' "You said when you meet someone you love them and do everything just the way they want it done. You look like a vegtable to me."

KRISTY' "Well, that's funny. Thanks for your time, Richard, you are always one for interesting words. I'll have to be going now, time to go water myself. I had a lot of fun and enjoyed our exchange. It was a total blast. Have fun, and happy new year!"

ME; "Me too. Enjoy your shower and happy new year."

She leaves.

End of Episode seven



"Nightpeople"......Episode eight

Cast......In order of appearance.
Richard
Brenda
Wylie.... (also in episode two)
John

Narrator
Richard

It's nightime. I'm walking down a city sidewalk. There're lots of people around. I approach a diner and walk in. A girl, I know, is sitting at the counter. I sit down next to her.

ME; "Hi Brenda."

BRENDA; "Richard, I didn't expect to see you here.?"

ME "I'm almost always here. Where do you always go?"

BRENDA: "Well, I usally go straight home after work but.....I didn't get to eat earlier and, well- rough day. Lots of crap going on in my life. You always come here? I didn't know that. What is going on with you?"

ME; "I like it here."

A server comes over and I order coffee. She pours it and leaves.

ME; "What do you work at? I'm a furniture mover."

BRENDA- "Thanks. Oh, miss, could I get a piece of pie. I'm a director. Just got out of rehearsal. Will be glad when this one opens. Tech was a nightmare. Are you still pursuing a theatre career?"

ME; "Yeah. What's the worst part of it?"

BRENDA - "Well, its dealing with all the personalities. If only we had that much drama on the stage! The set designer is impossible- he won't change a thing. I try to be so diplomatic but, I'm gonna half to pull rank and it won't be pretty. Hopefully, the AD will talk to him. Oh, and the leading lady has lost her voice. Previews in three days. Ah, here's my pie. You want anything?"

ME; "I'm fine, thanks. What kind of story is it? What's wrong with the sets?"

BRENDA- "The walls are all painted with replica paintings of this famous 1930s painter....I can't think of the name, but really beautiful. The only problem is that they are so colorful that they totally draw focus and that pisses off the actors and the lighting designer is mad because they are so hard to light. And the costume designer- OH MY GOD, he is furious that the wall clash with the peach Amanda's dressing gown which they spent, like 40 hours creating, apparently they sewed each jewel on individually. So, its crazy. Anyway- whats new in the moving business?"

ME; "Same old, same old. Pick it up, carry it someplace and set it down. Go back and do it again. Empty the truck. 20,000 pounds of someones idiot life. Job finished. Get in the truck cab, Go back to the wharehouse. Get paid. Ride a train home."

The server brings the pie wedge, sets it down and leaves.

BRENDA- "You ever wonder what its all about, Richard? We are both doing shit that drives us crazy and we aren't getting any younger. Its depressing."

ME; "I've noticed that. The only people that look like they're having any fun are those Smiley Faces on the TV. I just look at them and wonder. How did they get like that? Of course it's all an act but where did they find it? It's just such a mystery. And then I figured it out. That's how stupid they are. You know?"

BRENDA; "Ha! You make me laugh. Ignorance is bliss huh? Tell you what, this pie is the real bliss! Now I see why you came to this diner."

ME; "You really think I'm funny? People have told me that. I don't see it. I wouldn't dare go on a stage and try to make people laugh."

BRENDA:"Hold on, someone is texting me"

She looks at the message.

"Ah damn it, I am needed back at the theatre. The stage manager said the first electric just went out. Listen Richard, it was good talking to you."

She extracts several bills from her purse and places them on the counter.

BRENDA; "Goodnight."

ME; "Goodnight."

She leaves the diner.




Later. Same night. I'm still at the counter. Wylie walks into the diner and sits down next to me.

ME; "Hi, Wylie."

WYLIE: "Hi, Richard. The food is really good here. I had a really busy holiday season. I had a nice family gathering in the city, with some relatives. Some of the others were from Vermont, and - in one case- Nashville. A splendid time was had by all. I didn't do anything special on New Year's Eve, though. I just stayed home and watched the ball drop on TV. How were your holidays?"

ME; "I was here on New Years Eve, talking to someone. We had a really fun conversation."

A server comes over.

WYLIE (to the server): "I'll have five glazed donuts, and a big ice cream sundae with chocolate sauce and lots of whipped cream. And then some hot tea - but hold the milk, I'm on a strict diet."

"I am glad to hear you enjoyed New Year's Eve. Did you share a kiss at midnight with this other person? Or was it 'just friends' type deal?"

ME; "Just a friend. I'm over New Years Eve kisses. There're a thing of the past now. Did you bring in the new year with funniness?"

WYLIE: "Well, I bought a DVD boxed set of "The Office" (the US version) a few days into the new year. That is one of my fave still-on-the-air sitcoms. I also have an idea for a new comedy video with an 'absurdist' premise - an art modeling session wherein the (female) model is fully clothed, but the artists are all unclad."

ME; "Okay."

WYLIE; "I consider Monty Python to be the apex of comedy. They went to the finest universities in England, and were very clever.

ME; "They were funny. Everybody loved Monty Python. They were the first ones to use the word 'spam' to mean lots of stuff no one wants."

WYLIE: "The Pythons also were great at historical and cultural references. I actually saw the late Graham Chapman perform live (a one-man show), and also met Terry Jones at a book-signing. Both great memories!"

ME; "Did you get to talk to them? Did they say funny things."

WYLIE: "I only saw Graham do his live show, there was no 'meet-and-greet' involved. He mostly reminisced about his life and career. The funniest moment was when he did his 'one-man wrestling routine. I did get to meet Terry Jones at the book-signing. He was plugging an historical book he had just written, and came across more like a stuffy history professor, than as a seasoned comedian. But I did get his autograph, which I will cherish forever."

ME; "He's a closet pedant."

The sever returns with Wylie's order and leaves.

WYLIE: "Very good, Richard - wish I had thought of that! I see a lot of would-be comedians at work, and sometimes am puzzled at their approaches to their craft. Far too many people don't understand the mechanics of humor. They think that simply sharing stories or observations or opinions constitutes 'comedy'. For example, I once saw a would-be comedian start his set out thusly: "I forgot to brush my teeth this morning. Did anyone else do that?" After the predictable dead silence that followed, he feebly remarked "I thought you would appreciate that joke." How is that mundane bit of life story even remotely funny? Another example of would-be humor that didn't work is a comedienne who tried to turn a sign she saw at a hairdresser's salon - "If you have any questions,talk to Jesus". She tried to spin that into humor, but couldn't. It didn't work for two reasons. 1) True-life observations only work as comedy if the audience understands the subject matter from first-hand knowledge or experience. 2) She didn't consider that the "Jesus" referred to in the sign was very likely an employee, who happened to be named Jesus (a common Latino first name)."

ME; "I like the one about Jesus. I've seen it before. It means; 'Don't ask me any questions.'"

WYLIE: "Thanks for the explanation, Richard. That story reminds me of one of the oddest business signs I've ever seen. I was walking down the street in Queens, and saw a realty place that said "Gay Real Estate", in giant letters. In very small print, at the bottom: "Elaine Gay, owner"

ME; "I saw the same sign on Staten Island. But the owners name was Gay Pride."

WYLIE: "If that suggests what I think it does - that the person's actual name is 'Gay Pride', then that story tops mine. That person probably got teased mercilessly in school. It's about as bad as Ben Stiller's character in "Meet the Parents" ('Gaylord Focker'). I would be curious to know what the highlights of 2011 were for you. For me, there were two: seeing U2 live, and my cousin's wedding in Philly."

ME; "Not the same person, the same sign. 2011? I did a budget bundle. I attached a converter box to my anolog tv. I bought a new laptop with wonderful insurance. The store will fix everything for $100 a year. I brought the computer home and discovered a 'get online' feature. I clicked it and got a free internet connection. I installed a Magic Jack to the computer and got unlimited calling and free long distance. Magic Jack is only $20 a year."

WYLIE: "Sounds good. I hope your new 'tech' stuff works out for you. That "Magic Jack' might be something I will look into getting for myself. I saw something interesting in a subway station, earlier today. A prim young woman was sitting with a typewriter in front of her, with a sign advertising her services as a poet. Apparently, you just had to name a topic, negotiate a price, and then she will compose the poem for you on the spot. I half-considered 'hiring' her, just as a lark, but decided against it. My other interesting 'subway' experienc was last week; I did a bit part for a music video (you haven't heard of the artist, most likely, but if you're curious, her name is Jessica Delfino) that was shot in a subway station by Canal Street. I played a bum who is approached by a cheerfully naive Jessica, and then bolts in fear/disgust. I will let you know when the video is ready to be seen."

ME; "What does the bum say to her? What does he look like.?"

WYLIE: "I dont say anything, I just walk away as Jessica approaches. For this role, I designed my own outfit - jeans and a t-shirt with "Got spare change?" scrawled on it. (I did the lettering myself.) I also put a British flag handkerchief on my head, and held a soda bottle in a paper bag (designed to look like a liquor bottle)."

ME; "Why do you walk away? Why does she approach you only to turn away in fear and dtsgust?"

WYLIE: "I walk away so that another homeless man enters the camera frame, and he tells her random nonsense. Then she sings a funny/ risque number about how she doesn't want to have babies, in order to preserve herself anatomically."

ME; "Oh. You know, it's hard to imagine anything more pointless than popular entertainment."

WYLIE: "Are you saying you have no need for anything relating to the arts? That you never read novels, watch movies, or listen to music? Because all of that qualifies as 'popular entertainment'. Something to think about. If you are suggesting that some entertainment being offered to us is worth passing up, that is valid. Then it's just a matter of finding the high-quality offerings, and eliminating the lower-quality ones. But to suggest that all entertainment is low-quality seems unrealistic."

ME; "I like something now and then, But mainly it's pointless and vapid - like it been made for an audience of brain dead. What's the point of Jessica's performance?"

WYLIE: "The point of Jessica's performance is self-expression, trying to find release and an audience. And by definition, a 'brain-dead' person cannot enjoy anything relating the arts. A 'brain-dead' person cannot be an audience to anything, really. Can you read a book if you're comatose?"

ME; "Well, kind of brain dead - pointless, vapid and more than a little goofy."

WYLIE: "Some entertainment can be that way, granted. But how do you account for Shakespeare's enduring popularity? Or that of The Beatles, Dylan, and the Rolling Stones? Or "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Citizen Kane?"

ME; "I'd like to see something with a different premise."

WYLIE: "Could you create this art 'with a different premise'? What would this art be like?"

ME; "The opposite of what it is now. I would be more realistic. Artists believe people are intelligent and good. I believe the opposite - people are stupid and evil."

WYLIE: "That sounds a bit nihilistic, Richard, but you are entitled to your opinion. Much art is realistic, though, at least in terms of how it depicts life and society. I also should point out that many of the most reviled people have more mainstream taste in entertainment than most people assume. For example, Saddam Hussein was a big fan of "The Godfather", Idi Amin watched "Deep Throat", and Kim Jong-IL loved American basketball and action movies."

ME; "What's going on? I said humankind was stupid and evil and you replied, Kim Yong liked action films. I can't follow leaps of logic. Maybe your're semi-comatose too?"

WYLIE: "The topic was art. By relating the trivia about infamous people's tastes, I was suggesting that one's basic nature (i.e. 'good' or 'decent' vs. 'bad' or 'evil') doesn't necessarily determine one's likes in entertainment. I hope that makes sense."

ME;, "I'm talking about moving a bascic premise and you're talking about something else. I don't even know - you lost me.
With a new premise, people wouldn't have to listen to jerk lectures about global warming or culture or family values or pride of Country or God. For a family I had a Matched pair of Turds - yet they were accepted by the community as role-models."

WYLIE: "This seems rather flippant, and somewhat juvenile. I think you and I aren't able to see eye-to-eye on anything we discuss. I am going to pay my check, and call it a night. Good luck to you, Richard."

He exits the diner.



Later. Same night. I'm at the counter. John walks in the diner and sits down next to me
.
ME; "Hello, John."

JOHN: "Hello, Richard. I hate sports and sports fans. Do you hate them?"

ME; "For sure. It's like watching grass grow"

A server comes over and John asks her for a cup of coffee. She pours it and leaves.

JOHN; "Sports is a substitute for thinking. For most sports fans, that's all they have in their lives. They have nothing else at all."

ME; "It's horrible to watch them. They're possesed. They talk about sports as if something is really going on. Grown men, batteing each other, to get a ball from one end of something to the other. It's pointless, but they never notice that."

JOHN; "Gawd, yes. Here's the typical sports fan conversation: "D'jew see ol' Bobby MacAllister catch that pass?" "I shore did." "I thought he wuz gonna miss it." But he didn't!" "He shore didn't." etc. ad nauseum - for hours. Poor, pitiful s.o.b.'s."

ME; "They're sick people - too sick to seek help."

JOHN; " Makes you wonder if they ever think about anything else. I guess fanatics of any type are dull...unless you happen to share their fanaticism."

ME; "They always seem to be solving some great problem, that only they can see. They say; 'So-and -so told me to do it like that, whatever it was, and he was right.' Fanitics have a routine."

JOHN: "Yeah, this sort of mirrors the sheep-like mentality of the PC/BS crowd. I suppose falling in lockstep with a bunch of other robots is somehow easier and, presumably, safer than thinking for oneself."


ME; "I have a robot story. People with programs instead of brains. I was in a shape-up one morning and someone near me, he was talking to someone else, said; 'They're robots.' He was relating some incident. When I heard that I turned to him and said; 'What you said just now about people being robots is very interesting to me. I've thought for years that people are robots. But I never talked to anyone about it. Talking to you about robots is a real treat for me. Some people seem to substitute a mental program for thinking. They get to a certain point and instead of thinking they stick in a program. And the program doesn't make any sense. It doesn't fit the circumstances. It doesn't get things to work but just the opposite.' He said; 'Right.' That's the only conversation I've had about robots untill now."

JOHN: "Well, y'know, Oscar Wilde once said "Most people are really 'other people' or 'non-people'. They only speak by repeating what others have said, their opinions are those of others they've heard expressed, etc. Most people don't even seem to have any opinion - about much of anything. For the life of me, I've never understood why so many people don't even vote. Mainly, they said "Oh, I don't have the time." Which is the lamest excuse of all. Hell, they don't have 5 minutes to spare every couple of years?Why don't they just admit that they don't give a damn?"

ME; "What do you think of churchgoers?"

JOHN: "Well, that's a pretty broad category. I suppose, like everything else, it's a matter of degree. You have your casuals, your intermediates and then you have your fanatics. Same as with politics or whatever. The fanatics I try to avoid. With the intermediates you have to sort of 'play it by ear'. With the casuals, sometimes you can even discuss things. How about you? How do you feel about them?"

ME; "I'm suspicious of them. I feel that if they can be deluded about one thing then they could be deluded about everything."

JOHN: "Like with the sports fans, I suppose what I really abhor are what I call 'one-subject people'."

ME; "In any case, there're a lot of crazies out there."

JOHN: "Right. "You can take any subject - controversial or not - and there are certain people who can talk about nothing else. Take' f'instance, well, anything. Some people can speak of nothing else. Born-agains are like that, sports fans are like that, gays, rightwingers, leftwingers, practically any kind of fanatic will have people whose lives revolve around little else."

ME; "I suppose. I know lots of people but I really don't pay that much attention to them. I don;t remember what they talk about. Somethig. One, I remember. She said she was a puppet-master and she was trying yo help humanity by educating them. The puppet-masters are anyone in show-biz. Then another one told me she used a blue light in her play. And the blue light gave people insights that helped them heal. The family had lost their mom. Another writer was fascinated with violence and could think of nothing else. I told him he was sick but he denied it. Another one wouldn't tell me what his book was about because then I wouln't buy it. Then I met someone who walked in the place and told me I was sitting in his fucking seat. And, I was a 'jack off.' That's my picture of humanity up to the moment."

JOHN: "Oh, those kinds of people - writers or would-be writers - are richly amusing...in a negative sort of way. A variation on that guy who wouldn't tell you about his book is the type who won't talk about it for fear you'll steal his/her idea. I have a friend who has written and re-written and rewritten the same play for ten years."

ME; "He said that too - that I was picking his brains for ideas. Apparently, if I wanted ideas I had to buy the book. He left in a huff."

JOHN: "Then there are the writers who never write - and haven't written anything. Ever. Is there anyone who doesn't consider him/herself a writer? It's very similar to all those people who claim to be part Indian. If you ask, the answer's always the same: they all claim to be either 1/4 or 1/8 Cherokee. Most of these people have blonde or red hair and/or other physical features that are very un-Indian."

ME; "I've run into a lot of people who really are half indian though. Did you read Hunter Thompson? He was a dissenter but it never did any good. Dissenters have a poor tract record. Don't you think?"

JOHN: "So how do you really know they're half (or whatever percentage) Indian? Just from their own saying so? Yeah, I've read some of Hunter Thompson's stuff. I wasn't, frankly, too impressed. But 'The Rum Diaries' was a good flick."
"Most dissenters get clobbered over the head and that's the end of them. People are always raising hell about something but it hardly ever does any good. The government's gonna do what it wants and they don't care, really, what anybody thinks about it."

ME' "Would you agree, we're living in a Giant Lunitic Asylum? And sports fans and churchgoers are a Strange Life Form?"

JOHN: "Maybe. I think one of the main delusions of the masses, though, is that anything can be achieved through all these protests."

ME' "I suppose you mean the Occupy protest. Do they actually know what to fix? Or how to fix it? I don't think so."

JOHN; "Their demands are very vague - which is why they're ultimately doomed to failure. They say "We're against 'Corporate Greed'. Okay, so what do they want anyone to do about it? I mean, how in the world could the Congress pass a law against 'Corporate Greed'?"
"It's like these silly 'Hate Crimes' laws. Hate is an emotion; how in the world can you even try to outlaw an emotion?"

ME; "I don't know."

JOHN; "These people are bitter, just like the people in the 1930s were bitter. But eventually they'll all have to realize that the only thing to do is tough out these rough times and next time don't piss away what they acquire."

ME; "Yeah."

JOHN; "Right."

ME; "We all know nothing is ever going to change for the better. Sometime in the future we'll all starve to death from the effects of idiot leadership. My wish is to start a new political organization based on the credo that all men are created idiots. Endowed by their creator with a blank slate. I'll call the new party. "The World Is a Giant Linitic Asylum Party." You can apply for the position of assistant to the Party Chairman,"

JOHN; "That's reminiscent of Monty Python's 'the Slightly Silly Party'. Remember that? It was a takeoff on the media's frequent mention of a certain candidate as a "serious candidate", so they decided the opposite of this would be a "silly candidate" and an in-between candidate would be a member of the 'Slightly Silly Party'."


ME; "Okay. Monte Pythons passes muster. I'll make myself The party Chaieman of the the Slightly Silly Party. The first thing I want to do is announce to the people of the world they're stupid and insane. And they need Gestopo therapy."

JOHN; "You'll also have to mimic the outfit of the Slightly Silly Party. Remove one sleeve from a dress coat and the brim from half of your hat."

ME; "I'm going to leave out that part. But, no one will ever see me in a suit."

JOHN; "Well then, how about an arrow through the head?"

ME; "No costumes or props. We'll make arguements and discuss things."

JOHN; "Well, don't you think that makes you seem more like a "serious candidate"? Remember, this is the 'Slightly Silly Partty'! Nonsense makes sense. You don't wanna get too logical, too sensible or too down-to-earth. Costumes and props can help to propel the 'slightly silly' message forward."

ME; "I don't need costumes and props. Have you considered my offer of Assistant to the Chair?"

JOHN; "Well, if you disdain props & costumes, I don't know if you will capture the 'Slightly Silly Party' nomination, for they're all about costumes, props and so forth. I'll consider Ass. to the Chair, couch, bed or whatever. Sounds a lot like the Vice-Presidency!"

ME; "Well, good. It's Assistant to the Chair. And it's not neccessary for you to refer to yourself as Ass to the Chair, couch or bed. Assisant to the Chair will do nicely."

JOHN; "So just what would your platform happen to be?"

ME; "I've already spoken of it. The peoples of the world must be told they're stupid and insane. And they need Gestopo therapy."

JOHN; "Oh, I can just see them now lining up to vote you into office!"

ME; "Right, there're real problems with public acceptance. But, such a program has the real advantage that you don't have to lie all the time."

JOHN; "You know that song "Tell me lies, tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies"? I think every born politician knows and fully understands the meaning of that song.

ME; "I suppose. I'm not a born politician. Born politicians are in the Sensible Parties."

JOHN; "Well, don't you think that by running for office, that sort of makes you a politician?"

ME; "Well, of course. But not a born politician."

JOHN; "So what are the main planks of your platform?"

ME; "Oh, lots of things. I have to write about the Slightly Silly Party in a blog. Thankyou for bringing this fantasy group to my attention."

JOHN; "And you should have a celebrity or a semi-celebrity as your running-mate. Who would thar be? Wavy Gravy?"

ME; "I don't have any running mate. I have to build up a party. That'll take a long time. In the meantime I'm the self appointed Chair of the Slightly Silly Party with a membership of one. I have a free blog and a very quiet audience."

JOHN; "So who's gonna be your Vice-President? You have to consider these things. Besides that, if you get a viable V.P. candidate, you'll be able to announce through the media that you have effectively DOUBLED your party's membership!"

ME; "There isn't any VP canidate. There's no party. There's no press. There's just me. I'm the Chair of a non-existance party. I have to find 10,000 members before the Slightly Silly Party even exists. It can't exist with just a Chair. But the Chair exists. Here I am. I'm a work in progress. Obviously, the party has to start somewhere, so it starts with a Chair. That seems reasonable, doesn't it? I'm here to process memberships. It's not a real party. It's a proto-party. Is any part of this unclear to you?"

JOHN; "Is there even any platform - or is it just like Ross Perot's campaigns?"

ME; "There are lots of things. But they have to be discussed in context."

JOHN; "Lots of things...hmmm, okay. Anything you would care to elaborate upon?"

ME; "Not really. The subjects, in question, are tedious and boring. I'm willing to discuss them in an interesting context. But not otherwise."

JOHN; "Well, I really don't know what to say to that."

ME; "There's nothing else I can say about it either."

JOHN; "Talk about whatever you think I should know about."

ME; "What do you want to know about?"

JOHN; "Tell me all about yourself, every single facet."

ME; "I'm not going to tell you anything about myself. You're talking crazy. And I'm not going to talk to you anymore about the SSP."

JOHN; "Okay, that's it. Conversation over."

He leaves.


End of Episode Eight



"Nightpeople".....Eoisode nine

Cast.....In order of appearance
Richard
Jim
Eric
Robert

Narrator
Richard

It's nightime. I'm sitting at a diner counter. Jim enters the diner and sits down next to me.

ME; "Hi Jim."

JIM; "Hey Richard. How are you"

ME; "I'm fine. What have you been doing lately."

JIM; "Oh still teaching, and I'm writing a lot...hey I just started doing my one-man Shakespeare show"

ME; "I don't know why Shakespearean actors insist on speaking period English. No one can understand them."

JIM; "Gee Richard, that ignorant, plebian remark may go a long way in explaining why we haven't spoken in 4 months. Actually it's just you that can't understand it. Everyone else has no problem."

I get up and move to another seat. I wave a server over and order a steak diner. She leaves.





Later. Same night. I've moved to a booth. Eric enters the diner and sits down oppoaite me.

ME; "Hi, Eric."

ERIC; "Hey Rick. How are things?"

ME; "They're okay. How are things with you?"

ERIC; "Well, it's late and I can't sleep. It's another one of those bouts with insomnia. My doctor has tried every drug under the sun... or moon should I say? At best it mellows me, but sleep is the elusive dragon I would love to slay. Coffee?"

A server comes over. Eric orders coffee. She pours it and leaves.

ME; "I don't have any trouble sleeping. I come here for something to do and something to eat. Which reminds me, I'm hungry."

I wave a server over and order a steak diner. She leaves.

ERIC; "No trouble sleeping?"

ME; "I stay up a lot, so when I lay down I just pass out. I get by on 4 hours a night."

ERIC; "4 hours? Are you one of those polyphasic sleepers? You know the kind that sleep 20 minutes every 4 hours? I tried that once. it worked great until I kept sitting up abruptly and getting ready for work, even on the weekends."

ME; "No. As I said, I'm just ready to go to sleep. I sleep 4 hours and stay up 20."

ERIC; "Oh. 4 is good to. It's a mild night isn't it?"

ME; "Yeah. Why don't you watch TV when you can't sleep?"

ERIC; "Have you seen the news? It's enough to depress you. Politics, Crime, Scandals, Cover-Ups, it makes a good blend between regular shows. Then there is the stagnated content of the "prime time". How often have you seen an original thought hit TV? No, I would rather read a book. Not that all TV is bad, but for the most part it's geared for an 12 year old with too many hormones. Reading definitely opens your mind though. Do you watch much TV? what do you do for entertainment?"

ME; "I come here, mainly. I watch PBS and the History channel. As you say, TV is geared for a 12 year old. It's a wasteland. I used to read but not anymore. I miss it, but I'm busy with other things now. I tried to write, I'd like to. I filled up lots of large notebooks and then realized I didn't have a story. I'm too remote from things. I could write a book if I could do interviews. I need someone to bring the world to me - someone to tell me what they see."

The server returns with my steak dinner and leaves

ERIC; "That's a concept Rick. Why, may I ask, do you need someone to bring the world to you? Do you not travel? Can you not travel? I seem to have the opposite problem, I can't stop thinking of ideas. It takes a great task for me to concentrate long enough to follow something to completion. Interviews in a diner eh? It's not a bad idea. Be glad you didn't hang out at a botanical garden, that would make for a long one sided interview. You said you filled up lots of large notebooks and realized you didn't have a story. What was it you were looking for? I usually find a story wherever I go, it's finding the finer points that take time. How.is the steak here?"

ME; "I'm looking for the answer. Why do I have to put up with morons? Steak is always good. I feel sorry for the cows though."

ERIC; "I think we're all looking for the answers. Clarifying the question makes it a lot easier. I guess I'm in that writing phase at this point. I have at least been able to focus on getting one story done. It felt triumphant, until all the rejection letters came. I guess that's what brought me to the diner, some coffee and deep meditation. Morons eh? Can't help you there. The few people I have met that I would say are moronic are usually just stuck in their thinking. I kind of feel sorry for them."

ME; "Okay. What do you think of the Slightly Silly Party? Monty Python though it up back in the seventies. Do you think it could be the hope of mankind?"

ERIC; "I think we're all looking for the answers. Clarifying the question makes it a lot easier. I guess I'm in that writing phase at this point. I have at least been able to focus on getting one story done. It felt triumphant, until all the rejection letters came. I guess that's what brought me to the diner, some coffee and deep meditation. Morons eh? Can't help you there. The few people I have met that I would say are moronic are usually just stuck in their thinking. I kind of feel sorry for them."

ME; "Okay. What do you think of the Slightly Silly Party? Monty Python though it up back in the seventies."

ERIC;; "I have never heard of it. Let me look it up on my phone..."

He's busy with his phone.

"Wow! I must say, it nails politics perfectly. I don't particularly like to talk politics, but that skit was dead on with our present reality. Benjamin Franklin said we need a revolution every 200 years to keep our freedom balanced. His timing may have been a bit off, but his foresight was good. Even the bible says, "The heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate. Who can know it?" Politicians must have big hearts with that analogy. He, he."
"It's amazing how humans are so cyclical. I remember reading a book called "The Money Game" by Adam Smith. It was written in the early 70's I believe, but the pattern this author showed about human greed, panic, and investing was quite eye opening. If he were still alive he would have called the housing crash long before it happened. The ebb and flow of life, we seem to be ebbing a lot more than flowing lately. Do you have a family?"

ME; "No. What did you want the humans to focus on?"

ERIC;; "That's an open ended question. I don't think it's so much about what humans focus on, but what they don't. War should be an absolute last resort for anything. I remember reading a book by Arthur C. Clarke, and an alien species had reach it's pinnacle of society by outlawing war. If the species had to go to war, the veterans were to die right after the conflict due to the drastic change in their mentality. If mankind were to focus on what would help out each other in the spirit of benevolence, it would definitely change society. That's just my opinion and it's all it is, an opinion. What would you like to see out of society?"

ME; "Gestopo therapy for all humankind."

ERIC; "I'm confused. Do you think I meant Gestapo therapy for any soldier? I Don't. I think soldiers pay such a heavy emotional burden that the concept of "resuming" a normal life is something that the politicians who send them out want to believe. The reality is that these men and women return with things that they can never "unsee" and it's things that would easily turn you or I's stomach. I did law enforcement for a couple years and after each raid, I would pray to god and ask him, " Is this really what you wanted for mankind?" I wasn't stating to eliminate our military, but the need should be the absolute last resort, not based on a financial boost to the economy. And if the war should happen, it should be as swift and efficient as possible with the most adventageous weapons possilble. When this alien species fought the humans, they studied them. They gave people that were not in the fight a way of counter-acting the deadly biological weapon they were about to release to the society as a group. It wasn't a Nazi or Gestapo devastation due to a racial or religious bias. It was an answer due to the impending fact that their way of life and species were marked for extinction. Have you ever looked at life of man before world war I? Did you happen to notice that the news used to report that mankind was finally at the cusp of truly working toward great things. Ever since World War I, we have only had 27 consecutive days of peace. That war was almost 100 years ago and all we have to show for it, is 27 days. How sad. I guess I'm soap boxing. What do you think would help society Rick?

ME; "Therapy."

ERIC; "That's it? Lot's of therapy? I'm Calling B.S. You're pacifying me. What one thing would you give to the world to fix it? I mean, we're just two guys in a diner, solving the problems of the world right?"

ME; "We're talking - but I had no intention of solving anything. What do you mean by; 'giving something to the world?'"

ERIC; "Doesn't it make sense that we should try to give something back to the world? I have a family and work hard to provide for them, but it only takes a little more effort to give to others. If you could leave behind a legacy, to be known for some contribution that helps mankind, no matter how great or small, what would it be??"

ME; "My feelings about mankind aren't very pleasant. Also; what would help them? They're insane and stupid. No one can help them. They don't want any help either."

ERIC; "Mankind in general isn't very pleasant, I agree. But complacency only puts you and I in the same boat as those "unpleasant" folks. Think about this, what if Einstein, or Tesla, or Gandhi to name a few did nothing because of how sick the society of man is? What if Steven Biko, didn't stand up for his rights and kept his life of constant oppression. What if the greatest man who ever lived decided not to be the best example, since most people would curse in his name and live their lives with no regard to his counsel? I don't think it matters who it helps. What matters is that something was done to help. That help was put out their for the good people and the insane and stupid. The few that appreciate will take it to heart. I only hope that I can make a difference to society before I leave this planet, and I hope I can do it without winning a Darwin award too."

He chuckles.

"Maybe it's different because I have a family and want to give my kids something better than what I had."

ME; "You mentioned 'the greatest man who ever lived.' Who would that be?"

ERIC "There were a lot of great men that lived, Abraham, Ghandi, Reagan. Well, maybe not Reagan, I may have had too much coffee. The man that made the most impact in people's lives and still does to this day would be Jesus. His example of how men should act is perfect. Sadly, most people are too self absorbed to care how a man should act, and justify their actions based off of how animals act. I remember when I worked in law enforcement how one guy tried to justify his rape charges by stating that dolphins did it all the time. The judge didn't blink when he handed down the sentence. After seeing the way society is, and has been for centuries, it makes sense then that he would be the greatest man, or finest example one can look up to. Imagine this world without any good examples. I am just saying, we each can do a little to help make society a bit better. Maybe I'm just too optimistic."

ME; "Optimism is the least of your problems. You're insane."

ERIC; "Haha. I may be. Nothing wrong with insanity as long as it's used for good. I can't remember who said it, but I remember the quote, "Show me a sane man and I will cure him for you." Guess you can't beat that. I do know this, you can't expect anything of anyone, except yourself. That is why being a good example is important to me. You said you like to watch the History Channel and PBS, what do you like about them?"

ME; "I just do. You could easily drive someone insane. You've probably done it thousands of times."

ERIC; "I can get carried away talking. Sorry."

ME; "I think it's a good thing you've checked your descent into madness."

ERIC; "Madness? Well Richard, it was good talking to you, best of luck in your endeavor to find that elusive story you seek."

He leaves.





Later. Same night. I've moved to the counter. Robert enters the diner and sits down next to me.

ME; "Hi Robert."

ROBERT; "Hi."

ME; "What have you been doing?"

ROBERT; "I've been trying to work on a script. It's weird, though, because I'm not allowed to write anything that takes planning or thought. For example, my main character is going to order some french fries, but I don't know why."

ME; "This is truly fascinating. Because he likes french fries? Why aren't you allowed to write anything that takes planning and thought?"

ROBERT; "My patron, the guy who holds the key to my future career, has laid down the law: You think, you stink. You plan, you get the can. All I can do is eat french fries and hope for the best."

ME' "Oh. How are you doing with it?"

ROBERT; "I'm still a little non-plussed, but I believe I'm getting the hang of it. What would you do in my place?"

ME; "Does he/she want you to invent a non-traditional plot? i.e. something different than 'save the little girl from the burning building?'"

ROBERT: "That's the thing. There's no clue. Anything can happen. But if it does, we'll be right back in this diner, trying again to have an interesting conversation."

ME; "Hey, I just finished a story. It's only a thousand words. I have no idea what to do with it. It's good for 5 minutes. I'll tell it to you."

"I have a friend named Sean. He's on mental disability now. At one time he was a on-the-road salesman and made $50,000 a year. He lived, with his wife Eva, in a $1/4 million home His wife is a beutifull russian girl. He met her here in the US. She had a job in graphics. She was trained by the Soviet state. At one time, in her youth, she was a Young Pioneer. A kid with a red bandanna around her neck. The Soviet State discinagrated and she came to the US. Later, she brought her mother and younger sister here. Sean and she traveled back and forth to Russia and got married. They had 2 children together."
"Sean and Eva lived together for 10 years. Eva was friendly with Seans family, a mother and 3 sisters. She got them on her side and together they committed Sean to a mental institution. The police came to his home, he came out to talk to them and they put him in a straight jacket. He was a model patient, never caused any disturbances, cooperated with the doctors and was released in 10 days. He filled out papers and the goverment gave him a disability check. Eva divorced him. She got the kids, the house, a business and child support from the goverment. Sean got visitation rights, which never worked out. Eva and he went back and forth to court with nothing resolved. But in any case, he doesn't see them anymore. He's scared they'll cause a disturbance and get him committed again. He tried to call them. Eva said; 'Why do I want to talk to a phycho - because I'm stupid?' Then he tried to talk to the kids. Both of them said the same thing; 'Why do I want to talk to a phycho - because I'm stupid?'"

"So what do you think?"

ROBERT' "If that's true, it's a shitty deal for Sean. Maybe we should talk to him and see if we can help him get his kids back. If it's not true, then it's missing a lot of elements that would make me care."

ME; "He's a phycho."

ROBERT; "There's no such thing as a 'psycho'. He's just having a spiritual crisis on an energetic plane of existence. I'm sure we can help him work it through. Then he can at least get visitation rights to his kids. Maybe full custody."

ME; "I don't have any interest in such a thing."

ROBERT' "That's a shame. If you study the energetic planes deeply enough, you can accomplish a great deal that seems impossible to others."

ME; "I'm certainly impressed with your very vivid imagination. Tell me more."

ROBERT; "For example, I know exactly what you're going to say and do next. That's why I came down to the diner tonight: to watch you do it."

ME; "Very funny. I don't believe you can see into the future."

He waves a sever over and orders coffee and a hamburger with lettuce and tomato. She pours the coffee and leaves.

ROBERT; "D'ja ever hear of Alfred Hitchcock? You might acknowledge that he knew something about making good films and telling good stories. He said a good story is just like real life, with the boring parts left out. With The Boring Parts Left Out. If you want to make a "true life" film, you can follow in the footsteps of Andy Warhol, who filmed 6-1/2 hours of John Giorno sleeping. Great Cinema! (not). If you're a genius, maybe people will pay attention to it. If you're not, you'll need to follow proven techniques to make something interesting to an audience. And the first trick is to leave out the boring parts."

ME; "I didn't like 6-1/2 hours either. There's a problem with leaving out the so-called boring parts. Then you become a censor. And it's possible that you left out the really interesting parts because you're also a moron."

ROBERT; "Also, there's a reason lots of people go to Spielberg and Truffaut films, but not to Warhol films. You can call it "censorship," but it's more accurately termed "story-telling." If you're a talented story-teller, you can accurately discriminate between the boring parts and the interesting parts, and you know which ones to leave out. If you're not, then you won't tell such good stories, and fewer people will be interested in experiencing them. One of the first impulses of the human animal is "tell me a story". It's not "let me see uncensored reality with all the boring parts intact". To be afraid of censoring reality in service of a story is to be an untrained, immature, untalented, or overly-ideological story-teller. For example, I wrote a long diatribe on the cosmology of story-telling, but I won't tell it to you because it's boring."

ME; "Thankyou. You should extend the same mercy to your students?"

The server returns with the hamburger and leaves.

He doesn't reply. I get up and move to another seat. I wave a server over and order another steak. She leaves.

End of episode nine.




"Nightpeople".....Episode ten'

Cast in order of appearance.
Richard
Happiness

Narrator
Richard

It's nightime. I'm sitting in a diner booth. I wave a server over and order a steak. Happiness enters the diner and sits oppisite me.

ME; "Nice to see you again. How's the book coming along?"

HAPPINESS; "What book? I seem to have lost my touch. I can't write anything. Nothing comes to me. I wonder if my writing gift has rusted with misuse or abuse or lack of use."

The server comes back. Happiness orders a chicken diner and a coke. The sever leaves.

ME; "I remember the title of the book was 'Victims of Circumstances.' Who were the victims and what were the circumstances?"

HAPPINESS; "The victims were adopted children who did not know that they were actually adopted and were fighting for inheritance from their father's estate and their step mother who also had no clue of what her so called husband was keeping as a secret until he got seriously sick and told some of the truth.The cicumstances surrounding these victims: family feuds,illegal dealings, relationships, scandals, gain and loss of jobs, money and posessions. At the centre of all this lies the question about gut-feel or intuition. The step mother had a feeling that something was not right in her relationship but her man was good to her and treated her like a queen, her mother did not trust her daughter's husband and was frank about it.Ma Pearl said; 'All he wants to do is to use you to get what he needs and you will be sorry one day when you look back and realize I was right. All he wants from you is your sound business mind and nothing more'Then Nellie said; 'Mom,please! If that were true he wouldn't be so good to me'Then Ma Pearl said; 'If the juice he's getting is worth the squeeze he would do just about anything for you, trust me.'

ME; "That's a good line about the juice and the squeeze. Did your Mom give you that one?"

HAPPINESS; "That's from some movie I watched but I can't remember what it was called."

ME; "You have a conventional plot and now you have to fill it in."

HAPPINESS; "I have been trying to wríte the story in so many ways but now I'll just continue and I'll see how it all comes together in the end.Nellie said; 'Ma let's be honest:there has never been a single relationshíp i have had that you approved of.you always find fault with my partners. You call them liars, cheats, and two-faced bastards. Is it not in the bible you preach about tirelessly that 'thou shall not judge,' Who are you to call people names like that? Can you see what is in their hearts?And then Ma Pearl said; 'In this case I'm not passing judgement. I'm simply stating facts and it has absolutely nothing to do with my realigion!' And then Nellie said; 'I'm sorry I shouldn't be dragging you faith into this.but my mind is made up: I'm throwing caution to the wind, I'm listening to my heart just this once.' And Ma pearl said; 'And if all this comes crashing down on you?'And Nellie said; 'I'll cross that bridge if I come to it."

ME; "Well, I don't know what to tell you. Except, that you have a long way to go. Do you have any personal interest in this story? Is there something that you're trying to explain to people?"

The sever returns with my steak and leaves.

HAPPINESS; "Yes. I do have a personal interest in the story.What I want all of us to look at is: there is no right way or wrong way of falling in love and I would also like to show the simple truth that everything really happens for a reason. I am what I am today because of each and every little thing that happened in my life.As an example from my own life I can point to the fact that I know seven of the eleven official languages of South Africa because I moved around a lot. So I think even things that may not have been that significant have made me what I am.
Wouldn't you say the same for you? I mean at least to some extent? Sometimes I remember my childhood: being brought up living half my time with my African parents and half with my grandmother's English bosses, from them I learned speaking, reading and writing English better than most people of my race. Fom my family I learned not to look down on African languages and to be proud of who I am without being cocky."
"My own mom and I had a bad relationship for so long because I tried to live up to her expectations,and pretended to be something I was not to make her happy but it was only when something in me snapped and I told her:"This is me mom,accept me as I am.I am sick and tired of pretending to be something I am not!" Her reply was:"I thought you liked living like that and I only pushed you to improve on what you had started.You obviously won't gain much for being what you think people want you to be,but you can go where you never imagined possible being what you love to be."

ME; "Were your own loves like those of the people in your story?"

HAPPINESS; "Some of them are somewhat similar to my own loves, I would say. If I may ask you, why would a man keep a secret from his own wife?"

ME; "Well, lots of reasons, I suppose. I don't have any interest in conventional people or what they do. Marriage is conventional. I think convential people are a Strange Life Form."

The server returns with the chicken diner and leaves.

HAPPINESS; "What do you mean conventional?"

ME; "Conventional people are similar to each other in important ways. The words conventional and conformity mean almost the same thing."

HAPPINESS; "Ouch!That hurts!I have never looked at marriage that way.With what you say I will look closely at my relationship with my late husband.Give me some time and I will let you know what I have learned."
"There is something that my friend and I were discussing the other day:sympathy.We drove past a beggar on a street corner.I wanted to give him some of my coins but my friend said no,when I asked why she said the beggar could use the energy he is abusing by finding a job and earn his keep,all he was doing was laying a guilt trap for us ,to make us sympathize with him and give him our hard earned cash for free ,maybe because we want to believe we are kind and generous.She says times are hard for all of us but she says if many of us who drove past gave him a cleaning job,for example,from time to time he would eventually stop standing at the street corner and do something for himself.Sympathy does not help where it is not deserved.The beggar is not a cripple or blind or too old,but then we also started talking about women who hold on for dear life to marriages to abusive,cold hearted men that we always sympathize with,for they say there is nothing they can do.My friend believes no matter what happens in our lives there is always something one can do.It is all in the mind,she says.That raises a question with me:once I was involved with an abusive man who strongly believed that whatever he believed would be as he believed,he strongly believed I would never leave him and that if I did I would not live long.That was 12 years ago.I left him and my life is such a bliss without him,do you believe in the power of 'thinking things into life?' If you do, tell me if it has limitations?"

ME; "I don't believe things can be thought-into-life."

HAPPINESS; "Well some people believe that if you hold the picture of what you want to be in your mind long enough,vividly enough ,strongly believing it shall be,then so it will be.I think it is one way of survival as is faith,religion,beliefs ,star sign reading and so forth."

ME; "You're doing the same thing your abusive ex-boyfriend did; 'thinking things-into-life?'

HAPPINESS; "I am not "thinking God into life" because He is Life.Without Him I am doomed. Considering all the pain and heartache we cause ourselves, before we even trouble anyone else, do you honestly think we would all be alive today if not for God?"
"I was brought up in Christian families and the differences I see in my life as a believer keeps my faith burning. I had been at the lowest low and now I am on my way up again. With me it is only when I pray sincerely that I receive what I ask for. I do not always kneel down to pray sometimes I sit at my office table or dining room table and talk to God about anything that may be on my mind when my other family members are out and I am all alone at the house.I call Him" Father" and I tell Him everything.All the nonsense that I cannot repeat to anyone I tell him. When one of my enemies suffers and I am aware of it and I feel some satisfaction because I feel he/she deserves it I tell him and ask for his forgiveness because I should not find pleasure in someone else's pain. What I know is I am a human being first and foremost and a Christian."
"He gave us freedom of choice. So what happens to us is mainly out of the choices we make. Do I regret having married someone who would look straight into my eye and lie to me?For a long time I did,now I see it as a life lesson that has since taught me not to accept all as it seem,to leave room for dissappointment,to know that if someone hurts me he has hurt himself because maybe by the time he realises why I was sent his way I would be gone never to return and he will suffer the pain of losing me alone and live with the consequences of his actions.I am not afraid of being in love again and getting married.To me couples complement each other.They are two halves of the same one,two different shades:black and white?When I was true,frank,honest my husband was a lying ,dishonest bastard but we loved each other.We enjoyed each other's company.Partly of how I am today is because I had known him and I chose to be with him."

ME; "I really don't get it. How do you figure; 'You're doomed without Him?' Or; 'He gave us freedom of choice.' Wouldn't we have freedom of choice without Him? I've had the same discussions with Chrictians all my life and they always dig-in-their-heels and insist they're in contact with God even though so many other people don't see Him. Where is He? How do you know He's there? Do you really beleive you have conversations with Him?"

HAPPINESS; "I do not believe that if I argue with you I will convince you that my religion is the right one:I believe in who I believe in but I will be honest to you my faith is based on "hearsay".I have never personally in flesh met my God.It is for me a spiritual connection that I cannot explain to anyone else.It lacks logic,subtantial evidence,it goes against human understanding,and I hate arguing over it because it is a waste of time.As an educated woman under normal circumstances I should not be a Christian but I am.It is my choice in a free world where my means of survival depend on my very own understanding of what goes on in my life and to those around me."

ME; "Okay."

HAPPINESS; "Let us talk about parents,parenting ,our own parents,and how we are as parents if you are also one that is"

ME; "I don't remember the details, so I can't really discuss parenting. I wasn't happy with either of my parents. I thought both of them were pretty incompetant as parents and pretty worthless people. I had an unhappy childhood and the rest of it has been the same. My parents were strict. I grew up in middle class circumstances. My father was a stockbroker and my mother was a housewife. I don't have any children."

HAPPINESS; "My parents are both still alive,my mom is the "ruler" in my family even though she denies it.She did not want me to go and study overseas and hid my bursary forms,lied to me about it until I found the hidden forms in my Matric year and in a stupid fit of anger dropped out of school shortly afterwards.I have hated my parents passionately for many years for all that they should have done for me and failed to,for being such hypocrites, holding the Bible in one hand and serving the Devil on the other by lying, cheating, pretending when it suited them but two years ago I decided to take my life back,let go of the anger,chose a happy attitude,stopped being judgemental towards them,allowed myself to be true to who and what I am.I do not live my life based on some church doctrine or depending on my parents approval.I do whatever makes me happy.I told them exactly what I think of them and chose to forgive for my own sake."
"I have 3 biological kids and 1 adopted.I love them immensely and I spoil them rotten.I give them the best I can afford.I listen to them.I know from experience that even though people believe old people are clever kids are the wisest of all mankind and if only we could stop and listen to them we could learn valuable life lessons from them.When their father passed away they were my pillar of strength though they did not say much everyday when they came back from school they would come and hug me without saying a word,after a while they suggested we talked about him,remember the things we loved about him,and forgive his pitfalls for no one, myself included ,is perfect."
"Making peace with my childhood pain,anger,disappointment was very hard.Some days are better than others.My parents "fuck-ups" excuse my French ,will be part of me all my life.That is for sure."
"Maybe it is true what they say:what does not kill you can only make you stronger. I'm grateful for your presence in my life Richard,I don't know why you are here but I am happy you are"
-
ME; "Thanks. You could write about yourself and then just change the names of the characters. Why did your mother hide your school papers?"

HAPPINESS; "There was this "prophecy" going around back then ,my mother being a fanatical Christian and all,that the Lord Jesus Christ was coming back in year 2000.They said all the things that the Bible had said would happen before His return had happened, "the signs" they call them were there,so since the world was coming to an end going to school was a "bloody sheer waste of time".Even though my mother was discussing this with her church members,she was the only one who took it seriously serious!They also read a newspaper clip on South African girls who left our country for greener pastures overseas only to find themselves working as slaves in rice farms,completely deprived of any kind of communication with their families.Her excuse is she was trying to protect me.My schoolmate who had the same opportunity leaves overseas as we speak ,she only comes South to visit from time to time which means the bursary fund was legit.Now my mum says maybe it was never meant to be.I don't buy that for one second,she played God in my life because she could. It was only me that would suffer the consequences. Once she said; 'As long as I am still depending on her she was my god.'"

ME; "Where were you going to go to school?"

HAPPINESS; "I would have gone to Britain.We even had teachers from Britain who used to work in our school for six months at a time.Our English teacher in Matric ,which is the last high school class in South Africa, was a Englishman. He taught us from January 1992. He was the first teacher to teach us Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet".It was a demanding position I think, teaching African kids Shakespeare whose everyday English knowledge was not so good to begin with.I sometimes played the interpreter.The funny thing was whenever he asked if we all understood before asking questions we all said yes.When I asked my friends why they did that they would say there was no point in telling they didn't because no amount of explaining would help anyway because it wasn't the subject that was the problem but the language itself and the accent ,of course."

ME; "When did you get interested in writing a book?"

HAPPINESS; "I started writing at an early age.At first it was my way of telling those around me how I felt about some of the things that were happening in my life without them knowing.I would re-live my disappointments but have them end in triumph in my stories,this reminds me of a story I wrote after I fell pregnant for the first time out of wedlock in which the "girl" in the story was loved and accepted by boy's parents when I had been publicly disgraced because my boyfriend denied having had sexual intercourse with me which hit me hard because he was my first love.I trusted him so much and I never saw that coming, and to this day he has never told me why he did that even though we talk and we are on good terms."

ME; "Did you save any of your stories?"

HAPPINESS; "When I ran away from home in 1993 I left my journals at home and my mom burnt them."

ME; "Why did your mom do that?"

HAPPINESS; "She told me that she only got to know me through my writing,I guess she did not like what she read.I was totally frank about my life,I "told" her exactly what I thought from a safe distance and I did not have to deal with the consequences of my "actions"She told me my stories were so deep.Sometimes I wish she could be totally honest with me but she is holding back and she pretends as if all is ok."

ME; "What did you write about?"

HAPPINESS; "In our quest for perfection,self-betterment,or shall I call it 'holiness' some of us tend to forget that we are human first and foremost and to err is human.No one had always been the perfect role model.We have at one point or the other commited mistakes that we look back at and think:'I don't know what came over me to turn me like that.'We can hide all we want behind the "my mistakes are irrelevant now" but they are.It is the source of our ever-changing attitudes.If one feels that one is a better person it is plainly because they tried different ways of doing things:right and wrong before they reached a state where they felt :"this is it!this is what I should have done a long time ago!"We need to remember that in this life one man's meat will always be another man's poison,so what works for you may not work for me and there is nothing wrong with that.Parents cannot live their children's lives for them."

ME; "You know what would be neat - a word by word accont of something you and your mother argued about."

HAPPINESS; "She gets tiresome after a while."

ME; "Lets hear it."

HAPPINESS'; "In a moment of weakness,I spoke to one of my brothers about how I felt about the way that mom was treating us unfortunately for me she was eavesdropping and she listened in for a while and the next I know I got such a big slap across my face,my head was spinning! And she said; 'How dare you?After all that I have done for you !Do you think you would do a better job at raising children than I do?Do you undermine God's authority to make me your mother?Do you think I am being stupid if I do not allow you to have freedom like all the other kids?I grew up in a family where we could go where ever we wanted to without being questioned and do you know what happened to us?Two of my brothers are in jail,we all ended up being either alcoholics or drug addicts!'
'But I am nothing like you and all I want to do is music' .
'So you want me to give a licence to run around with those stupid boys under the 'we are singers' banner when I know what they can do to you?'
'There is nothing they can do to me now that had not been done to me before?' 'What do you mean?' 'You know exactly what I mean.' 'What are you trying to say to me?' 'Oh please!You always tell me how the Lord shows you everything even in your sleep,and you have call me names,but still pretend as if you do not know what I am talking about?If you do not allow me to do this I will leave.' If He really shows you everything even in your sleep you wouldn't ask me what I mean so I think someone in here is lying or is pretending to know more than she really does heaven knows why!'I said,walking away. 'Don't walk away from me !I am still talking to you!' 'If you agree to let me pursue my dream I'll listen.' 'Are you trying to control me now?' 'Is it working mom?' 'Listen I am older and there is nothing that is happening today that has not happened before,it is the same old life story but it is new to you because you are the new characters,trust me when I say to you I know what is good for you.' 'Do you want to know what I think?' 'Ye-s? 'I think you hate me for being the person you could never be even if you tried.One day you will wake up thinking 'let me go and check if my puppy is still in its kennel' and find it gone,what will you do then?Punish it?Maybe,but you will have to find it first,what guarantee do you have that you will be able to find it?None.' 'Are you thinking of running away from home?Have you ever really looked at those people living in the streets?Do you know how much they suffer?Don't be stupid,in this world you will be nothing without me!Do you hear me ?You will be nothing !' 'There is a very good reason why the Creator put a head on each and everyone of us. . .' 'And you happen to know this reason Ms Know-it-all?' 'No,mom,I don't but my point is we all have to think for ourselves,we cannot build our lives on other people's doctrines-' 'Do you think my faith is some stupid doctrine?'If only you could stop and listen to me until I finish.' 'I am your mother and on earth I am the most important person in your life,I am the one you should respect the most before you can even start fearing the Lord.,unless you want to live under a curse.' "

ME; "Well, it sounds like you and your Mother were pretty unhappy together. Did you leave home soon after that?"

HAPPINESS; "I should have but the fear of living under a curse kept me at home.I started taking religion seriously,tried to get her approval and acceptance.,going to church with her,fasting when she said we should only to find her eating before the agreed time to go off the fast and when I asked why she would do that she told me she was in a better place in life,I was the one who needed to punish my flesh more because I was young and the devil was after the youth because if he won them over they followed him passionately,youth is fearless,she pointed out to me how most of her school friends had died young for the political struggle and how involved in politics my friends were and she said the reason for that was they had nothing to lose.Whatever happened to them it was their parents' responsibility but once one has a child one would do ones best to stay alive if nothing else. I said to her; 'I thought whether we live or die the Creator had the last word,ma?' 'Yes and No.Some people's lives are taken away long before they are due because they sin so much He cannot keep them amongst us any longer.''I know people who should be gone by now but they are alive even though they make us suffer so much like our 'leader' in this area.''Don't speak about the leader!Do you want these people to burn my house down and kill us all?' 'I thought you were not afaraid of death, your gate to eternal life?' 'Are you making a mockery of my faith?' 'No ma,I was just asking.' 'If I die now who would take care of you?' 'No one.' "

ME; "How old were you then?"

HAPPINESS; "I was seventeen and so angry at so many people and so many things that I did not even know what and who sometimes:I was angry at my parents because they wanted me to be what they wanted to be and my mom had threatened to curse if I failed,I was angry at my dad because he never seemed to have a mind of his own,whatever mom said it would go and his reason was our mom had done such a good thing for us,giving birth to us and putting our needs before her own and I wondered if he felt somewhat guilty having made her pregnant not once or twice but 10 times!Only 7 of us survived though but still it happened and once I overheard my mom cry while they were arguing about something and she said:'Had I not married you and had so many kids my life would have been so different,I wanted to be a model once and I could have been then you came along.I am not being ungrateful but right now this is so hard on me because if there is no food in this house the kids come to me.' "

ME; "What was the curse?"

HAPPINES; "She threatened she would curse me so nothing would go right in my life.I were to be cursed in coming and going,in each everything I did,I would fail at school ,be disliked by everyone,be a complete failure,suffer wherever I went.She read me a Bible story about boys who were making fun of an old man of God who were burnt to death by fire that came from heaven.Just the thought of being a failure paralysed me,I was the cleverest kid at school,a linguist,with a huge fan base,I enjoyed attention,loved it like crazy,the attention I mean and imagining a life without the 'friends' was crippling"

ME; "How does a curse work?"

HAPPINESS; "A curse does not work. I didn't know that. Like all things, it is what you make of it ,your perspective,your belief.Your reaction."

ME; "How soon after that did you figure out a 'curse' doesn't work?"

Happiness; "I only learned this much later in my life,much much later it is sickening.I have had to teach myself to venture into the uknown,take my chances,try and fail and learn from my failures and I had to learn to learn from other people's mistakes:that was the hardest thing because I have always had people listen to me and I was always interested in me,in my own story so learning to stop and listen not only to those around me but to myself as well was excrutiatingly painful.And I had been so pretentious for so long:pretending to like people I could not stand,pretending to be more interested in religion than I really was to win my mom over,pretending to enjoy looking after my younger brothers when I found it quite tiring at times,pretending to be interested in reading spiritual motivational books when I knew nothing held my attention like a Danielle Steele's romantic reads with the happy endings and Wilbur Smith's soulful,compelling reads, confession of which would have ruined my good reputation and maybe left me labelled a weak helpless sinner."

ME; "What do they do to weak, helpless sinners?"

HAPPINESS; "Weak helpless sinners are 'cut-off' from the church:They are asked to confess their weakness infront of the whole congregation,asked if they understand that what they do is not acceptable to the Lord, advised to keep coming to church and only allowed to sit right at the back alone.No single member of the stronger church member is allowed to sit next to the weak.The cold treatment of the weak helpless sinners varies depending on what it is that they do that gives the church leaders to believe they are the 'poisoned branches'.In severe cases they are no longer allowed into the church until they repent,report to the church elders,follow whatever routine the elders give them until they have proven themselves to be worthy of being inside the house of the Lord or to sit with everyone else.Severe cases are e.g.sex out of wedlock, cheating on a spouse,fraud,divorce it is not allowed if you insist on it you are 'cut-off' .Minor cases would like mine reading 'ungodly stuff' a bit serious if it is romance because I would be planting an evil seed in my brain which will mislead my heart and end up driving me to sin."

ME; "What do they do to people who stop going to church?"

HAPPINESS; "In some cases depending on the church members they would come to your house uninvited time and time again to remind you of the fate of the ones who turn away from the Lord's grace.They would remind you of your good deeds before you fell from grace and encourage you 'to come back home',if you resist and may be order them to leave they may curse you or threaten to and if you are quite agressive some may say this prayer:'Dear Lord we have come to your servant's house to remind him of Your grace,he will not listen,and like Pilate we wash our hands,we will no longer have anything to do with him because he has chosen the dark path,he has given himself to the lord of the darkness,have mercy on his soul.As from this day forward we will not speak to him,or hug him or shake hands with him.We will not eat on the same plate as he does or even sit on the same chair...'(at which I laughed because we used the same taxis and sat on the same seats with some of them for a while when I was in doing my first year at high school) and then say on their way out; 'Peace be with you'.Once while doing this the man they were visiting was so angry he pointed a gun at them and asked who wanted to go and see the Lord there and then ,no one wanted to die,they all apologized and begged him not to kill them,he didn't but it proved what others say :we are human beings and no matter how good the promise of the eternal life is the simple honest truth is no one who is alive really knows what happens when we die,and no one wants to die just like that"

ME; "Why didn't you do what the guy with the gun did? What happened to him? Did he ever go back to church? Did they visit him again?"

HAPPINESS; "I couldn't!I didn't have a gun!He never went to church again and no one ever approached him again.They used to pray for him for a while but they convinced us that the guy was posessed and that only the Lord could help him,my issue had always been the right way of life we are meant to believe in is man made,it is based on someone's way of thinking and understanding of the good Book and the reason we have so many churches in Africa is each and every leader of a church may disagree with the other members of the church and decides to make his own.We had a disagreement in our church about females wearing pants:others said it was unacceptable,others said God is the God of the heart and deeds and not of the outer coverings,that it did not matter what we wore but it mattered if we cared for others,respected others,loved ourselves and those around us and did what is right.Since the man who said this was not a prominent member of the church they tried to cut him off the church and he started his own."

ME; "Do you feel our planet is a Giant Lunitic Asylum?"

HAPPINESS;"I could not have said that better myself!What on earth is wrong with us?We complicate the simplest things!And heaven knows why?Just over a week ago I watched a TV programme discussing mental illness and the TV presenter was speaking to a man who lives on the streets and his family members say he is a lunatic and guess what he said when asked if he was mentally unstable?'We are all sick mentally,no one is of sound mind whether we admit it or not!'He said that and oh my! GIANT LUNATIC ASYLUM!"

ME; "What do you think 'crazy' people talk about?"

HAPPINESS; "The very things that everyone talks about!Hello!That man on the show was worried it was going to rain and his roof had a leak and yes his tent roof or cover did have a leak!The only differrence amongst us may be: the ones whom we believe are mentally unstable have the limitless faith of children,they believe that they are richer than they really are,they believe they see people who passed away along time ago and maybe they really do?It is hard to tell!If they don't trust you they tell you on your face!The one thing that I have noticed about the so called mentally unstable they are more loyal to those who are good to them than we could ever be in our sane minds,they also never forget any good that anyone has ever done for them,and they always go to the same house where they are fed at the same time everyday for their meal,they never forget to say thank you!At least the ones I know in my community are like that."

ME; "I don't mean those crazies. I mean the inhabitants of the Giant Lunitic Asylum. I don't believe everyone says the same things. The 'crazies' can be profiled; - that is; the 'crazies' I'm talking about -not the other-way-around."

HAPPINESS; "In the Giant Lunitic Asylum there is never a dull moment. The first group that comes to mind is the 'perfect, humane, kind, loving, never-go-wrong type' whose members are so perfect they are surprised no one ever notices! Their sense of dress is the right one, their manner of speaking is the one we should all use. Their parental upringing methods are not open for discussion because 'their is absolutely no reason why anyone shouldquestion them.' After all, they are the perfect ones! What makes one better than the others? I need to know. How many rofiles do you have? How exactly do you come up with these profiles?"

ME; "With stories. Here's one. Jimmy and I were walking, with a dog, when a women, also with a dog, came the other way. She had her's on a leash. The dogs barked at each other. We got our's to shut up and left. When we got back; Jimmy said; 'She's the kind of person who'll call the police and get you in touble. But she didn't do that. I guess we're lucky.' "

HAPPINESS; "I once had a lady who ordered a birthday cake for her church , when she placed the order she said it was for a birthday for one of her employees' child and she asked me to order pink icing for the cake and when she came in to collect it she swore she told me it was for the church and she could not present a 'pink cake' for the Lord's children, it just wasn't acceptable and she wanted the icing changed to blue right there and then!How would I know this was to happen?How do you profile this 'lovely' lady?Even though I speak well,I just stood there speechless and she was shouting on top of her voice for everyone to hear how a stupid African sales assistant who should not be anywhere near the company phone had made the worst ,most stupid mistake of the year and how she 'the poor innocent victim' had to suffer the consequences,she insisted she deserved a discount for her trouble but my boss said no,all we could do was to give her the 'blue cake' if she was wiling to wait.Don't you think our ladies are of similar tendencies?Luckily for you ,you managed to make your dog keep quiet.But I think my boss also knew how to profile because he told me not to pay any attention to the lady's comments,where on earth do these people come from?They're on a mission: 'I can take you to hell and back and get away with it,ha! ha! ha!' "

ME; "What's their mission?"

HAPPINESS; "Oh,yes!In pursuit of a record deal and TV acting part I met a guy who told us:'the wannabe actors' he was the director,which turned out to be a fancy name he gave himself,he was simply an agent who was making money by placing an advert on the paper claiming to be looking for actors with or without experience who had passion for drama and arts for an upcoming South African movie which was to be filmed in SA and overseas towards the end of the year..My friend and I went for 'auditions' at his house in Roseglen,Johannesburg.He told us the choice was ours,he would never force us to play parts we felt uncomfortable with and we believed him.When we finally went for 'class' I was told to kiss a man I had never seen before in my life ever,when I told him I did not think I was in the right place to do that then ,he told me and everyone else who was there then that we were all there in pursuit of a dream we could never achieve because even though we were 'attention seekers' we were not prepared to do anything and everything we had to do to get what we wanted.When I reminded him of what he said on our first audition he screamed and asked if I was in the right state of mind!"

ME; "Was that your first experience with a filmmaker?"

HAPPINESS; "No it was not my first experience but he made me realise that the more I pursued the acting career the more I met very weird characters and he made start thinking that there should be more to this life than the 'fake' glamorous life of TV stars.He also made us meet people who with all their fame and glory on TV were so plain and unattractive in real life,and some were just not so intelligent.He did two things for me that I know for sure no one else would have done them better for me:1.He taught that if I did not see myself as a star no one else would"stars are not the people on your TV screens,it is all about how you see yourself, know it,believe it and live it before you really get into it.He taught me that I did not have to take nonsense from anyone even if it meant losing on my short term goal,never to compromise what I believe in no matter what the cost"

ME; "Tell me about the other filmmakers."

HAPPINESS;"Then I met a certain Ben,he came in with a good angle I must say and he really had crowds following him because he was not just a TV casting agent but he was the one with Christ.Africans, at least most of them, have a thing for religion and faith.I cannot say he lied to us but in our pursuit of success,fame,happiness and fortune in a 'world' full of liars,cheaters and wolves in sheepskin where the Lord did not exist,and His name was not even mentioned, he came as an answer to our prayers.(even though at the time I did not even open my mouth to pray at all,and I never set foot in the house of the Lord).We started everything with prayer,did our local gospel music show with so much oomph!I thouroughly enjoyed his company and he was so much fun to work with,he was very 'girlie' and even though he wore his expensive glossy suits most of the time it was seeing him in jeans that had us gossiping behind his back about his curvaceous 'booty'!We really hoped he would be kinder to us but when he had me and my close friend do an advert for the South African Energy Regulator and paid us peanuts it turned us off and that is when I kinda had a fall-out with him.It was also a very difficult period for me financially so I don't really think it was all about how he acted more than it was about my own desperation to find money and opportunity right there and then.We were not surprised to read about him being gay in a newspaper it only confirmed our suspicions."

ME; "Have you done any stage work?"

HAPPINESS; "Yes I have,not much but yeah I have done it.I was afraid at first,and for my first ever audition for a singer/actor part I could not sing due to stage fright,my voice came out in a weird high pitch and I was disqualified.This happened again when I went for a studio audition with my music producers ,and even when I recorded my song on their various artists album I was nervous when I did the first two songs and even though they decided to put one of those songs in the album I am not happy with the quality of the music I made,I believe I could have done better.The other thing with me is if I feel out of place where I am I do not function well,and that is exactly how I felt in my music company and that is part of the reason why I did not pursue my music dream any further,it is ironic that I am a multi-talented artist who has failed dismally at making even a single gift I have prosper.I got tired of building new relationships in the show business because my experience has taught me most producers and film-makers say all the right things all the time but they only care about themselves and nothing but.An artist is only valuable if they feel he/she will bring in the fortune"

ME: "A minute ago, you said you met TV people who were 'not so intelligent,' What did they do that you think was stupid?"

HAPPINESS; "Once we met with one of our TV stars,a role model to some ever since this 'role models mania' started:we had hoped since he portrayed a character so well on TV he was wise to our disappointment when asked what his take on the HIV/AIDS pandemic and teenage pregnancy was,he told us we know that in our 'culture' we do not discuss sex with 'children' and bedroom-related topics were not for public debate.We said we were asking for his advice as an influential public figure and as a parent,we asked if he really believed with everything going on in the world today if it was in our best interests to follow on our forefathers' footsteps he insisted answering that question would somewhat divulge personal feelings and ideas he did not want to share with the public."

ME; "I think you mean; he's conservative and therefor 'stupid.' Is that what you mean? I agree with you, conservatives are stupid people. But liberals are stupid too. Everyone who represents the public talks about the same things and stupid things. They have to because the majority of people are simple-minded morons. Some people say the 'stupids' have a brain like everyone else - so maybe someday they could make rational decisions. I don't believe that. I think the 'stupids' have a 'stupid brain,' It works backwards - the more they use it the stupider they get."

HAPPINESS; "It is hard to believe that we still have people amongst us whose level of stupidity only seems to' grow' or shall I say gets worse with use or abuse or lack of use thereof.We have all different types of information guides everywhere but hey for some reason we have the so-called conservatives:What is rational in a lady giving her whole life into someone else's hands to decide on what she has to do even in matters of whether or not to use protection when having sex fully knowing what could happen? What is rational in someone giving up an opportunity of a lifetime that he/she knows means everything to him/her simply because someone close does not approve?"

ME; "I see things like that almost every day. It's really weird. Most people are robots. They use a program even when the program is the opposite of what they're supposed to be doing - route instead of thought."

HAPPINESS; "We are supposed to learn from other people's mistakes but instead we go round and round through the very same vicious circle it is pathetic,and most of us come out saying if I knew then what I know now I would have made a better decision.I am a perfect example of that:my mom had a child outside the wedlock ,I knew about it but I went on to make not just one but three to spite her.I wonder if I am the only one who has done the most stupid decisions to make someone who has nothing to do with it suffer only to suffer the consequences all by myself instead and finally realising much later that every little thing I do I do it for me."

ME; "Yeah."

HAPPINESS; "I have to be going now, Richard. It's been nice talking to you. So long."

ME' "Same here. So long."

She gets up and leaves.