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February 19, 2005
Here Comes Spring
I don't care what the weather tells me; spring is coming.
I know it's coming.
How do I know?
I pulled up in front of my house with Emma the other night and as we stopped I saw an old man walking down the sidewalk. Somehow I recognized the guy as a crazy. From whare I don't know. And I have no idea why, but I knew. "What out for this guy. He's crazy."
"Which guy? This guy?"
"Yeah. Him. Watch out."
"I'll just wait until he goes by."
We sat in the car and waited for him to pass. He got to the end of the car - almost a safe distance - and decided to double back. We were about to step out of the car but we had to stop and wait; neither of us wanted to talk to him.
"Shit. He's coming over here. Don't look."
She didn't look, but he still kep coming. He stuck his big, old crazy man face in the window. He was unshaven, white whiskers came from everywhere on his face. Everywhere but his open mouth. His mouth open only because his tongue hung out of it. He knocked on the window. Emma hesitated (because we were in her fancy car with power windows that won't open if the car is off), but opened the door a crack.
The old man took the newspapers he had been carrying and shoved them in through the top of the open door saying, "This is what they got against you."
And with that he left us. He just continued down the street.
No. He didn't just continue down the street. He continued walking down the street screaming.
The next morning when I took my dogs for their morning walk we passed the abandoned trailer home. The trailer has been there since early summer last year. I think was intended to be the office of an illegal auto shop becaus soon after it arrived more broken down cars than usual showed up in the neighborhood - many of them parked around the trailer. Many of them resting atop a jack.
But then one day the police came. And the cars slowly started to disappear. As did the aluminum shell of the trailer. By the hieght of summer the trailer was meerly wooden studs, a floor, a roof and some mattresses to keep the occassional occupants comfortable.
But spring is coming. The junkies are at it again. Prying off every last bit of aluminum. "You get good money for this." I'm told.
Such activity only comes with the warmer months. It may be cold now on the streets of baltimore, but I assure you itwon't last for long.
Posted by calculatoronfire at February 19, 2005 09:49 PM