November 5, 2007

  • Current Word Count: 12,534
    Words added today: 2,506
    Words above pace: 4,201

    Snippet:

    When Bobbie Sue
    arrived at the hospital it was all over with but the final casting.  Doug was still in the back but obviously
    didn’t need his mother to hold his hand any more so she was in the waiting room
    when her sister walked in with the biggest bouquet of helium balloons Sheri had
    ever seen. 

    Not all of them
    said “Get Well”.  In fact, as Sheri looked more closely, none
    of them said, “Get Well”, they said
    things like “Happy Birthday, Over the Hill, Happy Engagement, It’s a Baby Girl, and Good Luck in Retirement”. 

    “Uh, Bobbie Sue,
    did you actually look at those balloons?”

    “Oh sure.  Apparently there’s been an outbreak of
    chicken pox amongst the elementary set so this was all that was left in
    Connie’s stash over at the Winn Dixie.”

    “Does that one say
    … Bar Mitzvah?” 

    “Yeah, and since
    neither Connie nor I can remember the last time there was a Bar Mitzvah in
    Magnolia, she thought it was a stroke of excellent good luck that I happened to
    need another balloon to cheer up my nephew.” 
    She flopped down on a molded plastic seat and wrapped the ribbons around
    the armrest.  “I got something for you
    too.”

    “Oh?”  She reached for the paper bag Bobbie held out
    and peered inside at the distinctive brown bottle.  “Oh, my, God, I don’t believe it.”

    “Oh, yeah, believe
    it.  That, my dear sister, is Godiva liqueur.  I have the crème de cacao and the vodka at my
    house.  When this day is over we are going
    back to my house and we are going to have chocolate martinis.”

    “I don’t know if I’m
    up for that.  I may pass out.”

    “Oh, no, you’ve
    got all that energy from everything that’s happened today and you need to
    either release it or chemically alter it. 
    I don’t see you fighting or fucking your way through this one, so it’s
    the chemical solution for you.”

    “Bobbie Sue
    Wallace!  I can’t believe you said that.”  Sheri looked around to see if anyone had
    heard but they were the only two people in the waiting area and the
    receptionist behind her glass partition didn’t appear to be paying them any
    attention.

    “Why?  It’s the truth.  You gotta lighten up a little.”  Bobbie Sue crossed her legs and gazed down
    the length of her leg at perfectly manicured toes peeking out from the tip of her
    wedges.

    “That’s a little
    lighter than I’m prepared for.”

    “I know, you’re
    all about the granny panties and you don’t say bad words.  That’s okay. 
    I’ve decided that I’ll be the bad one and I’ll lead you astray.  It won’t be your fault so you don’t have to
    feel guilty just come along for the ride.”

    “I don’t know what’s
    gotten into you.”

    “Nothing, Sissy,
    it’s what’s coming out.  I’m tired of
    pretending to be something other than what I am.”

    “What about your
    life is pretend?  Bobbie Sue the one
    thing about you is that you are what you seem. 
    You can’t keep a secret to save your soul.”

    “Well, apparently
    I can.  Look at me, church going, bank
    managing, mothering, wifely southern woman person.  That is not who I am down inside.”

    “Well, of course
    not.  Those things are just what you do,
    they aren’t who you are.  But you love
    church and your job and your family.”

    “Maybe.”  Bobbie Sue’s foot bounced rapidly up and
    down, up and down, but she seemed unaware of the motion even though it rocked
    her body.  “Maybe I don’t even know who I
    am because I’ve been pretending so well. 
    But there has to be more to me than these roles.  And I’m gonna find out who I am.”

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