Curtains

I slipped inside the oak phone booth and picked up the handle of the payphone with my thumb and forefinger. It's a public phonebooth afterall, no matter the location be it an urban sidewalk or an esteemed private womens' college, these things are still scummy. When I unfolded the glass and wooden door into place, the bare bulb overhead did not automatically illuminate. Dark wood, a tiny, cornered slat for sitting worn to a darkened, graffitti-engraved sheen, a black metal phone and dismal sunlight sneaked through the scratched, personally, and unprofessionally etched glass which made it nearly impossible to see the vacant plasti cover where a phone book once hung.

I held the receiver in my left and tugged on the broken handle with my right to accordian the door once again. Lacking a good caulking since 1947 and suffering from far too many angry, door-slamming conversations, the glass rattled when I banged the two sides of the door into its closed glass-to-glass position. Air and diffused light from the ancient hallway poured in.

I punched in the numbers, checked my watch, and knew that my 20 minute break would be taken in entireity. I added tall-man finger to my receiver grip for strength while holding the ear piece just on the edge of my ear cuff. Two rings and a giggly "Hello?"

"Hi mom, it's me, Cass."

"Honeylamb! I've been trying and trying and trying to get in touch with you. Where are you?!"

"Well, I'm still down here in California. Remember, I told you that I had this two-week seminar and I'd be rather busy during the suummer months?"

"Oh. What's the seminar about? And what about your 4-legged friend?"

"He's at home watching squirrels in the trees. It's a science seminar. I get to learn different methodologies for developing some life science techniques in the classroom and I get paid for it too."

"How much?"

"About $400. Not a lot, but enough to put away for a rainy day."

"Oh, that's a lot of money! Is it raining down there? It's lovely here. I've got to finish putting the mulch on the flower beds. The Dahlias are just coming up now. You know Bud has cancer."

"Well, there's not much rain here in July" I wiped my ear and the phone receiver with my shirt tail and readjusted my grip: elbow on wall just below an I LUV CINDY 18 point carving. "Yea, I know he has cancer. You told me when I talked to you two weeks ago. Remember, I was up there for his oncologist's appointment with you. We talked about his options and all that."

"Options? Is it snowing then? Remember it was soooo cold during your graduation. There was snow on the ground and then there was that asterix next to your name. I almost died when Elizabeth told me what that was for."

"Mom I'm not in Montana and I did finally graduate two months later. That was four years ago. Remember? I graduated?"

"[Giggle-snort]No, not exactly. I keep getting these curtains that come down, like a sudden darkness then it seems like it's gone. I forget things."

"Huh. You seem to remember the stuff that I'd prefer you forget. So, when does these happen? At night? In the morning? When? Do they hurt like a headache?"

"[Giggle] Oh, I don't know. Why does it matter? They just happen, like a curtain, then it's dark."

"Are you standing or just waking up? Does it make you fall down or lose your balance?"

"Does what make me fall down? Honeylamb how come you sound so worked up?"

"I'm not worked up, I'm worried about you. The curtains. The shroud of darkness that you feel does it make you dizzy or anything like that?"

"How'd you know about those?"

"Mom, you just told me. You just said that sometimes you can't remember something, and it's like a curtain comes down, like a darkness falls over you."

"Oh."

"Mom, you need to make an appointment to see your doctor."

"Why? I feel okay except for these darned sniffles."

"Mom, you need to get these curtains checked. It could be more serious like mini-strokes or something like that."

"What are you talking about? I feel fine."

I checked my watch. Three minutes remained during my break and people were already filing back into the classroom. I still needed to use the bathroom before returning.

"Mom, these little blackouts. You need to talk to Dr. Naito and have them checked out. Maybe he could do some tests or something."

"Dr. Naito? How'd you know about him? Gosh, you're a smart little cookie! Now, tell me about your 4-legged friend. How is he? How's Nancy?"

"Mom, please. I have to get back to my class. Will you please call Dr. Naito and make an appointment to get these mini blackouts checked?" One minute.

"What class are you in? I thought you had a break from your students. How are they this year?"

"It's an adult class, mom, for me. A seminar. Mom, I have to go. Please call Dr. Naito and make an appointment. Please."

"For what?"

"Mom, get a pen out and write this down." A colleague walked by and mouthed an 'Are you okay?' I shrugged and turned inward towards the dark wall. I ran my finger over the various LUV and FUCK carvings on the wall. Gum wads filled the holes where other carvings expanded into giant zeroes.

"Okay, I have a pen and some paper." Paper ruffled in the background.

"Not the newspaper or the margin of some magazine. You need to get a blank piece of paper. I know there's a yellow post-it pad in the drawer right in front of you."

"How do you know where I'm standing?" A drawer opens and more ruffling. "How'd you know this pad was here?"

"I'm smart. Okay, write this down on the pad. Call Dr. Naito make appointment to have blackouts checked."

"[Giggle] This is quite funny, you telling me what to do. It's just like skiing: there was no time to admire the view. You made me keep heading downhill! [Giggle] Such a Bossybeehive you are!"

"Yep. Sassy Cassy too. Can you read the note back to me?"

"Uh, oh, I need my glasses. Okay. 'Call Dr. Naito appointment for blackouts.' What's this for, anyway? Who needs to call Dr. Naito?"

"Mom, you do! Is Bud there or around where you are?"

"He's in the basement. He's got that Rush blaring on the radio. He gets so angry when he listens to him. I don't even go near him."

"Okay, well Rush will do that. Can you call him please? Tell him I need to talk with him?"

"[Giggle] Okay honeylamb. Bud! Bud!" Pause. Footsteps fill the void as she headed towards the top of the basement stairs. A tinkling of metal on metal syncopated with a flap-flap of
giant ears that whap together. "Oh, hello Mabel! Good girl. Bud!" Mabel is a basset hound.

"What?!" a distant voice snapped.

"Cass wants to talk to you. She's on the phone." Mabel shook her head again. Probably rubbed up against mom's leg to get petted. "Yes, now!" Stomping feet.

"Where?"

"On the phone. Here."

"Hello?" He was panting. His shallow voice grabbed for bits of air.

"Hi Bud, it's me, Cass."

"Oh, hey there Cass. How are you?"

"I'm alright. Hey, I only have a second. But I need you to do me a favor. I asked mom to write
down on a yellow pad that she needs to call Dr. Naito and make an appointment. The pad should be there on the kitchen counter."

"Yes, I see it. It says 'Call Dr. Naito appointment for blackouts.' Is this it?"

"Yea. Mom seems to be having interludes of forgetfulness and these mini blackouts. I think she needs to get checked by Naito."

"She does?"

"Um, yea she's been having them for a while. So, can you call and make an appointment for her?"

"Yea, sure.
Gosh, I didn't know that she was having these. Mary, have you been having little blackouts?"

Water ran from the tap. "How'd you know?" I heard a toothy crunch. Her mouth was full of some raw vegetable. "Did I tell you this?" She snort-giggled again.

"Okay Cass, I'll make the appointment. You know, she parked the car down the street the other day then walked home. I had to go out and look for the car."

"It was a beautiful day. I just wanted to go for a walk!" She laughed in the background. "Mabel, do you want to go for a walk?" Mabel shook her head again and her collar and tags clinked together like bells. Toe nails happily clicked across mom's kitchen floor and a door creaked then slammed.

"That'd be great Bud. Let me know and I'll come up and go with you."

"Okay. Is that all?"

"Yea, I have to go. Take care of yourself. Tell mom I love her and I'll talk to you soon." I hung up the phone and heaved a diaphragm-filling breath. Outside the wall of windows, bees crashed-landed into the camelia blossoms that adorned the building. A hammocked spider's web extended between four twigs that appeared vacant of passing insects and the spider. She was probably waiting on the outskirts for her supper.

Another deep breath lifted my shoulders to my earlobes. I wiped my left ear with my shirt collar, just in case phone cooties jumped ship and walked back into the classroom where everyone was delving into shallow basins filled with crawfish. I was 10 minutes late.