3
o’clock. He has been eating late
due to his fear of running out of money.
He receives a small sum from the government on the third of every month,
and his hunger eventually numbs his sense of dread at having his Internet shut
off, his car insurance pulled and his accounts charged with overdraft
fees. He turns on the radio. A haunting tango comes in from
outside. He has never heard
anything like it. He looks down at
the blank table. Nothing
there. The radio now sits on the
roof of a car. He listens intently
to the way the woman sings. Each
time her voice comes round she lands on a derisive note and wills it into
something she seems to know will drive a man crazy.
He stares out for a while at the neighbors’ lawn. He sees it as just a green shape. He likes geometric forms stripped of their meanings, the sense of perspective they bring – these are forms without designated intention. He enjoys the feeling of laughter that emptiness brings in him. At the grocery store, the girl at the counter mentions that the last hour has gone by so slowly. The man she is serving falls asleep on his feet and lands on the counter with a bang. Douglas wakes from his dream and begins to paint.
He stares out for a while at the neighbors’ lawn. He sees it as just a green shape. He likes geometric forms stripped of their meanings, the sense of perspective they bring – these are forms without designated intention. He enjoys the feeling of laughter that emptiness brings in him. At the grocery store, the girl at the counter mentions that the last hour has gone by so slowly. The man she is serving falls asleep on his feet and lands on the counter with a bang. Douglas wakes from his dream and begins to paint.
