Flat Tire

I had a flat.

I couldn’t find the spare and the jack.

I know they’re back there somewhere.

I needed the brakes looked at, so I had my garage

have a wrecker tow it in, plug the tire, and look at the brakes.

The tire was shot but they put the spare on for me. A donut.

I can drive it to the tire store. To fix the brakes, and the rear

shock absorbers, was under $500 ($488), so I told him to go ahead

and do it. That’s about $1,250 I’ve spent on it recently,

but my door opens and closes, my power window

goes up and down, the car starts, and I trust

the brakes. Plus, I’ll have two new tires

on the front. Make it $1,500. I had

that amount on a bank credit card.

I think I pay 21% interest.

Brenda’s truck

needs replacing.

Maybe I will sell

a book, or a movie will be made

of a book I wrote. Nobody is looking at one.

Nobody will look at them.

I am an extremist.

I am in extremis.

If you are in extremis,

and write realistically about

your plight, you are an extremist.

Are things really that bad? No. It’s only money.

I will get a job when the economy picks up

and pay down my credit card balances.

John Irving went to Amsterdam.

He bought a new Volvo on his way

through Paris. Why not? He was a graduate of

the Iowa Writers Workshop. He studied with Kurt Vonnegut.

He went to Philip Exeter Academy. He coached wrestling.

Dick Vajs said The World According to Garp read like

it was written by a man raised in a house full of women.