A Time to Remember or Forget
The story you are about to read is true, the writer changed the names to protect everyone involved in the story and especially the writer. In 1985, this writer decided to relocate to Washington, D.C. Same old story, a small-town girl goes to the big city. Another factor was the Washington Football Team, they were a better team at that time.
After sending out applications, a call came in from Washington with a job offer. There was no hesitation, I accepted the job and immediately contacted an old friend who had relocated to Washington two years earlier. She said it would be great to have an old friend stay with her, but she added that her family would be moving to Jacksonville, Florida in a month. We agreed that together, we would find an apartment within a month.
Three weeks later, we located an apartment in Alexandria, Virginia. Even though the rent was higher than expected and I had to cross the 14th Street Bridge every day I signed the lease When we returned to the house my friend's daughter, Candy asked if she and her four- year-old daughter could share the apartment, she did not want to live in Florida. Knowing Candy from the past, it was clear she was not the smartest person, but sharing expenses and having someone around that I knew was appealing, so off we went. Candy got a job with Church's Chicken, and I went to my new job in Washington. Everything went smoothly, my job was going great, and Candy was bringing home Church's Chicken every night. Until my second paycheck arrived from my former employer, Candy and I ate Chicken every night. It was not long before I got the notion that if my check did not arrive soon, I might need liposuction.
Fleischman/Time to Remember/2
We only had two chairs and two mattresses for the apartment. When we moved in, my furniture was in storage and Candy had been living with her mother, so there was no need for her to have furniture.
I learned the next day not to sell Candy short. While I was at work, Candy found a sofa and chair by the dumpster. She recruited four boys from the neighborhood to carry them up to our apartment. Candy was a beautiful girl, so getting help from the neighborhood boys was easy. Men were attracted to Candy like flies are to a dead caucus. I went numb when she told me where she got the sofa and chair. Later, she covered the windows with sheets, which were uneven and drooped in the middle. They looked even worse from the outside. When Candy got through decorating our apartment, it resembled a home in Guatemala located on the wrong side of the tracks.
As if we did not have enough problems, my dog was becoming increasingly jealous of Candy's little girl, Sandy. One day, I decided to do a complete cleaning of my bedroom. When I pulled the bed out from the wall, I saw six of Sandy's stuffed animals. Most were intact, but one had
been badly mangled. The ape was missing an arm, a leg, a nose, and a tongue. I knew I had to replace the stuffed monkey right away.
Trying to find a monkey that looked like Sandy's nonmangled monkey would not be easy in downtown Washington. Most people do not realize how upscale Washington is, on the streets daily are men in suits and women dressed in fashionable business attire. The politics are everywhere, and the fine restaurants are indescribable, therefore looking for a stuffed monkey was embarrassing.
Fleischman/Time to Remember/3
Understanding that Candy was not the smartest person, what was to come was still shocking, nevertheless. On a Saturday morning, Candy came out of the shower wrapped in a towel. When one of the neighborhood boys called her name from below, she went out on the terrace like she was entering a Broadway stage sporting a towel and began having a conversation with the boy. As Candy continued talking, other boys showed up and joined in on the conversation. They were the same boys who helped her move the dumpster sofa into our apartment. When two girls walked by and saw Candy out on the terrace wearing a towel, both got hysterical, and one said Fool. Next, we received a letter of complaint from the rental office. One night Candy threw a huge bag of garbage off the terrace hoping to hit the dumpster, but in the process, the garbage landed on an elderly women's left shoulder who was returning from her card game. As she fell to the ground, she Immediately thought it was an attack and started screaming for help. Six people ran to her aid only to find a bag of garbage. When confronted about the incident, Candy said she did not see the old lady, it was dark.
The worst thing that occurred, or better yet, the most unimaginable thing was Candy had been taking my dog out on the terrace to do her business instead of outside, and it had built up over time. We had an agreement that I would watch Sandy at night, and she would walk my dog
during the day. I usually got home after dark, so I did not notice the mess on the terrace. When I discovered the mess, I told Candy we had to clean the mess up now. It suddenly dawned on me that the people on the third floor had to pass by our patio on their way in and out of their
apartment and they were at eye level with our patio. They were from India. I never met them but, under the circumstances, it was best.
Fleischman/ Time to Remember/4
I had to go to the bathroom and while I was there, Candy took a broom and swept everything off the terrace unto the terrace below. The family on the first floor could not speak English, they were from Mexico and new in the country. I do not know how they dealt with this situation, however, toward the end of our lease period, we received a letter from the Resident Manager who stated that our lease was up, and renewability was out of the question. She listed the reasons, the sheets hung at the windows, the furniture from the dumpster, Candy talking to the boys from the terrace with just a towel around her, and the most significant reason was the rain of dog mess that filled the tenant's patio below.
After our lease was up, Candy and I went our separate ways. Fortunately, my salary had increased, so I was able to purchase a small townhouse in Germantown, Maryland. Candy and Sandy moved to Florida to be with her mother. What happened then was not the least bit funny, but I must admit I find myself thinking back to those days and I get a smile on my face, especially when I think of the old lady who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
THE END
Word Count 1195
Title: A Time to Remember or Forget
Author Judi Fleischman
Genre Humor
Judi Fleischman
6520 Spruce Rd Quinton, Va.
727 743 0471
Judi.fleischman@cox.net
The story you are about to read is true, the writer changed the names to protect everyone involved in the story and especially the writer. In 1985, this writer decided to relocate to Washington, D.C. Same old story, a small-town girl goes to the big city. Another factor was the Washington Football Team, they were a better team at that time.
After sending out applications, a call came in from Washington with a job offer. There was no hesitation, I accepted the job and immediately contacted an old friend who had relocated to Washington two years earlier. She said it would be great to have an old friend stay with her, but she added that her family would be moving to Jacksonville, Florida in a month. We agreed that together, we would find an apartment within a month.
Three weeks later, we located an apartment in Alexandria, Virginia. Even though the rent was higher than expected and I had to cross the 14th Street Bridge every day I signed the lease When we returned to the house my friend's daughter, Candy asked if she and her four- year-old daughter could share the apartment, she did not want to live in Florida. Knowing Candy from the past, it was clear she was not the smartest person, but sharing expenses and having someone around that I knew was appealing, so off we went. Candy got a job with Church's Chicken, and I went to my new job in Washington. Everything went smoothly, my job was going great, and Candy was bringing home Church's Chicken every night. Until my second paycheck arrived from my former employer, Candy and I ate Chicken every night. It was not long before I got the notion that if my check did not arrive soon, I might need liposuction.
Fleischman/Time to Remember/2
We only had two chairs and two mattresses for the apartment. When we moved in, my furniture was in storage and Candy had been living with her mother, so there was no need for her to have furniture.
I learned the next day not to sell Candy short. While I was at work, Candy found a sofa and chair by the dumpster. She recruited four boys from the neighborhood to carry them up to our apartment. Candy was a beautiful girl, so getting help from the neighborhood boys was easy. Men were attracted to Candy like flies are to a dead caucus. I went numb when she told me where she got the sofa and chair. Later, she covered the windows with sheets, which were uneven and drooped in the middle. They looked even worse from the outside. When Candy got through decorating our apartment, it resembled a home in Guatemala located on the wrong side of the tracks.
As if we did not have enough problems, my dog was becoming increasingly jealous of Candy's little girl, Sandy. One day, I decided to do a complete cleaning of my bedroom. When I pulled the bed out from the wall, I saw six of Sandy's stuffed animals. Most were intact, but one had
been badly mangled. The ape was missing an arm, a leg, a nose, and a tongue. I knew I had to replace the stuffed monkey right away.
Trying to find a monkey that looked like Sandy's nonmangled monkey would not be easy in downtown Washington. Most people do not realize how upscale Washington is, on the streets daily are men in suits and women dressed in fashionable business attire. The politics are everywhere, and the fine restaurants are indescribable, therefore looking for a stuffed monkey was embarrassing.
Fleischman/Time to Remember/3
Understanding that Candy was not the smartest person, what was to come was still shocking, nevertheless. On a Saturday morning, Candy came out of the shower wrapped in a towel. When one of the neighborhood boys called her name from below, she went out on the terrace like she was entering a Broadway stage sporting a towel and began having a conversation with the boy. As Candy continued talking, other boys showed up and joined in on the conversation. They were the same boys who helped her move the dumpster sofa into our apartment. When two girls walked by and saw Candy out on the terrace wearing a towel, both got hysterical, and one said Fool. Next, we received a letter of complaint from the rental office. One night Candy threw a huge bag of garbage off the terrace hoping to hit the dumpster, but in the process, the garbage landed on an elderly women's left shoulder who was returning from her card game. As she fell to the ground, she Immediately thought it was an attack and started screaming for help. Six people ran to her aid only to find a bag of garbage. When confronted about the incident, Candy said she did not see the old lady, it was dark.
The worst thing that occurred, or better yet, the most unimaginable thing was Candy had been taking my dog out on the terrace to do her business instead of outside, and it had built up over time. We had an agreement that I would watch Sandy at night, and she would walk my dog
during the day. I usually got home after dark, so I did not notice the mess on the terrace. When I discovered the mess, I told Candy we had to clean the mess up now. It suddenly dawned on me that the people on the third floor had to pass by our patio on their way in and out of their
apartment and they were at eye level with our patio. They were from India. I never met them but, under the circumstances, it was best.
Fleischman/ Time to Remember/4
I had to go to the bathroom and while I was there, Candy took a broom and swept everything off the terrace unto the terrace below. The family on the first floor could not speak English, they were from Mexico and new in the country. I do not know how they dealt with this situation, however, toward the end of our lease period, we received a letter from the Resident Manager who stated that our lease was up, and renewability was out of the question. She listed the reasons, the sheets hung at the windows, the furniture from the dumpster, Candy talking to the boys from the terrace with just a towel around her, and the most significant reason was the rain of dog mess that filled the tenant's patio below.
After our lease was up, Candy and I went our separate ways. Fortunately, my salary had increased, so I was able to purchase a small townhouse in Germantown, Maryland. Candy and Sandy moved to Florida to be with her mother. What happened then was not the least bit funny, but I must admit I find myself thinking back to those days and I get a smile on my face, especially when I think of the old lady who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
THE END
Word Count 1195
Title: A Time to Remember or Forget
Author Judi Fleischman
Genre Humor
Judi Fleischman
6520 Spruce Rd Quinton, Va.
727 743 0471
Judi.fleischman@cox.net
Support judi fleischman
