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Lulu Lamar
Lulu had yet another boring uninteresting day. Nothing of any significance had happened to her. Her job hadn't picked up. Absolutely no one wanted flowers and it looked like the job at grocery store was her last chance. Lulu looked blankly out the window. The weather was as usual crumby. It was cold, wet and dark. She could see the sleet falling in the beams of light from the street lights. People ran by on the sidewalks trying to get to where ever they were going. Suddenly Lulu felt a warm wet tongue on her arm. Sinclair was by her side and had a longingly look in his eyes. She knew that look Sinclair needed to use the facilities. So, Lulu begrudgingly got up to take Sinclair down to the patch of grass by the building. She put on a raincoat, scarf and gloves grabbed Sinclair and his leash and headed out the door. They walked slowly down the hallway to the elevator and she pressed the button. It lit up and she watched the numbers above the door come down from the tenth floor. The doors opened and an angry woman stood tapping her foot with an annoyed look on her face. She gave Lulu a half hearted smile as she and Sinclair walked on, then pressed the door close button. Lulu recognized the woman. She had seen her before in the elevator and always came down from the tenth floor. She never seemed to be in a good mood, but living in Washington Height's alone could account for that feeling. She thought that her name started with an 'm'. Marilyn, no. Martha, no. Mary, no. Mandi, well maybe that's it. Yes Mandi that's it! The elevator had reached the ground floor and the two walked out and went to the front door. Mandi went left and Lulu went right toward the grassy patch with Sinclair. She walked carefully along the sidewalk avoiding the icy patches. They reached the grass and Sinclair did his business. As he was going, Lulu looked back toward the building yearning to be back in the warmth. A black van slowly pulled up to the sidewalk by the entrance and a man got out of the passenger side. He looked nervous and young. The van pulled away and he looked back to watch it pull away than he walked into the building. Sinclair had finished and they headed back. Warm filled Lulu's body as she walked through the door. Washington Height's may be old and broken down, but at least it was warm. As Lulu walked in, the man from the van got on the elevator. Lulu walked over to the elevator just as the doors closed. She pressed the up button and watched the numbers above the door go up and stop at floor eight. They continued up to ten then eleven and then slowly came back down. Lulu and Sinclair walked onto the now empty elevator and headed to the fifth floor both ready to go to bed.
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Mrs. Flogsbottom sat in a small puddle outside of Washington Heights. She couldn't go inside, not when Achilles the cat would remind her of Achilles the man she missed so terribly and wanted to see more than any other in the entire world. But she had to be strong, even in the rain that pelted her every now and again. She had watched the gay ice cream truck pass mid afternooon and the happy children running to it to get some ice cream. She smiled slightly as she saw one child pull a knife on another for taking the last rainbow pop. "Love is a tragic thing," she said, watching the child run away crying, the other kid with the knife smiling triumphantly with his new sweet. "Kids are so innocent- if only all love could be bought in an ice cream truck..." Mrs. Flogsbottom looked around for something- anything to distract her heart from the continual sigh it had entered.
Lulu the flower girl looked sad, her flowers out and waiting for no one. Even though her heart was breaking, she could think of no reason to have Lulu suffer silently by herself. Walking over to Lulu, Mrs. Flogsbottom picked up a flower and got her change purse out. Lulu smiled and looked at her as though she was trying to place Mrs. Flogsbottom face, but Henriette knew better.
Lulu had loved her ever since Sinclair, Lulu's dog had
tried to eat Henrietta's purse. There were better ways to get her attention, but to each admirer their own.
"Isn't it just a horrible day?" Henrietta said, putting the flower to her heart. "The rain and day are as dreary as my heart. You know romance novels? You must, I have read dozens of books about flower girls- anysways, very romantic venture- but yes. I had to have my fight with Achilles before he and I could profess our true love- well, I think he got the chapters mixed up because he was trying to be nice- that makes the chapter so hard. Thank goodness I only have one chapter left till he comes back to me feeling bad for all he has done."
Lulu looked at her curiously, but did not say anything. "Yes dear, it is true I am in love with Achilles, but don't let that stop you from other ventures. Why, I saw that Ice Cream truck man, he has every flavor of the rainbow and one must be perfect for you!" Henrietta was sure an ice cream man and flower girl would be a romantic match, though Lulu's perplexed look did not seem to agree. "Well, I should go home, it would be horrible to be sick for Achilles," Henrietta said, though her head already ached from an oncoming fever. She bid farewell and walked back to her apartment. Wrapping a cover around her arms, Henrietta looked longingly out of the window. "Please hurry and come Achilles," she murmured, a tear rolling down her cheek.
Mamie Wainwright:
You know, rain is deceptive. Back in Georgia, it was always sunny while it rained. The rain was softer, less concrete, more like in the movies. Disney always has a cheerful little ditty to accompany the rain. But here? A funeral dirge would be more appropriate. New Orleans style, on the way to the cemetary--not the jazz on the way back. In a place like this, there is always a rain check on the jazz.
Which is why the clanging, discordant crash of symbols brought me to my window. Looking down, I saw a garishly painted ice cream truck just cruising up to the curb. So I decided to go down and have a look, maybe get an ice cream. Of course, to counter-act the calories, I decided to trek down the stairs.
I made it to the fifth floor before my knee replacement started troubling me. So I exited the stairwell and slipped into the elevator just as a young woman headed past toward her apartment. On the end of the leash was a little dog, waddling to keep up. The woman reminded me of myself. She looked a little out-of-place in this neighborhood, a little lonely, and a little bit in need of a friend--which reminded me my 60th birthday is coming up, and I still don't have anyone to celebrate with.
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