Binary Code, a Yellow Moon, Pinochle & Lima Beans
Thursday, November 17, 2005
(6:51am) Curly Hobcoggin, Sr.’s, and Samantha Bee’s birthday – number five of the week…
Collette had watched a part of “Good Will Hunting” with OLeif the night before, ignoring the language, and enjoying one part in particular:
“Clark: There’s no problem. I was just hoping you could give me some insight into the evolution of the market economy in the early colonies. My contention is that prior to the Revolutionary War the economic modalities especially of the southern colonies could most aptly be characterized as agrarian pre-capitalist and…
Will: Of course that’s your contention. You’re a first year grad student. You just finished some Marxian historian, Pete Garrison prob’ly, and so naturally that’s what you believe until next month when you get to James Lemon and get convinced that Virginia and Pennsylvania were strongly entrepreneurial and capitalist back in 1740. That’ll last until sometime in your second year, then you’ll be in here regurgitating Gordon Wood about the Pre-revolutionary utopia and the capital-forming effects of military mobilization.
Clark: Well, as a matter of fact, I won’t, because Wood drastically underestimates the impact of–
Will: –“Wood drastically underestimates the impact of social distinctions predicated upon wealth, especially inherited wealth…” You got that from “Work in Essex County,” Page 68, right? Do you have any thoughts of your own on the subject or were you just gonna plagiarize the whole book for me? Look, don’t try to pass yourself off as some kind of an intellect at the expense of my friend just to impress these girls. The sad thing is, in about 50 years you might start doin’ some thinkin’ on your own and by then you’ll realize there are only two certainties in life. One, don’t do that. Two– you dropped a hundred and fifty grand on an education you coulda’ picked up for a dollar fifty in late charges at the Public Library.
Clark: But I will have a degree, and you’ll be serving my kids fries at a drive-through on our way to a skiing trip.
Will: Maybe. But at least I’ll be original.
Morgan: My boy’s wicked smart.”
(18:57pm) It had been to Chevy’s for lunch that afternoon for Ivy and Collette, following the news that Magnus had arranged for everyone to come and see the midnight showing of “Harry Potter 4 The Goblet of Fire” at the 18 Cinema. She and Ivy both stayed late, till at least 5:30, and it was bitterly cold out.
“It’s as cold as a witch’s elbow!” Fran exclaimed, pounding up the stairs, after the sun had gone down.
Meanwhile, Ivy had been telling Collette about how (for her birthday) Mo had hired a lady to come and clean their house for the holidays. It took her three hours and fifteen minutes alone to clean the blinds, which Ivy admitted looked very nice, now that they had been thoroughly cleaned. She also told her about how Megan wanted (for Christmas) any sort of Korean decorations for her bedroom at home and items from “Think Geek,” of which Ivy was not terribly fond, due to the expense and silliness of most of the items. She found a throw for forty dollars in black with binary code written in green all over up and down, however, she thought she might settle instead on a cap-sleeved shirt with a pi sign on the front, composed of the pi number written “eensy-teensy.”
The moon rose almost full and yellow as OLeif picked her up wearing a new knit hat.
“You look like a gangster,” Collette told him. “I like it… a good gangster.”
Collette thought about the good old days when Grandma Snicketts was a girl and her mom invited the friends and neighbors over to help shell the Lima bean crop and she would make them chili with Lima beans for dinner while the adults played pinochle.