Characters

Johnny on the spot. A delivery guy for a local Pennsylvania pizzeria helped cops bust a thief. Photo from Google Images:

Another you get what you vote for headline from nypost.com: “This Tax Day, we’re paying more than ever before — and yet DC still drives up debt.”

Routine NYP headline except for the fact that he’s 83: “F. Murray Abraham fired from ‘Mythic Quest’ for sexual misconduct: report.” Three cheers for Viagra!

Each day at about noon Frank, a combat veteran who grew up on 20th Avenue in Bensonhurt, hits the local liquor store for a pint of whatever. Today I learned a lot about him. He’s of Puerto Rican descent, 42, 312 pounds down from 390. He said a lot of nice things about me and promised to defend me if anyone ever gives me trouble. Later, he returned from a local drug store and showed me what he bought for $8+, then began pulling stuff from his pockets he swiped. He made a new friend in Romania-born artist Andu, 38. They shared a joint and some laughs. They were there for more than a hour. Since Andu had purchased a bunch of stuff, I let him share the wealth of book donations from two sources, especially five thick, dated computer programming tomes. By the time he was through, he had three bags stuffed with literature and another filled with groceries. He asked is he could leave one with me, as his mom had recently scolded him about all the books he brings home and doesn’t read. That problem was solved minutes later when she passed on her way somewhere. He was free to lug everything home.

My thanks to the woman who donated a large cache of mostly Russian books, and to those who purchased and swapped, and to Gareth, who settled his tab on this blustery day. In terms of weight, the outgoing surpassed the incoming. Here’s what sold: a compilation of the work of Franz Kafka; One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey; Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie; Travel, non-fiction from Michael Crichton; Theosophists, a collection of works from those who believe the purpose of human life is spiritual emancipation and that the human soul undergoes reincarnation upon bodily death according to a process of karma; Fantasy Art Now: The Very Best in Contemporary Fantasy Art & Illustration by Martin McKenna; Great Fantasy Art Themes from the Frank Collection by Jane Frank and Howard Frank, a pictorial; Industrial Perspective: Photographs of the Gulf Coast by Andrew Borowiec; Designing with Models: A Studio Guide to Architectural Process Models by Criss B. Mills; A Table at Cirque: Stories and Recipes from New York’s Most Legendary Restaurant by Sirio Maccioni and Pamela Fiori; Your Erroneous Zones by the late Dr. Wayne W. Dyer; and this, photo from GI:

My Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Vic-Fortezza/e/B002M4NLJE

FB: https://www.facebook.com/Vic-Fortezza-Author-118397641564801/?fref=ts

Read Vic’s Stories, free: http://fictionaut.com/users/vic-fortezza