Out Of The Slammer And Into The Fire- part 4

(You're falling behind if you haven't read parts 1-3 below...)


The man who owned the house that Mitch lived in was fictitiously named Marvin. Marvin was the ex-husband of a female friend of mine, a woman I met and got to know while buying a bed when I first came into town. She made beds, you see. In a little shop on the side of the highway…

Marvin was single and a hard worker, sharing a business with another friend of mine when I first met Mitch. About the time Mitch was released from parole, Marvin met a woman with three kids and fell all over her. Her fictitious name was Kim, and her kids were 5, 7, and 9. Two young girls and an older boy, if I remember right. Mitch had gone to college with Marvin, and the two had lived very different lives but were still very close.

Marvin disappeared into his new relationship and I never really saw him anymore. Such was the life of an itinerant carpenter. You got to know people well in a short time because you were at their house all the time, and then you moved on.

I was getting to the point that I wanted Mitch to move on as well. He wasn’t a construction laborer, and having to deal with him in that manner wasn’t good for my patience or his self-esteem. He was a smart and likable man. I was thinking that he needed to be doing more.

However, and a big however at that, nothing was panning out for him, and he needed the money, so he kept showing up and I kept using him for help when what I needed was a strong and eager kid just out of high school.

Mitch told me of Marvin’s new love and I felt good for Marvin. Marvin was a great and likable guy. He deserved to be in love.

Mitch then got a call while at work with me one day, and he asked me if I wanted to stop by somewhere and help celebrate some great news. An old friend of his had just landed a job playing keyboards for one of the biggest money-making rock bands ever. They were gathering to celebrate, and the food would be out of this world. Little did I know it at the moment I said ‘sure’, but things were about to get a bit interesting for me for quite a few years after that phone call...

(to be continued...)