Two shots of happy, One shot of sad (Entering Nicholas - part three)
Frenchie looked like she had seen a ghost.
But instead of running away she leapt at me and I opened my arms to accept the hug.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
I explained that I needed to pick my dad's items from his office and that since I was here, I thought and have a drink, his drink, in his honor.
Frenchie turned to the bartender and demanded that I get my ordered drink. I told the bartender to put some Cutty in it just so it could be a full drink.
The bartender emptied the bottle of Glenlivet into a small glass and then followed my request by filling up the rest of the glass with the Cutty.
I watched as she tossed the empty bottle of Glenlivet into a trash receptacle.
I killed that bottle.
My dad's bottle.
It was like the circle of life but instead of lions, it was bottles of booze. It kind of made me happy.
The bartender placed a napkin with a nude lady on it in front of me and set the mixed scotch on top of that. I started nursing the drink while Frenchie continued to talk.
"Do you know what happened to you father yet?"
She had asked me about this at the funeral. The death certificate hadn't arrived yet. But I wasn't concerned about the cause of death. I had only been concerned about his death.
"You know, I was with him one time when he passed out. He hit is head on his oven."
Ah ha! The answer to how that dent got on my dad's oven!
I knew what that was like. It 1999, he passed out in front of me and I thought he was having a heart attack. I was on the phone calling 911 when he came to and told me to stop.
It absolutely scared the crap out of me when that happened and I got really pissed about the entire episode. After that, I had put some distance between he and I because I didn't want him to drop dead in front of me. We didn't see much of each other until the Chicken was born.
"You know, there are a lot of people here that your father was very nice to that didn't go to his funeral."
I gotta say. I'm kind of happy that the strip club community decided to no show my dad's funeral.
"There are some people here that owe him a lot of money. There is one girl here that he loaned a lot to and she didn't even have the class to go to the services."
I'm not surprised. My dad liked being a big shot. There were times that he threw money around to impress folks.
"Frenchie, whatever that debt to my father was, I think it died with him. My brother and I aren't going to worry about that money."
"VW, I will miss your father very much. He was very kind to me. He used to pay me to clean his house. He didn't have to do that. He always looked out for me and never asked for anything in return."
I didn't even know how to respond to that. I just brought the drink back up to my mouth.
There was a bit of a silence between us...well...at least as silent as it can be as "Rock you like a hurricane" by the Scorpions is playing.
I finished the drink and placed a $10 on the bar. I turned to Frenchie and told her that I was leaving.
"Do you want to know where you dad would sit?"
Seriously, how do you even answer that? "Sure," I replied.
He always had the first booth next to the stage.
The booth was empty this afternoon and I just stared at it. Imagining my dad sitting there with his drink watching girls 10 years younger than me swinging around a golden pole.
I don't know whether to be happy or sad about that image.
I said goodbye to Frenchie and thanked the bartender before heading to the light streaking in from the open door.
The light that would dissolve the darkness that this fantasy world existed in.
The light that would bring me back to my new reality.
VW
But instead of running away she leapt at me and I opened my arms to accept the hug.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
I explained that I needed to pick my dad's items from his office and that since I was here, I thought and have a drink, his drink, in his honor.
Frenchie turned to the bartender and demanded that I get my ordered drink. I told the bartender to put some Cutty in it just so it could be a full drink.
The bartender emptied the bottle of Glenlivet into a small glass and then followed my request by filling up the rest of the glass with the Cutty.
I watched as she tossed the empty bottle of Glenlivet into a trash receptacle.
I killed that bottle.
My dad's bottle.
It was like the circle of life but instead of lions, it was bottles of booze. It kind of made me happy.
The bartender placed a napkin with a nude lady on it in front of me and set the mixed scotch on top of that. I started nursing the drink while Frenchie continued to talk.
"Do you know what happened to you father yet?"
She had asked me about this at the funeral. The death certificate hadn't arrived yet. But I wasn't concerned about the cause of death. I had only been concerned about his death.
"You know, I was with him one time when he passed out. He hit is head on his oven."
Ah ha! The answer to how that dent got on my dad's oven!
I knew what that was like. It 1999, he passed out in front of me and I thought he was having a heart attack. I was on the phone calling 911 when he came to and told me to stop.
It absolutely scared the crap out of me when that happened and I got really pissed about the entire episode. After that, I had put some distance between he and I because I didn't want him to drop dead in front of me. We didn't see much of each other until the Chicken was born.
"You know, there are a lot of people here that your father was very nice to that didn't go to his funeral."
I gotta say. I'm kind of happy that the strip club community decided to no show my dad's funeral.
"There are some people here that owe him a lot of money. There is one girl here that he loaned a lot to and she didn't even have the class to go to the services."
I'm not surprised. My dad liked being a big shot. There were times that he threw money around to impress folks.
"Frenchie, whatever that debt to my father was, I think it died with him. My brother and I aren't going to worry about that money."
"VW, I will miss your father very much. He was very kind to me. He used to pay me to clean his house. He didn't have to do that. He always looked out for me and never asked for anything in return."
I didn't even know how to respond to that. I just brought the drink back up to my mouth.
There was a bit of a silence between us...well...at least as silent as it can be as "Rock you like a hurricane" by the Scorpions is playing.
I finished the drink and placed a $10 on the bar. I turned to Frenchie and told her that I was leaving.
"Do you want to know where you dad would sit?"
Seriously, how do you even answer that? "Sure," I replied.
He always had the first booth next to the stage.
The booth was empty this afternoon and I just stared at it. Imagining my dad sitting there with his drink watching girls 10 years younger than me swinging around a golden pole.
I don't know whether to be happy or sad about that image.
I said goodbye to Frenchie and thanked the bartender before heading to the light streaking in from the open door.
The light that would dissolve the darkness that this fantasy world existed in.
The light that would bring me back to my new reality.
VW
posted by JVW at 9:56 PM
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