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10
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Late the next day I was in my newly cleaned kitchen, C 14
ready to cook.
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Twenty-four dollars can buy a lot of canned spinach 16
and baked beans. I also got rice and polenta and a big bag 17
of potatoes. One whole chicken with celery and carrots 18
could make a soup to last me a week if I stretched it.
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I’m not a good cook, but I can make simple dishes.
20
That’s because I used to love spending time with my 21
mother in the kitchen. She never made me work. All I 22
had to do was sit around and make her laugh. That was 23
until eighth grade. Then, when she got sick, I helped out 24
a lot. Brent said that my mother had to work through it, 25
that being sick was all in her head. He was healthier than 26
she was and still expected to get waited on.
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3rd Pass Pages
ManInMyBasemnt_HCtext3P.qxd 10/24/03 8:16 PM Page 42
Walter Mosley
1
My chicken was boiling and I was cutting celery into 2
slantwise strips and suddenly it came to me. I dug Annis-3
ton Bennet’s card out of my pocket and dialed his Man-4
hattan number. It wasn’t until the fourth ring that I 5
remembered it was Saturday. I thought that at least I 6
could leave a message. He didn’t give me a home phone 7
anyway. His name, in lowercase blue letters, was centered 8
on the white card, and the phone number was in the 9
lower right-hand corner in red.
10
“Hello,” a woman’s voice said. I almost answered but 11
the surprisingly natural-sounding recording continued, 12
“You have reached the Tanenbaum and Ross Investment 13
Strategies Group.” Then there was a click and the same 14
woman, in a different mood, said, “Mr. Bennet,” then an-15
other click and she was back on track saying, “is not in at 16
the moment but will return your message at the earliest 17
possible time. Please leave your name and number after 18
the signal.” Then there came a complex set of tones that 19
sounded something like a police siren in a foreign film.
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