William Gaddis - A Folic Of His Own

— Oscar look at him. He's exhausted, he doesn't have any spare time, can't you understand that? I mean just look at him, Harry you got some of this sauce on your, no there on your chin there yes, there, even his own time isn't his own even if he wanted to, even if he could Oscar just because he's your brother in law and wants to do you some special favour, he…

— All right! If you think I expect some special favour just because he's my brother in law? that I'd ask him to take a case he thinks is a nuisance that he's already said he could lose, didn't he? Because maybe…

— Yes all right, just calm down Oscar, calm down. Is there anything you want me to do while we're…

— No. If you can find my play that's all, if you can look for it before you go. It ought to be upstairs in my room.

— Well I hadn't really thought of leaving Oscar, I mean Harry has to go but I thought you wanted me to come out and…

— Just do what you want to, I have to take my nap now there's no reason you should both have to sit around for that. Thank you for coming out.

— Well really Oscar, if that's what you want. Blow your bicycle horn there will you? I want to show Ilse that upstairs room before she, oh Ilse? Will you come upstairs with me?

— Oscar? Look…

— I just get impatient with her sometimes Harry. She just won't listen.

— All right, look. I appreciate your confidence in me Oscar but it wouldn't be fair to you. I couldn't give it the kind of time a case like this one deserves trying to do it on the side and my firm would know anyway, file the suit with the courts and my name's right there on it as the attorney of record, and look… He had out the slimmest of gold pencils, a pocket calendar gilt edged writing Lepidus, Shea & —here, tearing the page out, — ask for Sam, it's a small firm I knew him in law school, I'll call him in the morning, tell him to go easy and you're not in shape to come into his office but you can get your picture across on the phone, and he was up. — Bathroom's down this way isn't it?

— Next to the library yes… a hand up that might have been waving departure to finally settle it unsteadily on the glass, tipping its bent straw for the slurp of depletion and then wavering there in midair till the glass was suddenly seized and replaced on the table.

— Where's Harry.

— The bathroom, he…

— Where do you have your nap, I don't see why you can't have it right here in this thing, you're practically laid out flat as it is. When do you see the doctor again.

— I don't know Christina, but the insurance company's doctor when we file this lawsuit they'll probably…

— It's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. This Kevin person, filing a complaint when you've never even met him? that you haven't even read?

— But she's bringing it over. I told you.

— You did not tell me. When.

— Well I, later.

— After your nap? You certainly did not tell me no, my God we drive a hundred miles just to, Harry? We can leave when you're ready, it's Oscar's nap time and here, here's what you've been looking for Oscar. It was in your old room on the shelf with your rock collection, I've put Use in there.

— But it's, you found it yes, it was right where I said it was wasn't it? where I told that woman to…

— You told that poor woman it was in a black pebbled binder Oscar. This is a manila folder.

— Yes that's what I, Harry? She found my play wait, that part about the scar in that review? It's right in the opening scene, let him read it Christina.

— Just steer him back into the sunroom Harry.

— Or wait no, listen this whole opening scene it's between Thomas and his mother, you can both read it. Harry you read the Thomas part and Christina the mother so that way when you see the movie you'll remem…

— Oscar we're leaving. I'll call you tomorrow, I brought out some groceries Ilse can see to them and I put out some cash on the kitchen table in case she needs it.

— But wait no, you can't leave now wait, now that we have the play but I don't have my glasses and…

— Let Lily read it to you, I assume she can read?

— No but wait, Harry…

— Good luck Oscar. Watch out for laches. If you're going to do it don't put it off.

— And he's got his little horn there? in case he needs something? My suitcase, I think it's still in the kitchen Harry my God, I mean we might as well have just stayed in town and gone to the movies. But she paused there, looking out, where the rain had stopped, down over the lawn where a mist settling over the pond dimmed the opposite bank, to say, before she turned for the hall, for the door and out to that veranda and those wet steps down to the car, — but my God, it is beautiful isn't it.

The sparsely furnished room is represented by two walls, their angle meeting to the left of center of the stage. To the right he rubbed his eyes, held the page off, held it close,

THOMAS is a tall lightly bearded man in his thirties, whose studied manner of folding his long legs out before him, and abrupt bursts of exuberance, combine the casualness of the born aristocrat with the energy of one who insists that youth cannot be gone. He is dressed in boots and a rumpled grey fieldcoat buttoned to the throat. The scar on his cheek is evident, but not so prominent as to be disfiguring. HIS MOTHER is more a desolate presence than

but without his glasses all this floated before his eyes in a blur, the effort of separating it into words echoing in broken gasps till he gave it up and the whole thing, manila folder pages and all, went to the floor as the gasps leveled off in mere measures of sleep and even the rattle of dishes elsewhere gone, settled in silence like the steady accumulation of gloom of the late afternoon shattered, all of it, all at once by — Oscar? and the light streaming on overhead, — are you okay? — What's the, will you turn that off?

— What are you doing sitting here in the dark? Lights snapped on, snapped off like the lighting on a stage set, — and these papers all over the floor? sweeping them together with a wayward foot, — are you okay? — Yes and stop walking on them will you? Can you just pick them up?

— And I brought this thing over.

— What thing. I said carefully! Can you pick them up carefully and keep them in order?

She got the pages slithering, back to front, upside down, — this thing about your accident, Kevin says will you read it and change anything that you…

— I can't read it. I can't read a damned thing, that woman lost my glasses I can't even read the paper.

— But I put them right up here didn't I? She was reaching behind an antique tea canister on the mantel, — these?

— When did, damn it Lily what did you hide them up there for!

— So nothing would happen to them. You don't need to be so cross, I'm just trying to help aren't I? If you'd, ow! Ow, Oscar!

— What is it now.

— You're running over my foot where are you going, didn't you learn to drive it yet? The last time…

— Into the library, just bring those papers and the, don't push it!

— I wasn't but, but don't drive it so fast, did I tell you? Bobbie bought a Porsche?

— No you didn't. That chair there, move it away from the door, I want to back in there by the bed.

— Bobbie just bought this Porsche.

— You told me.

— You just said I didn't, didn't you? She got busy pounding the pillows out of shape, — he just bought a Porsche. Was I ever in here before Oscar?

— Just help me on the, get my leg up there will you? And those papers, this thing Kevin's got going?

— I told you didn't I? he hasn't got anything going? that he can't do anything till we pay off this sleazeball woman lawyer, I even called up Daddy this one last time to see if he'd help or if maybe Bobbie would but since they all joined this church down there he said he has to ask this Reverend and, is that what you mean?