Two Women, Chapter 7

Monica arrives at Memorial Hall five minutes before Mona's performance is about to begin.  She takes her seat near the front of the half-filled auditorium.

Right on time, Mona comes on stage to polite applause.  Her eyes meet Monica's and they smile again, friendlier this time.

Mona flawlessly performs Rachmaninoff's Piano Concert 2.  After, the audience applauds with more enthusiasm.  Monica with some others give Mona a standing ovation.

While the rest head for the exits, Monica heads back stage to visit Mona in her dressing room.  She knocks on the door.  

Mona:  Come in.

Monica enters.

Mona:  I was hoping I would see you again.  Did you enjoy my performance?

Monica:  Very much.  Thanks for the ticket.  Perhaps I can buy you a drink.  What do you say?

Mona:  Why not?  Isn't there a bar at the Carolina Inn?  That's where I'm staying.

Monica:  That's where I was thinking.

Mona:  Give me ten minutes to change.

Monica starts to leave.

Mona:  No, please stay.  We can chat while I change.

She stays.

Roommates

From September 1963 until May 1965 I had a total of 5 roommates while living in the dormitories (upper and lower quads) of the University of Pennsylvania near 37th and Spruce Streets.  In my opinion, I got along fine, especially with Scott Kahn, Mike Parr and Ralph Pincus. 

Up until very near my graduation from Penn in May 1967, I fully expected to join the United States Air Force as I had been planning for months.  What a shock it was when my gastroenterologist told me to forget about it.  The Air Force would (and did) cancel my appointment to their Officer Candidate School because of my ulcerative colitis diagnosis.  

After a short period of disappointment, I re-focused my attention to what I would do next.  I decided to go to Detroit, Michigan where my brother Ted,  his wife and newborn son lived.  

Once there, I quickly bought a car, a late model Corvair, and got a job at Ernst & Ernst, a big CPA firm.  Next on my list was to find a place to live.  

As opposed to my thinking (getting my own apartment), I was strongly advised to look for an apartment with a roommate.  I followed the advice.  A local newspaper had listings with such.

My first experience with a roommate in Michigan was with a red-haired young man who offered to let me sleep on his couch.  For some crazy reason, I accepted.    

The arrangement didn't last long.  Even as I tried to be agreeable, I think my presence in his apartment made my roommate uncomfortable.  I was asked to leave ASAP.  

My second roommate, whom I'll refer to as PW, had a two bedroom apartment which offered me some privacy.  However, he was an unusual character.  

PW once told me he would do anything for money.  I came to believe him.  

PW sold me his furniture as he was getting married and moving out soon.  However, he wanted my money up front and got me to agree to let him keep my furniture until he left a few weeks later.  Unbelievable but true!  

PW even tried to sell me the air conditioner that came with the apartment.  I agreed, but then, feeling sorry for me, he explained who actually owned the air conditioner.

PW finally moved out and I got what I had always wanted, an apartment of my own.  In retrospect, why would I want to share an apartment with a stranger?  It's difficult enough when you're sharing an apartment with a loved one.  

To Kill a Mockingbird

 Harper Lee was born April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama, which had a population at the time of about 1,000 inhabitants.  It's located in the southwestern part of the state.  

Harper was the youngest of four children.  Her mother's maiden name was Finch.  Her father was a businessman and a lawyer.

During Harper's childhood, she spent most of her time playing with her brother (Edwin) who was six years older.  In addition, during the summers, young Truman Capote (two years older and the future author of In Cold Blood) was also a playmate when he visited his family in Monroeville.

After graduating high school, Harper studied law at the University of Alabama.  However, she left school one semester before completing her degree.  

In 1949, Harper moved to New York City and devoted herself to writing.  On July 11, 1960 (sixty-one years ago today), her manuscript, To Kill a Mockingbird, was published.  It won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961.  To Kill a Mockingbird has remained a best seller to the present day.  

"The plot and characters (of To Kill a Mockingbird) are loosely based on Lee's observations of her family (especially her brother and father), her neighbors and an event that occurred near her hometown in 1936 when she was ten."

Harper Lee's father defended Frank and Brown Ezell, two Black men accused of murder.  They were convicted and hung.  

"Despite dealing with the serious issues of rape and racial inequality, the novel is renowned for its warmth and humor. Atticus Finch, the narrator's father, has served as a moral hero for many readers and as a model of integrity for lawyers."

"In the twentieth century, To Kill a Mockingbird (was) probably the most widely read book dealing with race in America.  (It) is extensively taught in schools in the United States with lessons that emphasize tolerance and decry prejudice."

Harper Lee died in her hometown on February 19, 2016 at the age of eighty-nine.  

   

On the Beach

It's 1964 and World War III has broken out with an arsenal of nuclear missiles launched from both sides.  This will mean the end of the human race on earth because of the resulting radioactive fallout.  So says the 1959 film On the Beach starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner.

In the film, the deadly radioactivity has not yet reached Australia.  The USS Sawfish, a submarine captained by Dwight Lionel Towers (Peck) arrives in Melbourne.  He and his crew are the only Americans left alive.

They and the Australians have a few weeks or months to live.  Dwight, through contacts with the local navy, meets Moira (Gardner), an unattached attractive Aussie.

Dwight and Moira spend a lot of time together while waiting for the inevitable.  Finally, as the end is in sight, Dwight's crew votes to return to America for their final days. 

Dwight asks Moira to meet him at the naval base.  When she arrives, they talk for the last time.  

Moira:  You're not going.  You're staying.

Dwight:  No.  

Moira:  You're staying.

Dwight:  We're going.  

Moira:  But...the Sawfish?  

Dwight:  Just across the bay...at the fuel depot.  The men kinda wanted to get home.  I can't explain it.  

Moira:  So I suppose it's time to say it's been nice Dwight Lionel.  It's been everything.  Oh, Dwight.  I'm so frightened.  

Dwight:  I know.  I'm so sorry for so many things.  I love you, Moira.  I love you.  I love you.

The following morning, Moira drives to a point on the coast where she can see the Sawfish before it submerges.  We can also see Dwight on the submarine's bridge before he has to go below.  And before he goes below, he looks up at the sun one last time.  In the background is the music of Waltzing Matilda, Australia's best known ballad.  How romantic!