Poem: "Better Than Their Neighbors Think"
Mar. 21st, 2021 02:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis poem is spillover from the February 2021 ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by discussions with dialecticdreamer. It also fills the "Begonia - Beware" square in my 2-1-21 "The Language of Flowers" card for the Valentines Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with ng_moonmoth, fuzzyred, and zianuray. It belongs to the Boss Finn and Mercedes threads of the Polychrome Heroics series.
"Better Than Their Neighbors Think"
[Sunday, March 6, 2016]
On Sunday, Fred rambled around
Mercedes, getting to know the town
and its people a little bit better.
A policeman was writing out
a "Repair" tag for a bicycle rack.
He looked up as Fred approached,
then said, "New ink? I didn't know
furry people could get tattoos."
"Some can, some can't, but this
isn't a tattoo -- it's henna. It colors
the fur and the skin underneath,
and it should wear off in a week or
two," Fred said, twisting his hand
to show off the solid band and
the row of stylized hearts that
wrapped his left arm just above
the wrist. "Bennett did this."
"Yeah, Bennett is a good artist,"
said the policeman, whose
nametag read Officer Fletcher.
"I'm just a little leery of bodymods
and wild hair dyes; it's job-related.
That kid of his ..." He shook his head.
"Jules?" said Fred, remembering
the paint-fight dye job. "I like him.
He's a very helpful young man,
especially to those new in town --
he showed me vegetarian restaurants."
"Well, when he's not in the midst of
a ruckus, maybe," said Officer Fletcher.
"That thing with his mother was just
a mess and a half for everyone."
"It hardly seems fair to blame
Jules for that," Fred chided.
"Welcome to life in a small town,"
said Officer Fletcher. "You are
only as good as the best thing that
your family’s done -- or the worst."
"The way to repair a bad reputation
is to keep doing actions that prove
otherwise," Fred said. "Of course,
that's no use if nobody pays attention."
Officer Fletcher winced. "Guilty as
charged. Every time I'm around the kid,
I keep hearing the rumors in my head."
"Oh, is that the problem?" Fred said.
His cookie-shaped ears perked up.
"Positive affirmations can retune
all kinds of beliefs. Just drop by
Soup to Nuts or a counseling center
and ask how to fix bad tape by
replacing it with better ideas, and
someone can help you with that."
"Thanks, I'll try it," said Officer Fletcher.
"I went through a round at work, but
focusing on professional bearing
hasn't done a thing to budge it."
"Of course not," said Fred. "You can't
fix bad tape by pulling it out and leaving
the gap. Nature abhors a vacuum. You
have to replace it with something better."
Officer Fletcher made a note on
his smartphone. "Thanks again,"
he said. "I'm off duty soon, so I
can follow your leads then."
"You're welcome," Fred said,
and then went on his way.
He was in a convenience store
buying snacks -- this one had
cups of carrots and celery --
when he heard some teens
gossiping about Jules.
Fred recognized them
as high school students
from Jules' class.
He cleared his throat.
"Ladies," he said. "It's
not nice to talk about
people behind their back.
I'm sure you wouldn't like
anyone doing that to you."
The girls looked at each other,
and then stared at him.
"Shana, is he for real?"
one of them whispered.
Fred had heard that name
before, not in a good context,
but he tried to tune it out
and give her a fair chance.
"Do you have any idea
how many times we've
gotten in trouble just for
being around Jules?"
Shana said sullenly.
"People like him give
all teens a bad name."
"The unkindest thing
you can do to a human
is to tarnish their reputation
in front of others just to make
yourself look good," Fred said.
They stared at him again,
and then scurried away.
Teenaged girls could be
incredibly mean sometimes.
Well, maybe they'd grow out of it.
The boys were just as bad,
though -- Fred heard
Anthony Dice saying
almost the same things.
"Everyone deserves a chance
to be themselves and not bound up
in other people's expectations,"
Fred said. "Jules is a nice boy
who lets people be themselves."
"I don't see how you can put up with
someone who has a reputation
that bad," Anthony muttered.
That was ironic, given what
Fred had heard about Anthony
and the Tulls' former house
burning down earlier.
"Many a man's reputation
would not know his character
if they met on the street,"
Fred said quietly.
Anthony looked down,
then sidled away, and
his friends followed him.
Fred bought his snacks
and went back outside.
He tried not to let
the encounters drag
his mood down -- he'd
heard that Mercedes had
issues but people were
working to improve it.
After all, that's what
he was doing out here,
trying to nudge things
in a better direction.
Then he heard someone
swearing under a car.
Fred leaned down.
"Is everything all right?"
"No," a woman grumbled.
She squirmed out from under
the car, but seemed to be
moving rather stiffly.
"Hand up?" Fred offered,
holding out his paw.
"Thanks," she said,
pulling herself to her feet.
"I'm Remedios Garza. I work
at the mall and I fix things.
My auto de mierda broke down
again. I got it fixed, but now
my back is killing me."
"I'm Fred Lehrer," he said.
"I know a great bodyworker."
He offered Remedios a card for
Bennett's business. "He's good
with a wide range of things -- he
did the henna work for me, and
he does great massage even
with all my fur in the way."
"Bennett?" she said. "I've
heard some things about him ..."
"Don't let other people's opinions
of a person ruin their reputation
with you," Fred advised. "That's
a good way to miss opportunities."
"Fair point," Remedios said.
"I'll check him out later."
Then she got in the car,
which actually did start,
although it sounded rough
even to Fred's unpracticed ear.
Fred watched her pull away,
then went back to eating
the snacks that he'd bought.
A few blocks farther along,
he came to a pocket park
full of people milling around.
The Tony Hawk Texture Park lay
between a mixed-use building
on the left and a cluster of
multiplex apartments and
small offices on the right.
Each side had a swath
of foundation landscaping,
and in the middle there lay
a whimsical patchwork plaza
made from poured concrete,
stone, wood, sand, and
other materials done in
soft leaf-like curves.
Concrete curbs and seats
offered opportunities for
skateboarders, while
the different textures
invited people to walk and
clamber around the park.
A water garden on the left
offered a precious resource for
local wildlife, and in the middle lay
a rock garden full of succulents.
Fred had heard that this was
a popular place for busking,
demonstrations, sidewalk sales,
and other small gatherings because
it was mostly paved and wasn't in
the main flow of foot traffic.
Currently the park held
clusters of people bickering
over the proposal to set up
a Triton Teen Center in town.
There were booths for and against it,
with people handing out all sorts of
flyers and other information.
Several people were struggling
to set up a first aid booth, too.
Fred recognized a local nurse,
and Duilio clearly had his hands full,
so Fred ambled over to help.
They got the table and awning
unfolded, and then Duilio frowned
over the chalkboard he was using
to lay out a schedule and services.
"We don't have enough people
for this much activity," he grumbled.
"I think the Finns are all busy today,
but you could ask Bennett -- he
has advanced first aid training
for his bodymod work," Fred said.
In fact, Bennett had patched together
enough training to wallpaper the foyer
in certifications for unusual techniques
and medical support. Currently he was
learning new things to accommodate
the special needs of some soups.
"What makes you think that
Bennett is such a great person,
when everyone knows he's
a biker thug?" Duilio said.
"You should beware of guys
like that, not seek them out."
"People are almost always
better than their neighbors
think they are," said Fred.
"I've found Bennett and Jules
much more personable than
the people who criticize them."
Duilio looked away. "Well ...
we are shorthanded today.
I guess I'll think about it."
That was about as good
as it usually got around here.
Drifting through the gather,
Fred found Cecil Dahlman,
one of the spotters for Kraken.
Cecil was technically colorblind,
but that made it easier for him
to notice subtle shifts in color that
most people couldn't see easily,
like crayon soups whose hair
was close to brown but had
a faint bronze sheen to it.
"Hi, Cecil, it's good to see
you here," Fred called.
"Yeah, I'm keeping an eye
on things today," Cecil said.
"Hey, did you get a tattoo?"
"Not a tattoo, this is henna,"
Fred explained. "Bennett
thinks that this could make
good temporary body art for
soups, because it colors
both the fur and the skin."
"What a great idea," Cecil said.
"I know some furry folks who
would probably love doing that.
Your armband looks sort of
reddish-brown to my eyes.
What color is it, really?"
"It actually is reddish-brown,"
Fred said. "Bennett told me that
henna can make a range of red,
brown, and strawberry blond hues,
or black if you add other things."
"Oh, now I want one," Cecil said.
"So much looks different to me than
to most people. That's why I wear
mostly blue and yellow, because I
can see those colors pretty well, but
some browns come through too."
"Then tell Bennett I sent you,"
Fred said, offering Cecil a card.
"Gladly," Cecil said, pocketing it.
"What's up?" Captain Kelvin said
as he came alongside of them.
"Cecil was just admiring
my new artwork," Fred said,
showing off the new design.
"Bennett thinks that henna is
a good option for furry folks."
"Bennett is a genius,"
said Captain Kelvin. "He's
great with wild young things.
Did you know that he has
a whole routine to figure out
whether you really want a tattoo?
Jules has one for hair color, too."
"It figures those two would be
hanging out with other supervillains,"
Mrs. Bowens said with a sniff.
Fred's ears flattened. He'd
met the social worker while
going through some paperwork
for his own project, and he was
not at all impressed with her.
"Oh, they're not actually in the black,
but we in the supervillain community
would be delighted to have them,"
said Captain Kelvin. "So if you
don't start treating them better,
then we will steal them from you,
and you will be shit out of luck."
"Even Bennett and Jules would
never go with the likes of you,"
Mrs. Bowens said, glaring.
"Really?" Cecil drawled.
"Well, you can't just --
just poach people like
that!" Mrs. Bowens said.
"Our offer begins with
a full college scholarship.
What are you putting up,
then?" Cecil countered.
Mrs. Bowens sputtered
at him incoherently, then
she whirled and flounced away.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Cecil said.
"A full college scholarship?" said Fred.
"I was given to understand that Jules
is still ambivalent about college,
since he didn't think he could go."
Cecil waved a hand. "It doesn't
have to be college, of course,"
he said. "Just whatever kind of
education Jules might want."
"We have great contacts
for the Get a Life program,"
Captain Kelvin said proudly.
"World citizenship is also
available if Jules doesn't
want to move to Thalassia."
"I could see him enjoying
Get a Life," mused Fred.
"Jules needs to spend time
in places that don't already
have expectations of him."
"True of many teens here,"
said Cecil. "I've spotted several
who could really use a hand up,
but some of them are really hard
to reach, especially the new boy
who wears a hat even indoors."
Fred chuckled. "Do you have
one of those social alert buttons
that says you're colorblind?"
"Sure, why?" Cecil asked.
"Put that on and then try
approaching him from
the front," Fred said.
"Privacy maintains, but
I can hint you that much."
"Thanks for the tip, man,"
Cecil said. "I owe you one."
Fred waved it off. "Don't
worry about it," he said.
"We're all trying to make
Mercedes a better place."
"Speaking of which, Boss Finn
and I hope to take advantage of
the town's Connect the Dots program
in landscaping our respective projects,
to help local wildlife travel between parks,"
said Captain Kelvin. "We're both doing
native landscaping with some edibles.
Could we interest you in doing the same
with your Mercedes Meeting Hall?"
"Oh, goodness yes," Fred said.
"I was hoping to put in something
like a contemplation garden, maybe
native flowers and Mediterranean herbs.
None of the properties I'm considering
have a large yard, though, so I haven't
looked for grants or guidelines yet."
"No point reinventing the wheel,
I'll just send you what I've collected
for my properties -- I've settled on
a pair of connected lots that used
to house a business front along with
its warehouse," said Captain Kelvin.
"You can get a lot of stuff free if you
go for xeriscaping and native plants,"
Cecil said. "We've got some teens
involved in collecting freebies for
the Triton Teen Center already."
"It's good to get them involved,"
Fred said. "Hmm, I should see if
any business owners want to chip in
for the Meeting Hall. Bennett would
probably love to sketch the flowers."
"Probably so," said Captain Kelvin. "It's
early March, so if you can begin soon,
you could take out any unwanted lawn
and start some native plants before
the weather dries out in summer."
"Yes, weather is important," Fred said,
taking some notes on his smartphone.
"Thank you both, this is very helpful."
"Any time," Captain Kelvin said,
waving as Fred moved on.
Among the crowd, he saw
a reporter taking notes,
one of the local muckrakers
called Alfonso Durante.
That could prove useful.
"Hi, I'm Fred," he said.
"Finding any news?"
"Alfonso," the reporter said.
"People are all worked up
over the Triton Teen Center.
Lots of opinions, no facts."
"I might know where you
could find some facts, if you
could give me a hand with
my project," Fred said.
"What project?" said Alfonso.
"I'm trying to make improvements
in the falsely maligned reputation
of Jules and Bennett," said Fred.
"I'm not sure what all that has
to do with me," Alfonso said.
"Whether true or false,
what is said about men
often has as much influence
on their lives, and particularly
on their destinies, as what
they do," Fred pointed out.
"Point," Alfonso said.
"Journalism requires
a lot of responsibility.
What would you want?"
"Nothing too direct, unless
you talk with Bennett and he
agrees to a human interest bit,"
said Fred. "I was thinking more
like something on police conduct
or the danger of malicious rumors."
Alfonso's mouth quirked into
a half-smile. "Everyone has
been burned by rumors
at least once," he said.
"Sure, I can work with it."
Fred tilted his head toward
where Captain Kelvin stood by
a Triton Teen Center booth.
"See that guy in the NASA tie?"
said Fred. "That's Captain Kelvin.
He's launching the Triton Teen Center.
You can tell him I sent you, as long
as you don't make a pest of yourself."
Alfonso smirked. "I only pester people
who deserve it," he said, and then
trotted off to talk with Captain Kelvin.
After that, Fred decided that he'd
done enough patchwork for the day,
and headed back to Bennett's shop.
When the door opened, Jules
looked up from behind the desk
and Bennett put down the broom.
"Hey, Fred, what's up?" Bennett said.
"I showed off my new artwork,"
Fred said. "You may get
a new customer or two."
"That's always welcome,"
Bennett said, grinning.
"Also, I did a little bit of
reputation touchup for
the two of you," Fred said.
"Some people are still being
rude, but others are receptive."
"I really appreciate the help,"
Bennett said. "I guess I'm just
a little surprised that you'd do it.
You just moved into town and
don't really have a stake in this."
"I never judge someone's character
based on the words of another," Fred said.
"Instead, I study the motives behind the words
of the person who casts the bad judgment.
That tends to be much more illuminating."
"Can't argue with that one," Jules said.
"Most of the people who diss me
are bullies one way or another."
"And you shouldn't have to put up
with that; no one should," Fred said.
He wanted both Jules and Bennett
to feel valued and not excluded.
"That's true," Bennett said. "Hey, do
you have time for a massage? I just
got in a new batch of dry shampoo made
of fuller's earth and lavender that I think will
work great with currycombs for the furry."
Fred gave a happy rumble. "I would
love that," he said. "I really appreciate
how much work you put into accommodating
the different body types that soups have."
"What can I say?" Bennett replied.
"I love a challenge and I love making
people happy. It's interesting to find out
solutions to the puzzles people bring me.
Jules, block out an hour on the board."
"On it," Jules said as he turned to
the large whiteboard that displayed
appointments and available times.
Bennett was humming happily
as he led Fred toward the back.
Fred would call that a win.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its character, location, and content notes will appear separately.
crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by discussions with dialecticdreamer. It also fills the "Begonia - Beware" square in my 2-1-21 "The Language of Flowers" card for the Valentines Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with ng_moonmoth, fuzzyred, and zianuray. It belongs to the Boss Finn and Mercedes threads of the Polychrome Heroics series."Better Than Their Neighbors Think"
[Sunday, March 6, 2016]
On Sunday, Fred rambled around
Mercedes, getting to know the town
and its people a little bit better.
A policeman was writing out
a "Repair" tag for a bicycle rack.
He looked up as Fred approached,
then said, "New ink? I didn't know
furry people could get tattoos."
"Some can, some can't, but this
isn't a tattoo -- it's henna. It colors
the fur and the skin underneath,
and it should wear off in a week or
two," Fred said, twisting his hand
to show off the solid band and
the row of stylized hearts that
wrapped his left arm just above
the wrist. "Bennett did this."
"Yeah, Bennett is a good artist,"
said the policeman, whose
nametag read Officer Fletcher.
"I'm just a little leery of bodymods
and wild hair dyes; it's job-related.
That kid of his ..." He shook his head.
"Jules?" said Fred, remembering
the paint-fight dye job. "I like him.
He's a very helpful young man,
especially to those new in town --
he showed me vegetarian restaurants."
"Well, when he's not in the midst of
a ruckus, maybe," said Officer Fletcher.
"That thing with his mother was just
a mess and a half for everyone."
"It hardly seems fair to blame
Jules for that," Fred chided.
"Welcome to life in a small town,"
said Officer Fletcher. "You are
only as good as the best thing that
your family’s done -- or the worst."
"The way to repair a bad reputation
is to keep doing actions that prove
otherwise," Fred said. "Of course,
that's no use if nobody pays attention."
Officer Fletcher winced. "Guilty as
charged. Every time I'm around the kid,
I keep hearing the rumors in my head."
"Oh, is that the problem?" Fred said.
His cookie-shaped ears perked up.
"Positive affirmations can retune
all kinds of beliefs. Just drop by
Soup to Nuts or a counseling center
and ask how to fix bad tape by
replacing it with better ideas, and
someone can help you with that."
"Thanks, I'll try it," said Officer Fletcher.
"I went through a round at work, but
focusing on professional bearing
hasn't done a thing to budge it."
"Of course not," said Fred. "You can't
fix bad tape by pulling it out and leaving
the gap. Nature abhors a vacuum. You
have to replace it with something better."
Officer Fletcher made a note on
his smartphone. "Thanks again,"
he said. "I'm off duty soon, so I
can follow your leads then."
"You're welcome," Fred said,
and then went on his way.
He was in a convenience store
buying snacks -- this one had
cups of carrots and celery --
when he heard some teens
gossiping about Jules.
Fred recognized them
as high school students
from Jules' class.
He cleared his throat.
"Ladies," he said. "It's
not nice to talk about
people behind their back.
I'm sure you wouldn't like
anyone doing that to you."
The girls looked at each other,
and then stared at him.
"Shana, is he for real?"
one of them whispered.
Fred had heard that name
before, not in a good context,
but he tried to tune it out
and give her a fair chance.
"Do you have any idea
how many times we've
gotten in trouble just for
being around Jules?"
Shana said sullenly.
"People like him give
all teens a bad name."
"The unkindest thing
you can do to a human
is to tarnish their reputation
in front of others just to make
yourself look good," Fred said.
They stared at him again,
and then scurried away.
Teenaged girls could be
incredibly mean sometimes.
Well, maybe they'd grow out of it.
The boys were just as bad,
though -- Fred heard
Anthony Dice saying
almost the same things.
"Everyone deserves a chance
to be themselves and not bound up
in other people's expectations,"
Fred said. "Jules is a nice boy
who lets people be themselves."
"I don't see how you can put up with
someone who has a reputation
that bad," Anthony muttered.
That was ironic, given what
Fred had heard about Anthony
and the Tulls' former house
burning down earlier.
"Many a man's reputation
would not know his character
if they met on the street,"
Fred said quietly.
Anthony looked down,
then sidled away, and
his friends followed him.
Fred bought his snacks
and went back outside.
He tried not to let
the encounters drag
his mood down -- he'd
heard that Mercedes had
issues but people were
working to improve it.
After all, that's what
he was doing out here,
trying to nudge things
in a better direction.
Then he heard someone
swearing under a car.
Fred leaned down.
"Is everything all right?"
"No," a woman grumbled.
She squirmed out from under
the car, but seemed to be
moving rather stiffly.
"Hand up?" Fred offered,
holding out his paw.
"Thanks," she said,
pulling herself to her feet.
"I'm Remedios Garza. I work
at the mall and I fix things.
My auto de mierda broke down
again. I got it fixed, but now
my back is killing me."
"I'm Fred Lehrer," he said.
"I know a great bodyworker."
He offered Remedios a card for
Bennett's business. "He's good
with a wide range of things -- he
did the henna work for me, and
he does great massage even
with all my fur in the way."
"Bennett?" she said. "I've
heard some things about him ..."
"Don't let other people's opinions
of a person ruin their reputation
with you," Fred advised. "That's
a good way to miss opportunities."
"Fair point," Remedios said.
"I'll check him out later."
Then she got in the car,
which actually did start,
although it sounded rough
even to Fred's unpracticed ear.
Fred watched her pull away,
then went back to eating
the snacks that he'd bought.
A few blocks farther along,
he came to a pocket park
full of people milling around.
The Tony Hawk Texture Park lay
between a mixed-use building
on the left and a cluster of
multiplex apartments and
small offices on the right.
Each side had a swath
of foundation landscaping,
and in the middle there lay
a whimsical patchwork plaza
made from poured concrete,
stone, wood, sand, and
other materials done in
soft leaf-like curves.
Concrete curbs and seats
offered opportunities for
skateboarders, while
the different textures
invited people to walk and
clamber around the park.
A water garden on the left
offered a precious resource for
local wildlife, and in the middle lay
a rock garden full of succulents.
Fred had heard that this was
a popular place for busking,
demonstrations, sidewalk sales,
and other small gatherings because
it was mostly paved and wasn't in
the main flow of foot traffic.
Currently the park held
clusters of people bickering
over the proposal to set up
a Triton Teen Center in town.
There were booths for and against it,
with people handing out all sorts of
flyers and other information.
Several people were struggling
to set up a first aid booth, too.
Fred recognized a local nurse,
and Duilio clearly had his hands full,
so Fred ambled over to help.
They got the table and awning
unfolded, and then Duilio frowned
over the chalkboard he was using
to lay out a schedule and services.
"We don't have enough people
for this much activity," he grumbled.
"I think the Finns are all busy today,
but you could ask Bennett -- he
has advanced first aid training
for his bodymod work," Fred said.
In fact, Bennett had patched together
enough training to wallpaper the foyer
in certifications for unusual techniques
and medical support. Currently he was
learning new things to accommodate
the special needs of some soups.
"What makes you think that
Bennett is such a great person,
when everyone knows he's
a biker thug?" Duilio said.
"You should beware of guys
like that, not seek them out."
"People are almost always
better than their neighbors
think they are," said Fred.
"I've found Bennett and Jules
much more personable than
the people who criticize them."
Duilio looked away. "Well ...
we are shorthanded today.
I guess I'll think about it."
That was about as good
as it usually got around here.
Drifting through the gather,
Fred found Cecil Dahlman,
one of the spotters for Kraken.
Cecil was technically colorblind,
but that made it easier for him
to notice subtle shifts in color that
most people couldn't see easily,
like crayon soups whose hair
was close to brown but had
a faint bronze sheen to it.
"Hi, Cecil, it's good to see
you here," Fred called.
"Yeah, I'm keeping an eye
on things today," Cecil said.
"Hey, did you get a tattoo?"
"Not a tattoo, this is henna,"
Fred explained. "Bennett
thinks that this could make
good temporary body art for
soups, because it colors
both the fur and the skin."
"What a great idea," Cecil said.
"I know some furry folks who
would probably love doing that.
Your armband looks sort of
reddish-brown to my eyes.
What color is it, really?"
"It actually is reddish-brown,"
Fred said. "Bennett told me that
henna can make a range of red,
brown, and strawberry blond hues,
or black if you add other things."
"Oh, now I want one," Cecil said.
"So much looks different to me than
to most people. That's why I wear
mostly blue and yellow, because I
can see those colors pretty well, but
some browns come through too."
"Then tell Bennett I sent you,"
Fred said, offering Cecil a card.
"Gladly," Cecil said, pocketing it.
"What's up?" Captain Kelvin said
as he came alongside of them.
"Cecil was just admiring
my new artwork," Fred said,
showing off the new design.
"Bennett thinks that henna is
a good option for furry folks."
"Bennett is a genius,"
said Captain Kelvin. "He's
great with wild young things.
Did you know that he has
a whole routine to figure out
whether you really want a tattoo?
Jules has one for hair color, too."
"It figures those two would be
hanging out with other supervillains,"
Mrs. Bowens said with a sniff.
Fred's ears flattened. He'd
met the social worker while
going through some paperwork
for his own project, and he was
not at all impressed with her.
"Oh, they're not actually in the black,
but we in the supervillain community
would be delighted to have them,"
said Captain Kelvin. "So if you
don't start treating them better,
then we will steal them from you,
and you will be shit out of luck."
"Even Bennett and Jules would
never go with the likes of you,"
Mrs. Bowens said, glaring.
"Really?" Cecil drawled.
"Well, you can't just --
just poach people like
that!" Mrs. Bowens said.
"Our offer begins with
a full college scholarship.
What are you putting up,
then?" Cecil countered.
Mrs. Bowens sputtered
at him incoherently, then
she whirled and flounced away.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Cecil said.
"A full college scholarship?" said Fred.
"I was given to understand that Jules
is still ambivalent about college,
since he didn't think he could go."
Cecil waved a hand. "It doesn't
have to be college, of course,"
he said. "Just whatever kind of
education Jules might want."
"We have great contacts
for the Get a Life program,"
Captain Kelvin said proudly.
"World citizenship is also
available if Jules doesn't
want to move to Thalassia."
"I could see him enjoying
Get a Life," mused Fred.
"Jules needs to spend time
in places that don't already
have expectations of him."
"True of many teens here,"
said Cecil. "I've spotted several
who could really use a hand up,
but some of them are really hard
to reach, especially the new boy
who wears a hat even indoors."
Fred chuckled. "Do you have
one of those social alert buttons
that says you're colorblind?"
"Sure, why?" Cecil asked.
"Put that on and then try
approaching him from
the front," Fred said.
"Privacy maintains, but
I can hint you that much."
"Thanks for the tip, man,"
Cecil said. "I owe you one."
Fred waved it off. "Don't
worry about it," he said.
"We're all trying to make
Mercedes a better place."
"Speaking of which, Boss Finn
and I hope to take advantage of
the town's Connect the Dots program
in landscaping our respective projects,
to help local wildlife travel between parks,"
said Captain Kelvin. "We're both doing
native landscaping with some edibles.
Could we interest you in doing the same
with your Mercedes Meeting Hall?"
"Oh, goodness yes," Fred said.
"I was hoping to put in something
like a contemplation garden, maybe
native flowers and Mediterranean herbs.
None of the properties I'm considering
have a large yard, though, so I haven't
looked for grants or guidelines yet."
"No point reinventing the wheel,
I'll just send you what I've collected
for my properties -- I've settled on
a pair of connected lots that used
to house a business front along with
its warehouse," said Captain Kelvin.
"You can get a lot of stuff free if you
go for xeriscaping and native plants,"
Cecil said. "We've got some teens
involved in collecting freebies for
the Triton Teen Center already."
"It's good to get them involved,"
Fred said. "Hmm, I should see if
any business owners want to chip in
for the Meeting Hall. Bennett would
probably love to sketch the flowers."
"Probably so," said Captain Kelvin. "It's
early March, so if you can begin soon,
you could take out any unwanted lawn
and start some native plants before
the weather dries out in summer."
"Yes, weather is important," Fred said,
taking some notes on his smartphone.
"Thank you both, this is very helpful."
"Any time," Captain Kelvin said,
waving as Fred moved on.
Among the crowd, he saw
a reporter taking notes,
one of the local muckrakers
called Alfonso Durante.
That could prove useful.
"Hi, I'm Fred," he said.
"Finding any news?"
"Alfonso," the reporter said.
"People are all worked up
over the Triton Teen Center.
Lots of opinions, no facts."
"I might know where you
could find some facts, if you
could give me a hand with
my project," Fred said.
"What project?" said Alfonso.
"I'm trying to make improvements
in the falsely maligned reputation
of Jules and Bennett," said Fred.
"I'm not sure what all that has
to do with me," Alfonso said.
"Whether true or false,
what is said about men
often has as much influence
on their lives, and particularly
on their destinies, as what
they do," Fred pointed out.
"Point," Alfonso said.
"Journalism requires
a lot of responsibility.
What would you want?"
"Nothing too direct, unless
you talk with Bennett and he
agrees to a human interest bit,"
said Fred. "I was thinking more
like something on police conduct
or the danger of malicious rumors."
Alfonso's mouth quirked into
a half-smile. "Everyone has
been burned by rumors
at least once," he said.
"Sure, I can work with it."
Fred tilted his head toward
where Captain Kelvin stood by
a Triton Teen Center booth.
"See that guy in the NASA tie?"
said Fred. "That's Captain Kelvin.
He's launching the Triton Teen Center.
You can tell him I sent you, as long
as you don't make a pest of yourself."
Alfonso smirked. "I only pester people
who deserve it," he said, and then
trotted off to talk with Captain Kelvin.
After that, Fred decided that he'd
done enough patchwork for the day,
and headed back to Bennett's shop.
When the door opened, Jules
looked up from behind the desk
and Bennett put down the broom.
"Hey, Fred, what's up?" Bennett said.
"I showed off my new artwork,"
Fred said. "You may get
a new customer or two."
"That's always welcome,"
Bennett said, grinning.
"Also, I did a little bit of
reputation touchup for
the two of you," Fred said.
"Some people are still being
rude, but others are receptive."
"I really appreciate the help,"
Bennett said. "I guess I'm just
a little surprised that you'd do it.
You just moved into town and
don't really have a stake in this."
"I never judge someone's character
based on the words of another," Fred said.
"Instead, I study the motives behind the words
of the person who casts the bad judgment.
That tends to be much more illuminating."
"Can't argue with that one," Jules said.
"Most of the people who diss me
are bullies one way or another."
"And you shouldn't have to put up
with that; no one should," Fred said.
He wanted both Jules and Bennett
to feel valued and not excluded.
"That's true," Bennett said. "Hey, do
you have time for a massage? I just
got in a new batch of dry shampoo made
of fuller's earth and lavender that I think will
work great with currycombs for the furry."
Fred gave a happy rumble. "I would
love that," he said. "I really appreciate
how much work you put into accommodating
the different body types that soups have."
"What can I say?" Bennett replied.
"I love a challenge and I love making
people happy. It's interesting to find out
solutions to the puzzles people bring me.
Jules, block out an hour on the board."
"On it," Jules said as he turned to
the large whiteboard that displayed
appointments and available times.
Bennett was humming happily
as he led Fred toward the back.
Fred would call that a win.
* * *
Notes:
This poem is long, so its character, location, and content notes will appear separately.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-03-21 09:13 pm (UTC)Karen.
Well ...
Date: 2021-03-21 09:34 pm (UTC)Re: Well ...
Date: 2021-03-21 09:58 pm (UTC)A Shonda auf der goyim...
Re: Well ...
Date: 2021-03-21 10:07 pm (UTC)Re: Well ...
Date: 2021-03-21 10:23 pm (UTC)Thankfully if she irritates Fred (or Bennett or Jules or Pips or any of the Finnlings) enough... heyyyyyyyy. Seeing Kraken take her down would be satisfying, but probably not very *interesting*. What if the ear that got whispered in wasn't the Captain, but the Boss? We've seen the Finns deal with trouble on a huge, and on a medium, scale. I should think her approach would be more interesting than just "shoo, fly"... she's after cultivating a certain _rep_...
Hmmmm.
Re: Well ...
Date: 2021-03-22 11:04 am (UTC)She means well, sort of, but she can get stuffy.
>>"A shonda fur die goyim" is a Jew fucking up by the numbers where the Gentiles can see them. "A shonda auf die goyim" is a Gentile normie making trouble for .... everybody, really.<<
I hadn't heard the "auf" version.
>> Thankfully if she irritates Fred (or Bennett or Jules or Pips or any of the Finnlings) enough... heyyyyyyyy.<<
LOL yes. She's already annoyed some of them.
>> Seeing Kraken take her down would be satisfying, but probably not very *interesting*. What if the ear that got whispered in wasn't the Captain, but the Boss? We've seen the Finns deal with trouble on a huge, and on a medium, scale. I should think her approach would be more interesting than just "shoo, fly"... she's after cultivating a certain _rep_...<<
I don't think she's the best person to deal with folks who don't fit in.
Re: Well ...
Date: 2021-03-21 10:07 pm (UTC)A Karen by any other name,
would smell just as sweet...
or not.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-03-21 10:09 pm (UTC)And Fred demonstrates just how useful and subtly powerful his ability is..
Yes ...
Date: 2021-03-21 10:23 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-03-21 10:17 pm (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2021-03-21 10:24 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-03-22 02:34 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-03-22 03:14 pm (UTC)