Todays Topic
Welcome friend to Create Art Podcast where we create more than we consume. I am Timothy Kimo Brien your thankful head instigator with over 20 years in arts and education helping you tame your inner critic and provide you with commentary, interviews, discussions, and projects that will inspire you to create art. This month I will be podcasting daily and writing a novel in 30 days. I am participating in NaPodPoMo and NaNoWriMo. You will be able to listen to what I wrote for the day and read it at the same time. I like to practice what I preach when it comes to art so I am challenging myself to write and having you come along for the ride. I hope this inspires you to accomplish your goals with your art and if you would like to share what you are doing email me at timothy@createartpodcast.com
The Story So Far
30 Nov 2020 2675 daily count 50061 cumulative count
It was about an hour since Myra and Cheryl had left. Carl was still feeling groggy but began to worry about the two of them. He checked his phone when he heard giggling from outside his front door. It was the girls and he started to get up and take off the blanket when they opened the door. Cheryl had her hands full and Myra was closing the door when they headed for the kitchen table. Carl got up and started to remove the items from the bags.
“So we got everything we needed plus a few things for tomorrow when we go over to Nate’s,” said Cheryl.
“I just got up a little while ago and had a good nap. I think tonight I will get a good nights sleep. Can’t wait to eat some gyros,” said Carl.
“Well they didn’t have the lamb slices so we are using diced chicken, but other than that this will be an authentic gyro and Greek salad,” replied Cheryl as she placed the items in the fridge. The diner and snacks were put away Cheryl motioned Carl to sit back down on the couch. “We got it from here, you just sit back and relax, did you pick out a movie for us to watch. We are definitely in the mood for something funny,” said Cheryl.
“I failed on that, but I did get a nap in. How about we watch the Minions movie. That always makes me laugh,” asked Carl?
“I’ve never seen those movies but I have seen the commercials on TV. That sounds great. Can we eat at the coffee table and watch the movie,” asked Myra?
“I don’t see why not. Lets just be extra careful and not get anything on the floor. How was shopping with Cheryl, asked Carl?
“She was great. She let me climb in the cart and we went all over the store and I grabbed things as we passed by them. I got a new toothbrush and toothpaste and some shampoo so I wont have to smell like you,” said Myra.
“How much do I owe you,” asked Carl?
“I had a god day at work, really good tips today, so no worries. I got this today. No episodes, she was very lively and fun to take to the store. We just grabbed some necessities for the next week like cereal and lunches and tonights dinner and some toiletries. You are the one that has to prepare this stuff, but I think we have a great helper,” replied Cheryl.
“Before you go to bed tonight, there is something we need to discuss that I just found out,” said Carl softly to Cheryl.
“That’s fine, but let’s get the movie up and ready, this dinner shouldn’t take too long to get together,” replied Cheryl.
Cheryl and Myra started making the dinner and Carl grabbed plates, silverware, and napkins on the coffee table. He also grabbed glasses and saw that Cheryl had purchased chocolate milk, so he filled up Myra’s glass with that and put water in his and Cheryl’s glasses. He looked through his DVD collection and saw that he did not have the movie they wanted, so he started up his streaming service and purchased the movie. He then created another account for Myra so that she could see whatever movies she wanted. He did put parental controls on it so she would not be able to buy movies or rent them without him putting in his code.
The laughter from the kitchen between Cheryl and Myra was just what Carl needed at this time. With the knowledge of her father’s demise fresh in his mind, he wanted to take Nate’s advice and keep things light tonight. From the bits of the conversation that Cheryl and Myra were having, he did not hear anything about adoption or personal things that she would not know. Maybe the episode corrected her brain. There was no talk about the book that she had been reading and he did not see it among the things that Cheryl and Myra brought in, maybe it was still in Cheryl’s car. He did not want to bring it up and tempt fate, but he made a mental not to ask Cheryl about it after they had put Myra to bed. This was the noise in his house, now their house, that he craved.
It took about forty-five minutes to get everything put together. Cheryl and Myra brought out the food to the coffee table and placed their napkins in their laps. Carl started up the movie and the adults stole glances as each other when they hear Myra softly murmur wow or neat. Cheryl gave Carl a thumbs up as Myra’s eyes started to droop towards the end of the movie. It was getting late and all the food was eaten, there would be no leftovers which suited Carl just fine. He was not a huge fan of them unless they were chili or something that tasted better the next day. He remembered his mother’s cooking which was not very good and every night they had leftovers and had to reheat them the next day and the next day until they were eventually thrown out. Is the main reason he learned to cook for himself after watching various shows on PBS and other food based cable networks.
The movie was rolling the credits and Myra was softly asleep on the couch between Cheryl and Carl. He picked her up and took her to her bedroom and helped her change into her pajamas. Myra climbed into bed and pulled up the blankets. Carl started to leave the room and she called him over, “ Thank you for a great day, I can’t wait to get up and have some fun over at your brothers house tomorrow.”
“You are welcome and I can’t wait for you to meet Nate and his kids tomorrow either. I think you wil like it there, now lets get some sleep. I will leave the bathroom light on like I did last night and if you need me or Cheryl we are here for you. You have had a couple of busy days and we have a few more for you in store. I will call the doctor on Monday and we will try to get you in quickly. Now go off to sleep and have great dreams, “said Carl softly. He gave her a pack on the cheek and a big hug as Cheryl came into the room.
“Hey big girl, you get some rest now. We are going to have a great day. I have to work but I will see you in the morning and after you get back from Nate’s we will go to the mall and have some fun alright,” asked Cheryl?
“Okay, it was fun cooking with you tonight. Cn we do that again tomorrow night,” asked Myra?
“You got it kiddo, now crash out and we will see you in the morning,” said Cheryl as she gave Myra a kiss on the forehead and hugged her.
Carl had started clearing the dishes and began washing them as quietly as he could as Cheryl came into the kitchen and put on water to boil for some tea. Carl looked at her inquisitively.
“Tea before you go to bed,” asked Carl?
“Yeah, it helps me sleep. That bed of yours is comfortable, but it is not my bed. You said you had some information that I needed to know. Should we get out the diary and put it in there because it may be important,” replied Cheryl.
“No, no need for the diary. Nate called. They found her father, he committed suicide this morning. Nate wanted to know if Myra had left anything at the motel they were staying at and I told him I didn’t know and wasn’t even sure if it was the same motel they were staying at since it was just outside of state lines. Did she ever tell you the name of the hotel,” asked Carl?
“Is he sure it was her father,” asked Cheryl?
“According to Nate, description matches, if she left anything the police will be looking for her. But with the diary and everything going on, I am thinking that he may have violated the rules of the diary and that is his punishment. I don’t want to say anything to Myra now or possibly ever about this, but yeah it looks like she is officially an orphan now. Angela is working up her background investigation and we may have more information tomorrow,” replied Carl.
“That is a tough way to go for this girl. Having your father abandon you then off himself. That is going to be years of counseling for sure. I think you are right in keeping t from her now, but in the future she is going to want to know, I know this isn’t something we have talked about but at some point we are going to have to talk with her about everything that is happening so she can make sense of it,” replied Cheryl.
“That is the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question, when. I am calling my doctor on Monday to get her in about the episodes and see what is going on in her brain. I will ask Angela and Nate if they can recommend a good therapist for her. In order for all the medical stuff to get paid for, I am going to need to adopt her officially and it would look good if she had a stable home to stay at, like a mother/father situation. We need to talk about that at some point and what that means to us. I had no plans to ever get remarried after the divorce and with my diagnosis. Since we both signed in the diary, I think we are both in this together. I can adjust my will and my dependents to include you and Myra. My policy is pretty hefty because I got it before my diagnosis. With everything happening the way it is, I just want to make sure you and Myra are taken care of,” said Carl.
“That is the strangest marriage proposal I have ever heard. I usually try not to poke into personal affairs, but what about your ex? She is going to want a cut of the money I am sure, how does she fit into all of this,” asked Cheryl?
“She and I are on good terms. I think she would be thrilled that I am taking care of a child. Naturally, I am sure she wished it were her, but I think she has moved on from me as much as possible. I will talk with her; she should have no problem finding someone else if that is what she wants in her life. We had an open relationship in terms of communication. I do not think she will be unreasonable. I will just let her know that she still gets a cut unless she remarries. What do you think,” asked Carl?
“In for a penny, in for a pound. Let’s get the Myra situation straightened out with Nate and Angela and then we can move forward on what we look like. I am sleeping in the bed alone tonight though since I don’t have a ring on my finger yet. This was definitely not in my ten-year plan that you told me to develop last year,” joked Cheryl.
“Hey, my ten-year plan didn’t involve adopting a child or getting married. Basically, my ten-year plan was to die quietly and make a few people rich,” joked Carl.
“Let’s not joke about that,” Cheryl replied sternly.
“Its my dark humor, I am sorry. I know this is rough on you learning all this about me and now taking on Myra. I will try to be more delicate about my situation,” said Carl.
“I’m just finding myself not wanting to loose either of you. I am sensitive to it, just keep down the dark humor and do not use it in front of Myra, I am sure she will not understand. It is a defense mechanism, I know, I helps you, but it does not help me,” said Cheryl.
The tea kettle started to lightly whistle as Cheryl got up and took it off the heat. She pulled down two cups and poured the hot water into them. They sat drinking their tea silently, looking at each other. Cheryl grabbed Carl’s hand and squeezed it. They both smiled. It was nearing ten at night and they both heard some light scrambling from the hallway to Myra’s room
“How much do you think she heard,” asked Cheryl getting up.
“Well hopefully nothing about her father’s suicide. I didn’t hear her get up at all. Do you want to go to her room and check on her or should I,” Carl asked?
“I’ll look in on her, it is my turn anyhow. Do you like the tea, it is one specially made to help people sleep,” asked Cheryl?
“I’m not usually a tea drinker, but I could get used to this,” replied Carl.
“We sell it at the shop, but I get a good employee discount on it so its not that expensive. Don’t fall asleep just yet,” said Cheryl as she went to Myra’s room. She opened the door to the bedroom slightly and stood at the door listening for Myra’s breathing.
“Are you awake sweet girl, Carl and I are just talking. Did you want to come to the kitchen and sit with us,” asked Cheryl testing to see if Myra was awake. She heard a little bit of whimpering from Myra. “Okay sweetie, you can come to the kitchen if you want and talk with us.”
Cheryl left the door slightly open and returned to the kitchen and sat down with Carl who was yawning.
“I think she may have heard the last bit that we were talking about, the stuff with you. I think it would be a good idea if you sat her down and talked about the episodes you have, maybe not the tumor. She may be identifying with you and think that she may die because of the episodes and that can scare kids,” said Cheryl.
“I’ll sit her down probably on Sunday when things quiet down. Do you want to be there for that discussion,” asked Carl?
“Yeah, I think that would be best. We can show a united front and that you aren’t scared and she needn’t be scared either. Kids can pick up on fear like animals. I think we just leave her be tonight, she is whimpering a little bit but she should be fine,” said Cheryl.
They finished their tea and both Carl and Cheryl were exhausted. Cheryl went tot eh bathroom and got herself ready for bed. Carl went back to the couch and pulled up the blankets and turned on the music channel for the TV.
“I know, Grover Bechet again, but I am choosing a different genre of music, lets see you play low-fi techno you bastard,” said Carl to the TV as he switched music channels. Grover did not play on the channel and Carl started to drift off.
“What did you say Carl,” asked Cheryl who had walked into the living room when she heard Carl speak?
“Just telling a ghost to bite it, nothing much. I am putting on some soft music so I can sleep and Myra has something to distract her,” said Carl.
Cheryl went back to the bathroom to finish up. She made sure to leave the light on for anyone who needed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and headed to Carl’s bedroom which was fast becoming her bedroom. She climbed into bed and pulled up the sheets and drifted off to sleep. Carl was not that far behind her when he started the tell tale deep breathing and floated off to his dreams.
Reaching Out
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