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Lounged, slice, knot—3WW–you have your choice of two fiction stories

March 22, 2007 By pia

Buffy Holt who is one of the best writer/bloggers I know, sister will be walking the Susan Komen Walk to stop breast cancer. Please read Buffy’s post. It’s very moving and very needed.

There will be a new Courting shortly. It will be way different yet similar. This is my last post until the new blog. I am so out of here–it’s 65 degrees.

There’s a less depressing one below this. I had consumed the better part of a bottle of wine when I wrote the post below. I actually still like it. This is me hung over.
She was lonely. When he left he had told her that she was both a pity f–k and a pity friend.

She had come to New York for him. Helped him get established. He had thought that as soon as he arrived in New York, his star would shine and he would be discovered.

They never lounged around. She went from gallery to gallery with photos of his work. She bought the loft that they lived in and he worked in. Of course she put it in his name. It was the 1950’s. The bank told her that she needed him to cosign though she put down the deposit and mortgage payments. The bank strongly advised that they keep it in his name. She put the money in the bank, and he signed the checks.

She was a temp, going from law firm to law firm, wherever they needed legal secretaries to work the graveyard shift.

She trusted him to use her money wisely. In her heart she knew that the investments were foolish. Legal secretaries made good money, but he could spend money so quickly. He told her that he was spending for success. He told her that one day they would live in riches and glory.

In high school and college people had raved about his canvases. She knew one day he would make it.

After two decades she was tired. Her legs would be swollen from making the rounds during the day. Her eyes were tired from pouring over legal documents at night, and writing the press releases he demanded of her.

She was tired of cooking for his ever expanding group of friends. She was just tired. So tired of trying. But they had come to New York for his career and he was confident that tomorrow he would be discovered.

One day in the mid 1970’s, a reviewer from The New York Times came, and just like that his career took off.

He found a younger version of her, and kicked her out of the loft. She had never thought to have a bank account in her own name. When she tried to access it, all the money was gone.

She had no family, no real friends to advise or help her. Just a furnished room at the Y. She felt too old and too ugly to begin again.

The Judge awarded him almost everything. The Judge explained that their assets had been comingled for too long. Since he signed the checks and the loft was in his name, the judge would only give her a small slice.

One day she looked at the bare light bulb on the ceiling of her room and wondered if the rope would stay hung and the knot in place.

Later her life and court hearing would be taught in womens studies classes in universities, and in law schools. Later was too late.

I should explain that women really didn’t have many rights in the 70’s and prior to that.

Women who were getting divorced and comingled assets with their husbands usually couldn’t afford a good enough lawyer to prove that the assets were hers–or that she contributed to the upkeep–and I’m not talking housework etc

There’s an All in the family where Edith tried to get a loan to buy Archie a present and had to have him cosign it.

We owe women who paved the way for our “freedoms” that we take for granted, much. I did get married in the early 70’s–was very young. Didn’t take my husband’s name and to get a joint checking account–for household expenses–had to show the license. To get a good apartment–had to show the license

But that was nothing compared to woman who worked themselves frazzled to help their husbands achieve and were tossed out for a younger model.

Filed Under: Fiction

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Comments

  1. Traveling Chica says

    March 22, 2007 at 2:24 pm

    I’m not sure if this line When he left he had told her that she was both a pity f–k and a pity friend. or the last line is the saddest in this piece.

    Was later too late? Only if she let it be.

  2. TonyG says

    March 22, 2007 at 4:49 pm

    This makes me wonder just how many stories like “hers” are out there 🙁

    Well done, as usual. You highlight something I didn’t think about or know much about, talking about women having to have their husbands co-sign and such in those days.

  3. actonbell says

    March 22, 2007 at 7:23 pm

    Great post, Pia. You managed to do so much more than just weave three words into a fictional piece.

  4. sage says

    March 22, 2007 at 7:57 pm

    sad story–the ending kind of hit home–the studying of her case in law school but it was too late. I remember studying cases a law class and seeing the injustices that were upheld by supreme court and it seemed so wrong. Good job writing!

  5. Alice says

    March 22, 2007 at 10:30 pm

    Sometimes I just have to read and not coment.

  6. Alice says

    March 22, 2007 at 10:31 pm

    Sometimes I just have to read and not comment.

  7. Alex says

    March 23, 2007 at 1:01 am

    Blog posts are invariably better when drunk./

  8. Buffy says

    March 23, 2007 at 6:27 pm

    Sorry Pia dear, I know this isn’t really the place for it. And you’re welcome to delete this link after you’ve read it…but I’m asking all my blogger favourites to have a look at my lastest post…and, if they feel moved or have the space for it to blog a one line link…

    My sister is part of the ‘Crew’. They usually have until the fall to raise money. This year they just have until June.

    Thanks!!
    B.

  9. Doug says

    March 24, 2007 at 7:22 am

    THat’s politics done well, with a well-written story. I’m looking forward to the new version.

  10. jacob says

    March 24, 2007 at 11:37 am

    Can’t wait to see the new version.

    Nice piece today.

  11. Bone says

    March 24, 2007 at 11:50 am

    Changing one’s blog template is not a decision to be entered into lightly. It’s not like changing one’s toothbrush.

    That being said, I’ve heard great things about the new Courting. It’s going to be like the Sonicare Elite of blog templates!

  12. Al says

    March 25, 2007 at 9:35 am

    “Very different yet similar.”

    Only you, Pia.

    Great story, too.

  13. Tricia says

    March 25, 2007 at 2:33 pm

    Wow. That is potent.

  14. G says

    March 27, 2007 at 11:13 am

    Wow, I got lost on this being 3 WW, amazing.

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About Me

I live in the South, not South Florida, a few blocks from the ocean, and two blocks from the main street. It's called Main Street. Amazes me too.

I'm from New York. I mostly lived in the Mid-Upper East Side, and the heart of the Upper West Side. It amazes me when people talk about how scared they were of Times Square in the 1970's and 1980's.

As my mother said: "know the streets, look out and you'll be fine."

What was scary was the invasion of the crack dens into "good buildings in good 'hoods." And the greedy landlords who did everything they could to get good tenants out of buildings.

I'm a Long Island girl, and proud of it now.
Then I hated everything about the suburbs. Yet somehow I lived in a few great Long Island Sound towns after high school.

Go to archives "August 2004" if you want to begin with the first posts.

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