God I Hate...

Dennis Johnson

English Comp111-70F

June12, 2005

God I Hate…

God, I hate getting up this early. But I only got three months left; then I’ll never have to get up early again. Three more months and this time I graduate. Dads doing pretty good on the railroad job now. Hasn’t been laid off for a couple of years now. David is doing good in the Navy, and my future at Taco Bell is almost a guarantee. Don’t know why this diploma shit is so important to everyone, I’m making 165.00 a week now and I’m only 18! That’s better than some factories and I don’t work as hard as they do. If I wasn’t going to this dumbass high school everyday; I’ll bet I could make 200 or even 225 dollars a week. They’d let me work. I’m the best employee they got. Someday I’ll own Taco Bell.

“Okay! Okay! I’m up damn it!” I yell at Mom as I stare at the clock. Jesus! She didn’t graduate, and she did okay. If she only knew how badly I hated that place! Nothing was the same as it was when I was a kid. Teachers taught for the money. They don’t give a damn about us at all. Suddenly all the guys I’d grown up with were “black”. That means they can’t be seen hanging with me because I’m now “white bread”. Don’t remember it bothering them when I’d spend the night at their house or they’d stay over at mine. Now I’m part of the race that owned and sold them. Go figure. I never owned a slave. Near as I could tell, no one in my families past had ever owned one either. Oh well, timed to get ready. School starts in 30 minutes. Mom is already to take me. I think she gets off pissing me off. Was I supposed to do some homework for today? Oh well, tough shit. They’ll get it when I give it to them. Now where are my jeans?

God its cold! I hate mornings. I hate school. I hate the teachers. I hate most of the students. Why did I ever go back? Mom is taking me to school in her bathrobe again! Now ain’t that a cool look! Dingy pink nylon. Oh God! She even has the fuzzy pink slipper on! Oh this is a lovely sight. Pulling up to Marion High in a 1972 Ford station wagon driven by a crazy woman dressed in a nightgown and slippers! And pink, raggedy ones at that! Dad could get a better car now; but will he? No! Instead he just keeps using this piece of shit. I hope he doesn’t end up giving this rust bucket to me. Me and Larry Couchman would have to take it to the cliffs and let it go over. God I hate this car! At least it drives; barely. I hope she remembers to stop at Standard. I’m almost out of Marlboros’.

Marion is such a hellhole! God I hate it! There’s nothing to do here. They got rid of Custer’s Last Stand and are building a Sambos there now. Like anyone will want breakfast at two o clock in the morning! What a waste. Now they are talking about a Mall where Grants’ used to be. What a waste of space. Emily’s is selling out to Duffs. And the Smorgasbord is now the FBI. “Hey Mom, don’t forget to stop at Bobs so I can get some smokes.” “You need a pack too?” “I got em.” “You know, if they keep raising the damn things, everyone will have to quit.” “I won’t buy em if they go over a .85 cent a pack. They just aint worth it.” Smoking is the only thing they can’t scare me into stopping.

How come when you really like something, they tell you it’s bad for you? Cars have to run this new “unleaded” shit in them now. Motors need lead to work right. There saying chicken and pork and hotdogs are bad for you now too. Chicken don’t matter to me anyway. Since that summer at Aunt Wanda’s, I haven’t eaten chicken since then. Thank God you still have beef and cheese you can eat. Otherwise we’d all have to become vegetarians! And God knows I hate vegetables; so I’d probably die!

Damn! We’re almost there. She just passed Kmart. Four hours. That’s all you got Dennis. Four friggin hours. I wish some of these places, like Burger King, would open earlier. Then I could get lunch for breakfast. That would be so bad! “Hey Mom, Let me out across from the school, okay? That way, since I have a few minutes, I can finish my Cigarette before I go in Thanks.” God I hate this place. Why is always so damn cold in the morning. When I become rich in a few years, I’m going to buy a house in Arizona. That way I don’t care how damn cold it gets here, I’ll be warm. I’ll live right by the desert and find fossils and geodes and antiques and stuff and run a Taco Bell too. I’ll be in heaven! Marion will probably be a ghost town by then, anyway. “This is cool Mom. See ya at 11:00.”

Did anyone see me get out of that piece of shit? No? Good. I still got about 10 minutes till I got to be in class. As long as I stand over here and smoke, no one can say crap. They can’t