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Matt Hein / Journal / WeekThree / | |
| Week Three, Ambitions Even though the amber and vermillion hues of the fall months had began to set into the city, a prelude to the lonely and frost bitten months which lie ahead, it seemedto me as though essence of vivacity of the previous summer months still remained amongst the city. But my morale was coasting on a rollercoaster once again. pulled down by the gravity of reality. Let’s face it, paperwork is menial. Relationships with girls are rocky, every action has a ramification. Week Three, Ambitions. Once again, I found myself sprawled upon my bed in the darkness, a lit cigarette in my mouth and the only light source besides the faint glow of the tobacco the pale radiance of the night sky, illuminated partly by the two silver and pallid moons, which sat innocuous. My eyes tired from my duties as archivist, and the dreaded lull of sleep beckoning me, dragging me at my feet, I attempted to fight it, but the victory seemed false, hollow. Even with the azure convection lampr overhead alight, I knew once again the caffeine had failed me. “Alas, guess my overtime caught up with me again...” I thought, taking a seat at my table and procuring a bottle of Straight Whiskey, pouring myself a glass. Over the last few weeks, I have developed a stronger penchant for drinking, one which seemed revived from the earlier days of my childhood, ones during the years of war on the streets btween government forces and Antioch. To this day, I still can’t see why I wasn’t a casualty. Fate, perhaps? Whatever the cause, I decided not to ponder over it. I had a long night ahead of me to pour over archival files, sorting documents, recalling others and following the nearly endless paper trails into the rocky ocean of red ink. Quickly finishing my first glass, my mouth burning and eyes watering from its concentration, I proceeded to fill yet another glass, a ritual so often repeated it seemed as though my liquor ‘cabinet’, concealed from government view, was a secondary shrine to my office, a place to escape, to ponder. But like all temporary furloughs, I was called back into duty at the sound of my name from the general office, as I slipped the bottle of liquor back under the hardwood floor, and sorted arbitrarily through several scattered file folders. “Osprey? There you are!” A young lass called to me, stepping into the room to spot me ‘rearranging’ several files. “The administrator called. He needs to see a file listed under ‘Adanne’.” “I’ll get to it shortly...” I replied, checking my PDF unit for several mesages. “He needs the file rather quickly, Osprey.” “Why is he so rushed? Isn’t this a matter that should wait until overnight?” “An overnight matter would be a demerit, Osprey.” Once again, another curt reply from my secretary. For some reason, she had a penchant for witty retorts, particularly at me. Pulling out one of the Intelligence folders, I procured the file and handed it to her, a pleased look upon her face. “Thirty one seconds...not bad, Osprey.” She spoke, walking back off into the administrative office. “Oh, and you have a guest...” My heart sank at her velediction, as I remembered fondly the last guest which ‘graced’ my presence; a colonel in the military, one man which found a particular joy in shouting commands, orders, and drew from a refined taste of insults. I prayed somewhat a commander wouldn’t return, but was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar face, gentle, suave. My casual girlfriend, Kariss. “My my, Osprey...hard at work as always, aren’t you? I see your secretary was petunalt as always...” “Don’t mind her, she’s just jealous due to the fact she’s ancillary to me. What brings you here, Kariss?” “My lonliness for you, life, passion. You know, the usual.” She spoke, as the adjusted her starched collar above her breastline. She looked genteel as usual in her military suit. “I’ve got a backlog of filing again... if you’re insisting on a date, I don’t believe now is the most reasonable time...” “What? And work is more appealing to you? When was the last time we went on a date? You know, normal couples...” Once again, she hit a chord. She always had some reason that started with ‘normal couples fill in the blank’. Not entirely compelling, but oddly reasonable. “Where do you suggest?” I asked, as she pulled out a small piece of paper, handing it to me. “One the borders of the sky_sphere, you know, towards the mist. The state created a reserve to match the terra.” “A biological reserve, you mean? I’ve heard of those...they’re used to incubate foreign species...” I spoke, recalling an article I had read several years ago, which talked about terrestrial warfare training exercises, performed in reserves. “Actually, this is a civilian reserve... remember when we went there during the fifth rank for our nature studies seven years ago?” “When Dash fried that kimodo dragon by accident. Yeah, the professor was pretty ticked...” “I want to go back again, just without the crowd...you know, for old times sake.” “I guess...but not now...as I said, I have a backlog of work, and little time granted by the state for presonal affairs.” “I’ll ask father for a temporary furlough. I’m sure he’ll comply.” “Heh, you’re using your position for personal gain. Watch out, some may label that as a conflict of interest.” “I have my methods, Osprey. Just give it time and patience. All I need is an answer.” “Look, Kariss. the creed of my position is duty before personal gain. My administrator wants the first section of these incoming files electronically catalogued by next week.” “Oh, come off it, Osprey...if you get too attached to duty, you’ll become a cynic like everyone else encompassing the administration. If you want to stay young, to fly you need to sprout wings, to take that step of fidelity and jump off the cliff of dity and catch the breeze.” She spoke, with a poetic sense, her deep sepia eyes nearly hypnotic. But once again, I couldn’t resist her argument. It seemed spontaneous poetry had a sort of attraction which undeniably swayed my decisions. “Ask Aurant for a reprieve...” I replied, resuming my work of entering data into my PDF. “Oh, I neglected to mention. Dash, Rose and Luca expressed interest as well.” “I thought you wanted to avoid the crowd?” “Heh, ever concerned, aren’t you Osprey? Let’s leave this forsaken place for the time being and grab a coffee... you look fatigued...” “Osprey?” Kariss asked, as I looked to her with passion, smiling. And then I answered her request. Other links of interest. |
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