The Part Time People by Tom Lichtenberg, Benhamish Allen Read Free Book Online Page B

then he paused as if considering his next words carefully. “But you know,” he finally said, “It isn't required of anybody in this life that they devote themselves to helping other people. It's just like when you read the paper, everybody's got an opinion about everything, and there's no one who ever said that it's required of everyone to have an opinion. It's not, and it's not required that any one do this or that or anything. So I don't feel obligated to continue with the kind of work I've done. If I want to change, well, why shouldn't I change? And anyway, all I know is death. People who don't have any problems with death, well, I can't really help them.” Jim laughed, and said,
     
    “I mean, if they're worrying about losing weight or something, what the hell do I care? It's none of my business. And if they're worried that their girlfriend doesn't love them anymore, that's none of my business either. If they think they're going nuts because of all the changes in the interest rates, there's nothing I can do for them. I just know soldiers’ problems, killing and being killed, waking up in the middle of the night stuck in mud up to your head, bombs are going off and all your buddies' bones are stacking up beside you. I can deal with that. But I don't want to any more. You know what it is?” He laughed again, “It’s just morbid. I don't know how I ever got myself into all that stuff.”
     
    Mike was nodding the whole time he spoke, and Joe was chewing on a pencil, listening intently but not knowing what to make of all of this. It was what he wanted, to hear about all this stuff, that's why he'd called him in. What am I supposed to say? he asked himself, tell him about the hours? After all of that? Well, war and death and bombs is very nice, but can you work from four to eight on Thursdays? It seemed ridiculous. What is this man doing here? he asked himself. What’s going on? He was trying to find the words to phrase his question, when Jim asked him,
     
    “How come I see that sign out there so often?”
     
    “What sign?” Joe asked.
     
    “That Help Wanted sign. I walk by this store every day, and I could swear I've seen that sign out there at least half a dozen times in the past two years. What's the story? No one sticks around?”
     
    It was Mike who answered, “We’ve had some trouble in the past getting part time help. It just seems that everyone we get turns out to be some kind of a flake or worse.”
     
    “You ought to be more careful who you hire,” Jim said. “There's a lot of nuts out there. I know. I have to deal with them all the time.”
     
    Mike shrugged, and Jim went on. “Well, I know how it is, he said. There’s a kind of fascination with the strange, you know? Sometimes I've fallen into it myself. You see them all around and you just wonder, what are they really like? You want to get up closer, get a better view.”
     
    “It's not like that,” Joe blurted out. He was getting angry now, and he didn't know why. “It just happened. They seemed all right to me. They needed a job and they seemed all right and so I hired them. They only got weird later.”
     
    Jim nodded, and said, “It’s nothing to be embarrassed about. It's like I said. Sometimes you want to watch them, see what they're about. It makes you feel more normal,” Jim went on, if you've got some lunatics around.”
     
    “I don't know what you're talking about.” Joe said, “And anyway, all this has nothing to do with the job and why you're here.”
     
    “Oh, right, the job,” Jim laughed, “I forgot all about it. I just got carried away, you know, sitting around, shooting the breeze, it's nice. I like it here.
     
    Mike said, “I still don't get it. There's got to be a place for a guy like you, somewhere you can use your training and your skills.”
     
    “I'm sure there is,” he laughed, “But I don't want to use them anymore. I want to just get out of it completely. You know, this helping business