Hey Nostradamus! By Douglas Coupland

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Part Three 2002: Heather Part Four 2003: Reg A Note on the Author Part One 1988: Cheryl I believethat what separates humanity from everything else in this world - spaghetti, binder paper, deep-sea creatures, edelweiss and Mount McKinley - is that humanity alone has the capacity at any given moment to commit all possible sins. Even those of us who try to live a good and true life remain as far away from grace as the Hillside Strangler or any demon who ever tried to poison the village well. What happened that morning only confirms this. It was a glorious fall morning. The sun burned a girly pink over the mountain ranges to the west, and the city had yet to generate its daily smog blanket. Before driving to school in my little white Chevette, I went into the living room and used my father's telescope to look down at the harbor, as smooth as mercury, and on its surface I could see the moon dimming over East Vancouver. And then I looked up into the real sky and saw the moon on the cusp of being overpowered by the sun. My parents had already gone to work, and my brother, Chris, had left for swim team hours before. The Page 2
house was quiet - not even a clock ticking - and as I opened the front door, I looked back and saw some gloves and unopened letters on the front hallway desk. Beyond them, on the living room's gold carpet, were some discount warehouse sofas and a lamp on a side table that we never used because the light bulb always popped when we switched it on. It was lovely, all that silence and all that calm order, and I thought how lucky I was to have had a good home. And then I turned and walked outside. I was already a bit late, but I was in no hurry. Normally I used the garage door, but today I wanted a touch of formality. I had thought that this morning would be my last truly innocent glance at my childhood home - not because of what really ended up happening, but because of another, smaller drama that was supposed to have unfolded. I'm glad that the day was as quiet and as average as it was. The air was see-your-breath chilly, and the front lawn was crunchy with frost, as though each blade had been batter fried. The brilliant blue and black Steller's jays were raucous and clearly up to no good on the eaves trough, and because of the frost, the leaves on the Japanese maples had been converted into stained-glass shards. The world was unbearably pretty, and it continued being so all the way down the mountain to school. I felt slightly high because of the beauty, and the inside of my head tickled. I wondered if this is how artists go through life, with all of its sensations tickling their craniums like a peacock feather. * * * I was the last to park in the school's lot. That's always such an uneasy feeling no matter how together you think you are — being the last person there, wherever there may be. I was carrying four large binders and some textbooks, and when I tried shutting the Chevette's door, it wouldn't close properly. I tried slamming it with my hip, but that didn't work; it only made the books spray all over the pavement. But I didn't get upset. Inside the school, classes were already in session and the hallways were as silent as the inside of my house, and I thought to myself, What a day for silence. I needed to go to my locker before class, and as I was working my combination lock, Jason came up from behind. "Boo." "Jason — don't do that. Why aren't you in class?" "I saw you parking, so I left." "You just walked out?" "Forget about that, Miss Priss. Why were you being so weird on the phone last night?" "I was being weird?" "Jesus, Cheryl - don't act like your airhead friends." Page 3
Page 1: Hey Nostradamus! By Douglas Couplan
Page 5 and 6: I said, "Let's talk about it at hom
Page 7 and 8: Dear God, Remove the blood from the
Page 9 and 10: My family didn't know what to make
Page 11 and 12: Dear God, What's hardest here is th
Page 13 and 14: The important thing is that we were
Page 15 and 16: only indicate Your absence - that f
Page 17 and 18: outfits must have made us look all
Page 19 and 20: And I did have questions and uneasy
Page 21 and 22: late into the game, I think." "What
Page 23 and 24: didn't hurt, the shooting, and I di
Page 25 and 26: someone who spends her days deliver
Page 27 and 28: ecame ghosts. The only thing that c
Page 29 and 30: It's a bit later again, still here
Page 31 and 32: on a locker's ventilation slits. "L
Page 33 and 34: turned around to me and said, "You
Page 35 and 36: their badge. Another cop looked at
Page 37 and 38: myself reflected in the one remaini
Page 39 and 40: * * * Like anyone, I've seen those
Page 41 and 42: I sat down, while Mom gave Joyce a
Page 43 and 44: Mom said, "Didn't you hear me?" Dad
Page 45 and 46: "Stick a potato in it. Your job, by
Page 47 and 48: "Barb?" "Go now. Because I'll break
Page 49 and 50: the water, and here I am now in my
Page 51 and 52: My main memories of those two weeks
Page 53 and 54:
Just don't screw your life up the w
Page 55 and 56:
was in. What came over me? It was n
Page 57 and 58:
I changed the subject. "How long ar
Page 59 and 60:
In the third week after the massacr
Page 61 and 62:
don't, and they all work so hard -
Page 63 and 64:
Alive! friends look forward to the
Page 65 and 66:
But I was going to say that when it
Page 67 and 68:
"Tell me." "He said, 'Who are we to
Page 69 and 70:
"I've heard of that. More for me, t
Page 71 and 72:
I dropped the rock onto a nearby bo
Page 73 and 74:
But I hadn't killed Yorgo. I stoppe
Page 75 and 76:
* * * I'm in a Denny's in North Van
Page 77 and 78:
"No. Just you." I was confused. I h
Page 79 and 80:
have a carry-on bag? So that some c
Page 81 and 82:
I was going to motion to the elevat
Page 83 and 84:
Saturday afternoon 4:00 I met Jason
Page 85 and 86:
Barb's commuting down the coast, an
Page 87 and 88:
"Heather, how many people are in th
Page 89 and 90:
Okay, Barb's housekeeper will be in
Page 91 and 92:
Oh, Heather, you knew it wouldn't b
Page 93 and 94:
"I'm driving." "So?" I didn't argue
Page 95 and 96:
kitchen table where I picked at the
Page 97 and 98:
"Wait. Hold on a minute. When you g
Page 99 and 100:
It was becoming windy, and our voic
Page 101 and 102:
Oh. So, um - what are you up to lat
Page 103 and 104:
"Why did he say, 'Oh, I say'?" "Bec
Page 105 and 106:
first disappeared, but which I've s
Page 107 and 108:
What has happened to me? I've gone
Page 109 and 110:
In my peripheral vision I'm also no
Page 111 and 112:
sweater and readying my purse. "Oh,
Page 113 and 114:
morning jobs, and he clocked out ea
Page 115 and 116:
Tuesday afternoon 3:00 I was eating
Page 117 and 118:
"No, I'm not." And he wasn't. Reg h
Page 119 and 120:
"Five thousand dollars." "I figured
Page 121 and 122:
existence. This is when I felt the
Page 123 and 124:
"How could Allison have known such
Page 125 and 126:
Okay then, what did happen? I follo
Page 127 and 128:
Five years ago, before I met Jason,
Page 129 and 130:
Allison didn't like this. "Oh, real
Page 131 and 132:
I was appalled. "How could you use
Page 133 and 134:
eating an egg salad sandwich, when
Page 135 and 136:
We were in the Keg at the foot of L
Page 137:
But I haven't lost you, my son. No
show all

Hey Nostradamus! By Douglas Coupland

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?