360
PARTISAN REVIEW
saw the funny side of life ; when was the last time they ' d had a good
ho ho together? no, she was always, what? grim? serious at any rate ,
intense , pitched past every la ti do they'd so far found a line for,
prim . Pris .
: sy. Cold. Patronizing. She gave him the length of her
nose , not a hair-not a fart-from her quim . Ha. Ha ha. Flighty.
Notional. Picky. Poky too. Thin. A shoe stirred ever slightly beneath
the level of the rug. Was it his? Step on a slat, make your mother fat.
Five , six, pull your pricks . Why did he remember that? His memory
was mostly reluctance . And then she was always so sickly . Sickness in a
skinny woman is particularly ... . Splaugh. What would happen?
malnutrition? cancer? kidney failure, then? Cold . Consider it :
ummmmmm. What could he do? Die . Live. I just don ' t know. Head–
strong but bowelweak. Ran in the family . Distant . Cold . Hearthard
but tummyten dee. Normal, then . Cold . While I only wanted . ...
What was it, I once wanted? honey in the comb? Still , I wish,
Me.
Hess
said.. . . Anyhow , Ella , really, I wish you wou .
