The Start of Something

These are the first two paragraphs of a three page paper I am almost done writing. It will be the first of many in my Hemingway class. Enjoy.

My father is a misogynist. I forgive this unconditionally and it is perhaps my forgiveness of my father that facilitates my forgiveness of Hemingway. Properly, it was my father who first introduced me to Hemingway's work. He came home one day with a copy of The Short Stories. He asked me to read “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”. When I finished the story his first question was if I had realized that Mrs.Macomber killed her husband intentionally. In typical Hemingway fashion, I didn't answer. Well she did, he said. This is how women are. He shook his head seriously. They want to emasculate us; if they can't, they want to lodge bullets two inches up and a little to one side of the bases of our skulls.

Livid, I refused to believe that Hemingway thought all women were evil. I respect and wish to emulate his work. How could he think women were emasculating wenches wielding weapons akin to Lorena Bobbitt's kitchen knife, in the form of a 6.5 Mannlicher and words like “Dear” and “Darling”? More importantly, how could I, a woman, say I find such a man's work fascinating? Presented with this dilemma, I find myself reading Hemingway on a treasure hunt for hints. Perhaps Hemingway didn't despise women, I tell myself. He just didn't understand us.

Sans eyes, sans teeth, sans café!

Not even nine A.M. and i've not got a drop of coffee in me.

Though I have 30 minutes of git-tar practicing on that looovely picnic bench outside my office. Trying to learn "The Spanish Ballad". I'm getting there. It's so simple, but even the simplest of songs take a while to learn.

I've had two classes of Hemingway. Berman is warming up to me again, I hope. I think he is still pissed. Being as I have to spend two hours with him every day, I sure hope his passive agressivity...passes. I understand he's ticked about having to fail me last summer. But here I am, trying to set things right. I need good vibes from him to make it work.

Lot's of reading to do every night. Lots of work to do every day. Lord, I just want to graduate.

I have a ton of laundry to do. Work is slow, and i've just asked my boss for an hour upgrade to 30 hours a week, or a downgrade to 15 so I can get a second job and pay rent.

Cause right now I can't even afford a cup of coffee, gorsh-damnit.