Free The Blueprint by Jeannette Barron Page B

He would disappear for large chunks of the day doing whatever it was he did while she reviewed and investigated the treasure trove of materials that circulated through the department.  It turned out that she had a real knack for keeping him and the department organized.  While still a lowly student employee, she’d witnessed Simon run off three assistants.  None of them could tolerate the lack of leadership or his quirkiness.  He didn’t have the interest or inclination for training an assistant, and Government Documents was a beast entirely its own with hundreds of thousands of documents cataloged and filed with its own complicated numbering system.  He seemed to know where everything could be found even in his office with the mountains of papers, but didn’t care to explain his methods.  Over four years, Lily had the time and opportunity to learn by doing and greatly appreciated the independence of the work.  After the last assistant left six months ago, she took over the position, and Simon made room in his overactive brain to learn her name.  A month later her promotion became official.
    Pulling up to McDonald’s in her beat up rusty red Pinto, Lily spotted Simon jogging in place near a dumpster.  Seeing him with his too short shorts, pasty white legs, and blue sweatband, she couldn’t help but laugh.  This is the smartest man I know .  She honked at him, and he looked over, suddenly remembering his predicament. 
    Scrunching his tall skinny body into her tiny car, Simon said, “Thanks for coming.  You got here fast.”
    “You’re only five minutes from campus, Simon.  It took me longer to walk to my car than to drive here.  What threw you off the path this time?”
    Eyes glazing slightly , he began, “There was this dog running down the opposite side of the street and as I watched it run I was trying to figure out where a fifth leg would go and how that would affect the dog’s speed and gait.  Once I determined that evolution got it right and legs should always come in pairs, I didn’t recognize the street I was on.”  Beaming like a little boy who had survived some grand adventure, he added, “But I did recognize this McDonald’s and the statue of Ronald in desperate need of a surgical intervention.”
    “Your mind works in interesting ways.”
    “Yes, it does.  So who did you leave in charge?”
    “Kim’s covering the desk until we get back.”
    “Who?”
    “You know my roommate, Kim, cute little blonde, always smiling, real friendly.  She started at the beginning of the semester.  You’ve met her a hundred times.”
    “I thought her name was Stephanie.” He contemplated and then shrugged.  “Anyway, what’s on my agenda for this afternoon?”
    “You have a lunch meeting with the Dean to discuss construction on the library expansion.”
    Simon plunged his fingers through his poofy curls with an intensity that might easily explain his receding hair line, a familiar gesture he often repeated when his position required him to do something he disliked, like meeting with the Dean.  “That sounds fascinating.  Was I supposed to prepare something?”
    “No, just listen.”
    “That’s easier said than done.”
     
    Lily lived with her roommate, Kim, in the aging neglected area west of campus where students rented dilapidated houses for cheap.  They'd found a two bedroom rickety shack six blocks from the university with so much chipped paint the house appeared to be molting.  Thrilled to live off campus, they gladly sacrificed clean and reliable dorm life for their own bedrooms and total independence.  They blew what cash they could spare at thrift stores, decorating their space with color and oddities.  Their agreed upon mission: to procure for themselves the gaudiest of home furnishings.  Nothing matched other than in its outrageousness.  A competition to see who could bring home the ugliest stuff was instituted.  The big winner so far was Lily and her beloved couch