Free Geezer Paradise by Robert Gannon Page B

high.  When the job was finished, he crawled back outside.  He took a red crayon outta his pocket an' wrote, The Night Stalker on the side of the trailer.  Then he picked up his backpack an' stepped over the foundation blocks that were scattered across the grass.
                  It were important that the blocks stayed right where they were fer the plan to work.  An after he got ridd'a McGee, he'd git ridd'a McGee's buddy, Willey, next door.  Then he'd finally git his reward.  He moved off inta the shadows again and headed fer the park's rear gate, where he come in.  Now all he had ta do was wait.  The Night Stalker was pooped.  He was goin' home and straight ta bed.
    ****
     
                  I knew it was time to face the Electric Company.  The last couple of overdue notices had been quite nasty.  You can only ignore their notices for so long.  They're not supposed to shut off your electricity.  That would mean no air conditioning.  In South Florida, in August, that could be deadly.  But they keep sending those notices.  I drove down 19A and turned into the Citrus Bay Electric Company's parking lot.  I parked and went inside.  I had my checkbook in my pocket and the overdue notice in my hand.  I walked up to the reception desk, gave my name, and sat down to wait my turn.  I was hoping they would let me pay half of what I owed.  I looked around at my fellow debtors.  They were a sorry looking lot.  The worst part was, most of them were better dressed than I was. 
                  When I finally got into the office there was a boney, old woman waiting for me behind a desk.  The nameplate told me her name was Agatha.  She motioned me to a chair.  I sat down and waited while she read my rap sheet. 
                  "I see you've had trouble paying your bill in the past, Mister McGee."  She had a smoker's voice.  "And, as you know, you're payments are in arrears at the present time."
                  "Well, sometimes it's hard trying to live on a pension," I whined. 
                  "That may be true," Mister McGee, but that isn't the Electric Company's fault, is it?"
                  "No, I suppose not," I said.  "But I can pay half of the bill today, and the rest of it in two weeks when I get my check.  Then I'll be almost caught up."
                  "No Mister Mc Gee.  Then you'll owe half of your last bill and the next bill on top of that."  Then she proceeded to stare me down.  She didn't know who she was dealing with.  I've stared down the best of them.  It turned into a Mexican Standoff.  Then she threw me a curve ball.  She put her tongue under her lower plate and pushed it up so it sat on her lower lip.  It distracted me so much I forgot my list of excuses.  She wasn't playing fair.  I was about to plead for more time, when she slid her lower plate back and popped her top plate onto her lower lip.  I almost cracked. 
                  She returned her teeth to their proper place and said, "Mister McGee, you've been making partial payments for almost a year and you keep falling further behind," she said.   
                  "I understand," I said, "But I . . ."   She popped both plates together onto her bottom lip.  The effect was so startling my mind went blank.  I couldn't think.  Knowing I was out-matched, I reached for my checkbook and wrote a check for the full amount.  It wouldn't leave me with much to live on for the next two weeks, but I just couldn't take any more.  I had heard stories about elderly people living on peanut butter sandwiches for weeks at a time.  If they could do it, I could do it, too.  And if I suffered a little brain damage because of it, nobody would notice the difference. 
                  I handed her the check.  "There you are," I said.  As I got up to leave she asked, "Are you married, Mister