Free The Tao of Apathy by Thomas Cannon

be
on third.”
    “ What will be on the second and
third floors? And what will be on the first floor for the
matter?”
    “ No. WHAT is only on the second
floor. Please just discuss WHAT will be on second.”
    “ Why?”
    “ WHY will be on the third
floor.”
    “ Why?”
    “ Yes. It will be on the third
floor. I know-the third floor. You are thinking why WHY on the
third floor, but it makes sense.”
    “ What makes sense?”
    “ I value your input, Mr. Freedman.
But it doesn’t make sense to put WHAT on the third
floor.”
    “ What will be on the third
floor?”
    “ Don’t take that tone with me, Mr.
Skinner. We can discuss putting WHAT on the third floor, but don’t
tell me who is going on the third floor.”
    “ WHO is on the first floor,” Mr.
Hall ventured.
    “ Who is on the first
floor?”
    “ Mr. Hall just said that, Mr.
Swine. Please pay attention.”
    “ What are we talking
about?”
    “ Don’t try to fake that you were
paying attention. We were talking about WHAT and WHO and
WHY.”
    “ Screw you, Petty.”
    “ How did you hear about my pet
project? It’s not even included in these remodeling plans. My Skin
Cancer Resource and Effective Waiting with Unity will be on a
separate site.”
    “ Why?”
    “ No. SCREWWU will be on a separate
site.”
    “ Screw you, Petty.”
    “ That’s right.”

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter 14
     
    Bigger sat in Seuss’s office with Seuss and
someone he didn’t know that was his immediate supervisor. She was
the new team guider for the kitchen, replacing Ester’s supervisor
position. Ester was demoted, but because she had topped out on of
her pay scale fifteen years ago, she got to keep her close to eight
dollar an hour pay. She also continued on with all of her duties.
So the Team Guider’s workload was rather light, but some would say
still important. Although she had never worked in a kitchen, she
had a B.S. in Nutrition, fiery red hair and a slim
figure.
    “ I don’t know why I thought you
would like me dyeing my hair white, but I did,” Bigger explained
with tears in his eyes and a pounding in his skull. “It seemed like
a good idea last night. I am trying to do right, Mr. Seuss.
Ma’am.”
    Seuss did not believe Bigger’s story or his
tears and he did not manage his department on emotions, but on
carefully spelled out rules. One of the rules he had created for
himself was to never fire someone who was crying. The second rule
he had was never fire someone when the new baker hadn’t shown up in
the last three days. “Okay, just go back to work then.” Seuss would
also have asked his new team guider if she had anything to add, but
he couldn’t remember her name either.
     
    Bigger went out the Butt Hutt to talk to Joe.
A cold, fierce wind hit him as he walked across the small lawn to
the yellowed door. It was about to storm and darker out than when
he had gotten into work. Joe was in his usual corner of the cold,
dark and stained room. But it surprised Bigger to see an extremely
fat man with as many chins as he had wrinkles on his forehead at a
table, and Father Chuck sitting in the back corner looking like he
was going to kill someone. Things have definitely changed around
here, Bigger thought. Father usually doesn’t come in here until his
mid-morning toot of whiskey.
    Joe was smoking and talking with Dan from the
Audio/Visual Department. Dan was the specialist who handled all the
filming and video taping needs of the hospital with only one
assistant. Lately, when Dan was not bemoaning his work schedule, he
was asking for advice about his bride of eight months. That was
being married just long enough to realize he was doomed, but not
long enough to accept it. For these reasons, Bigger knew it didn’t
matter if he interrupted Joe.
    Joe kicked a chair across the room and paced
angrily.
    “ Nice clothes, hair and face,
Bigger,” Joe said in a dissipating growl. “Why are you crying,
Bigger? Are you that hung over?” Joe looked at