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smart, but not a ball of fire. Mom told me once that she fell in love with Dad because he was so laidback and fell out of love with him for the same reason.
The real reason Mom fell out of love with dad is because his laziness almost got Beth killed. She was at a party one night and she called home for a ride, because the girl she went to the party with was too drunk to drive. Mom and Dad had always said, Call for a ride. No questions asked . Mom was asleep, and Dad answered the phone that night. He told Beth to call a cab, because he was too lazy to get off his ass and go get her. He told her he was âreally intoâ the book he was reading. She got a ride with her drunk friend, who ran a red light and got herself killed. They had to use the jaws of life to get Beth out of the car. Her right leg was smashed. She had a concussion. Her pelvis was broken. All because Dad was too lazy to get out of bed. So, I guess you could say sloth kills. It doesnât sound like a deadly sin, but it can be.
Iâve filled a page, and I donât have anything more to say about sloth. I do know which sin Iâm going to tackle next. Itâs the one Iâm feeling right now. Wrath. Iâm so angry, I figure I can tear the fridge rack apart with my teeth. Not that Iâm going to try. Mom would kill me if I wrecked my teeth after she spent so much to have them straightened. I try again to pull the rack apart, but all I manage to do is bend it a little. I slump over the table and rest my head on my arms. Iâm so tired, but before I go to sleep, I need to find a weapon. And I need to âmailâ my essay. I fold the paper in half and slide it through the slot in the door. I press my ear to the slot, but I canât hear anything, not even the sound of the paper falling to the floor on the other side.
I go into the bathroom to wash my face and pee. When I flush the toilet, I have a sudden memory of Dad telling me how to stop the toilet from running. Mom had been asking him to fix it for months. Jiggling the handle had stopped working.
âTake off the tank lid and lift up the rod and float for a few seconds. That should do it,â he said. Thanks for being a lazy bum, Dad.
When I open the tank now, I find a metal rod attached to a float. If I take it apart, the toilet wonât flush. If I donât take it apart, I wonât have a weapon. I separate the rod and the float as carefully as possibleâI want to be able to get it back together when I need to. The rod isnât long or sharp, but I feel stronger holding it. Less afraid. Before I go to bed, I take the pen and scrawl a big DAY 1 on the wall across from the bed. Beside it I write the word SLOTH . Then I draw a tree with a sloth hanging from one of its branches. With the rod clutched in my hand, I crawl into bed. The pot lights dim and I sleep.
Chapter Six
Eric
My mom really should have been an actress, not a CEO. That whole flirty, âoopsie daisyâ thing with the cops? Totally fake. Sheâs not even tipsy, let alone drunk. And sheâs definitely not helpless. Or stupid. She just wanted the cops to think she was. She does that a lot. People (mostly men) underestimate her. They usually regret it.
This is a woman who started a dogwalking business when she was in high school and built it into a hugely successful company. There are DLD franchises all over North America. In case you were wondering, DLD stands for Donna Loves Dogs, the name she picked when she was sixteen. And yes, thereâs a heart in the logo. Mom hasnât touched a dog in years though. Wonât have one in the house. She just sits up in her office and manages her empire. And plays tennis with Axel/Mike.
Now sheâs glaring at me as if Iâve made a mess on the carpet.
âDo I need to call Richard?â she asks.
Richard is Mr. Franks, the lawyer she keeps on retainer. Iâll admit heâs come in handy in the past. But she hasnât
The real reason Mom fell out of love with dad is because his laziness almost got Beth killed. She was at a party one night and she called home for a ride, because the girl she went to the party with was too drunk to drive. Mom and Dad had always said, Call for a ride. No questions asked . Mom was asleep, and Dad answered the phone that night. He told Beth to call a cab, because he was too lazy to get off his ass and go get her. He told her he was âreally intoâ the book he was reading. She got a ride with her drunk friend, who ran a red light and got herself killed. They had to use the jaws of life to get Beth out of the car. Her right leg was smashed. She had a concussion. Her pelvis was broken. All because Dad was too lazy to get out of bed. So, I guess you could say sloth kills. It doesnât sound like a deadly sin, but it can be.
Iâve filled a page, and I donât have anything more to say about sloth. I do know which sin Iâm going to tackle next. Itâs the one Iâm feeling right now. Wrath. Iâm so angry, I figure I can tear the fridge rack apart with my teeth. Not that Iâm going to try. Mom would kill me if I wrecked my teeth after she spent so much to have them straightened. I try again to pull the rack apart, but all I manage to do is bend it a little. I slump over the table and rest my head on my arms. Iâm so tired, but before I go to sleep, I need to find a weapon. And I need to âmailâ my essay. I fold the paper in half and slide it through the slot in the door. I press my ear to the slot, but I canât hear anything, not even the sound of the paper falling to the floor on the other side.
I go into the bathroom to wash my face and pee. When I flush the toilet, I have a sudden memory of Dad telling me how to stop the toilet from running. Mom had been asking him to fix it for months. Jiggling the handle had stopped working.
âTake off the tank lid and lift up the rod and float for a few seconds. That should do it,â he said. Thanks for being a lazy bum, Dad.
When I open the tank now, I find a metal rod attached to a float. If I take it apart, the toilet wonât flush. If I donât take it apart, I wonât have a weapon. I separate the rod and the float as carefully as possibleâI want to be able to get it back together when I need to. The rod isnât long or sharp, but I feel stronger holding it. Less afraid. Before I go to bed, I take the pen and scrawl a big DAY 1 on the wall across from the bed. Beside it I write the word SLOTH . Then I draw a tree with a sloth hanging from one of its branches. With the rod clutched in my hand, I crawl into bed. The pot lights dim and I sleep.
Chapter Six
Eric
My mom really should have been an actress, not a CEO. That whole flirty, âoopsie daisyâ thing with the cops? Totally fake. Sheâs not even tipsy, let alone drunk. And sheâs definitely not helpless. Or stupid. She just wanted the cops to think she was. She does that a lot. People (mostly men) underestimate her. They usually regret it.
This is a woman who started a dogwalking business when she was in high school and built it into a hugely successful company. There are DLD franchises all over North America. In case you were wondering, DLD stands for Donna Loves Dogs, the name she picked when she was sixteen. And yes, thereâs a heart in the logo. Mom hasnât touched a dog in years though. Wonât have one in the house. She just sits up in her office and manages her empire. And plays tennis with Axel/Mike.
Now sheâs glaring at me as if Iâve made a mess on the carpet.
âDo I need to call Richard?â she asks.
Richard is Mr. Franks, the lawyer she keeps on retainer. Iâll admit heâs come in handy in the past. But she hasnât
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