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."I wandered the road, finding the smooth parts, feeling underneath thedeepwater tan the heat of the long May day in the sun.I had a stack of thoseold-fashioned photographic plates in the back of my mind.The big camera hadbeen made of brass and oak.I had spent a lot of the day ducking under theblack cloth, raising high the T stick with the magnesium powder in the groovealong the top of the bar, focusing the big lens, waiting until she held still,then triggering the powder.Poom.And a cloud of white smoke, and anotherimage of Gretel tucked away forever.Long ago a picture must have been an event.Capturing a living image hasbecome too ordinary a miracle, perhaps.They go, about with theirautomatic-drive Nikons and OM-2's and their Leicaflexes, and put their fingeron the button, and the hand-held machinery makes a noise like a big toycricket.Reep, reep,reep, reep.A billion billion slides, projected once,labeled, and filed forever.Windrows of empty yellow boxes blow across theGobi, the Peruvian highlands, the temple steps at Chichicastenango.Theclicking and whirring and clacking is the background sound at the Acropolis,at the beach at Cannes, on the slopes at Villefranche.All the bright people,stopped in the midst of life, looking with forced smile into the lenses, thento be filed away, their colors fading as the years pass, caught there in slidetrays, stack loads, view cubes, until one day the camera person dies and thegrandchild says, "Mom, I don't know any of these people.Or where these weretaken even.There are jillions of them here in this big box and more in thecloset.What will I do with them anyway?""Throw them out, dear."FifteenPage 79ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlI SLEPT like a winter-bound bear and awoke refreshed to a morning of mistyrain.Meyer was up and gone.He does not leave long chatty notes.This onesaid, 8:10.Bkfs dwnstrs.Then Dr.S.He was gone by the time I got downstairs.The waitress showed me to a tablefor two in a window corner of the small dining room.It looked out across thewet and empty courts.Between the far trees I could see segments of gray sea,almost flat calm.I ordered, and as I was drinking coffee, waiting for the food to arrive, I sawJack the Manager appear in the arched doorway to the lobby.He wore a blacksport shirt and white slacks.The shirt was stained across the round front ofhim.He stared at me.He looked like an emperor penguin disapproving of a deadfish.He came directly over to my table and said, "Mr.McGee!""Good morning.Join me?""I would like to point out-""Sit down and point out.Please."He eased into the chair facing me.He looked nervous and uncomfortable."Therehave been complaints," he said."About what?""Your group was very noisy Friday night.And there have been two altercationsin the parking area."I nodded."Of course.Shots were fired.Then all those tires screaming, andthen the sirens.Very upsetting."He looked slightly relieved."I'm glad you're taking this attitude.It makesit easier for me.Our guests are used to a-""Just one moment," I said, stopping him.I took out the pocket notebook whichMeyer had convinced me was useful.I leafed through the pages, nodding tomyself, frowning.When he started to speak, I stopped him with upraised hand.I put the notebook away and smiled reassuringly at him."I know what isbasically bothering you.Right? And I am really not authorized to tell youanything at all.But you've been so pleasant, such a good host, that I amgoing to level with you, and I hope you appreciate what a rare thing that is.""I don't know what--""From what I guess, and from what I know of procedure, there is really verylittle chance of your being subpoenaed.""Of being.for what.I don't.""And there is even less chance of the Resort here being either fined heavilyor closed under the provisions of Chapter Twenty-one, Paragraph C-Six,subparagraph a.""But I don't-""So you don't have to worry.Right? You can relax! It isn't hanging over youany longer.At least, I am reasonably sure they won't come at you in thatmanner.But nobody knows, of course, until they have an executive session."His face had turned red.He grasped the edge of the table and leaned towardme."Mr.McGee, I haven't the faintest idea what the hell you are talkingabout!"My food came.It looked very good indeed.I smiled at Jack the Manager, and Iwinked at him and said, "None of that now.""NONE OF WHAT?""Shshsh.Please.You know I can't go any further with this.I shouldn't havementioned it at all.I was only trying to do you a favor.""But I want to know what this is all about!""Please forget I said anything to you.I violated a confidence.And for God'ssake, don't say anything to anyone else, because if it was leaked out and gotback to the Supervisor, there's no way in the world you could avoid asubpoena.""I must insist-""Do you want to ruin everything for yourself? Have you got some kind ofeconomic death wish?" I chomped the good Canadian bacon.I beamed and winkedand nodded at him.His choice was clear.Either I was certifiable as a maniac,Page 80ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlor he and the Resort were in violation of the rules, somehow.In seriousviolation.I could guess his thoughts from his expression.It has all becomeregulation by blackmail, of course.Every small businessman lives with theknowledge that he is always in violation of some of the rules.Safetyregulations, consumer protection laws, wage and hour laws, pure food and drugstatutes, IRS regulations-and on top of all these are the interwoven,supplementary, conflicting regulations of the state, county, and city.He fills out the forms and sends them in because he knows that, if the formsdo not come back in, the computer flags him.He fills the blanks with liesbecause it would take more hours than there are in the week to fill in theforms arriving each week.He knows all these lies go on record somewhere, andthat at any time a field inspector can happen along and check out the old liesand apply pressure.So all he can do is contribute to both political parties,support local, state, and national candidates, and hope for the best.It was easier for him to believe he was in some kind of trouble than that Ihad lost my wits.He got up and said, "Uh.thank you, Mr.McGee.""Believe me, I was glad to do it [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]