and storming out.
*
I called Lolly to discuss the previously unmentionable topic she’d raised – her sexuality – but it was clear she still didn’t want to talk about it. H er answer phone was on at work, and her mobile went straight through to voicemail.
Was she avoiding me now, after blurting out the truth? Why would she do that?
Unless . . . she wanted to date me?
Oh God, don’t let it be that. How could I reject my dearest friend?
Because the alternate option – dating L olly – c learly wasn’t an option at all, e ven if she was a huge step-up from my present situation.
Of course, Lolly knew that. Didn’t she ?
If not, w hy would she encourage Robert to call me if she wanted to date me herself?
Unless she was testing my willingness to cheat on Carson?
No. That’s nuts.
My head ached. W hat a completely awful situation.
Decidin g I would drop in to LollyBliss later to sort things out , I got dressed, pushed the kids out the door, and headed over to Flindes .
Fingers crossed that I could explain why I hadn’t called in sick the day before. I hadn’t da red. As I lived so close, I wouldn’t have put it past Dan Phillit to come and check on me.
Not surprisingly, Dan Phillit was in a less than congenial mood.
‘Look, Mr Phillit–‘
He didn’t prevaricate. ‘You’re fired, Mrs Teeson.’
‘Let me explain.’
‘See those two hardworkers over there?’ He indicated Scott and Maeve, who were batting a broken bag of pasta against a wall w ith a roll of Christmas wrap.
‘The ones playing baseball with food?’
‘T hey appreciate their jobs, ’ Dan Phillit said, rooting about in his nose.
‘Can ’t you see what they’ re doing?’
‘Of course I can. They’re picking up broken pasta. Without being asked. Ent erprising and punctual. T he ideal Flindes’ employee s . ’
Lord, g ive me strength not to smash him one on that huge snout.
‘Look, Mr Phillit, please just give me one more chance. I have a family, and sometimes, very occasionally, having a family means I have to miss work.’
‘Then I’ll hire someone who doesn’t have a family.’
‘Isn’t that discrimination?’
‘Not if you breach the staff handbook by failing to call in ,’ said Dan Phillit. ‘Now, your locker key and discount card, if you please.’
Who said ‘If you please’ anymore? No wonder he was dateless and bitter.
I threw down the requested items, told Dan Phillit his fly was un done and that picking his nose was unacceptable , especially in area s where food was sold.
Then I offered him the universal sign of dissatisfaction care of my middle finger , and left.
I got to the corner when it hit me.
What the hell have I done?
Less than five minutes later, I was desperately trying to stop myself from racing back in and grabbing at Dan Phillit’s knees, begging for forgiveness.
I might have, too, if I had n’t seen him and Scott and Maeve pointing at me through the dirty glass of the shopfront and laughing uproariousl y .
Trudging towards home, I remonstrated with myself for being a jerk. Where on earth was I going to get another permanent job , with the economy the way it was ?
I was hopeless when it came to jobs, and interviews Worse, I had nothing to wear for interviews.
And even if I managed to complete the Chocolato work, t here wa s no guarantee that it would led to anything else , was there?
What had I done ?
- Cue poignant tale of disastrous fashion job interviews :
Although I dropped out of college when I discovered I was pregnant with J, I still hoped to resume my career. Carson encouraged it – and why wouldn’t he? We ne eded another income to be able to afford to live in New York.
I occasionally felt a twinge of resentment over the fact that he’ d dropped law ; and very occasionally that he’d done so because of a nother woman .
But on the whole, Carson was happy teaching, and I was confident that , with two years of college behind me (even with
*
I called Lolly to discuss the previously unmentionable topic she’d raised – her sexuality – but it was clear she still didn’t want to talk about it. H er answer phone was on at work, and her mobile went straight through to voicemail.
Was she avoiding me now, after blurting out the truth? Why would she do that?
Unless . . . she wanted to date me?
Oh God, don’t let it be that. How could I reject my dearest friend?
Because the alternate option – dating L olly – c learly wasn’t an option at all, e ven if she was a huge step-up from my present situation.
Of course, Lolly knew that. Didn’t she ?
If not, w hy would she encourage Robert to call me if she wanted to date me herself?
Unless she was testing my willingness to cheat on Carson?
No. That’s nuts.
My head ached. W hat a completely awful situation.
Decidin g I would drop in to LollyBliss later to sort things out , I got dressed, pushed the kids out the door, and headed over to Flindes .
Fingers crossed that I could explain why I hadn’t called in sick the day before. I hadn’t da red. As I lived so close, I wouldn’t have put it past Dan Phillit to come and check on me.
Not surprisingly, Dan Phillit was in a less than congenial mood.
‘Look, Mr Phillit–‘
He didn’t prevaricate. ‘You’re fired, Mrs Teeson.’
‘Let me explain.’
‘See those two hardworkers over there?’ He indicated Scott and Maeve, who were batting a broken bag of pasta against a wall w ith a roll of Christmas wrap.
‘The ones playing baseball with food?’
‘T hey appreciate their jobs, ’ Dan Phillit said, rooting about in his nose.
‘Can ’t you see what they’ re doing?’
‘Of course I can. They’re picking up broken pasta. Without being asked. Ent erprising and punctual. T he ideal Flindes’ employee s . ’
Lord, g ive me strength not to smash him one on that huge snout.
‘Look, Mr Phillit, please just give me one more chance. I have a family, and sometimes, very occasionally, having a family means I have to miss work.’
‘Then I’ll hire someone who doesn’t have a family.’
‘Isn’t that discrimination?’
‘Not if you breach the staff handbook by failing to call in ,’ said Dan Phillit. ‘Now, your locker key and discount card, if you please.’
Who said ‘If you please’ anymore? No wonder he was dateless and bitter.
I threw down the requested items, told Dan Phillit his fly was un done and that picking his nose was unacceptable , especially in area s where food was sold.
Then I offered him the universal sign of dissatisfaction care of my middle finger , and left.
I got to the corner when it hit me.
What the hell have I done?
Less than five minutes later, I was desperately trying to stop myself from racing back in and grabbing at Dan Phillit’s knees, begging for forgiveness.
I might have, too, if I had n’t seen him and Scott and Maeve pointing at me through the dirty glass of the shopfront and laughing uproariousl y .
Trudging towards home, I remonstrated with myself for being a jerk. Where on earth was I going to get another permanent job , with the economy the way it was ?
I was hopeless when it came to jobs, and interviews Worse, I had nothing to wear for interviews.
And even if I managed to complete the Chocolato work, t here wa s no guarantee that it would led to anything else , was there?
What had I done ?
- Cue poignant tale of disastrous fashion job interviews :
Although I dropped out of college when I discovered I was pregnant with J, I still hoped to resume my career. Carson encouraged it – and why wouldn’t he? We ne eded another income to be able to afford to live in New York.
I occasionally felt a twinge of resentment over the fact that he’ d dropped law ; and very occasionally that he’d done so because of a nother woman .
But on the whole, Carson was happy teaching, and I was confident that , with two years of college behind me (even with
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