Carolyn

            Carolyn Owlsey wanted a glass of water. She was parched from pruning her extensive collection of Azaleas that always began blooming in April. Walking inside, she glanced across the kitchen at her Felix the Cat clock and noticed that it was 6 PM. Albert should have been back by now, she thought to herself. Still pondering the whereabouts of her boyfriend, she slid a glass under the faucet and pushed the handle backwards. Nothing happened. She pulled the handle to the ‘off’ position, and then pushed it back again. Frustrated, she placed the glass on the counter and walked across the kitchen to the refrigerator. It was there on the door, by the Farmer’s Almanac Calendar, that she saw the note. As she slid it out from underneath the magnet, another slip of paper fell to the floor. She bent over to retrieve it and realized that it was the water bill that Albert was supposed to have paid. Carolyn placed the bill on the table and read the note.

            “Carolyn, I’ve tried to make this work, me and you. It just ain’t working. I got a new job with Jenkins Construction up in Allentown, so I’m going. I forgot to pay the water bill. Sorry. It is under the note. P.S. You can keep the dog.      Albert”

            Carolyn chuckled with a short snort and placed the letter under the water bill. She reached down to pet Hank, their Boston terrier. He returned the favor by licking her hand. “Well Hank, I guess I’d better go to the store,” she said. She placed the note under the water bill, picked up her keys and locked the door behind her.

            After several hours of shopping and a few old friends with new babies to catch up with, Carolyn returned home. When she reached the front door, she found a new note attached to it. She read it aloud.

            “Carolyn. I forgot to leave my key when I left earlier. Didn’t figure you would really care, but I brought it back anyway. I decided to take the Hank. Sorry.”

            By the time Carolyn unloaded all of the groceries and was settled in, it was almost midnight. The house was oddly quiet without either Albert or Hank stirring around. She opened a bottle of water and sat down in her recliner. As she pressed the power button on the remote control, she heard a pop and all of the lights went out. The circuit breaker had blown. Carolyn shook her head, stood up and felt her way to her bedroom. After stubbing her toe several times, she could only hope that tomorrow would be better.