CHAPTER TWO

The couch was as comfortable and my company was bubbling with love as we sat talking to one another. It was a great day as the sun was shining through the window. We began to say things only a husband and wife talk about. She was telling me about her conflict with fcp, which is Family Continuity Program. My wife received very poor service and the counselors abused their position in relation to her emotional well-being. She told me that one of the counselors would take her medication to get high and the counselor would hang out with my wife in a manner that was not professional. Another of the counselors was very disrespectful towards my wife and she was very upset as she told me the story. The story was so uplifting I was listening with an astute ear. It was a real shame I could not have been there to help her out and I told her that. We came back to the couch and I kissed and caressed her. We had made a mutual decision to get something to eat and walked to the kitchen. We made a couple of tuna-fish sandwiches and brought them back to the couch to eat them. My wife was totally frank with me and I know it was very hard for her to talk about the abuse. It was deeply set into her mind that awful ribbing she took at the hands of the supposedly prompt caregivers.

We sat facing one and another with a distinctive smile on each face and I was traveling with my mind. It was like the conversation was reminding me to be civil in my talking. She was so attentive. I began my story with a memory of the police coming in the house and forcibly ejecting me from it with five officers. They arrested me for assault and battery. I went to court and was transferred to Medfield state hospital for psychiatrist evaluation. I was found to have a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia. I was given the choice of staying at the hospital for three months while being medicated or going back to jail. I accepted the doctor's orders as it was happening to me. I met very interesting people and kept my nose clean and I was able to learn about my illness. I went to Sunday services every week and this helped me to get better. I took walks on the grounds during my scheduled free time. This helped me to maintain my sanity. I met my doctors and also met my case manager. They arranged my treatment and also my post-hospital deals. I have been out for two months and going to NRH. I chose a couple of dead-end jobs and stayed on them for two years. I was not happy in these jobs. One was being a dishwasher washing pots, pans, and dishes for a cafeteria. It lasted for about six months and was not exciting to me. I went to a different agency and they found me a job fixing and repairing Island Oasis ice machines. This job was very good and I liked it very much. I liked using my own tools on the job. The job there lasted for a month and I found out that the bosses did not like my work and was let go. I kicked around for a while on several cleaning jobs and went to school for fire and security alarm technician. I could not find employment in security, however and gave up on this. I returned to the clubhouse and kicked around for six months. I was looking at the bulletin board and found an interesting job. This was at TJ Maxx and I really liked the idea of working there. I gave it a chance and contacted Richard G. This is where I initially told you about the sweetest girl. Lauren and I hit it off at first sight. Thank the maker, my first and last love machine. We all but had a good life and started to be just like normal people. A lot of people in our positions do not have true love. Many disabled people only have themselves and some people are lonely. We have it so good that we consider ourselves very lucky. We have ample help in the name of professionals and can talk with them at any time. They are very helpful to our disabilities. Lauren and I are very happy together and talk about everything.

We were in the present year 2000 and sitting on the couch. The two of us caressed and kissed as Lauren told me that she loved me for telling her my secrets. I married her because she is the most attentive ear to my many stories. We had to have a break and got up to take a walk around the neighborhood. We walked down Sherman road and around and sometimes we kiss in public. The walk, as always was most refreshing. Lauren and I got back home and went into the house. We turned on the television to court tv and sat on the couch. I told her I had to tell her some of my history and began with my graduation from Xaverian Brothers high. I had decided on a career in architecture and signed up and was accepted into Wentworth Institute in Boston. I started in 1976 as a freshman. The year started off with a bang as I was dumbfounded by college life. For the life of me I could not get a locker to keep my books at school, so I had to lug them on the bus from home. Being a freshman was so confusing as it was a strange school. Every other day there was no town bus when I had to leave; I was too early, so I had to walk with all my books up the street to the T stop. There I would get the Wolcott square bus to Forest Hills. All the while carrying my books for the day. I got on the trolley car green line and this would take me to Wentworth on Huntington Avenue. Sometimes the green line would go only half way and I would have to get a second trolley to the school. I could not do anything about this, however, as I was on a deadline to get to school.

I went through the entire school year with only good intentions in my head. The English class was quite good and I got a B. I really enjoyed reading and writing. On the every other days in Spring I would have to go to Plainville; a place not on any bus route. My mother would drive me down there every morning and pick me up after class.

I drifted back home and caressed my lovely wife. Lauren was very acceptable with my stories and was a great wife listening to them. She then told me how she met Saul Goldfarb, a disk jockey who spun records at the club she waited tables at. They knew each other for five years. We shared an apartment above my best friend Diane. It was like Seinfeld, in that we would come up and down the apartments and the first thing we did when we came to the other’s apartment was to walk in and head to the refrigerator. Unfortunately there was a terrible shock to come. I found a mole on Saul that looked like it was changing shape and getting larger. At first I thought we would go to the doctor’s office and we would be assured that everything would be all right. Well, unfortunately it wasn’t. Saul had skin cancer. Saul’s parents showed relief and great gratitude toward me for detecting the mole; then it spread to his brain and then there were two tumors. He had lots of radiation and lost practically all his hair. One day my mother and I went to Roche Brothers’ supermarket to shop after the treatments. When we got into the car my mother handed me the obiturary with Saul’s name. He had passed on. I was hysterical. Saul was the only man that never abused me. There were times he protected me also. I could always depend on Saul and vice-versa. Saul was Jewish and his family always included me in holidays and at the temple. The holiday meals were great. I was surprised that I enjoyed all the food because I can be very finicky at times. I also learned how to speak jewish and Yiddish and it was fun. I can remember every one in his family would say “oi ve”, a phrase you would say when you were exasperated.

We both cried at this story and Lauren told me that he is the reason she met and loved me. She said Saul was just like me and she was looking for the man just like him. She told me it was fun working at the club with Saul. She said she got good tips as a cocktail waitress.

We regrouped on the couch and I told her how sad that story made me. It was a tough time for the Woman of the decade to go through. Feeling that bad, seeing someone close to her pass so quickly. It reminded me of when my father died. It was thirty one years ago and was very hard on me because I was eleven years old and in the fifth grade at Saint Annes’ grammar school. We found out the day after Christmas in 1969. I was out for a brief time with friends and when I came back I saw a police car in front of the house. They told us that our father and loving husband was on the way to work and he was just about there and crashed his car along the way after having a fatal heart attack. We were dumbfounded. We could not think straight. It was very hard to go through and to live after such news like that.

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