Chapter 24
It
was not the start of a good day for Brad.
First of all, he hadn’t slept well.
It had been difficult for him to get used to getting up at
He wanted to quit but he had promised Derrin that he would work until the end of December. He found himself proving old mathematical theorems during lunch and reading philosophy as an antidote for his malaise.
It was the night of Raney’s party and it was in the back of his mind. He was still undecided about going. The thought of Raney’s party made him think about all of the women he had known during the last seven years. He became sad and regretful over Jeanette and how he had allowed their relationship to end simply because she had moved seventy five miles away in her sophomore year in high school. Then he was angry with Jane for allowing his mother to step into the middle of their engagement and destroy their future life together. Finally, he was angry at the universe for killing his father and then his grandfather.
He was in this state of mind when the supervisor came up to him that morning. The supervisor was a very stupid man who hadn’t graduated from high school. It was clear that he hated Brad and feared him as well. “The boss said to tell me that you’ve got to pick up your pace. You’re working too slow.”
Brad looked up at him from his seat in the waiting room. He looked into his watery blue eyes and pale face fringed with orange hair. “What do you mean?”
“My supervisor said people are complaining that their bags aren’t getting into the airport fast enough. His boss is complaining to him. So he’s been watching. You’re not moving fast enough.”
Brad made no attempt to defend himself. “Sure. Sorry. I guess I didn’t sleep very well last night. Maybe I’m tired.”
The supervisor made a sour face and said, “I’ve warned you.” He turned and walked out of the room.
Goldie, the only black baggage man said, “Man, that was cold.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m only working here to pay off a debt and I’ve worked enough to pay it now. I already told the boss that I’ll quit if they want me to. I don’t give a crap.” There was about a week until the end of the month and Brad felt that he had fulfilled his promise to Derrin already.
Goldie said, “Did you hear about Derrin?” They were the only baggage men in the ready room and they were sitting against opposite walls.
“No. What happened?”
“He was late to work this morning.” He laughed.
“That’s not too surprising. He drives fifty miles every morning to get here.”
“Yeah, but that’s not the funny part. They sent a cab to get him. He ran out of gas on 101, about five miles from the airport.”
“Ran
out of gas?” Brad remembered
“They did. He had an empty gas can in his truck and the cab driver drove him to a gas station.”
Brad
chuckled. There was no reason to share
Goldie said, “They’re just harassing you man. Don’t let it get you down.”
Brad said, “He’s probably right. I’ve been daydreaming for the last few days. I guess I’m bored.”
Goldie came over and sat next to Brad. He said, in a low voice, “My brother says that Red don’t like you. He wants to see you go.”
Brad looked at him sideways. He felt like saying that he didn’t give a crap but he didn’t think Goldie would believe him so he said, “I’m not worried about it. We’re all holding this company together. I don’t see why they don’t put the supervisors out here on the ground along with us. Every time I’ve been in the office I see them sitting around in chairs doing nothing.”
Goldie laughed. “That’s why they’re managers, man.” After a pause, he said, “I’m gonna be a manager some day myself.”
Brad felt that Goldie was waiting for him to say that going to college and studying engineering would be better than being a supervisor but he just said, “Good luck.”
Goldie said, “Don’t let it get you down man.”
It occurred to Brad that Goldie thought he was depressed because he had been forced to do such a low-level job even though he had a college degree. He said, “Don’t worry about me. I’m OK. I’m going to quit at the end of the month anyway.” He added a white lie, so that Goldie would have a reasonable explanation, “I’m just working here to make a little extra money so I can go back to college.”
“College? Haven’t you had enough college already?”
“You kind of get used to college after awhile,” he said. “You know, it grows on you. The pretty girls and all.”
Goldie’s eyes got big. “I might go to college someday myself after I get some money together.”
Red stuck his head through the door. “You two guys get out on the tarmac. Plane’s due in 15 minutes.”
They could see most of the men gathering outside. Bob had gone off to the north wing to the United Airlines hanger in a cart with two cars, to pick up some bags and Brad could see him roaring down the runway at full speed, as he usually did, looking back for fallen bags. He had been in trouble from the beginning for not paying enough attention to bags falling on the tarmac and Brad had been on his case as well.
Bob pulled the cart up alongside of the waiting room and got off the cart. He strode up to Brad and punched him on the shoulder. Brad stepped out of the way so that the force of the blow was glancing. He gave Brad a questioning look, “Hey Plato, are you ready to work?”
Bob’s exuberance and coltishness was exactly what Brad needed. Brad said, “Don’t I always load about twice as many bags as you do in half the time?”
It was too close to the truth and Bob lunged at him and grabbed him around the shoulders. He had learned that Brad was much stronger than he was, even though he outweighed Brad by about 15 pounds. Brad bent over and carried him around on his back for a few steps and them elbowed him in the guts. Bob let out a yell and fell off, staggering backwards. He stammered, “You son-of-a....” His face was wreathed in smiles. He couldn’t get over the fact that he could do almost anything to Brad, who looked skinny at 180 pounds, and Brad would simply dance for a few moments and then deposit him on his butt. It made him very happy every time it happened.
A voice screamed from a second story window. “Cut that out!” They looked up and it was Red and his supervisor. They were standing in an open window and smiling at each other as if they were greatly amused. Red looked back and his smile was gone. He shouted. “Act professional. This ain’t no circus.”
Bob mumbled, under his breath, “Yes sir, boss man, yes sir,” and tugged at his cap. He snickered at Brad.
Brad said, “You’re going to get me fired from this goddammed job Bob boy.”
“Shit. You’d be so happy if I did.”
They heard the whine of the Air West prop plane on the tarmac. They saw Derrin’s oil truck swing into place and Goldie’s brother, the other supervisor, putting on his earphones and moving out onto the tarmac to guide the pilot in.
When they got into the baggage compartment, Brad allowed himself to get into a competition with 19-year-old Bob to see who could work the fastest getting bags from the back of the baggage compartment to the door. After a few minutes the baggage men at the door were yelling at them to slow down. In spite of the cold, fog-laden Bay Area air, sweat soaked through their shirts.
Even though it was Bob’s turn to drive the baggage cart to the carrousel, Brad decided to drive because he knew the bosses were watching and Bob always drove so fast that bags dropped on the tarmac. However, just as they turned into the shed, Brad spotted a large rag and swerved to avoid it. Two bags fell. He jumped out and put them onto the conveyor belt and looked up and saw an angry face through a glass paned window from the overhead gangway. The face was attached to an angry man whose finger was pointing at the bags and whose mouth was moving. Brad pointed his finger at the man and yelled, “Mind your own fucking business, asshole.” They started to load the bags onto the belt.
After a few moments, the man was standing behind them. Brad turned around to pick up a bag from the cart and the man yelled into his face from about five feet away, “Didn’t anyone ever tell you to keep the bags from falling onto the ground?” His face was red and distorted. Brad sized him up. He was short and stocky and about thirty years old. It looked like he was itching for a fight. He was wearing a suit and Brad had never seen him before. Bob smiled at Brad and moved towards the man. Brad held him back with one arm and faced the man. He said, “Why don’t you mind your own goddammed business.” The man’s mouth dropped open. “Have you ever driven one of these carts before?” His mouth hung open but he didn’t say anything. Brad modulated his voice to a polite, firm baritone, “Well. I’ve been criticized today for not driving these things fast enough and now you’re yelling at me for driving them too fast. Sometimes bags fall off these things.” Bob said, in his bass voice, “Yeah.” He added, and his voice cracked with an antic laugh, “Sometimes bags fall off these things.” Brad’s words were well chosen and polite, but his body language and tone of voice said that he would knock the man down if he didn’t back off, and that it wouldn’t be difficult.
The man regained his composure and his face was suddenly full of admiration. He raised both hands in the air, “All right, I’m sorry for yelling at you. But please be careful with the bags.”
“Fine.” Brad couldn’t help adding, “What do you think I’ve been trying to do since I started working here?”
The man smiled obsequiously, waved goodbye and went back into the airport.
Bob laughed. “You sure put that guy in his place. I’ll bet one of those fucking suitcases was full of marijuana. I feel like going upstairs and getting it to check it out.”
“You’re probably right. What right does that asshole think he has to come down here and yell at us for dropping his bag? Why doesn’t he report it to a supervisor like everyone else does? I should have knocked him on his ass and taught him a lesson.”
After lunch, when they were sitting in the ready room waiting for the next airplane, Red opened the door, stuck his head through and said, “Brad. The boss man wants to see you.” His head disappeared and the door slammed behind him. Bob smirked at Brad, turned and spit in the direction of the door.
Brad said, “I’ve told those people that I’m ready to quit if they want me to. The only reason I’m still here is because of Derrin. This place stinks.”
Bob raised his thumb in the air, “Give em hell baby.”
When he got to the office the boss, who was about 35, was sitting at a large desk, pretending to read some documents. Goldie’s brother and Red, the two supervisors, were sitting in chairs that faced the large wooden desk. When Brad came into view, Red leered at him with a menacing smile. The boss looked up from his papers and said calmly, “Do you have any idea who you told off this morning?”
“Told off?”
“The guy you yelled at this morning.”
Brad figured out that it was probably an executive of Air West. He said, “Well, I thought it was some customer whose bags fell off the cart.”
“He wasn’t a customer.” The manager stared at Brad and then looked at the two supervisors. “He’s the vice-president of the company.”
There was a silence. “I’m sorry. The man was yelling in my face. He surprised me. Bags fall off carts all the time. I’m usually the one who is telling the other drivers to slow down.” He nodded slightly in Red’s direction. “Red told me that I wasn’t working fast enough this morning. I guess I was working too fast.”
Red shifted in his chair and looked at the manager for direction. He didn’t say anything. Brad continued, “The man apologized. He backed down. Why didn’t he tell me who he was?”
“It looks to us that you don’t like working here.”
“Fine. No problem. I told you, I’ll quit any time you want me to.”
“All right. Today’s your last day.”
Brad had wanted to quit a few days earlier and the manager had begged him to stay. He said, “Look, if you really need someone, I’ll work until New Years. It’s not a problem. Let me talk to him. I’ll apologize to him directly if you want me to.”
“We’ve already cut your last check.”
Brad was relieved. “Fine. I’ll pick it up tonight.”
“No. This is it. Change into your street clothes.”
Red picked the check off the desk and handed it to Brad.
Brad smiled, grateful to be free of the place, but he could see that the supervisors were taking great delight in what they perceived to be his humiliation.
The boss said, “I’m sorry but you just picked the wrong guy to yell at.” An admiring glint appeared in the boss’s eyes.
Brad looked at Red and Goldie’s brother and they looked back with unconcealed admiration. Brad reassured them with a social lie, “Don’t worry about it. I mean I really wanted the time with my family anyway. I...”
“Just leave your uniform in the locker.”
Brad tried to hide his elation. He affected a contrite, “Fine.”
The boss said, “Don’t worry. I’m sure a guy with your education can get a better job than this.” Red and the other supervisor smiled at each other.
“I’ll be all right.” He turned and left the room. He dressed quickly and headed towards the parking lot. When he passed by the ready room he noticed that all the men were looking at him and smiling. Bob ran out to meet him.
Bob said, “That was really cool man. You really got even with those bastards.”
“What do you mean?”
“You sly dog.” He reached out to punch Brad on the shoulder but held his fist in the air instead and just smiled. “We heard about those skis.”
Brad smiled. “What skis?”
Goldie came out to greet him, smiling. He said, “They must have been worth six hundred bucks.”
“What skis?”
Bob howled, “What skis!” His fist came down slowly and Brad moved away. Bob said, “Listen to him, man. What skis!”
Goldie said, “What skis? Ain’t no more skis left.” They laughed. Goldie looked at Brad. “You really got even with em. Those skis were totally destroyed. They had to delay the flight for a half hour just getting the conveyer belt going again.”
Brad smiled. He said, with a wink, “I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
Bob laughed again. “He didn’t have anything to do with it! I wish I could’ve been there.”
Brad looked back at the ready room window and he could see the baggage men standing there, smiling at him and raising their hands, waiving at him. They came out onto the tarmac. Bob said, “We can’t figure out how you did it, man. They were totally shattered. Nothing but sticks.”
Brad smiled broadly and said, “I guess I’d better get out of here while I still can.” He shook hands with the men as they slapped him on the back and congratulated him. He turned and walked to the parking lot and they began clapping and whistling. He turned around and waived to the group of smiling baggage men and then disappeared into the parking lot. He wondered who, or what, destroyed the skis.