When Simon wonders what kind of ani?mal he is, he identifies with the giraffe. An improbable design, a weird ensemble overall, no special reputation for wisdom, an uncle-figure at best. ed by the auto industry: niraffes on the highways. Simon too has a long neck, often ented upon, and a pe?culiar gait, sort of a shamble.
He gets a call from his wife, Carol, in Philadelphia.
"You havent paid the car insurance," she says. "Oher car. I got stopped by a cop yesterday and he jacked me up about the insurance."
"Whatd you get stopped for?"
"Taillight."
"Call Bud at the offid tell him to take care of it," Simon says. "Hes got all the paperwork on the in?surance. How are you?"
"sidering what our mayor is up to, Im rea?sonably sahis thing is really w out much better than I thought it would. Your being gone, I mean."
"The absence of a plan is itself a plan," Simon says. "Heard from Sarah?"
"She called a day or so ago. Shes dropped German and history."
"Oh Lord. Why history?"
"They had to write papers."
"She hardly avoid writing papers."
"She needs a typewriter."
"Buy her a typewriter."
"Simon, Ive got other things to do. Ill give her a check but I t futz around shopping for type?writers."
"Okay, fine. Is she happy?"
"Shes been going out with some kind of Finn. I think hes a Finn. Very goodlooking. Hes in the busi?ness school."
"Hows his English?"
"Very Brit. What are you doing?"
"Reading. Walking around."
"Chasing tail."
"No Im not chasing anything."
"It was just a sociological observation. I dont care."
"I know that."
"Keep in touch."
"I will."
"Your bad brother," Simon says to Dore. "Why is he in New York?"
"Nothing for him in Denver, he thinks. Hes thirty-three. Two years in jail for auto theft. Hes on proba?tion now. He deals when he get enough moo buy something to deal. Hes good at calculating how often he hit people up. He has me down for a cou?ple of hundred every three months or so. His name is Burt."
She holds out ay wineglass. Simon p.
"Hes an engineer, actually. He desighis electric car, where you didnt have an array of batteries that had to be charged every two or three days. It had a circuit that allowed the batteries to recharge themselves just like gas engines recharge their batteries. There was a tiny puter in there somewhere. That was the car he stole. He was in partnership with these guys whod put up the development money and when the prototype worked, they cut him out of the pany. So he repos?sessed the car one night but they had the cops waiting for him."
"Couldnt he have started up again after he got out?"
"He fot how he did it. Hed hurt his brain, drink?ing busthead in jail. He tried, drove himself crazy try?ing. Hes still trying."
"Bad luck."
"Yeah. It could do y on the highway, too. My family is ly a blue-chip outfit."
She takes his glass out of his hand. "You drink too much."
"Goddamnit woman, leave my glass alone."
"Id hate to see your liver."
"Most uhat you ever will."
"And I dont like it that when we have roast lamb you take all the crag for yourself."
"Anything else?"
"Yes. This place isnt ."
"So it."
"Its a matter of setting an example. Youre the jefe grande around here."
"Whats that mean?"
"Big chief."
"Not what I feel like."
"Im talking