Suggested changes: {before : after}
On Thu, 15 Aug 2002 22:42:11 EDT Kyhdin@aol.com wrote:
Amy Lynn went to bed at around ten at night and rose with the sun {and :}. It
was, she had concluded some time ago, the most efficient use of her time. She
did not waste time lying in bed, but rather immediately gathered her things
and marched down the hall to the tub, which she filled with water. Dipping
her finger in the water, she held it there for a moment. Roughly sixty five
degrees, she decided. It was not yet hot enough for the ground, and therefore
the pipes in it, to retain heat overnight. Perfect, she decided, and pulled
off her sleepwear.
While neither Amy Lynn nor her mother were mechanically inept, Bunny's
affinity with tools was astounding. In the space of three hours, the blond
had already put together both couches and the large computer desk. Even now,
she was humming to herself as she used a {scredriver : screwdriver} to put together the first
of several bookcases.
"Who's the guy?" Molly asked, studying an eight by ten framed photo. In it, a
photo of Doctor Anderson and a handsome man with a shock of white hair
{smiling : smiled : were smiling} for the camera.
By one, the trio had finished unpacking and placed the furniture more or less
where Amy Lynn thought her mother would want them. Mrs. Anderson was a
creature of habit, and the second story apartment was similar in {terms of :}
layout {from : to} their condo back in Saint Paul.
And so, having no way to gracefully refuse, Amy Lynn left a note for her
mother and followed Bunny and Molly down the steps to where a Great Dane-the
same Great Dane that Amy Lynn had seen at the general store yesterday-sat
beside an old pickup truck that had to be a good twenty or thirty years old.
The maker's logo was written across the grille in dirt-covered chrome and the
truck's colors were red and patches of primer gray. The back window had
several stickers on it, but she {could : couldn't} see what they said. A dirty pink rabbit
hung from the rearveiw mirror.
It still has an inside rearview mirror? I wouldn't expect it to, that's
why I suggested the rabbit hang from the remaining unused hook of the rifle
rack.
Bunny {placed : put} the toolbox {into the back : back behind the seat} and rubbed the dog's head. "This is
Luna," the blonde said to Amy Lynn. "Luna, this is Amy Lynn."
Tool boxes belong behind or under the seat. If you leave it in the bed, it
could slide around and hurt Luna and rain could get in and rust the tools.
Hmmm. Do the side windows still roll up?
"All aboard," Bunny said as she got in. Molly and Amy Lynn got in on the
other side. Molly in the middle, Amy Lynn by the window. {Immeditly : Immediately}, she began
to feel around for the seatbelt.
Bunny grinned cheerfully. "Nope." She stomped on the clutch and shoved the
shift backwards, forcing Amy Lynn to grab whatever she could to keep from
flying forward and banging her head on the dashboard. "No seatbelts, {either : neither},"
she continued, seeing Amy Lynn now franticly looking around. "Pa cut them
out. Said we didn't need 'em." Wrenching the wheel, she swerved the truck
onto the road, shifted again to the sound of the transmission grinding and
floored the accelerator.
*****************
Bunny's driving skill seemed to be best described as "Pick a direction and
try not to hit anything. Oh, and use of the brake is forbidden." For fifteen
minutes, the truck bounced, rattled and jerked across the fields. Several
times, at least during the time when Amy Lynn could still think through the
fog of sheer terror, the wheels actually left the surface of the Earth as
Bunny steered it one-handed over the grassy fields at speeds better suited
for high-speed aircraft. The entire trip, she kept up a stream of chatter
about anything and everything. Livestock, produce, even the weather{, : .}
Occasionally, she would gesture with one or both hands, even looking away
from the windshield, but always looking back and grabbing the wheel just in
time, it seemed, to avert disaster. Finally, she brought the truck to a
screeching halt at the top of a small hill.
"Yes,"�Amy Lynn replied as she leaned against the side of the truck. The two
girls were sitting side by side on the ground. "I'm glad you had {you had :}
those headache pills with you." Nearby, Bunny knelt in the dirt beside bush,
digging with a trowel.
Molly proved to be correct and as the days became weeks, Amy Lynn got used to
Bunny's haphazard driving. Often, the trip was just into town, and the two
girls spent time in the general store, listening to the town's old men argue
and swap stories as they sat on front porch. She even got to meet Rayelene
Hino, daughter of the county judge, who lived with her grandather, {who was t
he : the} preacher at the local church.
Shouldn't that be the Holy Kingdom of Zion Evangelical Freewill Baptist
Church? It's the only church in town, but it must have a long name.
After Amy Lynn, two {: other} new students were introduced. One was Mina, a hyper,
energetic blond girl who's hair was tied with a red ribbon. In several ways,
she reminded Amy Lynn of Bunny. The second {: new} student was Lita, a tall,
amazon-like girl who looked as though she could lift the schoolhouse off it's
foundation if she felt like it.
Perhaps Amy Lynn doesn't count as a new student because she was around
nearly all summer and her mother was originally from the area.
I wonder how many fights Lita had to get into to get banished to a school
100 miles from the nearest real internet connection.
Once Mina and Lita had taken their seats, Miss Haruna got down to {bisinuess : business}.
"The state says that this year, those of you who are aged fourteen through
seventeen have to study the life cycle of plants and animals. The folks over
at Black Mountain Plantation have agreed to let us use their facilities as
part of this. So, in two weeks class will meet two days a week at Black
Mountain where you will tend and care for a small herd of sheep, twenty four
head of cattle, and a small, one acre field of various plants, including
cotton. At the end of the school year, I expect each of you to tell the class
what you learned." A few groans and complaints were heard throughout the
room. "I know most of you have have spent your lives raising plants and
animals which is why I expect A's all around as you will help the others with
what you know. Any questions? No? Good. Open your {math : arithmetic} books and turn to page
fifty-one."
As Amy Lynn did so, she noticed two things.
The books had been printed nearly forty years ago.
They would be studying Long Division.
"Oh, no..." Amy Lynn {whispered : whimpered}.
Welcome to Amy Lynn's nightmare. I'd actually expect ninth grade students
on up to go to a consolidated high school, but you can have a lot of fun
with an old one-room schoolhouse.
I wonder how Miss Haruna will react to Amy Lynn discovering how to make an
artificial liver using old tire treads, nylon fishing line, and peanut
shells.
Amy Lynn sighed and pulled on her work gloves. The brown leather was shiny,
having been purchased the previous day from Molly's mother. Amy Lynn {: was} wearing
one of Bunny's work shirts, old jeans and a pair of work boots with paper in
the toes to make them fit. The boots had been left in the clinic by a
previous paitent. For a moment she reflected that the only thing of hers that
she was wearing was her jeans, underwear, and socks.
It could be worse. The boots could be from two separate pairs; smelling of
beer.
I'd expect Amy Lynn to be wearing some sort of hat to keep the sun off her
face and ears. Perhaps an old straw hat she picked up after she got
sunburned on her first fishing expedition.
"But Mom's a scientist. A doctor. She's supposed to {veiw : view} everyone {eqaully : equally : rationally}."
Micheal laughed softly. "Janice never let her {predjuices : prejudices} and opinions get in
the way of doing her job. I think that's why I liked her so much in the first
place. I remember when you were about three, a {few : couple} years before I
discovered...what I was. I took you and a picnic lunch down to the Emergency
Room where she was on duty. As she was getting ready to go off duty, the
doors opened and an ambulance crew rushed in bearing Leslie McDaniels, the
president of the local chapter of the Gay and Lesbian support group, who was
bleeding to death. Right then and there, Janice dropped everything to tend to
her. Without her skill, McDaniels would have died right there in the lobby of
the ER. That's when you turned to me and said 'Daddy, I want to be a doctor
when I grow up.'"