Country Boy

The waitress looked at Larry in utter despair and whispered, "No. I got nowhere to go. Now I got no one and no job. Why couldn't you just leave him alone? At least I had a place to sleep and food to eat before you put your nose in where it wasn't wanted."

"What do you mean? All I did was keep that asshole from hitting you again."

"Yeah, well, that was the price I paid for a place to sleep and my food. Well, that and working in the cafe. At least he quit fucking me when he got Patty. Now I got nothing at all thanks to you."

Liz turned and walked into an open lean-too shed behind the cafe. She moved to an old couch at the rear of the building and picked up some blankets and bedding. She wrapped them into a roll and stuffed a change of threadbare clothes into a shopping bag then trudged out the opening and headed toward the exit out of the parking lot.

Larry watched her go in shock. He couldn't believe she had been living in that mess. After Liz disappeared from his view around the corner of the building, Larry gave himself a figurative shake and took off at a run after her. He caught up with her in front of his truck. Larry grabbed her arm and stopped her. When she felt him grab her Liz cringed away from him and looked at him in terror.

Larry immediately dropped her arm and said, "Oh, God, I'm sorry. Look, I want to help you."

"I think you've helped me enough today, don't you? I mean, before you showed up I at least had a roof over my head and a place to sleep and food to eat. Now I got nothin'. Thanks for your help mister." Liz turned and started to trudge off once again.

Larry rushed up beside her and gently took her arm this time. He said, "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't think it through maybe but he didn't need to be hitting you. Look, I don't have much but you're welcome to come to my place and stay until we can figure something out. I don't even have a house, I live in a tent out by the Buffalo but I can feed you until we can figure something out."

Liz snorted and said, "Huh. What, you want to get me out of town alone then get you some of my scrawny ass? Well, I might have ta go that route sometime but not now and sure not with you. No thanks mister. I'll take my chances here."

"NO! Nothing like that. I didn't mean that at all. I was just offering you a place to stay and food to eat for a while."

"What, I'm not good enough for you or something? That it?"

Larry felt his temper sizzling again. With an effort he held himself in check as he said, 'No, I didn't say you weren't good enough for me. I said I wasn't interested... Strike that. I meant I caused you to lose your home and job so I want to make amends. All I'm offering is a place to sleep in a tent and food to eat cooked over a campfire. I have to come to town every couple of days or so because I have no electricity or refrigerator so fresh food spoils quickly.

Liz looked into the distance for several seconds then let her body slump. She seemed resigned to whatever happened when she said, "Why not? I got nothin' better and it's probably let you rape me or one of the homeless dopers that sleep around town here will. I've had to fight them off a time or two in the shed here. 'Least you look sortta clean and might not kill me right off anyway, though I don't know why I care really."

Larry took her bundle and put it behind the seats in his truck in the extended cab section. After they were on the road for a few minutes he turned into the Wal-Mart parking lot. Liz looked at him with a question in her face and eyes.

"This is where I was heading in town. I stopped for breakfast before I came here to buy groceries and a few other items."

Liz turned her head back to the front and leaned back in the truck seat without a word. Just before he closed the door Larry said, "Well, aren't you getting out?"

"No. Not much reason to. I got no money and no reason to go inside."

"Well, so what. At least come inside and help me get the groceries. I need to know what you like and so forth."

Liz let out a huff and opened the door. After they closed the truck doors she followed Larry quietly into the store. Larry had pushed the cart about 20 feet when Liz pushed him aside and began pushing it. She said, "You shop and I'll follow you."

Larry bought more fresh vegetables than normal and some fruits then went down the aisles pulling canned goods and dry foods until the cart was almost full. He even picked up some fresh meat. From there he went to the dairy and got a gallon of milk, some cheddar and cottage cheese, eggs and butter. His next stop was the ladies wear section.

When Larry stopped in the middle of the clothing Liz looked at him and said, "What're we here for?"

"You need some shoes and better clothes. Pick out some long pants, shorts and undies if you need them then we'll get you some work shoes."

"I told you I got no money. Now let's go."

"Yeah, I know you said you had no money. You need clothes and I have money. Now are you going to pick it out or do I have to guess at the sizes and pick it out for you?"

"Ok, fine, but you still aren't getting' any. You got it?"

"Fuck, you are a little..." Larry stopped talking in the middle of his sentence. He quickly turned, walked over and sat down while Liz picked through the clothes. He noticed a sales clerk watching every move Liz made as if she didn't trust her. Finally Liz put her clothes in the cart and headed toward the shoe section. Larry followed her and once again took a seat to wait. She quickly made her selection and put the shoes in the cart. She glared at him and said, "Ok, let's go. I got it."

Larry paid for their purchases and they once again got on the road, this time headed back for his tent in the woods. They were near the edge of town when a patrol car pulled in behind them and turned on his lights. Larry muttered "Son of a bitch. That asshole must have filed charges against me." Liz looked scared as Larry pulled over and stopped.

The young patrolman walked carefully up beside the small truck. He stopped a little to the rear of the drivers window, bent slightly forward and said, "Good morning sir. Could I see your license, registration and insurance card please?"

Larry handed him the requested items and sat while the patrolman walked back to his patrol car and called him in. Soon, almost too soon, he returned and handed Larry his papers. The patrolman said, "Are you the gentleman that gave Bert a whippin' down at the bait shop this morning?"

Larry felt his stomach lurch and thought about lying. Finally he decided to tell the truth and said, "I don't know the name of the man I hit this morning down there. I found him beating on this young lady here and stopped him. I'm afraid I had to reason with him somewhat violently to make him stop but I wouldn't say I beat him."

"Unh Huh. Not what I heard. Well, no matter. You just did what a lot of us wanted to do for a long time. Mr. Simmons asked us to find you and have you stop by and see him before you left town. He said he needed to talk to you again. Can you do that for me sir?"

"I suppose, but I don't know any Mr. Simmons. And why would he want to talk to me anyway?"

"Well, he knows you and said he had some business to complete with you. He asked the chief for his help and he got it. You sure you never met Mr. Simmons? Down at the container lot?"

"Oh. Yeah, I stopped in to see about purchasing a container but he wanted more than I wanted to pay and wouldn't negotiate so I left. Was he the scrawny little kid or the one I talked to on the phone?"

"Oh, you met Seth too did ya? Little doper works there part time. He's 'bout worthless as tits on a boar hog but he does things for Mr. Simmons from time to time. I'd watch him if I was you. No Mr. Simmons will be there today. He seemed to know you so I'm sure he'll recognize you when you get there. You all have a nice day now, ya hear?"

Larry sat and watched the patrol car make a U-turn in the street and head back into town before he started his truck and drove off. When he got to the container lot he almost just drove past it but felt Liz's hand on his arm. He turned to her and she said, "Turn here."

For some reason Larry did as she asked. Before he had the truck door open a tall skinny man came out of the dirty office and walked toward the truck. When he got to Larry he held out his hand and said, "Put 'er there friend. We talked the other day about one of my containers. Well, this is your lucky day. I decided we can do business after all. If I remember rightly you wanted that nearly new one right over there didn't you?"

Larry thought he looked familiar but wasn't sure why. He said, "Yeah, that was the one I wanted but I have to tell you, I still won't pay what you are asking for it."

"You don't worry yourself about that. I've got a deal for you that you can't refuse. You get that container over there, delivered and sat on a concrete foundation with tie downs on the house. You just tell me where and when you want it and you got it."

"I don't understand. You did say 'on the house' didn't you? Why would you just give me something worth at least $6,000?"

"Well, you did the town and this young lady here a kindness this morning and some of us decided to return the favor. We heard you telling her you would take care of her for a while but you were living in a tent. We know you caused part of her pain and all but you done something a bunch of us been wanting to do for some time but we just couldn't prove that old bastard deserved it. We talked to him a couple of times to get him to ease off on her but he just took right back to beating on her after a while. Now we owe you and this is your reward son. A bunch of the guys what eat at the Bait Shop Cafe pitched in and helped with the cost some so I'm not losing much on the deal anyway and what I lose is my share I recon. Now, where and when do you want that there container?"

Larry thought a moment then said, "You can bring it out any time you want. I live down south a ways along the Buffalo." Larry grabbed an old business card and turned it over to write his address on then handed it to Mr. Simmons. "This is the address. I think the trail into the place will take a truck. If it doesn't, can we find some rollers or something and a tractor to pull the container in with?"

"You don't worry about that. You just tell me where and when and I'll make sure it gets there correctly."

"Well, I can take it any time you want to deliver, the sooner the better because I want to rock the outside and insulate it for the winter."

"Fine by me boy. Is tomorrow too soon for us to come out and pour the foundation?"

"Not at all. I'll be there to show you where to put it and if we need to do some work on the trail in we can take care of that then also."

The next morning Larry and Liz were barely done with their coffee when the crew showed up to do the foundation. They brought a backhoe and forms so made quick work of the operation. Just after noon a truck came lumbering up the trail to deliver the redi-mix concrete. By 3:30 p.m. The truck was gone and the crew quickly followed. Just before they left the foreman said, "We'll be back day after tomorrow to take the forms off. We'll let the concrete cure for about five or six days after the forms come off then we'll deliver the container."

That evening Larry picked up his tape measure and made several measurements, making careful notes on his papers as he went. Liz followed him around making herself helpful when she could. Finally she could stand it no longer and asked, "What are you making all the measurements for?"

"After we get the container set I need to plumb in water from the stream and make arrangements for waste disposal—a septic system. I am also planning where I will build my power generating station, garage and workshop. We are going to be totally self sufficient out here. We will live completely off the grid. We'll have our own power from a water-powered generator. I'll heat primarily with wood but will also have a small electric heater if I can generate enough power from the stream. Next summer we will grow as much of our own food as we can."

Larry looked surprised, then guilty, and continued, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that like it sounded. I meant I will do those things. I'm sorry I assumed you would do them."

"What's the problem? As long as I am here I intend to do what I can to earn my keep. If you want to do those things, I will help as much as I can. Oh! You mean you want me to leave? I'm sorry, I'll begin looking for a way to go..."

"No that's not what I meant. As long as we continue to get along here, you are welcome to stay if you help out with the work."

The next morning Larry told Liz he was going back to town to order some building supplies. She decided to stay in the camp while he was gone. This time Larry made it to all the stores he planned on visiting and got his orders in. He purchased, in his words, a shit pot of concrete supposedly to rock in a building, but actually for his dam project. He bought two windows for his house and a door. Next, he purchased a gas operated saw that would cut the strong steel of the container as well as the rock he intended to use for the dam and his new house. The saw, blades for it and a few other tools, nails, screws and lumber for framing more than made a load for his little truck. He hired the rest of the order delivered.

Beginning the next day Larry worked daily until he couldn't do any more getting his dam repaired. He dug and hauled rock, cemented them in place then filled between the front and back rock walls of the dam with a mixture of concrete and smaller stones. His dam would only be about 10 feet tall and about 14 feet long but he made it three feet wide. He was an electrical engineer so the construction was not in his specialty. He made the structure stronger than it probably needed to be for safety.

The side away from his house had a drop off of one foot coming half way across the dam for overflow in case of high water. The side near his house had a cutout for the millrace that would drive his generator and other water driven tools when he got ready to set them up. The race ended at the site of the old mill, which was where he was going to set up his generator house and workshop. The pedestals for the old mill wheel were still standing and appeared to be in good repair. He intended to re-use them and the existing shaft for his mill wheel.

Liz, or Beth as Larry called her, helped him on the dam work most of the day but also did what little cooking and "housework" was required. They had settled into a nice, friendly working relationship but she still did not speak much and was terribly reticent, shy, and jumpy.

The first time Larry called Liz Beth she stopped and looked at him then said, "My name is Liz. Why did you just call me Beth?"

"I'm sorry if I upset you. You just don't seem like a Liz, you're more of a Beth type person. I don't know why, but that is the way I think of you. If it bothers you I'll try to stop doing it."

Liz thought for a moment and said, "No, that's fine. I sort of like it. Maybe if I become Beth I can change my life more and forget about Liz and all the bad things that happened to her."

On the fifth day after the foundation was poured the crew arrived early in the morning with the container. It fit on the foundation perfectly and within two hours it was placed properly and bolted down. Larry had it placed so the end with the loading doors was facing to the southwest. He intended to padlock it and not use it at all, putting a walk door in the middle of the southeast side with a nice window on each side of it. There would be a covered porch all along the side with the door and windows and no openings on the north and northeast to help keep unwanted breezes out in the winter.

The afternoon after the container was delivered, Larry made his measurements and carefully cut the holes for the windows and door. After the holes were cut, he cut channel iron to line the holes and pressed a high quality rubber between the channel iron and container to help stop airflow. Next, he used a small welder and welded the inside corners of the channel iron before carefully installing the windows and door in the unit. He filled in the channel with foam insulation to further stop air leaks. Later he would spray foam insulation on the inside or put up Styrofoam to further insulate the container.

CHAPTER 3

A COUNTRY BOY WILL SURVIVE

BY SW MO HERMIT

Larry was in a quandary now. He had two projects started and, to him, they both had top priority. On the one hand, he really needed to get the house or cabin or whatever you would call it completed so he and Beth had a warm dry place to live during the winter. That project would take several days more work if he did it like he originally planned. He also really needed to get the dam completed and his generator set up so he could have some electric power. Of course he couldn't complete the house until he had the power; well he could, but to him the job wouldn't be completed until the electricity was in and operating. He really wanted a refrigerator and freezer so he didn't have to go to town so often for food. A nice stove to cook on would be a plus also.

Ok, change of plans. Rush the dam to completion, pour the footings for the generator and its shelter then go back to work on the house. If it rained they could shelter in the container now since he had the door and windows installed. Instead of rocking the container's exterior, he would just paint it a decent color to blend into the woods and go with that. He would pour a concrete porch and lay rock up about 3 feet for a 'rail' then cover it and call it good. On second thought, he would find some flat rocks and use them for a porch floor, setting them in concrete. Plan made. He could insulate the interior of the container as the weather cooled.

Early the next morning Larry gathered his tools and material and headed for his dam. It really wasn't that long a trek but he drove his truck because his tools were in it. You could see the dam site from the 'house'. Larry had barely began work when Beth showed up. She stood watching for a few moments then asked, "What do you want me to do Larry?"

Larry was pleased and somewhat surprised by her offer but he took it in stride. He said, "I am sort of cutting rocks as I go to build the dam higher. If I am lucky I can find a rock that doesn't need cutting or that only needs minor cutting to fit. After I find or cut the proper rock I lay a good bed of mortar and place the rock properly. If you really want to help you can keep me in mortar and look for rocks you think will fit in the next spot along the dam."

Larry laughed and continued, "Well, as you can see, I'm not really building a dam but rather I am repairing the one that is already here. This is pretty difficult work though. Are you sure you want to help? The rocks and mortar are heavy and the cement is caustic and will damage your hands even through gloves."

"Yeah, I'm sure I want to help. I told you I would help when you brought me out here and I intend to do it. I have everything done up at the house now so here I am."

"Great. When we have used up the mortar mix let me know and I'll show you how to mix the next batch. I go through it pretty fast because after I set the rocks I fill in between the two outer walls with concrete to make the dam stronger. If you look at the bags you will see I am really using a concrete mix instead of mortar but it works the same. I want the dam to be stronger than we really need so I am building it back better than the original."

Beth began fetching and carrying with a vengeance. At times Larry was hard put to keep up with her. Finally, about 10:30 a.m. they used all the concrete mixed up and Larry said, "Let's take a break before we mix another batch. I'm going to have a beer now. Do you want one?"