Here I am, sitting in a library in mid-Alabama. It's nearby to where we're staying, and it's a swanky place. You ought to see it.
They even have espresso machines.
I'm am at a desk now. When I first sat here, I planned to write about God-knows-what. But, midway into the third paragraph of what was shaping up to be the most boring piece of literature mankind has ever seen, I saw them.
An older couple. She's small. Her slacks look four-sizes too big. Her tall husband is holding her hand.
“I wanna rent a movie,” she's saying.
“Sure thing, baby,” he answers in a thick drawl.
He lends her his arm
like they're promenading onto a dance floor, and they shuffle toward the DVDs.
Libraries have changed over the years. Long ago they were books, desks, Dewey decimals, and unpleasant beehive hairdos. Now, modern municipalities like this place have aquariums, WiFi, soundproof playrooms, and Spanish-English classes on Tuesday nights. And you should see their DVD collection.
She grabs a movie and hands it to him.
He reads aloud, “Species: a government scientist intercepts an alien transmission, and...”
“No,” she says.
He reads another. “The Exorcist: when a twelve-year-old girl…