Kaibigar

Marcy's Tips for Life

This is the first entry in my 'black book' which is nothing more than a sketch book I got in a package of sketch books that I decided to use for signatures.

Transgressions

27^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

I am sick, sick in body, sick in mind, weary of spirit and short of time. I am sick because I have an infection given me by Pickle, and I am sick because Pickle will never let the past go. Turtle Nose, your ex-husband, is never far from his lips.

       

He again commented that of his punishing me over the inconvenience of that man by steeling my food. Then he said that he could never steel enough from me to make up for my transgressions. This would raise the question: how much need I steel from him to make up for his wrong doing?

       

This is a man who laid hand on me, insults our mother twenty four years in the ground, and still he feels he needs to torture me on. His transgressions vanish into the dust were as mine live on in his prodding.

Live in today, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

Ire and the Bad Neighbors

22^nd October 2014

Dear Cassi,

       

I have named the kitten Ire for her early temperament thou I must admit she has become rather playful and well behaved in the last few days. She has spent much time on my shoulder even sitting quietly as I filmed a video.

       

Ire’s testament to the poor nature of my neighbors has become more pronounced as she takes on proper nutrition. The wound on her right front paw nearly cuts her foot clean in two, and I can clearly see the shreds of flesh that make the exit wound between her toes.

She stumbles on the foot every now and then but acts as if this is a bother rather than a true wound. I spoke to the man across the street, and he insists it was an animal attack, but that would have led to infection and how would it have an entry and exit?

That fellow has confided in me that he has a stray cat buried under every rose bush and that he “discouraged” these animals with a pellet gun before finishing them off with a .22 caliber rifle.  I guess you could say I live amongst monsters, but I’ve known that since I was in my 20s.

I would remind you that in 1990 my mother died, and Yule, the old man who calls himself my parent, never took it on himself to live with and look after his children. I didn’t think of it at the time but leaving a ten year old in the care of a 14 year old mental patient can’t be legal.

Should it be legal for the neighbors to ignore this condition? Surely they noticed that there wasn’t a car in that driveway five nights a week. Further, how old should I have been before this ceased to be child abuse? Should I look at all that lived around me when I was 14 as guilty of this criminal negligence?  I can’t answer these questions, but then I have a kitten to look after.

Keep your eyes open, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

He Let the Cat Out

16^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

       

I came home today to find the kitten had been removed from the cat carrier and was roaming about my writing desk getting cat tracks on everything. Pickle explained that he animal had been making noise.

He also called Pony Girl and said the he knew I would get violent when I came home. He sent me a text about letting the cat out so it could be with its mother which was apparently roaming the house.

What can I say, I live with crazy.

The kitten has a wound on its right front paw that goes through the foot. Entry wound on the top and exit on the bottom. It looks like this animal was shot with a pellet gun. It looks like she ran into the house or was carried by her mother due to this injury. My neighbors at it again.

In any case, she is now permitting me to handle her. She didn’t run when I came in the door and I just picked her up and held her. She is a cuddly little thing once she calms down.  

Pickle on the other hand told me that Pony Girl asked him to come to her house to get away from me. That’s Pony Girl for you. She propagates any bull that makes me look bad.

Well, I’m going to go snuggle with that kitten to make me feel better.

Find the good points, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

Yule and his Pickle

14^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

       

Pickles dropped more than one bomb of words on me yesterday. In addition to telling me that his steeling was revenge he said that he would move out and into a home with his father in at very least a year from now.

       

In my time here I believe I have never come up with a name for the old man so let me call him Yule. ‘Yule Tide’ is the old name for Christmas in the pagan world and so Yule fits a man with a long white beard and fat belly.

       

Pickles and his father Yule are to move to Chino when Yule’s lawsuit against the state finally resolves and he has the money to buy another home. They would then spend the rest of Yule’s life not far from Pony Girl. Pickles would then be servant to his ailing father.

       

As for me, Pickles says I would be left alone. I would be left to live out my life in the decaying home of my mother. The enormity of this lie is such that it looms overhead like a mountain.

       

If it pleases them they’d force me to sell, and I guess that would be the best deal I could get. Regardless, the forces of darkness have gathered and they march on my stronghold. I have time but when I close my eyes and listen I can hear them marching in the darkness.

Three hundred and sixty four days, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

The Kitten in the Couch

15^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

Wrap your head around the idea that a man wanted to be a veterinarian until he lost his site as result of gang violence. One of the fellows who lives across the street from me is in such a way and so when I found a kitten in my living room I had a strange hankering to have him hold the animal.

       

As I came home on the 14^th I was greeted by the crybaby mentality of one of my neighbors regarding the cats that live on my street and their tendency to defecate on lawns. If a cat leaves you a present on your lawn then you should be happy that it’s keeping the rats down.

In any case, I was greeted by a neighbor complaining over my feeding a handful of strays that frequent the area, and his seeing one with two or three kittens. As I approached my door I heard the faint sound of mewing but on checking my home found nothing.

       

It was later that day when I was roused by Pickle who said he heard a strange cat in the living room and on my entry I saw a little gray head looking back at me from the ruins of the couch.

On my approach the animal retreated into the depth of the cushions finding its way down under the furnishing. I made to dig the kitten free only to find that it ran, and made its way behind the piano. From there it ran back to the couch and from couch back to piano. Finally, the animal became fixed in place behind an old framed poster belonging to Pickles.

       

From here I recovered the small animal that hissed at me profusely but gave little fight. I noted it to be a female and placed her in a cat carrier for the night with food and water.

Stay safe, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

The Monkeyshines Award

Back in 1889 or 1890 at the Edison Labs the first film in North America was shot. They called this Monkeyshines No. 1 and it was a short blurry mess with no plot or artistic function. It was just the test of a machine. 

This simple test would be the start of the whole world of film in the United States. Your Deadpool, Thor, Requiem for a Dream, Star Wars, all started here in a lab. When I learned this funny fact I looked up Monkey Shines and learned that it was the 19th Century equivalent of Monkey Business or Messing Around. The Monkey certainly shined that day. 

What does any of that have to do with an Award? Well, I'm glad you asked figment of my imagination. 

I wanted to create an award for landmarks in film. Not like the best film of the year gets one, because I think that stinks. I mean an award to goes to every film that deserves to get it not the best of the year. 

Monkeyshines no.1 changed the world of film forever and that is what I will call my award. The "Monkeyshines Award" goes to every film that brings about a major change in cinema.

You may leave a nomination in the comments below. 

Now mind you I need to get a copy of that film, watch it, do some research, and finally draw a poorly designed monkey to issue this award, but your input is appreciated. 

Thievery and Then Justification

13^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

Pickle must have been in an honest mood today as he let me know that his pilfering of my junk foods was his way of getting back at me for having to deal with Turtle Nose. Does he have a justification for thievery, or thievery and then justification?

I could say that my subjecting him to Turtle Nose was revenge for his beating me when I was a child or any other crime he committed. I could say that my subjecting him to turtle nose the second time was revenge for the family turning its back on me and braking our agreements.

I could say these things, but it would be less than true. I did these things because of a weakness in my soul that I have myself paid dearly for and of which I am ashamed.

Pickle is a fellow who will never take responsibility for his actions. Me, I have a terrible burden to live under.

Own yourself, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

Dish Army

12^th October 2014

Dear Cassi,

As it always does it started with a dirty sink. That’s how I let my few days off slip by like they never were. Saturday morning when I came home the sink was full of dishes, and they spilled out onto the counter and across the room.

       

I hadn’t the strength to tackle them coming from an eight hour shift of work, having suffered a write-up, and finally capping my day with two hours of cardio at the gym. With this as my backdrop I slept as well as any who sleep during the day and found myself waking often.

       

It was possible at the six or seventh of these wakings that I emptied my bladder and found Pickle awake. It was just past one in the morning and he was in his night garb but wondered if I would cook and so I took that time to rise. I made quinoa and sausages red sauce sandwiches then set onto the task of the dishes. 

       

I cleared the counter and empted the sink on to the old abused white tiles. The dishes I placed in rows like military ranks guarding the gates of the life I wish to be my own.

       

Before engaging this formation of grime armored dishware I set to the stinky towels I’d been soaking over night. I found that the smell of cat urine can only be truly removed by ammonia. The water once blue from this had turned brown and the smell of urine stayed as the towels left.

       

This was the nature of my day of drudgery. I would battle the ranks of the dishes, do laundry, and in the mess of this sleep and draw. I was hampered by a glaze in my left eye that told me how hard my kidneys were working after that workout.

       

Now it’s Sunday night at eight and the weekend is nearly gone. I’ve spent it all working, well, next week I promise myself time to relax, and I know I’ll break that promise.

Stay on top of things, little sister,

Richard Leland Neal

Did you See the Ant

This is a performance evaluation for my monologue from "Sweet Eros" by Terrence McNelly. I was always into dark theater but then at the time I was suffering from sleep deprivation and everything gets dark at that point. 

Somewhere there was a paper with the questions asked of my observers. That is now lost to me and all I have is the answers. Well, 42.  

The Language of Flowers Poster

Back of the Poster

Everything

Tommy

Cool Idea

Great Actor

Nice Name

Gbuldegook 2

Did a Good Job

Gbuldegook

You did Great

Too Loud

iHope

Velease Yourself a Little More

Hey Sweetie