Big Brother
01-20-2010, 01:54 PM
I wrote this short story for an English 20-1 class. The title and characters are allusions as my teacher required allusions for marks. A Day in the Life is an allusions to The Beatles song from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band while the names of the characters are the swapped around names of Rick Deckard from Blade Runner and Henry Chinaski from Charles Bukowski's works.
Big Brother requires you to give him your opinions.
A Day in the Life
Henry Deckard woke up to the sound of traffic. The sound used to be pleasant to Henry but no longer. In fact, he cursed those sounds. He cursed the sounds of the cars, the people, and the madness. These would be bearable for Henry if not for the disappearance of the birds. Henry loved the birds. He loved the sweet song of the birds. Henry missed them like nothing else. There is a lot for Henry to miss these days.
After Henry managed to pull himself out of the deep recesses of his mind, he made the decision to go for a walk. This would normally call for a strenuous routine of looking for clothing to cover his naked body, a shower to rid himself of the last day’s dirt and grime, and an obsessive cleaning of the teeth. Such things barely cross Henry’s mind these days. Such things barely cross anyone’s mind these days.
As Henry took his first step into the darkness of midday, he coughed. Henry coughed a cough that perpetrated throughout his core. One may think such a cough would form from an illness or years of habitual smoking. This does not ring true for Henry nor does it any other inhabitant of what is now called Earth. For the air Henry and his cohabitants breathe only slightly resembles the air of yesteryear. The memory of an invisible atmosphere is no longer needed among the masses. Henry clings on desperately to the memory of an invisible atmosphere.
Henry was starting to enjoy his walk. Although, he knew quite well what his walk was missing. The land around Henry was all slick and smooth concrete. This is how it is for as far as Henry knows the world. Knowing this could not compare in the slightest to walking through a field of thick, damp grass, Henry sighed. A pause and a look towards the sky only reinforced Henry’s sadness. The idea of concretes usefulness was also well applied to the buildings towering around Henry. And tower they did. The buildings reached so far into the sky as to dampen the sun and to block the white and blue of the heavens. Most people don’t mind these modifications anymore. Henry seems to mind increasingly every new day.
Stopping at a park, Henry eyed a metal bench. An old man was sitting cross legged on the right side of the bench. The man had a look in his eyes; the sort of look Henry saw shooting out from his own reflection. Henry was strangely attracted to him. Henry has not been this interested since the old days.
Rick Chinaski woke up and cleared his eyes. While his vision steadied, a smile crept its way across his face. The dull roar of the traffic soothed Rick. Soothed him so that he was seconds away from drifting back to sleep. Rick told himself that he had plenty to do during the day and this snapped him out of his ecstasy.
Rick instinctively went to ready himself for the day’s activities. As he reached the bathroom reason kicked in and did joy. Rick reveled in the day that the heads of society deemed clothing and self-cleaning traditions of an outmoded age. Never had he felt so free. Never has he felt so free.
The first item on Rick’s agenda was to go for a walk. Rick never used to go on walks. The sun would always shine too bright for him to handle. These days, though, taking a walk is what Rick looks forward to most days. He does not even mind the air. Don’t be mistaken, Rick was horrified when the atmosphere started to change to its present state. Rick has now come to terms and even rationalized the change. He views the change as the planets way of making itself more open to the human eye and us more tending to its needs. The masses may not bother to even let such thoughts cross their minds but Rick believes knowing the earth is to know the soul.
Rick was starting to get tired of walking. He could only exert so much physical pressure on his figure at a time. The concrete that covers most of the Earth felt like heaven under Rick’s feet. His pores were dripping with sweat and his legs ached beyond belief. Yet the coolness of the ground below made Rick forget about all of his physical weaknesses. The ever reaching buildings only enhanced the coolness around him. It pains Rick to remember the heat and the openness of the days before.
Rick headed towards a metal bench in a park he frequently visited. While seated on the bench, Rick probed his brain for what he wished to do with the day. However, his search was cut short when he caught the gaze of a younger man. The man was giving him a look. Rick knew that look. Rick used to get that look. Rick knew he needed to meet this man. Rick knew this more than he has ever known anything.
Henry Deckard approached the old man sitting on the metal bench. Rick Chinaski signaled the younger man over. Henry sat beside the old man and introduced himself. Rick did the same. Both of the men wondered if the other was aware of the look that was so deeply felt and known. They sat in silence. It was soon no longer an awkward silence. Both Henry and Rick felt comfortable enjoying each other’s presence. Henry had not felt so comfortable since the old days. Rick knew such a feeling could only be experienced in the new world. Rick Chinaski began to speak:
“It’s a nice day, isn’t it?”Henry Deckard took no pause to answer. “Yes, I would have to say that it is."
Big Brother requires you to give him your opinions.
A Day in the Life
Henry Deckard woke up to the sound of traffic. The sound used to be pleasant to Henry but no longer. In fact, he cursed those sounds. He cursed the sounds of the cars, the people, and the madness. These would be bearable for Henry if not for the disappearance of the birds. Henry loved the birds. He loved the sweet song of the birds. Henry missed them like nothing else. There is a lot for Henry to miss these days.
After Henry managed to pull himself out of the deep recesses of his mind, he made the decision to go for a walk. This would normally call for a strenuous routine of looking for clothing to cover his naked body, a shower to rid himself of the last day’s dirt and grime, and an obsessive cleaning of the teeth. Such things barely cross Henry’s mind these days. Such things barely cross anyone’s mind these days.
As Henry took his first step into the darkness of midday, he coughed. Henry coughed a cough that perpetrated throughout his core. One may think such a cough would form from an illness or years of habitual smoking. This does not ring true for Henry nor does it any other inhabitant of what is now called Earth. For the air Henry and his cohabitants breathe only slightly resembles the air of yesteryear. The memory of an invisible atmosphere is no longer needed among the masses. Henry clings on desperately to the memory of an invisible atmosphere.
Henry was starting to enjoy his walk. Although, he knew quite well what his walk was missing. The land around Henry was all slick and smooth concrete. This is how it is for as far as Henry knows the world. Knowing this could not compare in the slightest to walking through a field of thick, damp grass, Henry sighed. A pause and a look towards the sky only reinforced Henry’s sadness. The idea of concretes usefulness was also well applied to the buildings towering around Henry. And tower they did. The buildings reached so far into the sky as to dampen the sun and to block the white and blue of the heavens. Most people don’t mind these modifications anymore. Henry seems to mind increasingly every new day.
Stopping at a park, Henry eyed a metal bench. An old man was sitting cross legged on the right side of the bench. The man had a look in his eyes; the sort of look Henry saw shooting out from his own reflection. Henry was strangely attracted to him. Henry has not been this interested since the old days.
Rick Chinaski woke up and cleared his eyes. While his vision steadied, a smile crept its way across his face. The dull roar of the traffic soothed Rick. Soothed him so that he was seconds away from drifting back to sleep. Rick told himself that he had plenty to do during the day and this snapped him out of his ecstasy.
Rick instinctively went to ready himself for the day’s activities. As he reached the bathroom reason kicked in and did joy. Rick reveled in the day that the heads of society deemed clothing and self-cleaning traditions of an outmoded age. Never had he felt so free. Never has he felt so free.
The first item on Rick’s agenda was to go for a walk. Rick never used to go on walks. The sun would always shine too bright for him to handle. These days, though, taking a walk is what Rick looks forward to most days. He does not even mind the air. Don’t be mistaken, Rick was horrified when the atmosphere started to change to its present state. Rick has now come to terms and even rationalized the change. He views the change as the planets way of making itself more open to the human eye and us more tending to its needs. The masses may not bother to even let such thoughts cross their minds but Rick believes knowing the earth is to know the soul.
Rick was starting to get tired of walking. He could only exert so much physical pressure on his figure at a time. The concrete that covers most of the Earth felt like heaven under Rick’s feet. His pores were dripping with sweat and his legs ached beyond belief. Yet the coolness of the ground below made Rick forget about all of his physical weaknesses. The ever reaching buildings only enhanced the coolness around him. It pains Rick to remember the heat and the openness of the days before.
Rick headed towards a metal bench in a park he frequently visited. While seated on the bench, Rick probed his brain for what he wished to do with the day. However, his search was cut short when he caught the gaze of a younger man. The man was giving him a look. Rick knew that look. Rick used to get that look. Rick knew he needed to meet this man. Rick knew this more than he has ever known anything.
Henry Deckard approached the old man sitting on the metal bench. Rick Chinaski signaled the younger man over. Henry sat beside the old man and introduced himself. Rick did the same. Both of the men wondered if the other was aware of the look that was so deeply felt and known. They sat in silence. It was soon no longer an awkward silence. Both Henry and Rick felt comfortable enjoying each other’s presence. Henry had not felt so comfortable since the old days. Rick knew such a feeling could only be experienced in the new world. Rick Chinaski began to speak:
“It’s a nice day, isn’t it?”Henry Deckard took no pause to answer. “Yes, I would have to say that it is."