SoHumBorn Sunday: Unexpected Company

In December 2008, a Southern Humboldt blogger began posting fictional tales of the marijuana culture. Some people were appalled. Most were enthralled. For three months her stories gripped the online community and then, abruptly, she was gone. Even though SoHumBorn pulled her blog, for months her stories were available in the cached version but eventually they, too, were swallowed into the dark abyss. Recently she gave me permission to revive them. I’ll be doing one each Sunday for awhile. Do you have a favorite? Let me know and I’ll try and include it. The stories of this culture, true and fictional, need to be saved.

Unexpected Company

He comes down the stairs in his robe and a pair of sweat pants. Rubbing a hand through his hair he heads toward the kitchen, and the smell of fresh coffee. Early morning sun slants through the trees and reflects off of the pond, lighting the kitchen in wavy golden light.  He takes one of the over sized mugs and pours it full watching the steam tendrils curl and dance.

Thank God for automatic coffee pots.  She never got up and made coffee any more.  She used to make coffee and breakfast.  She used to pack him a lunch for work.

He can’t pin point exactly when it happened.  They had always partied. They did coke with friends, some X on special occasions, mushrooms at Reggae… no big deal.

It’s like some how, when he wasn’t looking, every thing had changed.  She drinks every day. She takes pills… pain pills, Xanax, Valium, anything she can get. She’s so hard just to be around now. You never know how she’ll act, one minute she’s happy, then for any little reason, she flies into a rage. Some days she just cries.

At first he’d ignored it, hoping she’d tone it down on her own.

That didn’t happen.

He takes his coffee to the living room and puts it on the table.  Sitting on the couch he pulls out the drawer of the end table and takes out the rolling tray.  He breaks off pieces of bud and places them in the grinder, his hands on autopilot.  He can’t deal with this any more.  His friends think he should put her in Singing Trees, but when he tried to bring it up there was a huge fight.

He leans back twisting closed the ends of the joint.  He lights it and draws a hit deep into his lungs. Picking up his coffee he blows out the cloud of smoke, feeling some of the tension slide out his shoulders.  he takes a sip of coffee and contemplates the day ahead.

His partner is coming at nine so they can head up to the grow and clean all the soil out of that room.  It had spider-mites last run and nothing seemed to even slow them down. This time they’re cleaning the whole room and pre-treating it with this new shit. They had to send a guy to Oregon to get it, because California doesn’t allow its use. Spider-mites and ticks, two creatures he’d be happy to never see again, but at least ticks don’t cost you money.

There’s a slight thump and scuffle out on the porch.  Blue Jays in the cat food bowl again.

As he lifts the mug to his mouth something goes past the front window. It takes his brain a few seconds to get a hold on what he just saw, but his gut understands immediately, and responds with a nauseating roll.  His heart is pounding so hard he can feel it throughout his whole body.  The man had been bent over, as if to pass below the ledge of the window, but he hadn’t been low enough.  The blue jacket with the three gold letters across the back seared into his brain, causing physical pain.

His first thought is to run. In his mind a thousand thoughts fly around like birds trapped in a greenhouse. Running isn’t going to help. They’re at his house. They know who he is.

They must already have something on him if they’re here.  He realizes he hasn’t moved since he glimpsed the jacket.  He looks down and sees the coffee in his cup sloshing with the shaking of his hand.  Placing it carefully on the table he takes another long hit of the joint and holds it as long as he can.

He reaches for the phone, hesitates, then picks it up.  His partner answers on the second ring. “Heymandon’tcomehere” he hears his own frightened whisper like it’s coming from far away.

“What?”

“Don’t   come   here! The cops are here!”

“Fuck, are you serious?!”

“Yeah. Igottago.” He puts the phone down, sits back, smokes his joint,  and waits.

Next week the conclusion to this story—
Links to other stories in this series:


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14 Comments
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Grampa Rob
Guest
Grampa Rob
13 years ago

Kym, this is silly, I feel like I’m watching daytime TV. Tune in next week: Was it a joke?, did he really see HER on the porch?, did they get the letters wrong on the jacket? Will the blog still be on next week? Stay tuned and don’t miss a thing.

Grampa Rob
Guest
Grampa Rob
13 years ago

Kym, this is silly, I feel like I’m watching daytime TV. Tune in next week: Was it a joke?, did he really see HER on the porch?, did they get the letters wrong on the jacket? Will the blog still be on next week? Stay tuned and don’t miss a thing.

SoHumBorn
Guest
SoHumBorn
13 years ago

I’m sorry Grandpa Rob. It’s not Kym’s fault it’s mine. The first stories were short but took hours to get “down on paper”. As I got more comfortable in the telling, the tales became longer & more detailed.
My real life friends and family weren’t willing to let me spend entire
days typing away, & my blog friends weren’t happy to wait days and days for a new story. I compromised by writing only in the morning before anyone was up & sharing each … I guess chapter is the best word – as I completed it. It was a bit like a soap opera 🙂
The letters he first saw that day were DEA though he would have the opportunity to see many others (IRS, FBI) very soon.

Grampa Rob
Guest
Grampa Rob
13 years ago
Reply to  SoHumBorn

Thanks so much for the reply SoHumBorn. I feel a bit like a fool as I always do after not realizing that there might be a reason for anything other than mine. I guess the story was so gripping that I didn’t even think that you might have a life of your own and responsibilities and all that real life stuff. Thank you so much for responding to my emotional outburst. Grampa Rob

SoHumBorn
Guest
SoHumBorn
13 years ago

I’m sorry Grandpa Rob. It’s not Kym’s fault it’s mine. The first stories were short but took hours to get “down on paper”. As I got more comfortable in the telling, the tales became longer & more detailed.
My real life friends and family weren’t willing to let me spend entire
days typing away, & my blog friends weren’t happy to wait days and days for a new story. I compromised by writing only in the morning before anyone was up & sharing each … I guess chapter is the best word – as I completed it. It was a bit like a soap opera 🙂
The letters he first saw that day were DEA though he would have the opportunity to see many others (IRS, FBI) very soon.

Grampa Rob
Guest
Grampa Rob
13 years ago
Reply to  SoHumBorn

Thanks so much for the reply SoHumBorn. I feel a bit like a fool as I always do after not realizing that there might be a reason for anything other than mine. I guess the story was so gripping that I didn’t even think that you might have a life of your own and responsibilities and all that real life stuff. Thank you so much for responding to my emotional outburst. Grampa Rob

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[…] is my favorite… THE OTHER END OF THE LINE (A FOLLOW UP ON THE UNEXPECTED COMPANY POST) She’s been up since 5:30.  This is Dakota’s first year in school and she just can’t bring […]

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[…] is my favorite… THE OTHER END OF THE LINE (A FOLLOW UP ON THE UNEXPECTED COMPANY POST) She’s been up since 5:30.  This is Dakota’s first year in school and she just can’t bring […]

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[…] Fourth: SoHumBornSunday: Unexpected Company […]

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[…] Fourth: SoHumBornSunday: Unexpected Company […]

Jim
Guest
Jim
13 years ago

Can you post the second part of unexpected company?

Thanks. Great stuff.

Staff
Member
13 years ago
Reply to  Jim

Jim,
The second part of Unexpected Company is The Other End of the Line which is linked as the next story in the series at the end of Unexpected Company. I know you want more about this character but SoHumBorn hasn’t written it.

Jim
Guest
Jim
13 years ago

Can you post the second part of unexpected company?

Thanks. Great stuff.

Staff
Member
13 years ago
Reply to  Jim

Jim,
The second part of Unexpected Company is The Other End of the Line which is linked as the next story in the series at the end of Unexpected Company. I know you want more about this character but SoHumBorn hasn’t written it.