Stanley & Iris Page #2

I'm home.

Chicken and peas and potatoes, please.

- Thanks.

- I'll have the same.

Chicken,

peas...

and potatoes.

Chicken.

And peas.

- Peas.

- Peas?

Bobby, you want to check the fruit?

I'm on top of it!

Uh, that shirt's gonna run.

You ought to separate

the whites from the colour.

I wash everything together.

Including my socks.

One load is four quarters.

You put in a pretty long day.

I don't mind.

Gets me out of the house.

Just sit here and watch the wash

go round and round.

Read my magazine.

There's a Chinese take-out next door.

Can I buy you an egg roll?

You sure can.

How long since he passed away?

- My husband?

- Mm.

Forever.

Eight months.

How are you getting along?

It's a heavy load.

Sometimes my knees bend.

Did he leave insurance?

- They cancelled.

- So money's tight?

I'm not gonna take any vacations

in Bermuda this year.

If I'm lucky, I'll get a day in Boston.

I'd love to go to Boston for a day,

stay in a hotel and have room service.

Where they charge you 2.50 for a coffee

and bring it to you in a silver pot

and put a chocolate

on your pillow and turn your bed down.

I went to the Grand Canyon once.

I walked all the way down to the bottom.

Stayed there six days and six nights.

Slept in a bedroll.

Didn't see anybody.

Didn't say anything to anybody.

The best time I ever had.

Six days?

Oh, God, it would drive me crazy.

You don't have to fight for anything

or explain anything

or dodge anything.

You just feed the deer

and watch the sun go down.

You see, I like bright lights

and a lot of people.

I see you're feeling good today.

You wear that pink sweater

when you feel good.

When you feel bad, you wear the grey one.

- I only have two sweaters.

- Am I right or wrong?

- You're watching me.

- You stand out.

Let's take a look at these fortune cookies.

"Make new friends and trust them."

Did you write this?

Seems like pretty good advice.

What did you get?

Here.

- Open it.

- No point in opening mine.

I'm not lucky.

Oh.

I better go pick up my wash.

OK.

We need a refill on shrink wrap!

You were 15 minutes in the toilet.

You get a five-minute break.

- I had cramps.

- Have them in five minutes.

And you, get your hair up inside your net.

F*** this factory, and f*** him.

Oh! Looks like we got ourselves

a new flavour.

God, the smell of cookies

is giving me a headache.

We need a longer break.

- You got a Tylenol?

- No.

Yeah, look under the counter,

right in front of you.

Got a bunch of stuff in there.

That's Rolaids.

That's Sine-Aid.

Never mind.

Cox, somebody's ass

is going in the meat grinder.

Don't say you're gonna call your union,

because I'll call the cops.

$2,000 worth of purchase orders

never got here.

You think I'm upstairs chewing cigars?

I got a bookkeeper.

Maybe she's got bad breath

but she's got good eyes.

What happened to my mayonnaise?

My 150 pounds of coffee? My tuna fish?

Come on, who's getting fat off of me?

It isn't Stanley Cox.

Who are you? What do you know?

You know something I don't?

He can't read and he can't write,

so it isn't him.

Do you mind if I sit down?

I don't feel much like company.

- I gave you away, didn't I?

- Yes, ma'am, you did.

You were headed for trouble.

Lady, I'm always in trouble.

- It's nothing to be ashamed of.

- Is that right?

You don't rob banks.

I can't open an account in one.

What do you do with your money?

Keep it under my mattress

like a skid-row bum.

I never thought what it would be like.

In the city, you can't read street signs.

You're lost. You grab people.

You stop 'em.

You ask three, four people,

"Which way? Where do I go?

How do I get there?"

You can't take a bus.

You can't read where it's going.

You can't drive a car

because you can't get a licence.

You ask yourself,

have I got a name if I can't write it?

Am I a human being if I can't read it?

Why don't you do something about it?

Cox, could you shut off the water?

I want to talk to you for a minute.

I got some bad news for you.

This is your last day.

Could you pick up your pay cheque?

- You had some complaints?

- No.

As a matter of fact, you make a good stew.

So what's the beef?

Listen, you can't read.

You could pick up the wrong box.

Try to pick up a box of salt

and get roach powder.

You're dangerous.

I could have a lot of sick people here.

I could have a lot of lawsuits here.

You're a good man, you show up on time,

but everybody sues nowadays.

Swab the toilets. The seats too,

and the base. Sometimes they miss.

Any writing on the walls - off.

There's more telephone numbers in there

than the city directory.

You sure you want this job?

- Yeah.

- OK.

Apple pickers.

You, you, you, and you.

That's all. Let's go, let's go.

You're not currently employed, then?

No.

You don't have a place of residence

any more?

I'm living in a garage.

We can't have your father there, can we?

OK, just a few questions.

- Can he manage the toilet?

- Yes.

- Is he taking any medication?

- No.

That's remarkable for a man his age.

Any problem with his memory?

He's clean... He's...

...he's smart, and he's broke.

There'll be four in his room.

We'll try to get him a window bed.

Dinner's at five.

He can have a snack if he wants.

And we do have a television room.

I'll be all right here.

Good. Good.

Let me see the view.

That's nice.

Hah!

Look, they have a birdbath out there.

Oh, yeah, that's...

If I get a good job,

you'll be out the next day.

Looks like a good bed.

I don't want you laying around.

Stay up, go for a walk,

find somebody to play cards with.

I'll find somebody.

If you need a blanket, tell them, OK?

I'm not afraid to open my mouth.

If you don't like the food,

I'll bring something.

- All right.

- A deli sandwich, some fruit.

All right.

- And I'll come every Sunday.

- I'll be glad to see you.

Well...

Yeah.

You've been a good father, Pop. I'm sorry.

Don't kill me off. I'm still a good father.

You never laid a hand on me.

I'm going to now.

Hey-ey-ey!

The doctor says you're pregnant.

- Well, are you?

- If he says so, I guess I am.

- This is news to you?

- How could I know?

I'm always missing.

You had to let me show up

and get slapped in the face with it?

- Who is it?

- I'm not telling.

You always treat me like a little kid.

"Do this. Do that."

I'm not a little kid any more.

- This is all to get at me?

- Maybe.

You're five months pregnant

because I made you get in by ten?

- Maybe.

- Who is it?

I'll see you in hell first.

- What are you doing?

- She's my mother.

You two want to settle this at home?

How is she?

I don't know. We're not talking.

You're responsible for a baby.

You know that.

You got to plan for it, want it,

take care of it,

feed it, raise it,

get it through diaper rash and measles.

It's not just a jolt of semen.

It's a human being.

It needs clothes, it needs shots,

it needs to go to school.

I'll tell you something else... Look at me.

I'm not gonna look after it.

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