Julian Lawery (Class of 2010): Zed was my best friend through elementary school.  I was real torn up when he dropped outta school. 

Zed Dublin (Class of 2010, Dropout): Well, I reckon that school wasn’t too meanin’ful.  I guess some folks get lots outta it, but I jus didn’t.  Make better money workin’ on my cars anywho. 

Sammy Moylan: Everyone knows that Zed is like, Julian’s best friend or something.  The problem is that not many people have actually seen Zed in like, two years or something.  Julian is from the county and so is Zed.  In ninth grade, Julian moved to Ervin and Zed dropped out.  Apparently he lives in the woods or something and builds cars and makes moonshine. 

Zed Dublin (Class of 2010, Dropout): Yep.  Brewin’ liquor is how I got nuff money ta kick off my car fixin’ business.  City kids, they love it.  Charge ‘em 60 bucks a gallon.  Usually make it ‘round 180 proof er so.  Always buyin’ more’n they can drink. 

Julian Lawery: Zed can build or fix anything!  This one time, when we were like, twelve or something, we went to the junkyard and collected these rusty parts for lawnmowers he was working on.  I cut my arm really bad on this old blade.  The rest of that summer, I remember being in and out of the hospital cause I was like, infected with tetris or whatever. 

Zed Dublin: Julian ‘n I’ve been real good friends fer bout as long as I can remember.  He was kindly more well off than I was, but he never really took to it and really didn’t make too much a difference.  We was always out in the woods doin’ this or that.  I’d help him gather bugs or make lil’ games out of sticks and he’d have me over fer snacks and lemonade at his momma’s house.  We always did favors and such fer each other and when Julian asked me if I could make a bomb, well, it weren’t no big deal.   

***

Ted Moylan (Sammy’s Father): When I found out that my daughter was involved with that Darryl Newston jerk, I was pissed. 

Rhonda Moylan (Sammy’s Mother): Newsome honey.  I was just shocked because I really had no idea that she was even interested in dating.  And when it was that Darryl…ugh!  He was just so disruptive and he looked like he could use a long shower.  I didn’t know what had gotten into her. 

Sammy Moylan: I knew my parents would flip out when they found out that I was dating Darryl.  That’s pretty much why I did it.  I mean, the whole bad boy thing was kind of hot, but he smelled weird and was, like, a total tool. 

Ted Moylan (Sammy’s Father): He is just some punk kid who thinks that he can just beat around school, not trying, no job, and involving my daughter in criminal activity because he’s a “badass”?  Well I don’t buy it.  I bet he smokes the dope. 

Rhonda Moylan (Sammy’s Mother): I don’t want to say that we weren’t involved in our daughter’s life, but if it hadn’t been for Mr. Lloyd, we would have never known about her problem.

***

Jim Lloyd: In situations like these where productive students from good families become “involved” with the bad eggs, its my personal policy to inform the parents so that measures can be taken to keep the good students on the right path. 

Darryl Newsome: I still can’t believe that jackass told Sam’s parents about me.  I know I’ve done some fucked up things, but hitting a girl? And a kid at that?  Even I wouldn’t stoop that low.  What you have to understand about Jimmy is that he’ll do some pretty greasy things if he has to.  All to keep his little kingdom in order.  Jackass.

Ted Moylan (Sammy’s Father): I get this call at work right? And it’s the principal, Jim Lloyd.  I think, “Oh God, what has my Sammy done?” but no.  I find out that this punk that she’s dating just hit her in the hallway.  I didn’t see any bruises on her when I picked her up that day, but Jim says it’s because she was wearing her coat and that it wasn’t the first time. 

Darryl Newsome: I got called to the office for the usual, and then when I get there, there’s this fat bozo standing next to Sam talking to Jim.  Well, let me tell you, that old guy let me have it.  And ole’ Jimmy just stood there and let him dish it out.  This fogie called me every name in the book and made up some new ones, shit.  He even yanked me around by the lapels before Lloyd’s office assistant started making a scene and tried to pull him offa me. 

Julian Lawery: I was just kinda, strolling down the hall and I heard all this shouting.  I usually like to watch fights so I turned the corner to see who was brawling.  I was so surprised to see Darryl and like, this fat guy scrapping!  They were yelling and there were already a bunch of students around the office window, so I didn’t get too good of a view.  That was disappointing. 

Amy Lundell (Class of 2010, Valedictorian): I was working my appointed position of junior executive office assistant when I heard a bunch of yelling outside the break room.  I sprang from my desk to see what was the matter but it was just a parent yelling at his kid for getting in a fight I think.  Violence is so philistine. 

Darryl Newsome: One of the most embarrassing moments of my life. 

If all the”corporate jet owners” sold their jets, who would the fed tax then?

Note to the reader: The following is the transcript from a compilation of recorded interviews regarding the incidents surrounding and leading up to the Darryl Newsome case.  When numbers of sources are used, discrepancies and contradictions are certain to arise.   

Sammy Moylan (11^th Grade, Ex-Girlfriend):  Nobody really wants to talk about that, ok?  I mean, it’s just something that we just want to put behind us.  Ok? 

Julian Lawery (Class of 2010, Friend):  I know Abe.  Not like, well or anything, but I knew of him.  Saw him around the halls and stuff.  Maybe he was in my gym class freshman year.  He isn’t really a guy who cares to be remembered.  Like, I guess he would want you to like him or whatever, but if you saw him the next day and had to ask his name again, he wouldn’t be too upset. 

Zed Dublin (Class of 2010, Dropout):  Ya?  I reckon that’d be ‘bout right.  We was just havin’ some fun.  Didn’t really mean for nobody to get hurt like he did.  But I guess we figured it might happen sure enough.

Darryl Newsome (Class of 2010, Incarcerated): Most people have no idea how good of a plan this was.  If we didn’t have so many fuckups, none of this would have happened.  Why?  Did Julian say that we all saw it coming?   

Jim Lloyd (Principal, Erving High): The school has no official statement on the matter.

***

Julian Lawery (Class of 2010, Friend): Last year, I was in this chemistry class.  101 I think.  That’s where they put all the sophomores and the seniors who…uh…didn’t do so hot in math and stuff.  I mean, Darryl was there too and he’s smart so, like, I didn’t feel to bad about being there myself.  Abe was in there too. 

Sammy Moylan (11^th Grade, Ex-Girlfriend): Nobody was too sure why Abel Preston was in our chemistry class.  We just assumed it was some kind counseling problem cause  everyone knows that he was like, one of the smartest kids in his class.  Number two I think.  Right behind Amy Lundell.  We were all pretty surprised when he walked in that first day. 

Jim Lloyd (Principal, Erving High): Abel Preston was placed into…let me see…yes, Chemistry 101 with Mrs. Eldric.  He was one of our top honors students and I don’t understand why he was in such an elementary course. 

Julian Lawery (Class of 2010, Friend): Chemistry was real hard on me.  I was always struggling to even pay attention.  There was this one day where we were doing a lab on like, the combinations of blue and clear and then you put it over a fire and I guess that was pretty boring to Abe I guess.  He was just like, dickin’ around back there.  We all were I think.

Darryl Newsome (Class of 2010, Incarcerated): That dumbass blew half the lab up!  I nearly shit myself when it went off.  Sometimes I wonder myself if it really was an accident…Jesus. 

Leslie Preston (Abel’s Mother): I never thought for even one second that it was Abel’s intention to cause that explosion.  He’s such a good kid, my Abel.  Did you know that he got his Eagle Scout last year?  See, here’s his merit badge sash and he even won a medal for community service. 

Sammy Moylan: This was like, a totally huge hairy deal.  Everyone was freaking out and Mrs. Eldric was screaming and trying to shove like eight people into the emergency shower.  I’m lucky I was in the front of the room.  A couple of kids got burned some and this one girl, Lucy Stamson, caught like, a whole face-full of glass from the beaker or whatever. 

Jim Lloyd (Principal): Whenever events like this occur, we have to treat it like a threat.  There is certain protocol that Ervin High School has to follow to make sure the student body is protected from the malicious intentions of any deviant students. 

Sammy Moylan: Abel spent like, the rest of that semester in counseling, I think, and I didn’t see him around much.  Especially in chem.  It was like he vanished, but we all knew he was still here…

***

Darryl Newsome: Jim Lloyd is a dick.  I’m not gonna mince words with you bud.  He rode me hard ever since ninth grade  What ole’ Jimmy likes to do is pick one student who is just a little behind the curve and a little “disruptive” to his precious learning environment, and just screw with ‘em.  I’m talkin’ “random searches”, endless meetings about my “behavior issues”, and glares and shit in the halls.  He always assumed that I was trying to break the law or violate school policy.  I was just trying to have fun, ya know? 

Jim Lloyd: Darryl Newsome.  He could have been a great kid.  Smart as a whip, that one.  But he’s a bad egg.  And bad eggs spoil the rest.  I didn’t have anything against him, but someone had to be hard on him.  Show him some discipline. 

Darryl Newsome: The first time I knew he was screwing with me was in my world history class in like, November or something of ninth grade.  I saw him talking to Ms. Salazar before class and then she called me up to her desk after class.  They were trying to accuse me of cheating.  Fuckin’ cheating!  It’s not that I didn’t cheat though.  Hell, I cheated on just about every test in that class, but I couldn’t get caught.  Besides, it wasn’t even my paper they were tryin’ to show me. 

Jim Lloyd: Here at Ervin High, we have a strict policy on academic dishonesty.  The first instance is a warning, but after that, it’s two days of suspension.  That means school, and sports.  Mr. Newsome is the kind of problem student that would only take a warning as a sign of weakness.  In certain situations, we are allowed to skip the warning. 

Darryl Newsome: It’s not that I really missed out on the school, but I wasn’t allowed to play ball either.  I guess Julian convinced me to play, hell if I know.  Football was my only contribution to the school and basically it was fun to nail people.  Jim suspended me so I would miss a game and then got the coach to kick me off the team for good.  I didn’t give a flying shit about football, but nobody screws me over like that and walks.

9th and Hennepin

by Tom Waits

Well it’s Ninth and Hennepin
All the doughnuts have names that sound like prostitutes
And the moon’s teeth marks are on the sky
Like a tarp thrown all over this
And the broken umbrellas like dead birds
And the steam comes out of the grill
Like the whole goddamn town’s ready to blow…
And the bricks are all scarred with jailhouse tattoos
And everyone is behaving like dogs
And the horses are coming down Violin Road
And Dutch is dead on his feet
And all the rooms they smell like diesel
And you take on the dreams of the ones who have slept here
And I’m lost in the window, and I hide in the stairway
And I hang in the curtain, and I sleep in your hat…
And no one brings anything small into a bar around here
They all started out with bad directions
And the girl behind the counter has a tattooed tear
One for every year he’s away, she said
Such a crumbling beauty, ah
There’s nothing wrong with her that a hundred dollars won’t fix
She has that razor sadness that only gets worse
With the clang and the thunder of the Southern Pacific going by
And the clock ticks out like a dripping faucet
til you’re full of rag water and bitters and blue ruin
And you spill out over the side to anyone who will listen…
And I’ve seen it all, I’ve seen it all
Through the yellow windows of the evening train…

The wind tossed my hair as I walked down the beach.  Not a soul was in sight and the sun was just on the up-and-up.  Snips and snaps from the last night flashed through my washed out head.  How much did I drink?  The sand, caught in the wind, stung my face and I was too scared to go back to the house just yet.  I knew what would be there for me; a huge mess and my passed out friends.  I crouched in the sea foam and let it rinse the loam-like dirt from my spade.  The bare seat in the car and the bags left on the side of the road were not the only things that kept our mouths closed. 

and she is sitting with her face in her hands
I, standing a few feet away
when the sun rises the next morning,
we find ourselves in the same positions
“do you hear that? its the train whistle.
I have to go” 
She does not move and so I turn for the door
“wait” she calls. 
I turn, look at her, but nothing happens

the front door slams behind me
a beam of sunlight causes me to wince
seats are already too hot from the slanted heat
a 1 hour ride home allows slow release

My breakfast is rich and hot
skin of fruit yielding to my teeth
satisfaction

Although I am late, nobody says anything
the world is in balance and the office is calm
when we pass, there is mutual understanding
as if there is agreement, allowance

Your dinner will be silent and strained
I will be nowhere in sight
but when you lie with him, you will see me
nothing can ever be normal

when its all said and done
I will remain intact
and you will be the one in pieces
I simply, continue. 

cold gray sky

lingering shadows of the night fade

dirty parking lot snow begins to melt slowly

minuscule rivers make their way to the street

solitary plastic bag is blown about

fluttering weakly as a crippled insect

sirens in the distance break the frozen silence

a tree branch laden with ice snaps and falls

world is lying fitfully in restless sleep

eyes are opened but lights are off

listless wind moves through the empty space

a ray of sunlight pierces the clouds. 

If you were ever wondering what it means to write poetry or music.  

Last night I dreamed that I was dreaming of you
And from a window across the lawn I watched you undress
Wearing your sunset of purple tightly woven around your hair
That rose in strangled ebony curls
Moving in a yellow bedroom light
The air is wet with sound
The faraway yelping of a wounded dog
And the ground is drinking a slow faucet leak
Your house is so soft and fading as it soaks the black summer heat
A light goes on and the door opens
And a yellow cat runs out on the stream of hall light and into the yard

A wooden cherry scent is faintly breathing the air
I hear your champagne laugh
You wear two lavender orchids
One in your hair and one on your hip
A string of yellow carnival lights comes on with the dusk
Circling the lake with a slowly dipping halo
And I hear a banjo tango

And you dance into the shadow of a black poplar tree
And I watched you as you disappeared
I watched you as you disappeared
I watched you as you disappeared
I watched you as you disappeared

-Tom Waits