ENG 1310 Assignment #1 "Scene"

Looking at my watch, it’s 6:45, time to head over to the Black Angus on 10th Avenue. Sorry boy, we’ll have to play ball later! That dog loves to play, chews up toys like they’re going out of style. Time goes by fast anymore, too fast. I glance at the thermometer outside, reads twenty-eight degrees, not too bad. I grab my lightweight jacket. It’s snowing again which is good; I enjoy seeing the large flakes streaming straight down, nice and heavy. Don’t much care for the sleet. I’m walking to the truck leaving footprints as I go. They’ll probably be completely covered by the time I get back so I’m glad I wore my boots. The old truck is holding up pretty well. It’s gonna have to until I’m done paying off my ex, I wish the old hag would get remarried. Seems to be more people out tonight, more than usual. I don’t much care to drive at night anymore; the glare gets to me. That’s what’s so nice about living so close to my favorite restaurant. Oh, here it is, The Black Angus. I love this place; the wooden vertical siding, the large porch with the wooden rails that look like small tree trunks. Looks like a lodge with that huge A frame roof. I pulled into the parking lot and looking off into the distance I can see the mountains. Guess that’s why I love Great Falls so much, the landscape is awesome. Being able to see the mountains in the background with the snow falling, it’s enough to get a guy all warmed up inside.
The air is filled with the scent of steaks grilling. Now I’m hungrier. I brush against the branches of a huge fir tree covered by snow. It’s so quiet and peaceful, like a huge blanket absorbing all the noise. Looks like the walk has been freshly shoveled.
I pulled the door open and can instantly hear the voices inside and the music in the background. Wendy greeted me. “Hi Wendy, are the boys here yet?”
“Oh yeah, your usual spot. How are you doing tonight, Russ?”
“Just fine, Wendy, thank you.”
Wendy knows how we all prefer a booth to a regular table, more comfortable. She’s always nice. She looks about 30 or so and always wears sneakers with her waitress outfit. Her legs are really muscular; she must be a body builder or something. Whatever she does, she needs to keep doing it. Then there’s Flo, she must be as old as I am, 60 or maybe she’s a year or two younger. There are more girls, of course, but Flo and Wendy are my favorites. Sometimes they’ll slip me a piece of pie on my way out the door. Flo always includes an extra little treat for the dog.
Did I say how much I love this place? You can smell the steaks grilling and they are always bringing warm yeast rolls to your table with cinnamon butter. I love the smell of those rolls. Flo says it’s because of the yeast. I’ve been coming here for years and they never get old. It’s like my second home here; so warm and cozy. Across the room you can see the fireplace. I remember when Jim, the owner, first built it. He built it from floor to ceiling, wall to wall. Now he really knew what he was doing. He used huge rocks with gray tones and dark tones with a hint of white like the snow, marbled through the rock. It even sparkles a bit, kind of like glitter or something. The hearth is made out of black slate rock, very heavy. I think it took him over a month to get it done. Everything in this place is solid, real quality work. I look around and see the wood all around, so rustic and charming. The ceiling is made out of car siding with a light golden finish, which really brightens up the place but not too much. The tables have a candle in the center placed in a small golden yellow candleholder. Must be a woman’s touch. Each table has a black rod iron lamp hanging down in the center with 3 little arms holding lights that look like teardrops. They always dim the lights just a bit at night and I like that.
The fire is really roaring tonight, I stop and place my hands in front of it feeling the flames and watching them dance around. I’m in a trance. It feels good. I’m listening to the music, Randy Travis.
Did I mention how all the girls are real friendly to me? I think they all feel sorry for me being divorced. I guess my wife and I just grew apart. She got tired of my always working and I got tired of her always nagging. It hit me by surprise though, didn’t see it coming at all. Now all the girls here at the Black Angus think she was a fool, they see how hard I work. They tell me what a good man I am and remind me that I never cheated on her. They admire that because I think most of them know what it feels like to be cheated on. But who knows, they didn’t have to live with me. Not like Gary, he lost his wife to cancer. Has it been a year? They were married for over 50 years. I feel bad for him; she was a great woman, not like my ex at all. Then there’s John. He’s such a kid, only 29 years old. He and his wife are expecting their first baby in a few months. Oh, to be young again.
“Hey buddy! Don’t get too close to that fireplace, it gets pretty hot!”
I sat down with the boys and said hello. We meet up here about once a week, usually Thursday.
“Here you go, Russ, your usual.” Flo brought me my favorite, a tall frosty mug with nice cold Bud. You can see the sweat beading down the sides making the frost slide down the glass. I didn’t even have to ask - now that’s service! A nice cold beer tastes so good going down. As my eyes wonder back over to the fire, I can hear John and Gary talking about something that happened at work. Something about an argument he had with another co-worker of theirs; John’s pretty upset. Looks like he’s already devoured 2 rolls and half the butter. I grab a roll and bite into it…melts right in your mouth. I put my nose real close to where I bit and take a deep whiff. It smells like heaven. Now I’m looking out one of the windows, the snow is coming down harder now. A large group of people just came in the door. Did I feed the dog its dinner?