Chapter 6: Reality Check

Calvin sighed with contentment as he settled into the chair on the porch area, in front of the door to Dexter’s apartment. That first taste of beer really felt good going down. He set the bottle down on the cement porch.

Calvin said, “I was thinking about having a beer on my ride home. You can’t imagine how nice it was to have you offer me one when I got here.”

“It’s a perfect day for a beer,” Dexter said leaning back in his chair.

“I couldn’t agree more.”

After taking a drink out of his bottle of beer, Dexter asked, “So how are things going with Samantha?”

“Good. We’ve had a lot dates, and only a couple of them were ruined by work. She hasn’t complained when I’ve had to rush off to take care of a problem. I’m very lucky,” Calvin said.

Calvin reached down and picked up the bottle of beer, leaving a wet condensation ring on the concrete. The weather was hot, the air was muggy, and the beer was cold. He took a swig from the bottle and sighed in pleasure. He set the bottle down on the cement of the porch where it immediately created another ring of water.

“She’s a nice lady,” Dexter said.

“She’s smart in addition to being pretty,” Calvin said. “I think smart women are sexy.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Dexter said. “You’ll spend more time talking to a wife, than having sex with her. It’s important to be able to talk to her.”

“Don’t give me marriage advice,” Calvin said.

“Why not?” Dexter asked.

Calvin answered, “Amber has told me a little about how you treated your wife.”

“What did she tell you?” Dexter asked bristling more than a little.

“That you acted like an asshole, when your wife sent you that text message,” Calvin answered.

“Me? I acted like an asshole? That’s bullshit,” Dexter said angrily.

“Maybe. Maybe not,” Calvin said. “Maybe I’ve got thicker skin than you.”

“What do you mean?” Dexter asked.

Calvin said, “You know that I’m a systems administrator, right?”

“Yes.”

“All day long, I get messages from users that some system, somewhere, is not working right. Sometimes, they really get abusive when reporting a problem. You wouldn’t believe the kinds of things that people say to me,” Calvin said.

“I probably would believe,” Dexter said.

Calvin laughed as he replied, “You might, at that.”

“So what has that got to do with Amber saying that I acted like an asshole?”

Calvin said, “Your wife let you know that your marriage was broken. Did you try to fix it? Nope. Did you even ask what the problem was? Nope. Did you even check to see if the message was an error? Nope. You just ran off, shouting ‘fuck you’, without even looking back.”

“I was hurt,” Dexter said.

“That’s an excuse, not a reason. You’re supposed to fix things, not let them fall apart even more,” Calvin said.

“But...”

“Man up!” Calvin said.

“I was sure that she cheated on me,” Dexter said. “A man can’t stay married to a cheating wife.”

“Did you have any proof?” Calvin asked.

“No.”

“Shit! The first thing you learn, in ‘Troubleshooting 101’, is to identify what the real problem is. You didn’t do that,” Calvin said.

“Well...”

Calvin took a long drink from his beer. He put the nearly empty bottle down.

Calvin said, “You blew it.”

“You think so?”

“Yep.”

“Shit.”

Calvin said, “You’re a pretty smart guy. I mean ... your advice on your website nails one problem after another. You identify exactly what the real problem is, and then you provide a solution that solves that problem. That’s a rare talent.”

“Thanks,” Dexter said.

“You should have tried that with your family,” Calvin said.

“Hey! I’m getting along better with the kids, now,” Dexter said defensively.

Calvin would have responded, but spotted Mary walking up the sidewalk. He waved to her.

She said, “Hello, Calvin. Hello, Dexter.”

“Hello, Mary,” Calvin said.

Trying to be polite, Dexter said, “Hello, Mary. Would you care for a beer?”

“Sure.”

Her answer took him by surprise. He hadn’t expected her to be interested in joining them for a beer.

“Do you want another, Calvin?” Dexter asked while rising from his chair.

“No, thank you. I’ll take some water,” Calvin answered. “I don’t like to drink when I’m liable to be called for work. You wouldn’t believe what damage you can do, when trying to fix a system problem while intoxicated. It’s not pretty.”

“All I’ve got is tap water,” Dexter said.

“That’s fine.”

Mary said, “I never drink tap water.”

“Why not?” Dexter asked.

“It’s not as pure as bottled water,” Mary said.

“I’d argue that,” Calvin said.

Dexter decided that he didn’t want to be part of that conversation. His personal opinion was, that bottled water was one of the greatest crimes against the American public ever perpetrated by marketing folks. Half the time the water was tap water, despite misleading product names. It was a scam to get people to pay an exorbitant amount for money for something that was basically almost free. A lot of the bottled water crowd didn’t appreciate his comments about being fooled into spending their money for nothing.

He went in the apartment to get Mary’s beer, and a glass of water for Calvin. While in the kitchen getting the glass for the water, he decided that he should probably get a glass for Mary’s beer, since most women preferred to drink out a glass rather than a bottle. He filled one glass with water, after adding a little ice to it. He carried the beverages out to the little porch in front of his apartment door.

He handed the glass of water to Calvin. After handing Mary the glass, he opened the beer and held it out for her.

“I don’t need a glass,” Mary said while taking the beer and handing the glass back to him.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t be. It was a nice thought, but I can drink out of the bottle as well as the next guy,” Mary said.

“Okay. Why don’t you sit in my chair? I’ll bring another one out,” Dexter said.