A month later, some exciting mail came to the marina office where I lived in my float house. I was afraid to open the envelope from the Justice Department. It looked like a check. It smelled like a check. It felt like a check. But was it a denial of benefits? I put the letter on the counter for five minutes. Then I tore it open.
It was a check for two months" salary, retroactive to December. I kissed the ink. I kissed the stamped impression on the envelope, and I would have kissed Samir if he had been here. That"s how desperately happy I was to see that check.
I got my laptop at Best Future Store down on Port Street, a new phone, a WiFi, and a black and white laser printer, then set them up in the float house. I paid for them with cash, including the Acer notebook. I set it up at home on
