Participants:
| Scene Title | The Chicken Or The Egg |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | A meal in the nite won, culmination of a lost bet, and meeting a new person. |
| Date | January 8, 2009 |
There's something about the local places that has charm, or reliability and decent food or just the familiarity of an institution. So it is that Danny is here, tucked away in a corner booth with an array of food in front of him. It looks like a lot of food, but most of it is as healthy as you can find in a greasy spoon.
Lou pulls the door open, holding it for his companion before glancing back once more at the vintage candy-apple red Ford Pickup he's left behind. (Complete with whitewalls!) Satisfied it'll be somewhat safe, he turns back to the woman with a grin and finishes whatever joke he'd started outside. "…Yeah, so then the nun says 'Oh, hey, can you pass me that avocado?'" Given the look on his face, it's probably lucky for the other inhabitants of the diner that they missed the beginning.
"Christ. An avocado?" Minea rolls her eyes, slipping out of the SUV and pulling her leather jacket closed. "What hell kind of joke was that Lou? I think it'd have been much funnier the other night if I'd been drunk" She looks up at the owl sign. 'This is the place. It's good, it's a diner, but the food is good. Everything your doctor says not to eat"
Danny lifts his head at hearing the end of the joke. There's a momentary frown as he tries to work back from the punchline to figure out what the set up was. After a few moments, he gives up, resolved to ask someone later. He works with firemen, there's no way that one of them doesn't know. Particularly if it's a dirty joke.
Lou gives a shrug along with his explanation, "oh I've got worse… I just figured what with the eatin' you'd want me to keep it just this side of nauseatin'ly horrible." He pauses to glance through the diner, eyeing the inhabitants briefly along with the staff and tables. "Sooo… this a seat yerself type thing or…?"
"Honey, I got three brothers who are cops and army and a father who's a cop. I think I've heard them all" She jokes. "Seat yourself kind of place. Careful of the redhead, don't tip good, she won't like you the next time" She gestures to the booth adjacent to Danny before she slips in. A nod of her head is given to Danny as he frowns for that moment. "Evening Sir" before attention back to Lou. "I promise, when the weathers not so disgusting, you can take me for a ride in your baby"
Danny bobs his head at Minea, then to Lou, "Evening." He breaks off a piece of toast and loads it up with a piece of chicken and a dab of eggs.
"Construction workers an' truckers," Lou counters with a hint of authority—it's clear he thinks such folks trump any men in uniform when it comes to a repertoire of unacceptable jokes. Since Minea seems to be on friendly enough terms with their neighbor, Lou lifts his hand in a brief wave, offering a short smile as well. That's just how they roll on the really, really, really deep south side, yo. "Well it ain't like I mind the rain overmuch, but having some cabbie slam into my tailgate because he can't drive in the rain doesn't much appeal to me."
"But then you can take your tailgate and make it into a work of art and who knows how much you could sell that for!" Pokes the brunette verbally. Ahe looks over her shoulder at Danny's plate. 'Chicken.. and eggs?" as if such a thng is hard to comprehend to Minea.
Danny finishes chewing and swallows before he replies, "Solves the question about who comes first. Eat both the bastards and you don't have worry about it." Then he flashes a grin. "Also, it's good."
"It's -already- a work of art, and I like it right where it is," he counters with a hint of a smile before turning about to glance first at Danny's plate and then the man himself. "Huh. Always was a steak an' eggs man myself. Throw some bacon on the side and it's sorta like gettin' rid of half the farm."
"Steak and eggs, or chicken and eggs. You men give a woman a hard time picking her dinner. I think i'll just go for the meatloaf sandwich and have my heart attack that way" Minea confirms, even as the non-redhead waitress comes up. Placing her order and shifting in her booth seat enough to include Danny. "Minea. This is Lou. Nice to meet you. Do you often often solve some of the important questions that way?"
Danny grins again at Lou, with a, "Nice. Hadn't thought of that." Then, "Danny," he replies as he goes for another bite. He adds further, "I'm a simple man, I like things can be reduced to the simple. There's enough complication in the world, for me to add to it. Keep things simple, try to live your life like that."
Lou reaches a meaty hand out to shake Danny's. "Lou. Niceta meetcha," he says, looking only slightly at odds about the situation. "Why doncha, hop over here and join us, you're gonna kill my neck havin' to turn around like this."
"But Lou, that becomes an excuse to ask for a neck massage" Minea snorts, happily, but nods her assent to Lou's suggestion. "Or we can join you. And no, it's not a date. It's me fulfilling a bet that I lost"
Danny stretches to reach Lou's hand to shake it. "Nice to meetcha." He starts to open his mouth, then closes it when Minea speaks with a smile, "Well, how about you join me, since I have plates all over and it'd be easier not to transfer all this," he waves a hand at the table. "So, what was the bet?"
"What was the bet again Lou? Was over a game of pool. I know I bought him a pitcher of beer when I didn't hit the right balls I said I would." Minea shifts, making room for Dnany to sit on her side if he wants, waiting for the drinks to come.
Lou twitches an eyebrow at the date comment, but the evidence of being perturbed is short lived. "Something like that," he agrees, "I think I let you choose my final shot on the eight… or that may have been one of the other girls." He shrugs again and scoots out of the booth to join Danny—plates being there already does seem a convincing argument at this point, and leaving Minea behind doesn't seem like much of a concern. "So whattaya do for a livin' there, simple man?"
"Firefighter," Danny tells Lou, "You?" Then, "Pool shark of some sort, possibly or is that just a hobby to win free drinks and meals?"
Minea's quick to switch to Danny's booth when Lou heads over there. Her brain died for a brief moment, and soon enough she's sitting beside Lou. "Firefighter" and nods. "Art consultant. and quite possible, he is a pool shark. Might explain alot of things about our meeting"
"Drinks and meals. For the rent I'm a m'chanic. Diesel engines mostly, like what's in yer truck, but if it runs on somethin' that burns, then it's all put together about the same," Lou replies with a smile. "I may well give up the pool if the boss starts pony'in up fer beer and dinner."
Danny muses, "Interesting. I wonder who'd win between you and a friend of mine. She's got a habit of doing that, too. Sharking, that is." He tears off another piece of toast and asks of Minea, "So, what exactly does an art consultant do? You're not responsible for all that modern stuff like when you go into office buildings and dentist offices, are you?"
"Yes and no. I'm a liaison you might call it, between artists and people with alot of money and want to spend it. I connect the two. Get paid in the process. Think, like a real estate agent, but for art, not houses. It pays the bills" Look, here comes the food for Lou and herself, and Minea smiles to the waitress. "Not as … publicly heroic as yours, nor hands on as Lou's, but I've managed in France to Make quite a few people happy"
"Depends on who's had what to drink. Bein' truthful, I'm no professional, I just occasionally spot the folks who are a bit too confident in how well they play or the ones who've gone and over medicated themselves," Lou confesses with an impish grin. "So… unless she's tryin' to match me on the hooch, I'd say her." Lou slugs down about half of his coffee in one go as he gives a genuinely friendly nod to the waitress.
Danny laughs at what Lou says, nods to Minea, "That's quite a scheme you've got going on there. I guess I don't stand much about modern art, which seems to be where things are right now. I've always wondered, is the art world really that snobby?"
"Worse. Which is why I quite enjoying not spending twenty four hours a day in tall heels and fitted suits. And why I have no problems loosing to a mechanic and paying for dinner. If ind it more enjoyable that sitting across from a potential client and schmoozing. And lou, I want to be there when you play this woman. I want to see who wins"
Lou starts in his seat, and pulls out his phone. With a look of apology to Danny ('I know it ain't right, y'all forgive me?') he flips it open and stares at the screen for a moment before pressing a few buttons. "Well now, I ain't agreed to go playin' nobody yet… heck, you might wanna at least go askin' her permission." All done. Flip. Snap. And the phone is gone once more.
Danny gestures slightly ('All is forgiven - way of the world'), before saying, "Oh very definitely, I'll ask her permission. Can't volunteer her for anything, she might hit me." He gives a nod to Minea as she explains, and he tells her, "I'm not so good on the schmoozing. To have to do it all the time?" He shakes his head.
"all the time. stroke the ego's of the artists and the self importance of the clients. I prefer the ones who made thier money as opposed to those who inherited it. Big difference." Speak of coincidences. The blackberry at Minea's wist suddenly vibrates and rings to life, and she looks down at it with some measure of irritation. But she unsnaps it from her belt, looking at who's calling with furrowed brows. "Lou, you may need to get a taxi. One of my clients is throwing a hissy fit. I'll pay for it" She's not happy.
"Awww… it's not so bad," Lou comments with a chuckle on the shmoozing. "My old man usedta just say all ya hafta do is just find somethin' about the person ya don't want to stand on their neck about and talk about that." He gives Minea a sidelong glance, raising a brow as he replies, "Ehrm… I think you got that backwards unless you plan on wrestlin' my keys away from me. Don't forget the check on yer way out, though."
Danny flashes a smile, but notes to Minea, "Well, it was nice to meetcha. Hope you manage to smooth things over with your client."
"Har har. I'll see you again Lou. Danny, nice to meet you" There's money put on the table, enough to cover her slightly eaten meal and Lou's. "We'll see. We'll always see, you never know. You have my number Lou" And with that Minea's easing out of the booth, zipping up her leather jacket and hitting last call on the black berry before lifting it up to her ear. "Dahl. No, not yet, let me get outside.."
"I sure do," Lou replies with cheery enthusiasm and a slight wave of his hand… waiting until she's out the door to quietly add, "for about the next ten seconds…" He gives Danny a conspiratorial wink as he pulls out his phone once more and begins tapping away. "See? Not that tough at all."
Danny laughs at this a little, once Minea's left. "So, you seem to be an odd pair to hook up, especially since it's a not-date."
"Oh, no hooking up, apparently," he counters with a laugh of his own. "Sometimes ya meet random people and it works out, sometimes it doesn't… but hey, there's a good umpteen billion people out there anyhow. What's one or two more ya vaguely sort of avoid?"
"Point, though she does seem like the determined sort, I'd worry possibly about being stalked," Danny points out. "So I'm going to guess by your accent, you're not from around here. Where ya from?"
"On down south a ways," he replies, not seeming to notice that covers a lot of ground in New York. "As fer stalkin… I think not. Girl's got plenty on her plate already—don't think I'd fit in the schedule. If I did, well… then I guess I'd just hafta skin her like a deer and leave her carcass rotting in a dumpster while I do my little kooky dance in a bustier." Lou's tone indicates that last bit is all some whimsical (if demented) joke.
Danny blinks a little at the joke, giving a half hearted smile. He takes refuge in his food, asking only, "So, what made you come up here?" Food gets shoved in his mouth and he tries not to think about having dinner with a potential serial killer.
Lou says, "Oh, just needed a change of pace. Same old job, same old faces, same old bar on the weekends," he recounts, although with more of a sense of nostalgia than reasons to move along. "And of course after… <Pfoot>" he makes a little 'splodey noise and makes a motion with his hands indicating the same. "Well they're rebuildin' some and there's plenty of jobs for a man who can keep a dozer runnin'. Gives me a way to help, feel a bit more useful.""
Danny notes, as he continues to eat, "Well, that's a difference. Most folks moved away after the explosion. Takes some kinda person to move towards the site of destruction."
:shrugs a little. "Don't know why. I guess if I was in fear of my neck, it'd really be about the safest place. Hell, who's gonna blow somethin' that's already a crater? It's just no fun."
Lou shrugs a little. "Don't know why. I guess if I was in fear of my neck, it'd really be about the safest place. Hell, who's gonna blow somethin' that's already a crater? It's just no fun."
Danny ehs, "I dunno. There's been quite a few fires around here in the past year. I figure one day, the whole thing is going to be burned down. That or they'll cut it off like in Escape from New York."
"Huh. Well if you hear anythin' along those lines you let me know so I can be sure to be on the big side of the wall, hrm" Lou replies, finally deciding it's time to dig into the food he'd ordered at some point. "I doubt it though… people hang onto old stuff way too hard."
"S'true. But folks also have their breaking point. And New York's taken a lot of punches here lately," Danny points out.
"Oh come on now… this whole place could wind up underwater and they'd be out here buildin' a new Venice," Lou counters with a grin. "Never underestimate the power of collective nostalgia."
Danny notes dryly, "I'm not exactly disagreeing with you, after all, I still live and work here, trying to save the place. So…" He shrugs a little and takes a sip of cooled coffee.
"So ya know I'm right," Lou says, his grin spreading a bit wider as he motions with his elbow—as if it could somehow make its way across the table and nudge him in the ribs. "Besides, it's not such a bad place, after all. Practically infested with yankees, but you get used to it."
Danny points out, "It would be awful hard to have a city without us, unless, of course, you mean the baseball team, in which case, well, yes. Too many of /them/ around."
"Well it wouldn't be quite the same without ya," Lou comforts, he's obviously not the sort planning to start a rant about the South rising again. "And who's pennant are you wavin? Or is it just big foam fingers these days?"
Danny offers with a grin, "The Mets. Not quite the assholes that the Yankees are. Which, frankly, I think is an important thing."
"Ah, everyone's an asshole," Lou replies with a wave of his hand, along the lines of 'oh, they're not so bad.' "And I don't think there's really all that much difference."
Danny laughs, "True, but I think the Yankees try harder at it. I blame Steinbrenner."
"Well then they're tryin'! I think it's downright admirable. Yer mets are just fallin' behind in the assholery because they ain't got the stones to really put the EFFORT," Lou stresses, chuckling himself.
Danny laughs at this and shakes his head. "There are just some times when folks shouldn't try harder. I think this is one of them."
Lou considers this for a moment, finally nodding reluctantly, "All right, all right. Well, now Danny, this has been downright pleasant, but I think I'm gonna box up my dinner and try to keep myself occupied and out of the house for a couple of hours."
Danny salutes, "It was good to meetcha. Maybe some time I'll see you out with my friend, and we'll see about that pool match up. See how it goes and who buys drinks."
Lou motions for the waitress to grab him one of those clamshell boxes—which are pretty close at hand. As he begins sliding his mostly untouched meal into the styrofoam he gives a nod. "Sounds good, but I don't bet on pool," he replies in deadpan fashion… giving the man a wink after allowing a moment to judge his reaction.
Danny appears mostly disbelieving, even better, he's mostly forgot about the creepy reference to Buffalo Bill and the Silence of the Lams.
Lou snaps the lid closed on his dinner and pulls out a few bills from his wallet, (figuring making sure the waitress is tipped well won't do him any harm) and pushes his way out of the booth and to his feet. "If it helps, I spend most of my billiard time down at the Fat Cat in Greenwich. Evenings, weekends, usually. You have yerself a good night." He offers one last wave, waiting long enough for a response, and then he's out the door and headed for that truck of his.
Danny salutes, "See ya later then," and then he goes back to finishing up his now mostly cold dinner.
 January 8th: Figures |
 January 8th: Courtesy Call |