WALKING ON THIN ICE

THE SHAPE OF THINGS THAT ARE DONE

What are you thinking about?

“Oh, the police. I’m wondering if they are more or less corrupt here than in the US.”

I think corruption crosses country. You always have good cops, but power corrupts, money corrupts, the occasional hit contract corrupts. Cops have too many chances to be crooked.

Although in the food chain, cops might be slightly more honorable than politicians.

“I always thought of the word ‘corruption’ as an adjective to be used in specific, special cases.”

Ah, so if it’s systematic, it’s not corrupt?

“Depends on your frame of reference.”

So an honest cop would be corrupt, because he’s corrupting a corrupt system.

“What’s your experience with police corruption?”

Well the plain clothed cops who beat the shit out of me and put me in the hospital… after they gave me my tickets for drunken disorderly, they went back and talked about it and decided they would also charge me with assaulting them. Because they left bruises on me and they had to cover their ass. I spent the night in jail, but I got probation.

“How much did they hurt you?”

I had ugly bruises on my hips and on my sides, my torso. I mean, they were in plain clothes. I didn’t even know they were cops. But I was amazingly drunk. I have a smart mouth and I could’ve said something I shouldn’t. I have no idea. I don’t even remember being beaten. I remember being in the back of the car, furious.

“Did you file a complaint?”

My lawyer told me, “forget it.” We even had photos of my bruises. There were some facial bruises too.

There were at least three, maybe four. Cops. One lady and three guys. I’m sure glad I don’t drink no more. I ain’t even tempted.

“I like the idea of oblivion sometimes.”

I just buy a hammer and keep hitting my head with it until it doesn’t hurt anymore.

My father, every time you’d hurt yrself, would say, ‘you’ll feel better when it stops hurting.’ I think Pappy had a bit of sadist in him.

“About our volley of conversation; I think we’re associative people. That’s why we can converse. Hey, let me lie my head down on your lap.”

Wait, don’t lie down yet. I’m going to make another pipe. I just haven’t made the shape yet. The shape of things that are done.

“How apropos; the shape of things that are done. That’s brilliant. Everything that’s done is a shape.”

Maybe we could use that as one of the ten dollar philosophy pellets we’ll sell in our philosophy franchise.

“Yes, Reality is in the shape of things that were done.”