The Appointment

He was feeling particularly miserable that day. Who wanted to get up before dawn for that appointment? What had the world turned into? It had been building over the years little by little, another rule, another regulation, another appointment. Who did these people think they were trying to control every single aspect of our lives? Where did it end? 

Guzzling down his morning coffee he grimaced as the bitterness hit his empty stomach. What if he just decided not to go? Returning to the crumpled bed sheets that were no doubt still warm would be incredibly easy. Taking it one step further why not unplug the alarm clock and stop being at the mercy of schedules and society’s demands on him. He could live off the grid, fish for dinner, cook over an open fire. Looking around at his conveniences he admitted to himself it was just easier to stick a frozen dinner in the microwave and call it a night.

Still dark after the dreaded appointment he stopped at the local 24 hour convenience store for some breakfast and beers as a little pick me up. He couldn’t drink at work, he knew that. There was the breathalyzer test just waiting to be used. Huh? What’s that smell? Have you been drinking? Step right over here for your test, sir. Let’s see. We just need your breath. No big deal, sir. Just your breath.

The checkout line was a painful slow-motion nightmare. “Some convenience store,” he thought. What’s so convenient about waiting? He watched the incompetence of the cashier. That kid didn’t know his ass from his elbow. How did he even get the job? Must be the boss’s son or something. Who else would hire him? Finally his turn and the cashier looked at him angrily, stared at him right in the eye with contempt. Was he imagining it? Why did he deserve such a look when he was just standing there minding his own business? Probably his purchase of beer so early in the morning. The kid must think he’s on a bender drinking all night into the light of day.

Getting into his car in the parking lot he put the beer in the back seat to save for later, unwrapped his egg sandwich, and started the car. A young woman walked past carrying milk and bread. She was attractive, too young for him, but a man can look. What’s the expression you can look but you can’t touch. Well, no one was going to stop him from looking and thinking, even imagining. She met his gaze. “Forget about it.” She surprised him by speaking, got in her sleek sports car and drove off. Was he that obvious? He thought he was playing it cool.

“What a day,” he thought, although the day had barely started. Forcing down the dry eggs, thinking of the beer in the back seat, he started the drive to the office. It all started going to crap with that appointment, forcing him up and out at an unreasonable hour. Downhill ever since. Damn appointment. What did they want from him? What will they think of next?

Finally arriving at work, he greeted his coworkers. “Good morning. Good morning.”  Making sure to acknowledge everyone as he passed through the maze of cubicles. What a group to be stuck working with day in and day out. “How’s the baby? Sleeping through the night?” Who cares about the baby honestly. Eight hours a day he had to keep up the niceties. “Looking good. Have you been working out? It shows.” Who was he kidding? No one there worked out. They were all out of shape.

Standing at his desk he looked up to find the boss standing behind the glass wall upstairs looking down at him. Smiling, he did a fake salute and sat down. What a joke. The guy thinks he’s Mr. Hot Shit sitting at his desk looking down at his employees from his ivory tower. He sat watching them while he himself did what? Went online? Texted friends? “Get a real life,” he thought. Not to mention a haircut. Are you a man or a little boy? Who dressed you this morning? Mommy? Maybe get some clothes that actually fit.

The day went from bad to worse. Was he imagining the dirty looks he was receiving from his coworkers? Not that he cared what those losers thought of him. He was there to do the bare minimum for his lousy paycheck. He was just another cog in the wheel, and a small one at that. Knowing he could easily be replaced by the next guy on the list, he crossed his T’s and dotted his I’s to keep the status quo. Showing up for the same shit show every day was easier than looking for a new one.

Pushing papers around his desk throughout the day made him appear productive. The little cat nap went unnoticed during the closed door staff meeting that he was not invited to, and that shut eye got him through the midafternoon slump. “What they don’t know won’t hurt them,” he thought as the workers filed out of the conference room back to their work stations like good little boys and girls.

Finally, the eight hours passed like they do day after day, week after week. Making it to quitting time was the object of the game. At 5:00 on the dot he logged off his computer and put the papers back in the folder where they would wait to be pushed around his desk the following day. He stood, ready to walk out when the manager approached him with a question. “Did you have your appointment with the Thinking Committee this morning?”

How did she know that? They were not a matter of public record, those intrusive appointments. Who would believe society got to that point where he had to have his innermost thoughts out on display to be examined. Was he a criminal or a citizen? Hard to tell these days. Sitting in that straight back chair across from the guard took every drop of energy he had. The lack of a decent night’s sleep didn’t help matters. Did they set these appointments so early in the morning to aggravate the already frazzled public hoping to provoke a reaction? 

“Yes, as a matter of fact I did.” He replied annoyed.

“Well, you forgot to change your settings.” The manager continued. “Your thought bubble is set to public. You might want to switch it back to private.” She let that sink in and then continued. “And the boss would like to see you in his office. You know the way to Mr. Hot Shit’s office I assume?” She turned on her heel and walked away.