Rathole In Omaha (Short Story)

((The Omaha Gambit) (November, 1967))him, but I just shook my head and left the
"Come on," Jerry Hino said, it was morning andbuzzard to his fields of corn.
we needed to get an apartment there was a lightI did find a job across the bridge in Iowa, good
film of snow on the ground, it was November offolks there I felt, working for Howard Johnson, as
1967 and this was my second great trip. Thea dishwasher. It paid well, and the work was not
anxiety and dilemma of the night driven throughhard, and I got a hefty discount on food, and
Milwaukee had passed, we had driven fromusually they'd give me an extra portion, and I'd
Minnesota, to Milwaukee, onto Madison, Wisconsin,bring it back for Jerry, I think they thought it
and here we were in Omaha, Nebraska. Inwould be my late night supper, but supper for me
Milwaukee we had almost got shot. Anyhow, wewas beer, not food.
had hightailed it out of Milwaukee, onto Omaha.Well, a few weeks went by, and Jerry sent his
I was a little disappointed in the city; it didn't lookmother a letter, telling her how he was, not sure
like much, I spotted Dodge Street right away, andwhy he did that at first, I mean, I never did, I
we drove up and down it looking for ankind of felt no need to, we had just been gone a
apartment. Jerry was running away from hisfew weeks, not months or years. Anyhow, our
girlfriend Nancy, and I was on an adventure ofaddress was on it, this now took away the
my own, my second one to be exact.secret of where we were, and of course Nancy
I looked about at the huddled set of crudegot hold of the address, as you would expect. It
buildings, duplexes and corner grocery stores,was now inevitable, she'd someday show up on
dotted around what I called upper Dodge Street,our doorsteps, but of course I didn't know all this
and down an offshoot, here and there (Dodgeat the time. But it didn't take long, and yes, she
being the main branch to the tree).was there one evening when I came back from
In my adventure in Seattle, I ended up with Jeff'swork, and again I was in bewilderment, but not as
wife coming along, and here again I got a friendshocked as I was when Jeff's wife, showed up
who had left a love sick woman, for adventure,from nowhere wanting to go with us to Seattle. I
and I was hoping she'd not popup into the scene,thought at the time: what is wrong with these
and so far so good. Anyhow, we found a Ratholeguys, do they not have any stemma staying
of an apartment just off Dodge street, and theaway from their patsy women, the ones they
duplex was side by side, so our neighbors wereare running away from, can't live with, or deal
closer than white on rice. I didn't really have a planwith. I had old girlfriends also, and I was glad to
'B' here if things did not work out, only hopingget away from them, and the farther the better,
they would between Jerry and I, and theyand the longer the better. In fact, I never went
seemed to. He, like me, liked our drinking, and heback to one I left, or anyone that left me, what
was perhaps a bit over weight, him being aboutfor, once the bond is broken, it is broken, like my
my height, five-feet, eight inches talk, andmother used to say: get off the bus, and find
two-hundred and forty pounds, I was kidding, heanother.
was way over weight.I was perhaps their shadow the following two
The duplex was grey, and I expect it was built inweeks; I think we spent a month to six weeks in
the '80s, and it was as I said, 1967, so I mean,that Rathole. I went on my own, visited the
1880s. We paid for two weeks rent, that was allmuseum, which had a lot of Indian artifices, and
we could afford for the moment, it cost uswe all got drunk at night, like always.
$65-dollars, and that was highway robbery if youBut to make this story more interesting, and build
ask me, I mean it was crude and meagerup the plot some, not much though, because it is
accommodations. It surely was not unfamiliar withreally the end to the story, we simply went back
me for the times, during those years anyhow.to Minnesota, I lived with them for six weeks,
Jerry seemed to speak for both of us, and himthey asked me to leave after that, since they
being the elder, I took no insult to it, I oftenhad kids, and I was sleeping on the sofa, and you
listened attentively during those drinking days, weknow, that gets old. Anyhow, I do remember the
had our stories to tell, and we told them, andJewish Store, down the block in our Omaha
laughed half the night. We must have gottenneighborhood. I spent some time down there,
drunk every night we were in Omaha. Andtalking to the old redheaded Jew. Gold teeth, not
in-between I looked for work, Jerry did not, hein bad shape for fifty years old she had pretty
slept the day away, as I looked; I think that wasnice curves, and I of course ripe at nineteen. Her
one of the reasons he and Nancy got into fights; Iplace was a Rathole also, but I suppose, it went
could be wrong. Anyhow, I went to the Omahaalong with the neighborhood. The store had high
State Employment Office, and they asked meceilings, you could see the wooden beams, and
were I had come from, and why I was up therethere was dampness in the place, clutter, and
trying to take work away from the good folks ofeverything looked old, can goods with rust on
Omaha, who needed work worse than I. I had nothem. Perhaps she was a dope dealer and this
other answer than, "I didn't realize this was I waswas her front, but I couldn't have imagined that
stepping on forbidden ground," he didn't like myat the time. I liked her, and she allowed me to
comments, and told me to go back where Icome in and out and not buy a thing, and hang
came from, and stop taking jobs away fromaround.
other good folks. I know what I wanted to tell