Glass (Crank 2)

me, jokes Dad, handing Linda Sue

and me each two rolls of nickels. Go

ahead. Spend it all in one place.

We spend a good deal of time

doing exactly that. My machine

is a greedy prick, but oh, well.

I mean, I hit a few times. Tink-

tink-tink comes the meager payoff.

But Dad, now, is one lucky sucker.

Guess it’s my night, he says, as

the nickels keep plunking into his

tray. I’m thinking it’s time we move

on, with a quick pit stop, you know?

A pit stop, amber bottle in hand,

he means. And that’s just fine by

me. This is getting boring, you know?

Dad Really Is Lucky

Linda Sue and I follow him

from casino to casino, machines

to tables, just watching him win.

He even hits big on the Wheel

of Fortune, which has the worst

odds of anything. Oh, well, I’m

extremely buzzed and it’s fun

watching somebody win.

No one hassles us, no one

mentions ID or that I look too

young to be standing around

watching my dad walk off with

a fair amount of casino money.