The Pharmacist's Daughter

Monday night

Ed B. and I were visiting our friend Gordon at his parents' house. Gordy still lived there, so this dream probably took place about 20 years ago. The three of us were sitting in the kitchen, reminiscing about an acquaintance of ours that had recently died. She was a nice young woman, the daughter of Gordon's pharmacist. We had all liked her. I said to Gordy, "It's hard enough for me, but it's got to be particularly tough for you. You knew her a lot better than I did, and you still see her dad whenever you need to have a prescription filled."

Changing the mood (and the subject), I said, "Damn, I forgot to bring over that DVD I made for you." Gordon said, "That's O.K. Let's go upstairs and watch a movie. You can bring it over next time." We went up to Gordon's room, and sat on his bed. We climbed under the bedspread, as if it was a slumber party, and Gordy turned on the TV. As the movie began, he passed the DVD cover around. It was a 1930s flick featuring child star Jackie Cooper. I said, "I have two of his films in my collection at home, but I've never seen this one." I pulled the covers up to my chin and got ready to enjoy the show.

*****

I probably saw several Jackie Cooper movies on Sunday morning TV when I was a kid, but the one I remember most is "Treasure Island," from 1934.

I did see a movie in Gordy's room once -- it was The Beatles in "A Hard Day's Night." Ed was there. We sat on top of the covers.