Jackie+K

= Summary of Chapter 2 Bad Boy =

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The first place where Walter Dean Myers can remember calling home is in Harlem on 125th Street. Walter felt like this was a magical place that was alive with music which spilled onto the busy streets from the windows. He felt that the streets were full of colors and smells that filled his senses and made his heart beat faster. The earliest memory that he could rememeber is that every Sunday morning, a lady with some other children would come by his house to take him to Sunday school while singing songs like "Jesus Loves Me". =====

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Walter loved being with Florence Dean whom he called Mama. He would follow her around from room to room while she cleaned. She told him things she wouldn't tell anyone else. For example, she told him that she liked to yodel which no one else knew. Sometimes when Florence had to work outside the home Walter would either spend time with a babysitter or he would go over and be with Aunt Nancy who was Herbert's sister. Some days when Walter wasn't being supervised he would be out in the street dancing. People who passed by would enjoy his dancing so much that they would throw pennies at him. If he counted them and he collected enough money, he would go down to the corner grocery and buy his favorite treat, the colored icy pops. Well, one day Walter came home with a bad stomach ache, so Florence brought him to the hospital. Well it ended up that all those ice pops weren't so good for him. Florence then decided that Walter needed more supervison expectially since Walter was such a trouble maker. Some of his bad behaivors were breaking his sister's watch and punching Jewish boys. =====

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Walter's Mama taught him how to read. After alot of practicing and Florence reading to him, he finally got it. As soon as he had gotton really good at it, he started to read to his Mama as she did housework. Some of the things that he read he didn't understand, like in the //True Romance// magazine but he was on his way to getting there. =====

This was a very good chapter. It was a lot less confusing then the last one.

Discussion Questions for Chapter 3 Bad Boy

What did you think of this chapter? Was it interesting?

Do you think that it was right for the teacher to hit Walter even if she was trying to discipline him?

Do you think it was right for Mama to beat Walter after he received bad marks on his report card? Is there another way she could have handled the situation?

Why do you think that Mama thought that the “Wicked Witch” Mrs. Dodson was an educated black person whom she should listen to? Why do you think that Mama listened to her about taking away Walter's gun and comic books? What are your thoughts on that? Was it right?

Chapter 4 Arithmetic Summer

In Chapter 4 everyone in Walter's family is growing up. His sister Viola married a soldier named Frank Law and together they had a child named Frank Stephan Law. Gerry, Walter's other sister is also grown up and he moved to the 4th grade. Since Walter received bad marks on his 3rd grade report card expecially in arithmetic, Frank, Viola's husband offered to tutor him. Every Sunday after Bible School Walter would go straight home so he could study for two hours with Frank. As school for Walter neared his mother warned him to be on his best behavior this year. Walter basicly obeyed her except for a fight here and there. Untill one Maurice Fleetwood or "Bunny" as people called him and Walter gotten into an argument. Walter pushed Bunny into the closet and Bunny begain to cry. Then Bunny swung at Walter and he went falling down passing out. After that happened Mrs. Parker the 4th grade teacher came in. Since she knew Walter had a recored she blamed everything on him and said nasty things about him to the class. When he got home that day, he threw up and so Mama took him to the hospital. The doctor first thought it was all the Easter candy he had eaten that upsetted his stomach but a nurse said he needed an emergancey appendix removel opperation. Walter didn't return to 4th grade that year. When he was ready to go back to school instead of going to the 4th grade Walter was promoted to the fifth grade at another school.

Chapter 5 Bad Boy

In Chapter 5 it starts off in the summer of 1947 when black and white people started to be treated equally. For example this is the year when Jackie Robinson and Larry Doby got to play in major league baseball. His biological father George Myers and his new wife Tommy moved in near Walter's house. Walter got to see him for the first time in a long time. Walter also got to meet his some half brothers and sisters and his whole brother Micky. They became friends quickly. Walter also met his Uncle Lee who just got out of jail. Later Walter and his friend Johnny Lightbourne wanted to beat up this kind Richard but they read in a newspaper that a guy in the South got hung. That sounded interesting to Walter and Johnny. They took Richard down into the basement of a church and were starting to hang him when the Minister walks in and can't believe his eyes. He makes Walter and Johnny whitewash walls and surprisingly Walter doesn't recieve a beating from his Mama. Walter also talks about how being beaten in his neighborhood wasn't considered abuse. September came around and Walter was into sports and loved baseball, exspecially the Dodgers. Neighborhood kids and Walter would play different ball games in the street and pretend to be Jackie Robinson sliding into bases and everything. In school kids would make fun of him because of his speech difficulty. When Walter would try to read a passage people would make laugh. So he threw the book and sometimes punched kids. His teacher Mrs. Conway would send him to the closest. For the rest of the year Mrs. Conway would read the poems he wrote or not pick on him at all. Alot of the time he would be in the back of the classroom reading a book. That year he recieved the best marks on his report card then any other year. He was so happy. His school celebrated their Golden Anniversary that year and one of Walter's poems "My Mama" to be in the school magazine. He was so elated that he ran all the way home to show Mama.

Chapter 6 Mr. Irwin Lasher

In chapter 6 Mama and Walter traveled alot together. Sometimes they would go to Macy's or Gimbel's or to different stores along 14th Street. They would see white people that wore suites and white shirts to jobs in offices and stores. They would also see black people and Jewish people who were businessmen that would also walk down the street side by side. Walter also talked about the entertainment that were open to young people including movies and live shows. Some of these places included Loew's and Alhambra which showed first run movies, The Apollo which had live entertainment and movies. He also talked about the Harlem Opera House which had once shown live performances when Harlem was mostly white people and showed alder films. He talked a little more about enteretainment then went on to talk about him loving to play ball. He loved to play basketball, stoop ball, punch ball and baseball. He just loved being athletic. He followed hockey for a while but then lost interest. Since Walter was out of school he didn't get to read books from Mrs. Conway's books. So he found out about the public library and went there on a regular basis. But since boys would tease him about reading on his way home from the library he would take them home in a paper bag. He didn't let those boys ruin his love for books. He felt comfort when he read and they filled up spaces in his life that he felt were missing. Walter felt that books were special and he didn't want to fight over them. One day when Walter and some of his friends wanted to play full court basketball in the gym they found girls stretching and dancing on half of the court. So they made a deal. The deal was if the boys could do the stretches the girls were doing then the girls would leave but if they couldn't they had to dance in the recital with them. The boys lost so a deal is a deal and they had to dance with them. When it was time for the recital Walter's Dad would'nt come but Mama did. She said he did good.When school came around Walter was put into Mr. Irwin Lasher's class because he had a history of fighting teachers. Walter didn't fight him untill the 3rd and that was only because Walter was trying to inpress his classmtes by pretending to kick the teacher but by accindent he actully did. Mr. Lasher walked Walter all the way home holding his hand to talk to Mama that day. Even though he was kicked Mr. Lasher still thought Walter was a smart kid. He put him in speech therapy once a week for the whole day and convinced him that his good grades made him special. Mr. L also put Walter in charge of anything that needed a leader and had him help some slower kids. He even recomended Walter for a special high advancement class for next year. He was either first or second in every subject and got satisfactory in conduct. Even though Walter was doing extremely well some how he got into trouble. For some reason one day when Walter went outside to play no one was out except for a younger kid named Clyde who was to small to play with. So for a crazy reason Walter jumps onto the back of a taxi but when he tries to get off he relizes his shirt is stuck. Walter ended up being dragged for a while untill the taxi had to stop. When Walter got off his knees were brusied and bleeding. When his parents so this they were shocked. But they were more shocked when Walter said that Mama beat him that's why his knees were like that. Every thing had changed then. Walter and Mama were drifting apart and Dad wouldn't let Mama even touch him. To end this chapter Walter said that a foul ball landed on a roof when he was playing with friends so he climbed up. a guy named Crazy Johnny orderd him to come down. When he didn't Crazy Johnny went up after him. Just as Johnny was nearing Walter, Walter jumped off the roof.Even though Walter was hurting he kept it to himself. Years later he found out that he had minor fractures to his feet. Chapter 7 I Am Not the Center of the Universe Chapter 7 I Am Not the Center of the Universe first starts off with Walter getting his own room because Geraldine moved out to live with her husband and Viola just moved out. Walter then talked about his believes in God and certain fairness. After that he said that his Mom saved up for a birthday party for Walter's 12th birthday. The night before he dreamed that he would get a bat, glove or ball because he was getting more and more into baseball and sports. But when the big day approached Mama came into Walter's room and gave him bad news. His Uncle Lee was killed and they had to go visit Aunt Nancy his wife. Walter's Dad changed that day and Mama nor Walter didn't knoe how to deal with him. Herbert Dean cried, prayed and was depressed for a year. He would pray all the time, listen to church on the radio and hardly speak. This phase in Dad's life was making Walter and Mama upset. After Walter went on and on about his father's depressing stages he talked about his advanced class at school. He was put in a rapid advancement class at school because he was smart. He said the studied the Civil War and American history. Then he went on to talk about his love for reading. He could just sit in his room reading and writing for a very long time. At the end of the chapter Walter and his parents were growing farther and farther apart.

Chapter 8 A Writer Observes Chapter 8 A Writer Observes first starts out with Walter wanting to see the world from a different point of view. He wanted to see the world like how Shelley or Byron saw it, through inspired eyes. So, he set out and walked around Harlem observing detail after detail. He saw men and women fishing, boats moored to piers, and women and children in the park. He also walked past a milk-bottling plant, the funeral parlor on the corner and the West End Theater. But he couldn't find any inspiration that he could write about. Even when a double decker bus and a Studebaker passed nothing came to him. He thought he would have to move to the country or another part of the city that was more exotic. Walter thought he should just stick to writing about people in his neighborhood instead of going around looking for something special. Walter talked about Mrs. Dodson, her features, her family and how she thought that she knew what the right thing was all the time. Walter said ..."She also thought she knew the right thing for me too which she didn't". Walter also talked about Melba Valle who was living upstairs of him that no one liked. They thought she was trying to make herself different from the other blacks. Mama would hit the ceiling because Melba would make too much noise when dancing. She was a part time dancer part time model. Walter was the only person in the building that admired her. The thing that impressed Walter as an observer the most was the entrance to the A train. "There were constant streams of people going down stairs in the mornings and coming up them in the evenings." Walter stated that white people got more credit in the newspapers then the black people. He talked about the more chances and more fairness then blacks. In Walter's class the boys made up a club of boys that wre macho. The boys would steal transfers from a ternimal. They would leave school and sneak by an old man and get the transfers. Then one day that was unplanned they got on a bus that was abandon at that time and rode around. Well a few minutes later the police caught them and said that they would talk to them later. The last thing that happened in this chapter was that Walters friend Eric had a friend named Eddie. Edie was having a party and invited Eric. Eddie said that he could invite anyone he wanted. so Eric invited Walter. When Eddie found this out he said that Walter couldn't come because he wasn't white. Walter was upset but he was more hurt then mad.

Observing My Neighborhood

My Point of View

An Original Poem By Jackie Kasinskas

Parked cars motionless in the street still nothing moves a dead leaf crunches on the autum grass then more and more crunching I look around realizing it's just a lawn mower going over leaves I stop writing. A car passes a dog and it's owner walk past, down the street also crunching along the way colorful leaves on the trees, line the streets up and down every so often a leaf falls down, down, down splat crunch another leaf says goodbye Sun starting to set animals going in for the night Insects coming out, crickets chirping bugs buzzing. A slight breeze blows by then...stillness Planes fly into the night their lights blinking with delight a full moon shinning brightly over head Stars twinkling, clouds blowing by Ahh, another slight breeze people shivering going inside A dog howling into the night a rabbit scurries off into woods more dogs barking the stillness comes around once more Lights being turned off in houses children going to bed while parents stay up a little bit longer before going to bed themselves All I hear now is the soft rise and fall of a person sleeping someone's snoring night sounds night goes on......

Reflection

I think if you look at something old in a new way, alot can come out from that. If you think and put your mind to focusing and looking, by taking your time you can really see things a whole new way. You shouldn't rush but keep an open mind.

Chapter 10 Heady Days at Stuyesant High Ten things that happened in the chapter 1.Walter was a growing money burden on the family because of his size 2. William Dean,Herbert Dean's father needed welfare assistanced because he was basicly blind but Herbert thought it would be best if he came to live if his family 3.William(Pap) told Walter Bible stories 4. Walter moved into small room Pap into Walter's room 5. Walter went to high school the hours were from 12-5:30pm 6. Walter did homework in the mornings before school 7. Walter invested all of his hopes and dreams into the Dodgers 8. Walter's grades were bad because he didn't study 9.Walter wrote story about a Frenchnoble women in danger that his who class liked 10. Mama and Dad gave Walter racial advice (tried to anyway)

Chapter 11 The Garment Center Tonight for homework we had to read Chapter 11 The Garment Center. This chapter started off with Walter surronded by people who were talking about colleges, jobs and what the future lies ahead for them. Walter, on the other hand had no idea what direction to go in or what direction he should go in, so basicly he was lost. Walter's cousin Joseph said that he could hook him up a job at the garment center where he worked. But Walter didn't want to work at the garment center. The garment center is a place to work for all races. People made and assembled clothing indoors that was then put into push behind trucks. Mostly black people worked outside pushing trucks to the post office. Walter Dean Myers then wrote about his Aunt Nancy owning a brokerage buisiness. She takes immagrant women and match them with American men so that they can apply to be an American citizen. After that he talked about applying for a job at school but they referred him to the New York State emploment service. They gave him a job at the Friedsam Coats, a factory at the garment center. He packed garments for shipping and if he was good enoegh then he could be taught how to use the ticketing machine. People in their junior and senior year were thinking seriously about their options about college and jobs. For example, "What colleges excepted all races or certain races only?" Walter used to memorize passages if he ever had to read in front of the class because he was ashamed of his speech. He couldn't tell that he had a speech problem but people would ask him to say something more clearly but he didn't know how to. Walter never heard of a writer that got paid to write or one who did as a living.He still had no idea at one he wanted to do. His family had no money to buy sweats and sneakers for sports for him so how were they going to pay for a college. He thought that if he didn't go to college that he would have to join the army. Mama was not making smart choices. She started playing the lottery and drinking. Walter's Dad would try to get extra jobs so that he could feed his family and basicly get the money back that Mama wasted. When Walter arrived at his part-time job one day he was replaced by a white kid. when the boss said he would be pushing trucks now Walter refused and went out to get a new job. found work at L. Einstein & Co. He workeds there through the winter holidays and into spring. Walter really wanted to get a type writer. So some money that he earned went to Mama, some went to transportation and such and some went to Mama to hold for the type writer. Well when Walter thought it was time to get his money and buy the machine Mama spent the money on the lottery. Well when his Dad found this out he went out and got a type writer for him. But it's not what Walter expects at all. So he doesn't touch it for a while. Then he starts writing I hate this typewriter and put them on his walls. The last that happens in the chapter is that Walter is doing bad in school. So he gives up on himself and stops going to school. He writes excuses on the type writer and he forges his mom's signature.

Chapter 12 God and Dylan Thomas Today in ILA class we read chapter 12. Chapter 12 starts off with Walter getting a talking to from the guidace counselor about him skipping school for the last three weeks. Walter listens to her a stays in school for the rest of the year. Since there were alot of people talking about basketball scholarships Walter decided to play more and join a team so maybe he would have ashot at one of them. One day when he was walking to a basketball practice, he saw a fight that was going on. There were three guys taking turns and beating up one guy. Even though the fight was none of Walter's business he was still drawn to it. As Walter drew closer one of the guys told him to get lost. But instead Walter punched him. The guy in the middle attaked one of the other guys and the three of them ran off threating Walter. The guy in the middle was named Frank Hall and Walter and him started talking. When Walter reached his house they said bye and went their seperate ways. Walter went to his room when he went home and started thinking about girls and sex. He was also thinking about "faggots" and homosexuality and what it meant to be these things. Walter then started talking about how he had his doubts about God and how he wrote to a Reverend Robinson. After he talked a little more about that he went on to talk about anarchists like Emma Goldman and Leon Czolgosz. Leon tried to be an anarchist but was rejected. So he killed President McKinley to prove how serious he was. Walter, one day was walking with his brother Mickey when they saw Langston Hughes in the street being interviewed. Walter was not impressed because Hughes just sounded like a regular person in the street. That day Walter did not say hello or talk to him. Walter heard for the first time the poet Dylan Thomas on the radio. Since it was said that Thomas liked to go down to The White Horse(a bar) Walter went down there looking for him. When he got there the bartender told him to get out because he was to young. It was a different guy who told him that Dylan was here but he was carried out drunk. Walter was impressed and excited about that. When he went back to school in September he was determined to pass but just after three weeks of school he stayed out of school again.

Chapter 13 Marks On A Paper Tonight for homework we had to read chapter 13. Chapter 13 is first starts off with Walter doing horribly in school. So he was sent to the guidance conselor once again. Once the guidance conselor was done talking sternly to him, Walter walked out of school. When he left school he went to a creative writing class. At school everyone was talking about college. Like what school they're attending, this and that. Walter was getting really nervous about this. He lied sometimes about what college he was going to attend.For the writing class he had to read the Penguin Island book and to himself he made conections with it. Walter liked reading trashy books and since he dropped out if school once again there was aot of time to read in Central Park. After he finished the Buddenbrooks book he made more connections with it and wrote a report on how much he enjoyed reading it.Walter started to do alot more reading and writing and started to mark his papers. SInce Walter was a messy writer with a quill and dip pen he decided to start writing on the old type writer his dad had gotten him. Frank Hall would sometimes stop by to visit Walter. Walter found out that Frank would sleep in hallways or in Morningside Park. Farnk and Walter would hang out on a reagular basis drinking beer and half and half.One day Walter's mom somehow found out about him skipping school so she went along with him. Some teachers and administraters talked with Mama and then Walter and Mama. The descion was made Walter was going to be supervised by the city agency.Walter was offically disturbed.

Chapter 14 The Stranger Chapter 14 the stranger first talks about Walter having to report to the city bureau for an interview because he has been skipping school. The guy Walter had to talk to told him that if he he continued to stay out of school he would be eligible for a juvenile facility. He had him agree to a bunch of statements and was being very strict with him. When he was leaving his stomach was churning, but instead of going straight home and to be early like he promised Mama he met Frank that night. He needed someone to talk to but there was nothing Frank or anyone one else could do to help him. Frank told Walter his story about his Dad being a singer\dancer and everyone being nice to him then, but when he died eveyone one was mean to him. Things just got worse from there. Frank's mom would get drunk and when people would try to get her off the bus for example Frank "blacked out" but in the process stabbing more than one innocent person. As Walter and Frank were talking Mr. and Mrs. Dodson walked by and asked Walter if he was ok and if he wanted to go home with her. He realized that that "The Wicked Witch" bieng kind but then thought that Mama could heve told her about his situation. Walter felt a good feeling about her after she left. After that Walter told Frank about the juvenile facility warning and Frank said if things get bad they could live together.Frank then told Walter about a "job" he was offered. All he had to do was pick up a package and drop it off at a different location. So Walter decided to go with him. When they got to the pick-up apartment it was dirty and discusting. In one of the weakly lightined rooms there were a number of people inserting drugs into themselves. After Walter and Frank got the package and droped it off Walter went home. Mama was upset because he was late but Walter ignored her and went to his room. Walter then went on to talk about a book titled "The Stranger" that he read. He implies that the character Mersault is similar to Walter in that they had some of the same characteristics. After he talked about the book Walter said that he had to go for testing at a hospital and after that go to a Dr. Holiday. At the end of the chapter Walter is confused at even though he didn't commit a crime he still had to go through tests and appointmets.

Chapter 15 Dr. Holiday Discussion Questions for Chapter 15 Dr. Holiday 1. Why do you think that even with all of the warnings Walter has recieved, he still skips school? 2.Why do you think Walter dosen't even try to understand the work he is been given at school? 3.Why do you think they let Billie Holiday perform (or try to) when she was drunk, for that long? 4.Why do you think that Walter didn't tell anyone one expcially Dr. Holiday that he had even some trouble telling different colors a part? 5. Why did the gang Walter ran into walk away from him instead of fight him? 6. Why would Dr. Holiday ask Walter if he liked being black?

Chapter 16 Being Black Chapter 16 Being Black started off with Walter answering the question he was asked from the previous chapter given to him by Dr. Holiday. Dr. Holiday's question was "Do you like being black?". Walter responded by saying "Yes of course I do". Dr. Holiday did not question him but accepted his reply. For the rest of the chapter Walter was thinking to himself about his maleness, his race and careers. For example he said he didn't know what being black really meant. In his teens' Walter wanted to know where he fit into the world. Walter also stated that people around him wouldn't let him forget the importance of telling the world who he was or intended on being. It said that to Walter careers and maleness were alot clearer to him than race was. A career in his community was defined as a good job or a bull job. A "bull" job to Walter was a job that took more physical strength. But at his school Stuyvesant a career to his fellow classmates was something totally different. To them a career meant chosing a "branch of science that they knew about, choosing a college and doing well". In Harlem being a man meant that you were good in sports, you were strong and you had money. Apparently it also meant that " A real man paid alot of attention to women". Walter didn't see anybody expecially a real man taking an interest in a writer as a career. When Walter thought of major careers he thought of white people. When he thought of black people he thought about their muscels. Walter also diccused that he didn't really know what being a "Nergro" meant until he was rejected from parties and such because of his race. He then saw alot more racism with which places excepted them and which did not. The most clearest thing to him was that being black had no advantages at all.

Chapter 17 1954 Chapter 17 1954 first says that Walter wanted to make his last term at Stuyvesant important. All of his classmates were worried about grade point averages and their acceptance letters to a college. Walter just wanted a miracle to happen to him. He was also still interested in sports. Walter said that “You can love baseball without worrying if it loves you back”. Another thing that happened in the chapter was that Frank came over Walter’s house and was impressed at how many books he had. When he left Mama told Walter that he looks strange and she was afraid of him. Walter said that “Frank looked the way I felt, he was an alien on this planet but because of this I was drawn to him”. Walter wanted to be something different. He wanted to make up a new world, one that didn’t fail him. Walter was also discovering that it was getting harder for Walter to understand writing, even his own. His books were just getting too hard for him. A different event that occurred in the book was that the same gang that tried to beat up Frank came after Walter. Walter out ran them and escaped thankfully but later he hated “the gang thing with passion”. He said “they were idiots intruding my life but like the idiocy of racism there was nothing I could do about it”. A different event that happened was that Walter was staying out of school again and when the school would call he would just make excuses. But he one day he got the bravado to go down to school once more to see what was going on. But when he got there the doors were locked and the school was basically empty except for a janitor who said school doesn’t open until September. Walter not only missed the last weeks of school but lost the chance to see people graduate and all of the senior activities. On his way home he cried.

Chapter 18 Sweet Sixteen Chapter 18 Sweet Sixteen first with Walter saying that he was sixteen and had no plans whatsoever. He didn't even tell his parents that school was over but he kept going out early every morning to Central Park witha notebook and a book. He didn't read or write there because things weren't clear to him anymore. Walter would also just spend more and more time in his room. His father would get upset but Mama would stick up for him. Walter also had another experience with Frank. One day Frank wanted to know if Walter wanted to go on another job with him. He agreed to but when they got to the pick up place Frank was beaten up and jumped in the bathroom by the supposedly hired dealer. Walter and Frank got away form that weird scene thankfully and not to hurt. When Walter told Dr. Holiday the story she wanted a lot of details. Although Dr. Holiday said she wouldn't tell anyone about the incident Walter suspects she told Mama because she was acting funny toward him for a while. Frank decided to do something very risky. Frank said that he was going to Philadelphia until things cooled down but if the city found out he could be institutionalized again. (He was still under the city's watch.) Walter was upset that he was leaving because he was the only one he could really talk to. After Frank's bus left Walter decided to stop at the army recruiting stand and ask some information about it. After little thought he decided he would join the army when he turned seventeen. Mama was very upset about it but Dad just said it would make a man out of him.

Chapter 19 The Typist Chapter 19 The Typist is mainly about what Walter did after he came back from the army. He said when he was a child he never considered being a writer for a job, but that is exactly what he has become. When he came back from the army he worked a series of low paying jobs. Some of these jobs included working in a factory, post office and a construction site. As he was working at the construction site, he realized that he didn't want to do that for the rest of his life. From there on he started writing again and didn't stop. He even got to meet some black poets including John O. Killens and James Baldwin. Walter had the advantage of the ability to read over other people looking for jobs because it allowed him to get better ones. He was also making some but not much money writing aticles for magiazines. Since 1968 Walter Dean Myers has been publishing books for young readers.One day when he was visiting his parents in Morristown, New Jersey where they moved to, when his parents asked what he did for a living. When he did, his parents didn't seem convinced but later Mama was proudly telling her friend that "her son types stories for a living".