My Teacher is History

Chapter 2 - Marnie

I paused at the end of the driveway and listened for the resounding thud of the garage door as it closed locking my precious scooter safely inside. I decided to walk part of the way to school since I was pretty early getting out of the house and it was such a nice day. September is usually pretty nice in Florida. We get a little bit of a cooling off as we head into "winter" - of course that doesn't mean much in the way of seasonal change. I really enjoyed walking through my neighborhood. I have to give Dad some credit for making enough to get us set up in a nice place. He called the house a craftsman style house. I think that means it has something to do with Sears, but I'm not sure. But anyway, the birds were out, the sun was shining, the breeze was blowing off the ocean nearby. It just felt good to be outside knowing I would be cooped up in classes all day.

Most of my friends from middle school were going to different high schools. There are so many different magnet programs to choose from, more than half of the students don’t even seem to go to their neighborhood schools at all anymore. I was definitely going to Carver though. That had been decided long ago. My sister went there, and they had a great visual arts program. I sent my portfolio in, wrote an essay, interviewed, and got accepted. According to the dean, they were very excited about having me attend. They loved my sister. She was in the music program and attended college in New York now. Marnie was a real prodigy. I may have gotten the vespa as a consolation prize when Dad left, but Marnie got the real thing. An antique Chickering upright piano. Apparently it’s some kind of big deal. All I can say is it sounds great when she plays. He said he wanted to get her a baby grand, but he knew she would never be able to get it into an apartment when she was ready to move out.

Seems like Dad thought of everything.

When Marnie was packing for school over the summer, he called to wish her luck. He told her he was going to try to see her in New York if he had time. That was the problem I guess. He never had time. Never had time for Mom or us girls. He was always working, always on the go, always busy. Even at home he couldn’t sit still. I had to beg and plead for my Macbook because he didn’t understand how anyone could sit still long enough to use a computer. Marnie had one of course, because she needed it for high school. She traded in her old one for a new model. I guess you have to have a new computer when you go to college. She said the old one was slow.


A neighbor’s car slowed down a little as it passed me, but I ignored it. I would probably catch the 13 bus over to the school. I was almost out of my neighborhood now and there was a stop up ahead on Biscayne Boulevard. Marnie was lucky. She lived on campus and she could go anywhere in New York she wanted by subway. They really had it figured out up there. Down here, the transportation was all mixed up. It was like they just threw all these things together that didn’t really work that well. I was a pro, though. I could get anywhere in Miami whether it was by bus, Metrorail, trolley, train, you name it. Of course, it could take hours. That was the problem. No matter how good you were at the public transportation game, it just didn’t sync well.

Marnie never mastered this particular skill, but she always had friends and boyfriends to drive her around. She never even wanted her own car, which I thought was strange.

The bus stop bench smelled as usual, so I leaned up against the shelter and waited. The good thing about the bus was that they ran pretty much like clockwork. I wouldn’t have to wait more than fifteen minutes probably. Especially this early.

I wondered what Marnie was up to. She was probably asleep. Classes started for her two weeks ago, and she had been messaging me on Facebook every night. She was having a great time. She loved her professors. The pianos were amazing in the practice rooms. Her roommate was really nice. The food in the city was incredible. She said she could get any kind of food she wanted at any hour of the day or night. Well, if I wanted to have that life, I would have to get off to a good start in high school. Lots of studying and not a lot of friends and partying. That shouldn’t be a problem. Dad always said if you wanted something, you could have it, as long as you put your mind to it. Now Marnie is having that dream life because she followed his advice. I plan to do the same.

Right on cue, the bus rolled up to the curb. There was a guy who got off and unloaded his bike from the front of the bus. There was a kind of smelly guy next to me in a wheelchair, so the bus had to lower down to the sidewalk so he could get on. I sat near the front so I could see Miami stirring to life in its morning routine.