Chapter 5

The school always had the same meal on Saturday nights, Steak. Mainly because alot of guys' parents a came the following day and they ask there darling boy what they had for dinner last night they would say "steak". What a racket. It was nice though when we got out side, horsing around throwing snowballs. About three inches there was, pretty as hell. It was very childish but everybody was really enjoying themselves.

I didn't have a date or anything, so a friend of mine from the wrestling team, Mal Brossard decided to go out and see a lousy movie. I asked if Ackley could come... he wasn't to pleased but went along with it anyway. the movie wasn't showing anyway... i didn't want to see the lousy movie anyway, they both laugh at things what ain't even funny.

It was about quarter to nine when we got back to the dorm... and ackley wouldn't stop going on about this girl he supposed to have sexual intercourse with the summer before last. he already told me the story about a hundred times before... every time different. He was a virgin if i ever saw one. anyway i finally got round ton tell him to get the hell out i had to concentrate, and he did finally.

After thinking for a while i decided to describe my brother Allie's baseball mitt. It was a very descriptive subject. It really was. The thing most descriptive about it was the poems written all over the place. In green ink. He wrote them so he would have something to do when he was fielding. He's dead now. He got leukemia and died on July 18, 1946. You'd have liked him.... he was two years younger then me and fifty times more intelligent. He had very red hair and was incredibly nice in many ways. When he passed away they were going to have me psychoanalyzed because i broke all the windows with my fists. my fists still hurt now, but is not as if I'm going to be a goddam surgeon or violinist anyway.

It was about ten-thirty, i guess, when i finished. everything was quiet. It wasnt snowing anymore, but ereryonce in a while you could hear a car engine trying to start. Ackley was asleep. That guy had just about everything. Sinus trouble, pimples, lousy teeth, halitosis, crumby fingernails. You just had to feel sorry for the crazy sonuvabitch.

chapter 4

I didn't have anything special to do, so I went down to the can and chewed the rag with him while he was shaving. Everybody was still down at the game, and it was hot as hell in the can and the windows were all steamed up. I sat on the sink next to Stradlater and started turning the cold water tap on and off... its a nervous habit.

Stradlater and Ackley were similar in a way.... they were both slobs in there personal habits. Stradlater was more of a secret slob, with his filled with crap razor. Although he always looked handsome- I'll admit it. Whilst Ackley, like i said before looked horrible. Anyway I was still next to Stradlater with my red hunting hat still on. I got a big bang out of that hat. Stradlater asked me if i could do his composition for English for him, and kept on sucking up to me, asking about my hat saying its "sharp"... I new he didn't mean it.

All of a sudden... for no good reason, except I was in the mood for horsing around. I pounced on him like a goddam panther, and put him in a half nelson... a wrestling move. He soon got out, he's very strong guy. I'm very weak guy. I was mildly interested in his date until he said it was Jane Gallagher. I dam near dropped dead. She lived right next door to me the summer before last. I couldn't stop asking questions... "Where is she"... "in the annex?" I was pretty excited. I used to play checkers with her, she never moved her kings. I used to caddy for he mother, a couple of times but she was gaddam crap though. Stradlater wasn't interested. I didn't want her to now I got kicked out. He banged the hell out of the room.... i sat there for half an hour after he left thinking about Jane.

All of a sudden Acklely barged in and for once in my life i was glad to see him.... took my mind of other things. He stuck around until dinner time.

Chapter 3

I'm the most terrific liar you have ever seen in your life. Anyway.. back at pency i lived in the new dorm, Ossenburger memorial wing. He was an ex-pupil at Pency who made loads of dough in the undertaking business. He probably just shoved them in a bag and stuck them in the river. He gave this speech in the chapel.. he started with about 50 phoney jokes to show us what a regular guy he was. He was very religious, and went on for hours. the best bit was in the middle part of the marathon when he was telling us what a swell guy he was and Edgar Marsalla laid this terrific fart. It was very crude to do in a chapel, but also quite funny. We was egging him on to do another whilst old thurmer was on, but he wasn't in the mood. anyway, that's where i lived at pency. Old Ossenburger memorial wing, in the new dorms.

It was all quiet back at pency, everyone was at the game, and i started reading a book about Africa which i picked up by mistake..... When Robert Ackley, ackley for short, everyone called him that i think his wife will as well, walked in. He was a senior, two years older than me and the most lousy teeth, with a mossy look to them. He started walking around picking up my stuff, and most annoying of all didn't put it back in the right place.... I tryed to get rid of him by groaning every time he spoke but i finally put the book down. He asked me about the fencing, and I had to answer twice... how annoying. Stradlater came in rushing around like always... he had a date. ackley hates stradlater.. he wouldn't even sit on his chair... just the arm of it. anyways, stradlater went rushing for a shave with his crumby razor in the bathroom.

Chapter 2

What the hell was he living for, I mean hes around seventy years old..... He couldn't even reach the ground after dropping the chalk, its terrible in my opinion. Old people have no use. He still had the grippe as well, and his room had that old peoples home smell about it with vicks trying to overpower it. He started lecturing me about my history exam on the egyptians, but i kind of admitted at the bottom that i didn't want him to feel sorry for flunking me or out like that but his lectures are very interesting though. He kept on chucking things on to the bed and missing... how annoying! he kept on saying how concerned about my future... "you will, boy" "you will, boy" thats all he kept saying. It was very depressing. I couldn't've sat there another ten minutes to save my life. I said i've got to go and get some equipment from the gym... i dont even keep me goddam equipment at the gym. I told him not to worry about me... i said my good by and walked out. I looked back into the window, I think he mouthed "Good luck" .... i hope not. it sounds terrible!

chapter 1

I cant belive them, throwing me out that goddam school, Pency Prep. All because of the goddam reputation of that crumby place. I was watching the football game with Saxon hall standing way the hell on top of Thompson Hill. The whole school was there, watching them bashing each all over the place, except me. anyway, I had just got back from New York with the fencing team, very big deal. Another reason i wasnt at the game was old spencer, my history teacher.... I wanted to say good by. He new I wasnt coming back to Pency Prep. He had the grippe. I ran round down the hill and went and rang the doorbell. I was frozen, I got impatient shouting "c'mon, c'mon". I went up to see spencer.