Sagehen Mesa - Part 9 - Cliff Mahon Weighs In

 My name is Cliff Mahon, a Sagehen Mesa native, and it's time I set the records straight. I know a lot of people around town are bad-mouthing me and making assumptions about my marriage and family. A lot of it is a bunch of B.S. put forth by a bunch of lame-brains, high-and-mighty gossips, and newcomers who don't even know me. 

Yeah, I'm not afraid to speak my mind and I don't care who hears it. There's a fancy word for that I remember from my college days. It's called candor, and it's not a bad thing. It's far better than just telling people what they want to hear whether it's true or not. 

So I told my wife she looked like a llama within earshot of some self-righteous people. Well, it's true; she looks a lot more like a llama than when I first met her. Why do women always let themselves go after a man makes a commitment to them? Back in college she was a fox. She was sweet and accommodating and took an interest in the things I was interested in. Now she just goes her own way, spending way more time on her lame art projects than on keeping house and having supper on the table when her man comes home from a hard day's work. Then she just had to have another baby, and a girl at that. I don't even know what to do with a daughter - I've got my hands full enough with my boys. 

So lately I've been coming home and there's no supper, the fridge is full of spoiled food, and the toilet's clogged. My boy Clancy is off chasing skirts and Timothy is a slave to his video games. Tess is whining, "But the baby's colicky, I haven't had time to catch up on the housework." Well I'm sick of my needs always coming last so I told her to take herself and her colicky baby and get out! Let her see how it is without my support. She'll be crawlin' back soon I suspect. She can't make it on her own. 

She turned on the waterworks, packed up some things for her and the baby and left. A few hours later, Clancy came home from tomcattin' around askin' for his Ma.

 "She's gone," I said.

"What do you mean she's gone?!" he asked. 

"I mean she packed a bag for her and the baby and walked out the door," I said.

"What did you DO Dad?!" 

"Nothin' son. You know how women get," I replied. 

He stormed into his room and threw some stuff in a bag and headed for the door. "Just where do you think you're goin' son?"

"I'm goin' to find Ma," he shouted. 

"Well, if you walk out that door, don't plan on coming back!" I warned. 

"Don't worry, I won't!" he snarked.

"Does that mean I get my own room?" Tim asked. 

"I guess it does, Tim," I replied. 

Tim is a pretty good kid. He's a lot like me. I always seem to be knockin' heads with Clancy - he's always been a bit of a "mama's boy," but Tim shows an interest in our legacy. He's the one who will inherit the mining claim for sure.

I'm a third generation miner, and my family is one of the founding families of the town. My grandpappy staked a claim here close to a century ago, and I'm still working that claim. My parents sent me off to the Sim State School of Mines after high school graduation where I majored in Geology and Geological Engineering. There was a rival school not far from mine that was a liberal arts school. Tess went to that one, majoring in Fine Arts. (As if you can make a living with that!) We ran into each other at a football game and sparks flew. She was rather pretty when she was younger. Anyhow, that was then and this is now.  

I guess I'll fix myself a sandwich, watch some TV, and wait for Tess and Clancy to come crawling back. 

****

It's been a week so far and still no Tess or Clancy. I wonder if  Tess went running to that head-shrinker woman and lost her common sense in the process. Or maybe she sought shelter with one of those goody-goody church people. No matter. After dealing with the issues Tess should have been handling, like unclogging toilet and such, . . .

 

. . . I was served papers. It seems Tess wants a divorce. She wants alimony too! And child support! I will definitely have to speak to her about this. She's lost all her common sense!

The good news is I got a job opportunity from a party (who shall remain nameless) to do a little excavating and drilling for them. I seems they want a tunnel system constructed, and they will pay handsomely, but I have to join their organization if I want the job. There's a few strings attached, loyalty and discretion are required, but the payout is promising. 

Maybe with a bump in income, Tess will be enticed to return and take up her responsibilities again. I might have to go down to that church and have a talk with her next Sunday. I ain't signing no papers until we have a talk. 

****

Just my luck. Spent all day a-drillin' and I hit a landmine! How'd that get there? It's late, so I'd better get some shut-eye so I can get to church and talk to Tess. 

****

Dang! I overslept! No time to clean up; I've got to get to church to talk Tess out of this divorce. 

I slipped into the back and waited for the service to be over. I admit Tess was looking pretty good. I think she's done something different with her hair. She was giving me the cold shoulder, however. 

Once the service was over, I told her about my new job and suggested she put away this silly notion of divorcing and just come home. 

She wasn't as impressed as I thought she would be. 

(Chuck Culpepper had better stop laughing at my expense or I'm gonna take him out beind the church and show him why that is unwise.)

"I'm not coming home. This past week has opened my eyes. I don't need you or your constant bullying. I want the divorce!"

"And you have a lot of nerve showing up here looking like that! It looks like you climbed out of a dumpster! Go home and clean up."

Well, I guess that didn't go as expected. I went home and asked Tim to call his little girlfriend and find out where Tess and Clancy are staying. It's handy that he's dating Clancy's girlfriend's sister. 

Tim reported back to me that Tess, Clancy and the baby were living not far from here, in a house owned by that head-shrinker's fiancé. Apparently they were willing to take one of her art projects as payment for the first month's rent. I knew that woman had something to do with this situation! 

I decided to wait until after dark and go check out her new digs. 

So I get the honor of supporting this highfalutin lifestyle with alimony and child support do I? We'll see about that! Not a penny, woman. You're on your own. 

The next day I cleaned my self up and went to work. There was a meeting with the boss and a few others, and I was supposed to report my progress and receive instructions for the next phase of the tunnel. However, the meeting was cut short due to a raid by the cops, and I didn't make much money. 

The joke's on you, Tess. You can't get blood out of a turnip. If I can't make money, you don't get money!

I ain't gonna lose any sleep over this. 

****

Once I was released, I learned that Tess is finding success with her art projects. Who knew so many fools would be interested in that junk. The town seems to think she has promise. 

I heard she also had a boyfriend of sorts, but I thought the guy was getting cozy with that Williams woman's granddaughter. I guess it's none of my business anymore. 

I don't care what Tess does anymore, I've go myself a new woman, and she's hot! We first met at my mine where I throttled her date. I guess she was impressed with my brute strength. 

If Bobbi is aware of what I do for a living, she isn't saying. I think she'll keep her mouth shut. She even gets along with my ex. 

It appears my boss plans for me to drill an adjoining tunnel on my own property and put up an outbuilding around it. Then they can transport their buzzberry supply through the tunnel, load it onto boats, and ship it out to the distributors. I think I'll become a very important player in this organization in the near future.