Properties
- end_line
- 225
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-27T17:13:03.333Z
- extracted_by
- structure-extraction-lambda
- start_line
- 175
- text
- 168 He started getting serious as hell. I knew he would. "So you're leaving us, eh?" he
169 said.
170 "Yes, sir. I guess I am."
171 He started going into this nodding routine. You never saw anybody nod as much
172 in your life as old Spencer did. You never knew if he was nodding a lot because he was
173 thinking and all, or just because he was a nice old guy that didn't know his ass from his
174 elbow.
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175 "What did Dr. Thurmer say to you, boy? I understand you had quite a little chat."
176 "Yes, we did. We really did. I was in his office for around two hours, I guess."
177 "What'd he say to you?"
178 "Oh. . . well, about Life being a game and all. And how you should play it
179 according to the rules. He was pretty nice about it. I mean he didn't hit the ceiling or
180 anything. He just kept talking about Life being a game and all. You know."
181 "Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules."
182 "Yes, sir. I know it is. I know it."
183 Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then
184 it's a game, all right--I'll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren't
185 any hot-shots, then what's a game about it? Nothing. No game. "Has Dr. Thurmer written
186 to your parents yet?" old Spencer asked me.
187 "He said he was going to write them Monday."
188 "Have you yourself communicated with them?"
189 "No, sir, I haven't communicated with them, because I'll probably see them
190 Wednesday night when I get home."
191 "And how do you think they'll take the news?"
192 "Well. . . they'll be pretty irritated about it," I said. "They really will. This is about
193 the fourth school I've gone to." I shook my head. I shake my head quite a lot. "Boy!" I
194 said. I also say "Boy!" quite a lot. Partly because I have a lousy vocabulary and partly
195 because I act quite young for my age sometimes. I was sixteen then, and I'm seventeen
196 now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen. It's really ironical, because I'm six foot
197 two and a half and I have gray hair. I really do. The one side of my head--the right side--
198 is full of millions of gray hairs. I've had them ever since I was a kid. And yet I still act
199 sometimes like I was only about twelve. Everybody says that, especially my father. It's
200 partly true, too, but it isn't all true. People always think something's all true. I don't give a
201 damn, except that I get bored sometimes when people tell me to act my age. Sometimes I
202 act a lot older than I am--I really do--but people never notice it. People never notice
203 anything.
204 Old Spencer started nodding again. He also started picking his nose. He made out
205 like he was only pinching it, but he was really getting the old thumb right in there. I guess
206 he thought it was all right to do because it was only me that was in the room. I didn't care,
207 except that it's pretty disgusting to watch somebody pick their nose.
208 Then he said, "I had the privilege of meeting your mother and dad when they had
209 their little chat with Dr. Thurmer some weeks ago. They're grand people."
210 "Yes, they are. They're very nice."
211 Grand. There's a word I really hate. It's a phony. I could puke every time I hear it.
212 Then all of a sudden old Spencer looked like he had something very good,
213 something sharp as a tack, to say to me. He sat up more in his chair and sort of moved
214 around. It was a false alarm, though. All he did was lift the Atlantic Monthly off his lap
215 and try to chuck it on the bed, next to me. He missed. It was only about two inches away,
216 but he missed anyway. I got up and picked it up and put it down on the bed. All of a
- title
- Chunk 2