JIMMY SWANN

#42 - Spring Green and Poker

episodes – 1, 2 

Jimmy picked up the book “Lord of the Flies” that was left on a waiting room seat as everyone queued up to board the bus. He would enjoy reading it on the ride to L.A. 

He got the first seat passenger side with a full view out the front window and settled in for the ride. 

The bus got underway and for the first time in almost three years, he felt a burden lifted from his shoulders. He felt free. 

It had almost broken him. Gone was his wife, his home, and the life he thought he would have for the rest of his days. 

It had been hard. A deep and dark depression consumed him. There were times he thought he would end it all but somehow, he never followed through. Inside him a voice directly said, “It is not yet your time”.

He remembered this voice through his darkest nights and slowly time, as it will do, began to heal him.  

By the time the day came for him to leave his home, he had sold his two cars and had sold or given away almost all of his belongings and furniture. He put his few remaining items into a storage facility. He hoped to retrieve them one day. Simplicity was for now the order of the day. 

The rest of the homes along his street had already been razed. He left as the bulldozer was being unloaded from the flatbed truck. He said goodbye to what had been a good life and moved into the lodge, unsure of his future. 

The “fair price” that the city paid for his home was still a good sum that, along with his savings, would allow him a comfortable existence. He just didn’t know what direction his life would take. 

A place that piqued his interest was the Caballo Loco Ranch southwest of Tucson, a camping facility frequented by RVers and off-grid enthusiasts. It was as good a place as any to go see. 

His direction for now was south to L.A. on a smooth riding bus down through the central valley farmlands making numerous stops on Highway 99 along the way. Clearly, this was not the Express. 

Jimmy enjoyed the ride and the exchange of people at the station stops. He was now in no hurry and felt at peace. 

Smiling a greeting to his fellow passengers he wondered what their stories were that put them on the bus. 

He read from “Lord of the Flies”, remembering many of the scenes having read the book many years previous. Today’s “political jungle” didn’t seem so far removed. 

He gazed out the window for long periods of time at the springtime greenery of crops and orchards that stretched out to the mountains on both sides of the wide valley. 

Dozing off as the bus climbed the Grapevine on Interstate 5, he awoke to the traffic of L.A. It was a ten-hour drive, but Jimmy felt rested. And light.  

The bus pulled into the L.A. station where he changed buses for Phoenix. He had left his past behind. 

It was an hour between buses. He saw that his pack made the transfer. There was enough time for a walk to stretch his legs and grab a sandwich and a couple bottles of water.  

The first to get back on board, he again chose the first seat passenger side. A full view of the road straight out the window. The bus was about half full and he had the front seat to himself. 

By the time the bus got on Interstate 10 heading east, he had eaten and had settled back for the ride. ETA in Phoenix was 6 am.  

The bus ate up the miles and by the time they left Indio, Jimmy was dozing off.  

He awoke as the bus neared the California/Arizona border and made a brief stop at Blythe. 

Having to use the facilities and walking down the aisle, five men, two of them younger, were quietly playing cards. They had a skateboard resting on the armrests of the aisle seats that accommodated the chips and the cards. It was an efficient arrangement. 

Jimmy briefly interrupted their game as he passed through to the rest room and on his return, he stopped to watch them for a while. They played a variety of poker games but mainly hold'em.  

One of the fellows was clearly better than the others but all of them were chasers. They held on to hands that were dominated but for the luck of the draw. This kind of player loses his money. 

There was alcohol involved. They were having a good time. Three of them knew each other and the other two fellows had joined in.  

Jimmy was asked if he wanted to play. He said, “OK”, and bought in for twenty dollars. 

After a couple of hours, the game was called as the other passengers were waking up and walking back and forth to the rest room. And the effects of the alcohol consumed had run its course. Jimmy had won enough money to pay his bus fare and then some.

The bus neared Phoenix with dawn approaching and busy morning traffic. 

There was a bus change and an hour layover in Phoenix. Jimmy ended up with a window seat near the rear of the bus. It was almost full with folks going to Tucson and beyond. 

The morning sun shined clear and bright on the springtime desert.  

They arrived at the Tucson station just before 9:30 am. He checked the departure times for the bus to the small community of Three Points, at Robles Junction, twenty-five miles west. He had a four hour wait. 

This gave Jimmy plenty of time to make it to Walmart. It was about a mile away according to his Maps app. He figured his pack plus water and other items he needed would be too much weight for him after a short period of time.  

He didn’t need to wear himself out. He was going to buy a baby stroller to haul his gear. He’d seen them used for such purposes before. He shouldered his pack and started walking. 

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