"So, Connie, is that short for something?" "Technically, Constance." "No one ever calls me that though." "Anyway, I got back a week ago and I was like, "Oh, my God, where I am gonna live?"" "Well, this is the room." "Ah, I was mostly traveling on my own but then I spent two months with this amazing group of botanists in the rain forest." "Oh, wow." "Did you, uh, did you take a boat on the Amazon?" "I don't swim, so there was no way." " Oh." " Oh, I love the light in here." "Yeah, it's nice." " Right?" " Yeah." "Leslie, the girl who just moved out, she actually went to Chicago to do Development studies." "Really?" "That's exactly what I was thinking of." "I would love to do that." "I mean, that or Environmental Law." "I don't know, I'm still exploring." "What's your name, sir?" "What's your name?" " Mike." " Mike, my name is Paige, I'm a nurse." "I'm gonna be taking care of you." "Can you take a deep breath in through your nose, out through your mouth." "There we go, in through your nose." "Out through your mouth." "And now, ladies and gentlemen, our beautiful Mae must bid everyone good night, and goodbye." " Here you go." " Thank you." "Barbara's already texted asking how it went." "Oh, yeah?" "It was sweet of her to invite me to the wedding." "I don't know anyone here outside of work." "So..." "So, you were a teacher back in the States?" "Yeah." "I taught for a bit." "And what did you teach?" "A little of everything." "We don't have to, I mean..." " No, I want to." " ...if you don't wanna go there." "I want to." " It's fine." " I want to." "I was a teacher back home for, um... eight years, then I..." "Then I came here." "And, um..." "Tom." "I'm gonna go down and eat something." "Did you read the AgReport on rotational grazing?" "I saw it, I haven't read it." "It's so full of distortions." "It's unbelievable." "That's why I haven't read it." "Well, I'm writing Conners." "He needs to know what they're producing." " Yeah." " I'm being polite, I swear." "Okay?" " You wanna come down?" " Yeah, yeah, yeah." "Just hitting "send"." "I wanna see the fall grazing trends, I bet they conform." "Don't send anything off yet, okay?" "I promised to send a draft last Friday." "I know, but I just wanna see the fall trends, Clyde." "This thing's gotta be ironclad when we go to committee." "Okay." "Okay, I'll hold off." "Thank you." "Thank you." "Can you pass the salt?" "Sure." "Thanks." "Thank you." "It's a brackish lake and it has this incredible reed that regulates the salt level and that allows this one species of leech to thrive." "It's the only place in the world you find them." "They can't exist anywhere else." "Really?" "And you were dissecting them?" "Yep." "I pretty much lived in a Tasmanian marsh from the age of 24." "We discovered that these leeches produced a peptide in their salivary glands that might be useful in treating cancer." "Cancer?" " Wow." "This..." " Yeah." "This sounds like amazing work." "I know." "I mean, well, I was really just a lab runt so..." "I can't claim, you know." " Sure, sure." " Yeah." "You do realize that most of us can't stand our cafeteria." " Really?" " Yeah." "You know, I might not be the only infiltrator." "There's like a million lunch places in this neighborhood." "I know, I know." "I just haven't had time to explore." "Plus, I'm out on Long Island half the time." "Right." "Hunting frogs." "Hunting frogs." "That's the whole point of how we laid it out." "You know, I started with the conceptual framework we originally agreed on." "And then I layered in exactly how to handle all the regulatory hurdles, so they'd be in a position where they could actually, you know..." "Are you listening, Ramina?" ""In a position to..."" "Nothing." "Just hopefully the guy at Agriculture will actually pass it up to the deputy so we can move forward." "I finally feel like I framed it in a way where they really have to move on it." "You know?" "And what's Clyde say?" "Very supportive." "What's the story with this biologist?" "She's just a friend, he says." "But he said it three times." " Ah." " Yeah." "I don't know." "I hear myself out loud and the whole thing seems futile." "You are a brilliant and inspiring man." "You wanna have a threesome for my birthday?" "Wow, your Farsi is getting much better." "Your laugh makes me wet." "I know that one." "That's why you should laugh more." "Orange cows are laughing in outer space." "You don't say." "Not quite." "I like this one." "Makes you look gorgeous." "So, when will this project come up in committee?" "September, I think." "They cannot do it earlier?" "I don't control the schedule, honey." "How will Clyde handle it if you won't be around by then?" "This fucking cake..." " Tom." " Yeah?" "I don't know." "I mean, we haven't really talked about it." "But after this big push I've been making," "I can't exactly say I'm not gonna be around to see it through." "There are thousands of farmers depending on the legislation." "It's important." "But my jewelry is only jewelry?" " We agreed." " We didn't agree." "I want to go to California." "So go." "Alone?" "Unbelievable." "I gotta deal with this cake before the bakery closes." "You didn't do it already?" "I'm sorry, I should have checked it." "Just, dress the hens for me, would ya?" "Can we finish this conversation?" "No, I..." "You're early." "You're leaving." "Hi, my dear." "Come in." "How are you, dear?" "Mark is on his way." "I'll be right back." "I tried to read your paper about the leeches." " You've been Googling." " I've been Googling." "I only got about as far as the third paragraph." "The writing was a little dense." "Yeah, well, don't blame me." "I was just the research assistant." "I'm surprised that came up." "That and this great picture of you." "The one with the leeches?" " Yeah." " Oh, God." "I really wanna get that one taken down." "No, no." "I thought it was endearing." "I appreciate you inviting me tonight." "Oh, yeah." "No problem." "It's a great group." "I really think you'll like them." " Yeah." " You said you wanted to meet people." " Oh, I do." " They're people, so..." "Maybe we need a safe word though in case it isn't going well." "Like what?" "Like I say, "Potato famine."" " "Potato famine?"" " Yeah." "Well, that's really easy to work into any conversation." "Sure, everybody left during the potato famine." "Okay." "Hello." " Oh, hi." " Come in, come in." "Ramina, this is Alice." "Hi, pleasure to meet you." "Please, come in, come in." "The sounds just completely envelope you and you sink in and you become absorbed by living music." "Of frogs?" " Yeah, of frogs." " Of frogs?" "And..." "And screech owls, tree crickets, mosquitoes." "I swear, I mean, I'm barely out of the city, but I feel like I could be back in Tasmania." "And where is it again?" "It's near Northport, it's the Campbell Bog." "And it is this frog that brought you to New York?" "Yes, it did." "Yes." "Well, it's the first new frog that's been identified in North America in 27 years." "I mean, you wouldn't know it was a new species if it wasn't for its song." "Play them the recording." " Really?" " Come on." " No." " You guys have to hear this." "You wanna hear the frogs sing?" "Yeah, sure." " Of course they wanna hear it." " Really?" "Play it." "She played it for me and I cried." "She promised me a copy of this for my white noise machine." "Ah, that's in Long Island?" "It's not even an hour away." " That's gorgeous." " Huh." "I feel completely ridiculous." " I'm sorry." " Why?" " Beautiful." " It's gorgeous." "Let me put this way immediately, I'm sorry." " Play it." " Quite enough." " Enough of that." " Nice." "Hush, please, are you kidding?" "Your necklace is beautiful." "Ah, okay, that is cheating." "But points for coaching." "I didn't, I swear." "What do you mean?" "The necklace is Ramina's." " She has a line of jewelry." " It's not a line yet." " Oh..." " It will be." "What do you mean?" "You mean you made it?" " Yes." " This your work?" "Oh, my God." "It's beautiful." " It's stunning." " Ah, well..." " Absolutely amazing." " And she has good taste." "What kind of stone is that?" "It's a gold quartz." "I cut them myself." " I want to see the rest." " Later." "Please, more wine." "Could I use your powder room?" "Absolutely, it's just up the stairs." "Thank you." "Clyde." "All right, take it easy." "Take it easy." "Hey, is Tom coming to his own birthday, where is he?" "He's at the bakery." "We had some problems with the cake." "There was some confusion about his name." " You look like you need a drink." " Happy birthday." " Oh, yeah." " Happy birthday." "Thank you, Mark." "Thank you, everybody." "Hey, buddy." "Yeah, yeah." "Thanks." " Happy birthday." " Thanks, fella." " Speech, speech, speech." " Yeah." " What?" " Come on, come on, come on." " Come on, man." " Please, speech." " All right." " Let's do it." "Thank you, Brad." "Thank you all." "Well, I'm humbled by your devotion to celebrating my birthday." "I mean..." "The other day Clyde was asking me why I insist on no gifts, and I said something about how we don't need any more stuff." "Which is true." "We don't need any more stuff, but..." "I think what I really meant is you don't need to give me anything because you're here." "And that's a very good gift, I appreciate it." "I mean, if you have, you know, an albino alligator, I'll take it." " Don't worry about it." " We do." "I have one." "Don't get me wrong." "All right?" "But..." "Well, it just means everything to me that we're here together." "So..." "And to my lovely wife, Ramina, without whom the hens would not be in the oven." " You did put them in, right?" " Yes." "They're in." "Cheers." " Cheers." " Happy birthday." " So where are we dancing this year?" " Oh, Ramina found the best place." "It's new and very hip." " No bailing out." " No bailing out." "I'm not letting him." "Rock and roll ready." "Oh, there you are." "I want you to meet the birthday boy." "Tom, this is Alice Manning." "Nice to meet you." " Alice?" "Alice?" " She's amazing." "You're the biologist?" "Yeah, she just got off the boat from Australia." " Tasmania." " I've always wanted" " to visit Australia." " Really?" "I was actually gonna ask, it's like the craziest surfing in the world, right?" " I mean, do you surf?" " Oh, everybody surfs down there, yeah." "Wait a minute." "You're not from Australia though." "I mean, you don't have an accent." "No, originally I'm from Denver." "Oh." "Tom, you didn't toast Ramina." " What?" " That's such great news." "We're so excited for you." " What's the great news?" " California." "Oh..." "Ramina just got into this amazing jewelry program in San Diego." "Oh." " Yes." " What?" "Really?" "Congratulations." " Thank you." " Wow." "Why didn't you say anything?" "I'm sure Tom just did not want to jinx things." " There you go." " Right, Tom?" " That's it." " Who wants a drink?" " Awkward me, please." " Hey, Mark." "What are you in the mood for, buddy?" " Bourbon." " Well, happy birthday." "We take boat rides along the glades." "The alligators are literally feet from you and they follow the boat." "My goodness." "So, Alice, how did you meet Clyde?" "Oh, we frequent the same lunch spot." "In Long Island?" "I'm in Midtown part of the week." "Turns out Clyde and I both studied at Carnegie Mellon." "Isn't that wild?" " Music?" " Biology." "She discovered a new species of frog." "Play him the recording, you have to hear this." "No, no." "No, really." "Once in an evening is enough." "So, when did you go to Carnegie Mellon, before or after Clyde?" "Hey." "It's not polite to ask a lady's age, Thomas." "Did I ask her age?" "Did I ask your age?" " After." " Okay." " So, how old are you?" " Definitely not polite." " What's going on?" " Tom's just giving Alice the third degree." " Yes." " Ah, sure." " I love your home, Tom." " Oh, thanks." "Tom and his brother, Brad, actually they grew up here." " Really?" " Yeah." "Yeah, well, my parents live in London now so Ramina and I are sort of house-sitting." "Huh." "Lucky guys." "Brad and Sharon, they own their own place in the West Village." " Hedge fund." " Wow." "Must be strange, though, living in the same house you grew up in." "I don't know." "I mean, sometimes." "Would you like a tour?" "Sure." "Can I ask you what that is over there?" " What?" "I don't know." " Up here." "That's all my father's stuff." " Hold on a minute, can I stand on this?" " Whoa, whoa, hey." "Oh." "This is a fossil." " Is this real?" " I don't know." " Oh, Late Cretaceous." " It's my father's." "You know what this is?" "This is a two-legged snake." "You see, see the vertebrae?" " Yeah?" " Those are the legs." " No." " Isn't that amazing?" "Yeah, they were discovered in South America." "This is 80 or 90 million years old." "Back when snakes had legs." "I thought Dad brought that back when he was teaching in Nairobi?" "Well, they would have been all over." "They would have been in East Africa..." " Huh, cool." " ..." "South America." " She's right, that's beautiful." " All over the world." " Did you know that was up there?" " No, I had no idea." "You know, this should be where people can see it." "Put it where someone can see it." "You got it." "Yeah, I think, should we eat?" " Yes." " Yes, I'm starving." " Right." " Time for salad." "Yeah." "Jennie?" " It's..." "It's..." " Want a drink?" " I'm starving." "Yeah." " Great." "Does Ramina have assigned seats for us or..." "What?" "No." "Just sit wherever." "Tom, will you grab the salad dressing, please?" " Sure." " Actually, Clyde, I want you to sit there." "And Alice, you come sit next to me." "No." " Goddamn it." " Tom." "Clyde, Clyde, come here." "Tom, will you grab the bread also?" "Sure thing." "So, how did you meet her?" "Why didn't you tell me that Ramina got in to San Diego?" "I don't know." "I..." "We still need to work out what we're gonna do." "You think?" "Well, I told her I needed to discuss it with you." "You make it sound like you need my permission." "I don't need your permission." " I just..." " Is this you quitting?" "No." "I don't know." "I mean, maybe..." "I can take a leave for part of it or maybe we do long distance for part of it." "I don't know." "Oh, my God." "Right." "'Cause that's what you guys need is time apart from each other." " Actually..." " What?" "So, how did you meet her again?" "In the cafeteria." "The cafeteria?" "So, she works in our building?" "No, her lab has an office across the street." "She likes the food." "What do you know about her?" "What kind of question is that?" "I'm..." "Are you going out?" "She's made it clear that she just wants friends in her life right now, so I'm being her friend." "But... actually she's the first woman that I've meet since Lisa that I like, if you care." "No, that's great." "Don't sound so thrilled." "Tom, salad dressing." " Who's Tony?" " Don't ask." "It's a whole saga." " Alice, red or white?" " What?" "Red, please." "Four hundred applied." "They accepted 12." " Wow." " That's awesome." "We are so thrilled for you, Ramina." "Thank you." "Well, it's two years of course work, metalsmithing, gemology, computer rendering, it's everything." " Wow." " Wow, that's awesome." "I would like to propose a toast." " Don't touch my knobs." " Don't touch my knobs." "Don't touch my knobs?" "He gave this speech at their wedding where..." " As I was saying." " All right, all right." "Now, I've known Ramina for a long time." "And I can tell you stories of her terrorizing the boys of our neighborhood." "But I won't." "I'll just say that she has always been remarkable." "But I look at her now and she is becoming herself." "She has become an artist." "Well, I like how that sounds." "Say it again." "Your work is beautiful." "And it makes the people who are wearing it beautiful." "And Tom, you have encouraged her to do this." "And I am grateful." "I am overjoyed." " So, cheers." " Cheers." " Cheers." "Congratulations." " Cheers." "Oh, and also, don't touch my knobs." " Don't touch his knobs." " There it is." " Guys." " Can't help it." "Tom, I hear you had a victory of your own at work." "What?" "No." "It's just something I wrote." "No." "He's being modest." "What was it?" "Well, we're helping formulate part of this land reform bill." "But we've been struggling for six months with the Cattle Growers Association," " they've been..." " Cattle growers?" "Is that the word in English?" "You grow cattle?" " That's the technical term." " Oh." "Yeah." "So, anyway, I finally managed to frame it in a way where hopefully we'll get some traction." "You should've read this email." "It was an email?" "It was a very masterful email." "Not email." "Email makes it sound like emails." " Correspondence." " There you go." "It's a set of guidelines that can be inserted into the legislation." "I wish I could still have red wine." "Now suddenly it gives me a headache." "Oh, I know, it's the tannins." "I have a friend who has that." " Really?" " Yeah." "I cannot drink red wine, I am completely allergic to it." "Oh, my God." "This friend of ours, Danny..." "If they don't respond, I swear I'm gonna dump them as clients." "No." "The work goes before the legislative committee for discussion in September." "All of a sudden, he starts sneezing." "Can't stop." "Goes to the doctor and the doctor says he's developing an allergy to the cats." " No way." " I know." " Developing an allergy?" " Yeah." "We don't know." " That's what he said." " No, apparently it can happen." "Yeah, sure I'd love to work on more." "Anybody need a cat?" "Or ten?" "Ten?" "I don't buy it." "I don't buy it." " What don't you buy?" " That you develop allergies." "I mean, maybe they're dormant, but..." "Well, she's a scientist, she ought to know." " Yeah." " Yes." "Well, it depends." "Some you're born with, some you develop." "Yep." "See?" "I just hope I don't develop an allergy to wine." "That or chocolate." "Kill me now." "Can I get an allergy to cucumbers, I hate cucumbers." "No, you can't pick what you're allergic to." "It was hypothetical." "What if they made us allergic to things?" " Like cigarettes." " Or cell phones." "Or just technology in general." "You could just go off the grid." "Well, I know someone who did that." " Yeah?" " I would love to do that." "Can you imagine just leaving everything behind?" " You can't do that anymore." " I bet you can." "Sounds like being an immigrant." "Or like life after divorce." "I bet that some people just run off to Tasmania." "I'm sorry?" "I bet some people just run off to Tasmania." "Oh." "No, not that I met." "Well, what about you?" "Where would you go?" "I'd go to Mexico." "Mexico is hardly off the grid." "No." "It was when I went." "I went in college and I almost never came back." " Like Butch Cassidy." " That was Bolivia, baby." "And it did not end well." "That's why you didn't finish CMU?" "Yeah, I dropped out completely." "I changed my name, everything." "Mm-hmm." "Why?" "Just sort of happened." "I was on a bus to Guatemala and I got into a conversation with this girl in Spanish and she asked me my name and I told her my Spanish name." " Your Spanish name?" " Like in Spanish class?" "I was Marco." "Well, my parents named me Jennifer which doesn't exist in Spanish, so my teacher decided I'd be Consuelo." "That's random, Consuelo?" "What was wrong with Jennifer?" "I just hated the name Jennifer." "Anyway, after we got off the bus she invited me to stay with her and her family." "And then they started asking me questions about myself but by then I was Consuelo." "So, I made her up." " Fun." " Wow." "What, lying to people who took you in on complete trust?" " How long were traveling?" " Eighteen months." "You went 18 months as Consuelo?" "I love that." "That's amazing." "Well, when I was finally coming home, I..." "I was watching the guy stamp my passport and I had this feeling like," "I'm not the person in that passport anymore." "I'm Consuelo." "So, Alice is the American name for Consuelo?" "Your mother must have been a little insulted, no?" "We weren't exactly close." "So, you got home and told your friends to start calling you Alice?" "Actually, no, I never went home." "I went to Portland." "You never went home?" "Oh, my goodness." "Wait, so you just completely left?" "Yeah, you know, listen, I was practically a kid when I did this." "It was a really long time ago." " Sure." " So, I'm sorry, but you haven't seen your family since?" "Or anyone else you knew?" "Do they have any idea what happened to you?" "No." "I think it sounds amazing." "Me, too." "That's..." "Yeah." "Brave." "Cheers, Alice." "I mean, really, Clyde, I am impressed." "She is wonderful." "Yeah, I can't say I exactly knew." "But, yeah." "How is she wonderful?" "What do you mean how?" "I mean, she's beautiful, exciting, adventurous." "She is a keeper." "How does walking out on everyone in your life" " make someone a "keeper"?" " Pay no attention to him." "Oh, so, if you stick with something or someone you're basically not adventurous?" "I don't think I'm quite ready to propose to her yet." "Oh, but you need a woman who knows how to wipe the table clean." "That's not even the expression." "You know..." "Oh." "Never mind." " Well, I like her, Clyde." "I approve." " Thank you." "I love my Spanish name, you should call me Marco." "I don't see you as a Marco." "Marco would be so much fun, right?" "Marco would speak Spanish, he knows how to merengue." "Maybe Marco would not drink so much?" "I've had three glasses." "I think I did four." "So, Marco also has a drinking problem." "It's a beautiful deck." "Jennie." "Jennie, come on, it's you." "Right?" "This is crazy." "You're alive." "Yeah." "Thought I was dead?" "I didn't know." "I mean, where... where'd you go?" "To Mexico?" "What difference does it make where I went?" "Oh." "Good point." "So, you didn't go to Mexico, it's just a story." "And you're from Denver all of a sudden?" "It's part of who I am now." "You're kidding." "Please, tell me you're kidding." "What is this?" "You know what?" "Actually, don't even bother." "Okay?" "Just do me a favor, I don't especially wanna explain this to my wife and my friends." "What the hell?" "I wanted to see you." "Jennie, it's been 15 years." "Yeah." "I'm married." "I mean, why didn't you just pick up the phone and call me?" "Say what, "Hi, this is Jennie, only I'm not really Jennie anymore."" "Do you understand?" "Your parents showed up at my door." "Your father was bawling his eyes out." "Begging me to tell him where you were." "They had no idea what happened..." "I let them know I was alive." "But you didn't see them?" "Or was that just a story too?" "I went to Canton." "Couldn't get out of the car." "My dad died two years ago of a heart attack." "So..." "What do you want?" "Tom?" "You guys ready for cake?" "Yeah." "Yeah, sure." "Let's..." "Let's do cake." "So, in other words it's my fault for making you binge?" "No, I'm saying maybe that's the reason she decided she needed to get the fuck away from everybody for a while." "I'm sorry, I thought step one was accepting that it is a disease." "That it doesn't go away." "Actually, that's not step one." "At all." "People can still change." "Their behavior maybe, but not who they are." "At least people still recognize that they have room to improve." "Yeah, I think everyone wants to be a better person." "Guys, this is not about improvement." "This is about running away." "I wouldn't call it that." "I'm sorry, what would you call it?" "Making a change." "Right, but wherever you go there you are." "Isn't that what they say?" "I think that's just what people tell themselves when they don't have" " the courage to change." " What about you, Tom?" "Maybe you can take up surfing in California?" "Grow a beard?" "Tom's not going anywhere." " What?" " That's not exactly what I said, Clyde." " Really?" " What does that mean?" "It's complicated." "Why is it complicated?" "Look, I don't really wanna talk about it right now." "Okay?" "Is he really saying he doesn't want to go?" "Idiot." "I am not an idiot, thank you." "No, wait, seriously, what's going on, Ramina?" " You don't want her to go?" " No." "I'm the one who pushed her to..." "Jesus Christ." "Is this about your committee meeting in September?" "You can find someone else to do that, no?" "No, it's not." "We're figuring it out, okay?" "Maybe she can go by herself." "Ramina?" "It'd probably be better." "He'd just ruin it, anyway." "For two years?" "Look, can we be permitted to figure this out privately?" "Not at my birthday party." "Thanks." "The candles are melting." "Who's Tony?" "Oh, my God." "You weren't kidding." "That's amaz..." "Okay." "I guess we're not singing "Happy Birthday"?" "I bet they didn't have cakes like that during the potato famine." "The potato famine?" "Inside joke." "Oh." "No, actually... aren't we going dancing?" "Oh, yeah, I think maybe..." "No." "No, no, no." "Don't even think about it." "That's wild whiskey." " Let's do this." " Yeah." "I'll be over..." "I'll be over in a minute." "Excuse me, can I get an Old Fashioned?" "I thought you wanted to dance?" "Wanna see something?" "Watch the olive." "Hey." "What are you guys up to?" "There you are." "She's good with the olives." "Where did you learn to do that?" "I used to let a guy saw me in half." "You did not." "When I was 28 I toured China for a year as a magician's assistant." "What?" "A magician's assistant?" "That's awesome." "You said you lived in a Tasmanian marsh from the age of 24." "No, that was Consuelo." "No, I saw a picture." "I mean..." "Right?" "Why did you just say that you were in China?" "I was in China before I was in Tasmania." "Are you sure?" "So, were you really a magician?" "Do you really study frogs?" " Jesus, did you make all of that up?" " Stop." "Were you actually in Tasmania?" "Yes." "And how do we know that you're telling the truth?" "Well, how do I know anything that you've said tonight is true?" "Because they all know me and you're a pathological liar." "You're under complete false pretenses." "All right, Sharon." " Just calm down." " Why are you defending her?" "What is going on?" " I don't even know her." " Jesus, Ramina." "Back off." "Okay?" "Unbelievable." "Well, it was nice to meet you." "Happy birthday." "Where are you going?" "Look I'm sorry, Clyde." "But that was horrible." "Clyde, I am so sorry." "No, I am sorry." "I had no idea." "I'd say you dodged a bullet, buddy." "Okay, excuse me." "I need some air." "Jennie." "Jennie." "Jennie." "Oh, I'm sorry." "Should I call you Consuelo?" "Is that it?" "Hey, come on." "You completely disappeared for 15 years and then you show up, tell this crazy story, turn around, and run out the door." "Have you actually been to Tasmania?" "Or Australia?" " Or China?" " Yes, yes." "I was in China, Hong Kong, and Singapore for 11 months." "You're making all this shit up." "Why'd you follow me out here, to call me a liar?" "I came out here... because you were about to run off... again." "You don't understand the feeling." "I went to Portland." "And in Portland I was a whole other person." "And..." "I felt reborn." "But then after a while it started to feel too familiar." "And I realized, I could just step out of it." "I could just start again." "It was like I had this skill." "This power." "I could be anyone I wanted." "And I could do it again and again." "I could live a thousand lives." "And every time it was like she'd always existed." "She had her own history." "And I keep filling her in." "Until she felt finished." "Ready to move on." "I feel free to let go." "There's this moment, when you're a blank slate." "It's like a high." "And you're deciding what next." "So, how many times have you done it?" "Nine." "Jesus." "Did you rob some banks along the way?" "It's not like that." "Oh, so you just get off on deceiving people, and playing master of disguise." " That's not what it is." " Oh, yeah?" "So, what are you doing here, Jennie?" "I wanted to see you." "You were the last person who really knew me before I left." "And I needed to see someone... who knew me." "Yeah, but... that doesn't mean..." "Hey!" "Hey!" "Easy, boy, easy." " Quiet." " Easy, boy." "Quiet." "Oh, you'd never know he was trained." "Be nice, Jimbo." "Look at you." "Are you out for a late walk?" "Say, "I insisted." "Wouldn't take no for an answer."" "He's great." "You guys been to the new club?" "You must hate the noise." "Well, actually," "I dragged my husband there a couple weeks ago." "I wanted to see what they'd done with the place." "It's not too bad." "Beats what we had there before, one of those weird climbing walls." "Oh, I love those walls." "You ever try it?" "Well, once." "Yep, you look like the adventurous type." " Do I?" " Yep." "Well, that's nice to hear." "Two years in the Peace Corps." "Last of the hippies." "You got everything you need?" "Let's go see Roger." "All right." "You guys enjoy your night." " Good night." " Good night." "Jimbo, drop it." "Stop it." "You all right?" "Hey." "Hey." "You okay?" "Here, take my hand." "Take my arm." " Dear." " My damn feet." " You okay?" " No." "I don't think so." "Use the ball of your foot." " How far are you?" " Oh, God." "I'm just around the corner." "Well, we'll help you." "Come on." "Yep, probably a sprain." "Need to elevate it." "Put ice on it." "You sound like you know." "Yeah, well, years of medical training." "Lucky for me." "What kind of doctor are you?" "Cardiologist, heart surgeon." "Children." "Jeez, how did you choose that?" "Just in it for the money." "Yeah." "Right." "You seem like the type." "My parents were both doctors." "My brother's a doctor." "Me, I couldn't stand the sight of blood." "My mom took me into surgery when I was a kid and I almost fainted as soon as the knife went it." "It was an act of will to force myself back up." "From then on I was determined." "I'm a secretary." "Thirty-eight years." "I retire next year." " Well, congratulations." " Yeah." "What am I supposed to do?" "Wind that gold watch they give me?" "You're good, I can tell." "I don't understand how some doctors can be so awkward." "Yeah, she's got a real way with people." "Well, home sweet home." "Yeah." "Oh, he's dying to go in." " Oh, well, we'll..." " It's okay, I got him." " Let me, let me get..." " I got him." "Let me get my keys out." "Hang on a minute." "Move over, Jimbo." "I gotta get in here." " There just hold on to the..." " Oh, dear." " Is it upstairs?" " In there." " Second floor." " Second floor?" " Do you mind?" " No, not at all." " Let's do it." " Okay." "Let's do it." "Go on, Jimbo." "Wait a minute, Jimbo." "Hold up." "No, no, no, can you get it?" "Hold on to the banister there." "I got it." "There you go." " What's the matter with you?" " I fell." "These nice folks helped me home." "Why were you walking him?" "I told you I was gonna to do it." "He needed to go." "Didn't you see him pacing around?" "How 'bout the couch, huh?" " Thank you." " No problem." "She's a doctor." "Can you believe that?" "Thank you." "I'm Roger, this is Nina." "Hello, Roger." "Nice to meet you." " I'm Alice." " Thank you, doctor." " This is Tony." " Tony?" "Okay." "She needs to elevate it and stay off it for a day or two." " All right." " Can you get it higher?" "Here." "And it should be iced." " Tony?" "In the freezer." " Yep." "The plastic bags are in the cabinet over the sink." "She doesn't listen, she doesn't think." "Stubborn, stubborn, stubborn, stubborn." "Yeah, look who's talking." "Oh, goddamn." "Roger, move those books so she can sit down." "And the mail." "Oh, my ankle's gonna swell up like a balloon," "I can tell." "Here you go." "You might wanna let Tony take a look, he's the osteopath." "Oh, what are the chances?" "Oh, course." "Go ahead." "She has osteoporosis and arthritis both." "Which is why she shouldn't be walking the dog." "What's your specialty?" "Sports." "Sports Medicine mostly." "Neck injuries." " He used to treat Andre Agassi." " No kidding?" "Once." "She exaggerates." "You could take my sock off." "Okay." "Where do you practice?" "In New York Presbyterian." "That's where my brother had his kidney transplant." "Oh, really?" "What was Albert's doctor's name?" "You think I remember?" "It's something, something..." "I think it's Fenworth." "I don't really interact with that department, but..." "I'm guilty." " I love being a doctor." " Yeah." "Yeah." "So, let's take a look." "Oh, I'm a mess." " Hold on." " Aren't we all?" "It's worst in the morning when I get up." "I have to take a Tylenol first thing or walking's a misery." "Oh, I'm sure, I'm sure." "On a scale of a one to ten, on average, how would you rate the pain, ten being the worst." "Seven." "Better than an eight." "Here, use these." "Sure." "Thank you." "How long have you had the problem?" "About a year?" "Right." "I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis." "Rheumatoid arthritis, yes." "It's actually an autoimmune disorder." "The immune system attacks the linings of the joints." "Tends to show up symmetrically on the right and left sides." "Mornings are always gonna be bad, I know." "You have to do your flexibility exercises every day." "Yeah, I know." "See, that's what the doc said." "Yeah." "It sounds so much nicer the way he says it." "He's good." "You better get good or they'll have to amputate." "Right, doc?" "No, that shouldn't be necessary." "You'll have to excuse his sense of humor." "Oh, you got me." "So, how's the ankle feeling now?" "It's comfortable." "Comfortably numb." "Perfect." "We certainly appreciate your help." "I don't know what she would have done if you hadn't dusted her off." "You two are cute." "How did you meet?" "Us?" "We met at a party." "He made a beeline right to me." "His college was across town from mine and I used to sneak into the parties." "Oh, yeah." "Yeah, that's right." "It was three weeks before she told me she wasn't even a student there." "Yeah." "I was totally in awe of him." "He was the first person I ever fell in love with." "Then he sat me down for the "just friends" conversation." "Oh, yeah." "Big speech about the future." "How he didn't see us..." "What was it?" ""Together down the road."" "That's about right, isn't it?" "So, then what happened?" "She disappeared." "It wasn't because of you." "Really?" "Anyway, it wouldn't have worked out." "He was far too wrapped up in himself." "I needed something else." "Now, how did you two end up together?" "Oh, we're not together." "Wait, you're not a couple?" "Oh, no." "No, we're friends." "He has a lovely wife named Ramina." "Here." "Something, by the way of thanks." "It's grilled goat meat." "Eat." "Thanks." "It's not bad for the cholesterol." "You should tell your patients." "It's a Haitian specialty." "I will let them know." "All right." "We slaughtered her in a special ritual so eating her flesh makes you blessed." "Stop it." "They're gonna think you're serious." "He didn't take me serious." "You didn't think I was serious, did you?" "Not spicy enough." "He never makes it spicy enough." "I had her one year, one year in Port-au-Prince and she thinks she's more Haitian than me." "It's delicious." " Have some more." " Ah, it's all right." "Well, I'm sure they want to get on with their evening." "I, actually, before you go, is there a chance you could take a look at something?" "Oh, what?" "Roger, no." "He's here." "Okay?" "Why not?" "Her back has been bothering her because of the osteoporosis." "Could you take a look?" " At her back?" " You don't mind?" " Sure." "No problem." " Just a little peak." " Oh, Roger." " I've got you." "And if the good doctor has you." "Help me." "I don't know, I was planning on sleeping here all night." "It's chronic." "My mother had the same thing." "There you go." "Go ahead." " Tom?" " Yeah." "Maybe we should head off." "You've got that patient who keeps calling." "Right, yeah." "Wow, I was completely absorbed." "Yeah, it's hard to stop." "Remember when we went to go visit your parents?" "And we had to stay at that motel afterwards?" " You got so sick." " You took care of me." "Well, you were burning up." "I had to keep getting ice from the ice machine all night." "It kept eating your quarters." "Yeah." "Oh, and there was that weird woman at the front desk when we checked out." "She kept..." " Her wheezing." " Yes, yeah." "Oh, my God, I forgot about her." "Yeah." "Hey, you know..." "I'm sorry about your dad." "He was a really great guy." "Yeah." "He was." "Did you think I'd run off and killed myself?" "Well, you said, some pretty extreme things about your life." "Well, things were pretty extreme." "Look, I didn't want to be responsible for you leaving school." "You were supposed to have this whole life." "Yeah, right." "You know, they used to lock the building on Sundays to make us stop practicing and get out of those tiny piano studios." "You know, I didn't know what to do with myself, I..." "I went across town and I remember seeing the list of all the different departments you guys had." "I mean, you could study anything." "You looked at me so differently when I told you the truth about..." "I was impressed." "I liked who you were." "No, you liked the idea of who I was." "You liked the incredible piano prodigy." "Anyway..." "You weren't the reason I disappeared." "I mean, you didn't help." "You were pretty fucking shitty in fact." "I mean, that speech you gave me about..." "Yeah, yeah, I know," " about being on a path." " Being on a path?" "God." "Look, I was jealous." "I mean, you already seemed so driven." "And I..." "I mean, you know what I do for a living?" "Basically, I write emails." "I've spent the last 13 years suggesting guidelines." "Which honestly, I get almost nothing out of." "Almost, which is, in a way, worse than nothing because you think if you just hold on, and shift one little thing, you can..." "I feel like..." "You know, if I leave, basically, I've failed." "Mm, anyway, what else am I gonna do, sell insurance?" "I sold insurance." "Oh, really?" "Yeah, fuck you." "So, it's not a coincidence you're in New York, is it?" "I mean, did you invent Alice just so you could... see me?" "And all the rest of it." "You just made it up all the studying frogs..." "No." "It's real." "Show me." "Show me, I wanna see who you are now." "Knock, knock." " Alice, hey." " Hey." "James, this is Tom." "Tom, James." " We trade night shifts." " Nice to meet you." "I thought you weren't back in until Tuesday?" "I'm not." "Tom's an old friend just visiting and I told him he has to hear the frogs sing before he leaves in the morning." "Definitely." "Hey, C-group's hatching." "Yeah?" "Will you give me a minute?" "Thanks." "Thank you." "So..." "So, what's next?" "Now that you've seen me, you just... become someone else?" "I wanna see how you do it." "Leaving." "This is..." "Huh." "I mean, they're all so totally different." "Yeah." "Were you married?" "No." "Not married." "How do you even keep track of them all?" "Well..." "This is Mae, China." "Cut in two." "Vanessa." "South Africa." "Sasha." "She was the last one." "Keeping track isn't the hard part." "It's when everyone around you thinks they know who you are and they try to lay claim to you and..." "Then you're trapped." "That's the hard part." "So, stop doing it." "And be who?" "I still remember watching you practice, you know." "There was this one time you were working on a passage, it was Brahms, I think... and you just wouldn't stop." "Just over and over and over." "You were so... determined." "To just master it, you know?" "You're still doing it." "I mean, that's what all this is, right?" "It's all you." "All of them." "And it's crazy and fucked up and... it's also kind of amazing." "Wanna come with me?" "Time to go." "Ah, shit." "So, where next?" "You should go now." "Wait, you mean, you just want me to leave you here?" "Okay." "Well, see you in another 15 years maybe." "Maybe." "It was good to see you again." "Thank you." "Take care of yourself." "You know where to find me, I guess." "I've been thinking... about California and..." "Attention please, this is the final call for flight to Amsterdam." "Departing passengers should proceed to gate 52 for final boarding."