"Hey, you old man." "You look at me." "I got something to say to you." "Every time we land someplace new you say it's going to be different, but it ain't." "You mess up." "A lot." "Then you leave a mess for me and Momma and Dorothy to clean up." "And that ain't right." "That's all I'm saying." "Hell, I do what I gotta do." "You do whatever the hell you want." "Whatever you can get away with." "You're just a selfish, old drunk." "Yeah, that's what you is." "This place is gonna be after us." "Hell, they'll be on you and they're going to beat your ass." "And I'd hate to see you go down." "You know you're my daddy." "You know what you are, ain't you?" "I'm talking at you." "What you done this time..." "They'll beat your ass." "Shit." "That's what they're gonna do." "You can count on it." "As a matter of fact, there was flood advisory in effect at 5:45 this morning." "But just a few moments ago, as of 4:30, that has been lifted by the National Weather Service." "But was looking at some of the Doppler radar estimates, and it looked as if close to three inches of rain fell with a little thunder storm..." " They got the grape?" " Yep." "They got grape, orange, lemon-lime, fruit punch." "Got us back here in this monsoon." "Round them up, Junior!" "Yo, it ain't even lunch time yet." "Round them up." "Let's pack up the gear, guys!" "Let's get out of here." "Let's go." "Can't get shit did out here in this rain." "I don't know why he got us out here like this, Joe." "Let's go get them packs off." "One at a time." "One at a time." "Hey, hey, hey, one at a time." "Why y'all movin' so slow?" "You look like y'all goddamn turtles out here!" "It's gettin' rain on us." "Let's go!" "Y'all come on, get out of here." "Come on, let's get out of here!" "Damn, Joe." "When you gonna get you a new truck, Joe?" "What's wrong with this one?" "Shit." "It raggedy." "You can't tell what wrong with it?" "You don't know?" " Yeah, you gotta get another one." " Yeah, man." "Let me get a cigarette." "Have to start taking this outta your pay." "All right then." "See you tomorrow if the sun comes up." "Holla at me in the mornin', and let me know, now." "Put the jerseys in there." "Take your work gear off." "Leave all your work gear in here." "Come on y'all, leave the work gear." "Quit pussyfootin' around." "And you can see the moisture moving northward out of Mexico and also out into the Gulf of Mexico." "Meeting up with this frontal system, which has slowly been sagging southward." "As we look at temperatures with the cloud cover, not as hot as what we've been seeing." "But the cool down isn't related to Canadian air." "Here's some Canadian air over the northeastern part of the country." "Very high dew points, this represents a whole lot of moisture available to rise into those tall clouds producing the heavy rains." "So the showers and thunderstorms during tonight..." " Morning, Junior." " Morning, Joe." "You going to work this morning?" "Shit, Joe." "If you gimme that raise you promised me, I'll show up." "What about Shorty?" "He get drunk last night?" " Shorty almost got arrested last night." " What?" " He what?" " Hell, yeah." "Almost got arrested." "Hittin' that woman on her ass like he retarded." "All right, I'll be up at Coleman's in 30 minutes." "Y'all be ready." "I'll be there, Joe." "Bye-bye." "Shorty, that was a rough night last night." "Almost didn't make it to work this morning, boy." "You'd be surprised." "Drinkin' and tryin' to touch this lady on her butt." "I couldn't help myself." "Hey, you gonna be all right." "You better watch yourself, nigga." "Here's Joe, y'all." "Here's Joe." " Let's load up, y'all." " Come on, y'all help a brother out." " Good morning, Joe." " Good morning." "Shorty and Milton, y'all come with me." "I don't know why either." "That don't make no sense though, you know?" "You slow-pokin' today." " Morning, John." " Hello, Joe." " You want some coffee?" " I can get it." " It ain't cold, is it?" " No." "It was cold yesterday." "Let's see now." "You're Milton, right?" "I'm Shorty, he's Milton." "Hey, where's Sammy today?" "Shit, Sammy gone fishin', Joe." "Hell, Sammy told me you fired him." "Hell, I've fired his ass three times already." "You tell Sammy I'm gonna fire him for good if he don't start helping me out some." " Y'all want some coffee?" " Yeah, sure, man." " See that ball game last night?" " Yeah." "Those boys played one hell of a game." " Who won though?" " We did, of course." "Shorty, you want some of these wieners over here?" "I'm good." "Shorty, if you had one like this, you'd be a bad boy." "God damn." "Whatever." "You got one of these right here, itsy-bitsy, shriveled Slim Jim." "You actin' like you ain't got nothin' to do today." "Y'all don't quit pussyfootin' around me today..." "Yeah, you gonna get some work outta me, Junior." "All right, you're going to take the east side over here." " All right, over here?" " Take east side over there." " You all right?" " Yes, sir." "I want you to take the west side over here today, all right?" "Damn, why are you looking at me like you're retarded?" "Get that thing on and go with them." "Shorty, you all right today?" " Yeah, I'm good, man." " Feeling pretty good?" "You look like a goddamn Ghostbuster today." "You all right?" "You gonna fight like one today?" " You gonna work like one?" " I'll look right, my man." " I'm good." " All right, don't trip on them." "Hell, yeah." "You better do some Ghostbuster moves on me today, Shorty." "Yeah, bust them trees." "I got a snake!" "I got a snake down here!" "Better watch yourself, man." "I don't know." "Look like a cottonmouth, that mouth pretty big." "Damn." "Look at that." "I dunno how big he is." "Hey, Junior." "That's a big one now." "You could be known as the snake god." "I got one bigger anyway, Joe." "Joe, you got nuts of a bear, Joe." "That's what that woman told me last night." "She gotta need another snake, I seen one today." "Yeah, you got a bunch of them." "What that fat woman said." "We got company." "Let me see that snake." "Ain't he a nice one?" "See those fangs?" "You get bit by those and you're gonna die." "You're gonna wanna die." "Y'all don't kill it." "He's my friend." "Damn, Joe." "Don't toss it over by me!" "Hey, get back to work, y'all." "The show is over with." " I heard you screamin'." " I wasn't screamin', I just move fast." "Whatever." "What are y'all doing?" "Y'all cutting these trees?" "We're killing trees." "What for?" "Neidermeyer land." "The owner hires us to get rid of what's on it, so they can come in and put strong pines on it." "Nobody wants these trees, these trees are weak." "They're not good for anything." "These boys will sit down if I don't stay on their asses." " Hey, mister?" " Yeah?" "I got a question for you." "You see, me and my daddy just got into town and I was wondering if you'd give us a job." "We're looking for work." "How old are you?" "Fifteen." "Well you've got forty-five seconds to tell me why I should hire you." "I baled hay before, I worked on a truck, I picked tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers," "okra, squash..." "All right, you're not afraid of work." "Good." "What's your name?" "Gary Jones." "I'm Joe." "I pay a day's pay for a day's work." "I pay on Fridays, so you'll get a little something today, but your first real payday is next Friday." "We start at about 6:00 in the morning, quit at 1:00 or 2:00." "If we work till dinner or get rained out, I pay for the whole day." " Does that sound fair enough?" " Yes, sir." " Follow this line of trees." " Yes, sir." "Close to a half a mile back to my truck." "The juice hatchets are in the back." "You get yourself one, fill it up with poison, then come on back the same way you went out." " Yes, sir." " And don't get lost." "I won't." "Hey!" "Don't you want to know how much you're getting paid?" "How you doing?" " Good." " You doing all right?" " You ready to work today?" " Yes, sir." " I'm Junior." " Gary." "Hello, Gary." "I'm gonna be over you today." "Raise your right hand." "You're gonna have to swear that you're gonna work hard for me." "Not that hand, your right hand, your other right." "Your right hand, there you go." "Put your hand up, you gotta swear on somethin'." "Now you on the all-star team." " You promise to work hard?" " Yes, sir." "All right, 'cause I don't know why Joe chose you, you must be a good man." "First thing we do is fill these containers up." "We just gonna put it in there like that." "And once we get filled up real good, then we on." "What's in the poison?" "Shit." "Shorty and his grandma make it in their basement." "I don't know what's in it, but we ain't gonna worry about that." "I know it work real good." "You thought that was easy pumping' that thing, didn't you?" "I made it look easy 'cause I'm a man." "See, you a little boy, you got to figure it out." "See what I'm sayin'?" "There you go." "See how you figured that out?" "When you become a man, you gonna have everything figured out, too." "Be careful." "Now, this stuff is real poisonous." "If it gets in your eyes, man, you out of there." "Just ask Junior." "Now here you go." "Which hand you use?" " Right hand." " Okay." "Prime it up a little bit, and keep slinging it." "If you hit it hard enough, you only have to hit it three or four times." "One..." "Two..." "You got to get angry at the tree, man." "Get mad at it." "Yeah, I like that." "Get mad at it." "Keep on workin' it." "Work with it, work with it!" "Yes, sir!" "Get it!" "Keep on with it, youngster." "I like that, man." "Joe's been around." "He's been around a little bit, man." "He's got some things up under his belt, man." "So I advise you, when you do go to Joe, keep it real with Joe." "Don't lie to him about nothin', and one thing Joe is real particular about, man, don't ever look down at the ground." "Look him in the face." "He likes to see a man's eyes." "You, one-on-one." "That's how Joe is, man." "Where you from?" " Everywhere." " Been around?" "Being a little bitty boy and you been everywhere?" "Was your daddy in the military or somethin'?" "Yeah?" "All right." "You got a family?" "All right then." "You know we ain't gonna cut you no slack out here, don't you?" "Just 'cause you young, now." "You know we ain't gonna cut no slack." "Everybody pulls they own load, baby." "Once we get this filled up here, we can kill us about 100 trees with this here." "Is killing trees against the law?" "Well, the lumber company can't cut them down unless they dead." "And so the lumber company hire us to come in and poison the trees." "So we can kill them and they come in and die themselves." "Yeah, I been doing this for a little minute now." " Welcome to the program." " Thanks." "It's hard work out here." "Well, the machete crew is the one that comes through and clears it out." "Chop down at your angles." "Try to get as low as you can." "You got to clear the path for your teammates." "Without you, none of this is gonna happen." "And just keep hammering at it." "Nothing stopping you." "Yeah, you start out, you'll probably be the waterman for a little while." "It's gonna look like you're doing everything for everyone, bringing them water." "At the end, you'll become a machete vet." "Samurai kings, right here." "Welcome to the crew, you the youngest." "Gotta crawl before you walk." "You got a lot of energy there." "There you go." "Samurai gods." "Crew!" "When y'all get through with this side over here, we're going to the west side." "All right." "Hey, Gary!" "You're getting too far ahead." "Come on back here and help these fellas out." "You know what?" "You, you, and you." "Y'all did a good job today." "Why don't y'all go ahead and get paid, and I'll see y'all Monday." "All right?" "Little." " Alan." " Thank you, sir." "And Gary, right?" "Yes, sir." "Gary, Gary, Gary." "Come back Monday." "Bring your daddy if he wants to work." "Yes, sir." "I will." "We'll be there." "Thanks." "Momma!" "Hey, Momma." "Guess what?" "I got us jobs today." "I got a job today." "Good for you, babies." "Hey, Dorothy!" " Dorothy, guess what?" " He got one." "That's good." "Joe!" "Sorry." "Got that asshole put away?" "Yes, Joe." "He's in the back." "That asshole bites me again..." "Well, he's got the devil in him." "Fuck that." "Come on, baby." "Look at that." "Mexican game show." "That's what I'm talking about." "Can I fix you somethin', baby?" "Coke." "Ice." "Here you go, sweetie." "So what you got the blues over, Joe?" "I'm not so bad." "Want one of my girls?" "You want two of my girls?" "Not today." "Today is a special day." "It is?" "I only want your company, Merle." " Why, thank you." " Come here." "Put that asshole away!" "Lacy!" "Put the dog in the back." "Come on." "I got it." "Come on." "You don't need that thing to take care of you." "Where are you going, Joe?" "Girl, get your ass off the floor." "Quit being stupid." "You see who that was?" "Yes." "What is that World War I or II?" "Where'd you get that hat?" " WW II." " Right." "Got it down there at the Army-Navy." "I've been making some money over at Henry's house, throwing the dice." "Yeah, I know." "I was gonna go over there later and clean him out." "Maybe I'll see you there." "I've been doing pretty good taking the money from them old ladies that he and old Blind George hang out with." "I take about 60 or 70% of my winnings and donate it to diabetes research." "But then I take the rest of it and buy war paraphernalia." "One of these days, I'm gonna be a regular GI Joe." "Fistful of dollars!" "Something like that." "Henry!" "In here, Joe!" "You told me you knew how to do this." "Hey, Joe." "How you been doin'?" "What are you up to today?" " Who's that?" " Henry's just making a damn mess." " What are you tryin' to do, Henry?" " I don't know." " He's making a damn mess." " I don't have experience to cut this deer, you know?" "It's big one, you know, but tryin' to cut it in roasts, you know, but..." "Yeah, well, I don't think I would cut it into a roast." "No." "You can do anyway you want to, but if it was mine, I'd cut it into steaks." "Come over here and show him how to do it, honey." "Henry, you can sit down there and tell me a joke or sing a song or something." "Well, shit." "You might as well just let Blind George cut it up." "I'm gonna sit down." "I mean, George could cut it up." "If you gave him enough time, couldn't you, George?" "I reckon I can do better than they are doing it." "No." "All right." "I'll show you how to make the steaks." "That'll be good, baby." "I love backstrap." "Hold on here." "That's good, that's enough." "Now look what happened to the poor thing." "All that blood on the floor, God." "Where'd you get this deer?" "It was hung up on the fence, over at Mr. Lee's." "And Henry and I was coming back from the IHOP and I took out my .38" "and shot her in the head." "Honey, you use that knife just like an artist's brush." "I mean, you know what you're doing, Joe." "Man, look at that." "Man..." "There's some good stuff here." " That is some good stuff." " Now, look here." "Man, that is pretty." "Yes, wonderful." "That's how you do it." "Butterfly steak." " Wonderful." " You see how I did that?" "Now do it here, here, and here." "Y'all can cut up the rest of it." "So, when are you gonna have another crap game?" "Tonight." "You wanna come by?" " What time?" " 10:00." "We're making a birthday cake." "We?" "Joe, you know who's gonna make the birthday cake." "I'm gonna make a birthday cake tonight." "Right, Stacy?" "I love you, Henry, but you know what?" "I am the fucking birthday girl here, and I have to make my own damn cake?" "That's not my problem." "Sure, I'll make me a birthday cake, no problem." "I gotta go uptown." "Y'all need anything?" "I think I need some freezer paper." "Bring me back some damn freezer paper, and another pack of cigarettes." " Good stuff." " We love you, baby." "That backstrap, well, that's the part that basically, I only eat..." "Hello, Joe." "Hold on, buddy." "Joe, you all right?" "What happened?" "Ladies and gentlemen." "Ladies and gentlemen." "Ladies and gentlemen." "Can we go now?" "What are you doing?" "Where you gonna go?" "We gonna go into town and get some food." "Come on." "Get something to eat with what?" "We ain't got hardly nothing here." "Well, it ain't much, but it's something." "Come on." "I ain't getting up." " Are you drunk?" " I ain't drunk." " I know you drunk." " No, I ain't drunk." "You like, "I ain't drunk..."" "I didn't take my medicine today, boy." " I didn't take my medicine." " "I'm just tired."" " I didn't take my medicine." " "I'm just tired."" ""I ain't drunk."" "Come on, get up." "Come on." "Come on, get up." "Come on, please." "You'll be all right, come on." "I'll help you up." "You can make it." "Yeah, no, you know what..." "I'm gonna sit right here, in the dirt." "I'm gonna teach you a little about breakdancing." "You ever seen breakdancing before?" "You know what popping, you know what locking is?" "Do you, bud?" "Take this hand right here, pretend it's going over a wave like you're out there in the ocean." "You floating." "Come on, son." "You floating out there in the ocean." "Tidal wave coming across the bottom to the other side." "Here we go." "Yeah." "We're waving now." "Bring it back up." "Here comes the big one!" "Yeah!" "There it is." "Hey!" "Hey!" "Now, now, that shit ain't funny, right there." "That shit ain't funny at all." "I'll come get it now." " You want it?" "You want it?" " Yeah." "I'm not through with my lesson, life's lesson." "You only learned about waving." "Popping, you ever seen popping?" "Pop!" "That's popping." "You know what locking is?" "I really can't do a whole lot of locking unless I'm..." "Unless I'm standing, and..." " Well, stand up, come on." " I don't see myself doing much of that in the near future there, son." "I know you're drunk because you're about to spill it." "Why would I spill it?" "I need a pillow." "There we go." "Yeah." "One, two..." "Hey, mister!" "Hey, mister." "Can you give me a ride?" "Say it again?" "Me and my daddy was wondering if you could give us a ride back into town." "He ain't feeling too good." "Shit, yeah." "Yeah, I'll give you boys a ride." "Come on, where's your daddy at?" "He's back that a way." "What did you chunk that gun off the bridge for?" "I just threw it." "You know?" "Weapons tend to make men do violent things." "Yeah." "Guns, knives," "cannonballs, little sticks of dynamite." "Hell, even automobiles." "Hey, come here." "Look at my face." "You see that?" "I see it." "I went through a windshield at 4:00 one morning, and I don't give a fuck." "Now, folks looking for trouble tend to find more than they're after." "And I'll kill his fucking ass if he ever slaps me again, you understand me?" "Who you talking about?" "If he ever slaps me" "again." "You got any sisters?" "What?" "Sisters." "You got any sisters?" "Is she pretty?" "Mister, don't you talk about my sister." "Well, shit." "You're a tough little son of a bitch, ain't you?" "Who the fuck you talking to?" "I'm talking to you, mister." "Don't you disrespect my family." "You know what I think?" "I think I'm gonna say whatever the fuck I wanna say." "You get the hell off me, mister." "I ain't done nothing to you." "I don't think I'm gonna give you that ride no more." "I think I'm gonna take you, and I'm gonna throw you off that bridge." "See how you like that." "Look at me, son." "Look at my face." "I went through a windshield at 4:00 one morning, and I don't give a fuck." "Look at me, you son of a bitch!" "You stupid motherfucker!" "You think I'm a kid?" "You think I'm a goddamn kid?" "I'll beat your ass, and now you know it's true." "Quiet!" "Joe?" "Joe!" " Is he gonna bite me?" " God damn it, would you shut up!" "Shut up and get back up under there, and let these ladies alone!" "Get!" "Y'all come on." "Dog won't bite." "God, that dog's crazy." "What if you hadn't been here?" "If I hadn't been here, you wouldn't have no business in my goddamn yard." "Damn, what's happened to you?" "Hang on a minute." "Fuck..." "Place is a mess, Joe." "I wasn't expecting company." "Well, we was just driving around, looking for something to do." "Didn't know if you'd be home or not." "Hey..." "Hey..." "Are you all right?" "I gotta quit smoking." "What the hell happened to you?" "I slapped some asshole the other night at the bar." "He come back and shot me." "Jesus, Joe." "What, you and Willie-Russell be running around acting like kids again?" "It's ridiculous." "I don't even remember what set you off in the first place." "Neither do I." "So what was it you wanted to talk about?" "You need some money?" "No, nothing like that." "You know that guy, Frank?" "The guy?" "He's back in town, and I don't wanna stay at my momma's." "Well, I thought she ran him off." "She did." "Twice." "But he called the other night, and..." "Came back begging for forgiveness." "She said he could stay as long as he promised to leave me alone." "And he promised." "Just like he always does." "But..." "Still got your job?" "Up at the cleaners?" "Good." "I wouldn't even hardly be here." "I could take care of you." "If you let me." "I promise, I won't even tell her where I'm at." "You won't have to." "She'll know." "She already called here 40 times looking for you." "You can stay with me if you need to." "I can't promise you much, but I'll try to be nice." "One, two, three, six, eleven." "Get off yo ass, you ain't nothing but a number!" "Let's go, y'all." "So, Sammy." "Where you been?" "I haven't seen you around." "You going to those night school classes or something?" "Not yet." "Been doing a little work on the side, trying to make a little extra cash." "Get my shit together." " You know what I mean?" " I know what you mean." "I know." "We're just not good enough for you anymore, are we Sammy?" "I didn't say that." "Who these white folks you got working?" "Yeah, I'm not sure." "They need work and I need help." "Young, old, black, white, red, yellow..." "I really don't give a shit, Sammy." "Water!" "Drink of fucking water." "That's my water there." "Why you drinking my water?" "Thirsty, that's why." " Thirsty and hot." " Yeah, but that got them water flavor." "That's my personal water." "Why you drinking my water up like that?" "We gonna have a problem outta you all day?" "If I catch you with my water again, you gonna have a problem outta me." "Joe sent you down here with me?" " Yeah." " Let me help you with that pack." "What the hell you use this thing for?" "I'll show you how to walk through it." "God damn." "Thing's heavy." "You use this lever right here to pump out the poison." "Take this hatchet and hit into the tree." "Let's see what you got." "Okay, right here." " Goddamn thing is leaking all over." " It happens sometimes." "Let's get to work." "Let see it, right here." "This is bullshit, right here." "Come on, man." "Swing it." "You gotta swing harder than that." "Come on, man." "Get into it." "Man, this is some stupid-ass shit, man." "That's how he can't eat chocolate now." "Y'all niggas is..." "Y'all niggas is near, I ain't hungry no more." "Ain't gonna tell you what I was dreaming about, what I had, though..." "I don't wanna know, Junior." "I don't wanna know about your king cobra, okay." "Or whatever you call it." "Go-Go-Gadget Tongue, that's what he got." "You ain't never notice that about your girl, man?" "One of her breasts is bigger than the other one, man." " Wait a minute." " One sits up here, and the other one sits down there." "No comment." "No comment, nigga." "You nasty..." " Don't go head first." " I don't go..." "Shorty don't want to tell us the truth about them drips he had, man, about that penicillin shot, man." "That's a lie." "That's a damn lie." "That's a damn lie." "Sure is a beautiful day out here, ain't it?" "It's all right." "You sitting out here like an angel, sitting out here under this pretty sun." "Maybe I am an angel." "Yeah, but you got to go to work on my job." "You ain't on my job working." "Why you not working today?" "What, you just come up here to give me a hard time?" "Well, I been looking at you all goddamn day, and I see you up here smoking a goddamn cigarette, watching this, goddamn..." "Well, I think you a pretty son of a bitch out here." "And we got to come out here to work." "I don't know why you ain't trying to work." "I done all the work I'm gonna do today." "Hell, you ain't did shit, all goddamn day." "You ain't done a motherfucking thing." "And who are you to tell me I ain't done nothing at all today?" "As long as you out here, I'm your boss." "You ain't my boss, and obviously you can't even watch what people are doing." "'Cause if you saw anything, you'd know I've been working all day." "I've been working all damn day." "All day." "No, you been dragging your ass all goddamn day." "Who's trying to argue with who?" "You ain't did shit all goddamn..." "I'm trying to get you to working." " Man, you got about six other people!" " You ain't did shit all goddamn day!" "I told you to goddamn get to working!" "You gotta get your ass outta my motherfucking job!" "Go tell Joe right now!" "Go tell him!" "Joe goddamn gonna have to get rid of you or do something different." "Something gonna change today." "'Cause tomorrow we ain't gonna have this bullshit." " Are you done?" " Yeah, I'm done with this bullshit..." "Good, I'm glad you're done!" "I'm glad you're done." "Stay done." "Look like you got a yeast infection on your goddamn face!" "You country motherfucker." " Can you make it out of there?" " Yeah." "I'll make it, I guess." "Goddamn ass hurts." "Come here, son." "Help me get over this tailgate." "Joe, what time you need us back in the morning?" "I don't need you back in the morning." "What do you mean, you don't need us back?" "We got the job done, didn't we?" "That's yours there, son." "We got the job done." "Gary said we got the job." "Joe, I'll do anything you want." "Clear brush, anytime, anywhere." "I can do it." "Joe, I'd sure like to work some more." "Yeah, maybe later." "I'll let you know." "I don't know what you did that made that man mad, or something." "You hear me?" "What the hell are you looking at?" "Just another day." "It ain't his fault." "He loves us, it's just..." "He just goes through hard times." "Well, I ain't gonna watch him sit there and hit you like he hits me." "You hear me?" "Okay, Momma?" "You ain't supposed to do that to no one." "You stay with your family." "That's what you need to do." "You need to stay with your family." "Your family's all you got." "What was that?" "I don't know." "Didn't hear no car drive up." "Probably ain't nobody." "Ain't nobody with any sense out in this." "Can't taste that." "We gonna go out tonight?" "Not really." "Where you wanna go?" "I don't know." "I was just wondering if we were gonna do something." "I think you work too much." "We should get out." "Do something fun." "I hadn't planned on it..." "Not unless you want to." "We don't have to." "There's someone out there." "No." "No, wait." "Hold this." "Hey, Joe." "Can you put that dog up?" "Hell." "I know who it is." "Boy, you're soaking-ass wet." "What'd you plan to do, stand there all night?" "He should get out of them wet clothes." "He'll get sick." "No, I'm all right." "I just..." "I just wanted to come by and talk to you about working some more." "Work?" "Don't you see what it's doing out there?" "Yes, sir." "Hey, where's my drink at?" "You got any trousers he can wear?" "What size waist you got?" "Well, I think I have some cool pants he can wear." "I bet nobody come messing around here with that dog out there." "Well, that's why I got the dog." "Dog won't bother anybody just walking down the road." "Road ain't Dog's." "Dog knows what's Dog's." "You could've just walked on off, Dog wouldn't have done anything." "All right." "Here, try these on." "I think they'll fit you." "Bathroom's this way." "Dog is a good dog." "Yeah, that dog scared the hell out of me though." "He's all beat up." "His daddy." "I saw him do it." "You what?" "What, you just sat there and watched it?" "Or what?" "He's a big kid..." "I can't get my hands dirty in every little thing." "You know how I get." "You're a grown man, Joe." "What's that supposed to mean?" "It can mean whatever you want it to mean." "Don't fool yourself too much about me." "Hey, there you go." "You look like a million bucks." "You feel better now?" "I feel like a hundred bucks." "I come by 'cause I wanted to talk to you about my job." "I wanna work and I need a job." "My daddy don't care if he gots a job, but I do." "You'd work in this rain, wouldn't you?" "If you need me to." "Let me slip my shoes on, and I'll run you back home." "Hey, we'll be there in just a second, okay?" "Hey..." "You know you don't have to take no shit from nobody, right?" "You know that, right?" "Yes, ma'am." "Good." "Now, let's go." " How you been, Chris?" " Good, how about you?" "Yeah, all right." "You still doing the mixed martial arts?" "Yes, sir." "What are you doing out in the rain, Joe?" "I need two pounds of ham and a pound of Swiss cheese sliced up." "All right." "Come on, you get the cheese, and I'll get the ham." "Yes, sir." "Looks like every time I get a little ahead, it starts in raining again." "Here you go." "It's not much." "Now, look here." "When it dries up, you come down here early in the morning before light, and I'll pick you up and take you to work." "We've got plenty to do when the weather gets right." "You got a clock?" "No, you wouldn't." "All right." "I'll find you a wind-up clock or something." "All right, then." "Thank you, sir." "You don't need to call me sir all the time." "I'm your friend." "You understand?" "All right." "Hey, where's his ham?" " Hang on." "We're coming." " All right." "What are you thinking, Joe?" "Nothing." "There's nothing I can do and I hate it." "That's not true." "Yeah, it is." "You look at me like I can make a move." "What are you thinking when you look at me like that?" "Don't you care?" "I don't know who I am," "but I know what keeps me alive is restraint." "Keeps me out of jail." "Keeps me from hurting people." "Hey." "A mark of some fucked-up faith that there's a reason." "Thank you." "A reason for all of this." "A reason in most moments I shouldn't do what I wanna do." "I do as I'm told." "Come on, let's load up." "Let's get outta here." "These men who bust their asses work like dogs." "And I believe in them, but every day they hurt." "They get old, they peel back..." "Lewis." "Junior." "There's no frontier anymore." "Sammy." "Alan." "Clark." "Gary." "And I watch that boy." "I see someone who's..." "Who's nothing like me, but..." "He's a child, folks left behind." "And he's on the fence, balanced right there." "What do you want?" "What is it you want?" "Nothing." "Just tell me what I can do." "I like you." "I like you, too, but what's the point in any of it?" "Fuck to this day." "I mean, fuck to this day." "It's all just gonna boil up and wash us away..." "Maybe you'll still be here." "Maybe you won't." "Damn, Joe." "Why you keep loading all these fools in this little truck?" "Good to have you with us again, Sammy." "It drop down any lower, we gonna have to get out and push, and I ain't pushing shit." "Joe, I thought they had y'all on a new truck, Joe." "I ain't getting no new truck." "You need one." "No, I don't." "Joe, if you get a new truck, how much you want for this old one?" "You mean this old piece of junk?" "Smells like somebody died up in there." "It's nasty." "I don't mind the smell." "I like it." "Smells good to me." "Yeah, but this thing," "I spend as much time working on it as I do driving it." "Of course, there ain't nothing major wrong with it." "It's just little shit, you know." "It needs some brakes." "It needs..." "Joe." "Come on." "I'll buy it from you, I'll work my butt off." "I love the truck, you have to give it to me now." "Well, I mean, it's..." "It's got a lot of miles on it." "You'd be better finding one in town somewhere." "Well, I don't want one in town." "I like that one." "Come on, Joe." "All right, I'll take $900 for it, if I get a new truck." "All right!" "Shake hands." "That's what I'm talking about." "Heck, yeah." "Hey, what you got there?" "Hey!" "I was wondering if maybe you could tell me how to get down to Water Valley." "My wife, she in the hospital down there." "I just now got here." "You know how far it is?" "Is that the highway that goes to it?" "Is it?" "What you drinking?" "Nothing." "Nothing?" "You ain't drinking some wine, are you?" "I may..." "Yeah, nothing wrong with that." "Some folks think a feller ought not drink at all, but a little drink never hurt nobody." "That's right." "I get me a little drink every now and then when I'm down at the house, but the old lady, she raises so much sand about it," "I don't do a lot of drinking down there." "I usually wait until I get uptown like I am now." "Grab me a drink." "She all right?" "Well, yeah, she is today." "That's why I'm trying to get down there to Water Valley, to go see about her." "I supposed to get paid today, but the old fella, he never showed up." "You know, so I think I'll go get me a little drink, go down to Water Valley and go see how she's doing." "She in the hospital?" "Yeah, she in the hospital." "She got cancer." "Just eat up with it, all over." "You know, damn thing..." "You know, a person just don't know from one day to the next which one's gonna be their last." "Hell, it's a beautiful day out, but feeling a little chill in my bones." "I think it's fixing to rain." "Look like it's fixing to rain some..." "Yeah." "Here we go..." "Three African painted dogs, wild dogs, killed a three-year-old in a zoo." "A toddler..." "He fell in, hit his head, the dogs got him." "Where was everybody?" "He was a little kid." "Hello, Joe." "How you doing?" "Son of a bitch." "I tell you what, buddy." "All this goddamn back and forth and back and forth." "I'm fucking over it." "Hell," "maybe it's time we just..." "Bygones." "You know I could have killed you, right?" "I could have killed you, but I didn't." "I licked you, I was aiming for the trees, see." "That shot was meant as a warning shot." "'Cause all you keep doing is embarrassing me in front of my goddamn friends." "I mean, hell, last time you slapped me there was ladies and gentlemen present." "So what's this shit I hear about this kid you got working for you?" "Little drifter kid, about yay big?" "I don't really give a shit about him, but I suspect you know where he lives, don't you." "No?" "What's wrong, spooky?" "Still sore at me?" "Kristy, call the cops before somebody gets killed." "Will you do that for me, honey?" "Hold on!" "Hey, get back, hold on..." " Hey, Joe." " Is Merle around?" "Merle ain't here." "You all right?" "I wanna get blown, but..." "That's right you don't like dogs, do you?" "That's not true." "I love dogs, just not that dog." "That dog is an asshole." "I'm sorry, Joe." "Y'all help me get this fucking dog outta here!" "Joe!" "Joe!" "You busy?" "Come on." "Got any pets?" "I mean, I had a cat." "Cat?" "Beautiful." "What's his name?" "Missy." " What'd you feed it?" " I don't know, fucking dry food." "What's your favorite color?" "Red." "Blow me." "All right." "Let me just focus on the snowflake." "The snowflake on the wall." "Okay, snowflakes." "All right." "All right." "All right..." "Beg your pardon." "All right, baby." "It's all right." "You don't have to run off." "I mean, you can stick around if you want." "Joe?" "Dog." "Pull over!" "Pull over, now!" "Come on!" "What the fuck!" "Don't move!" "Freeze, Joe!" "Come on, put the gun down, be a man about it, and show me what you got!" "We got you surrounded, Joe." "Hey, I'm just one dude." "Freeze, Joe." "Put your hands behind your head!" "Come on!" "What are you gonna do?" "Look." "I don't have nothing on me, man." "Freeze!" "Why don't you guys both be like big boys, and put your guns down, and let's talk about it." "That's all I'm gonna do, just talk about it." "All right?" " Bring it, Joe!" " Come on." "Who's gonna cuff me?" "What do you got?" "I'm feeling real good today." "Hey Joe?" "You're in there, Joe?" "Coming in, Joe..." "Joe here?" "You seen Joe?" "What do you think, man?" "You think Joe's gonna take care of you?" "You think Joe's your daddy?" "Is that what you think?" "Joe ain't your daddy." "I'm your daddy." "I'm the one taking care of you." "You got some money?" "I know you got some money hid around here." "Where's your money at?" "I ain't got no damn money." "Joe didn't give me none today." "Really?" "Gimme some money." "I just told you I ain't got no damn money." "Ain't got no money?" "Got food." "You got food, God damn it!" "You got food, but you ain't got no fucking money." "How'd you get the food?" "What the hell you stumbling for?" "You can't even take care of your damn self." "Hey, that's my shit!" "Knock your shit off, boy." "Knock your shit off." "You ain't got no motherfucking money?" "Hey, lookie here!" "What seems to be the..." "Oh, yeah!" "Yeah, yeah!" "Yeah, yeah." "That's kinda what I fucking thought." "Bring it, motherfucker." "Get the fuck back off me!" "How's that?" "Just like that?" "Just like that." "Yeah." "What?" "You don't seem to be doing a whole lot of talking right now." "You kinda look like you in bad shape." "Who the hell do you think you are?" "You ain't my daddy, you motherfucker!" "Look at me!" "You seen what I did to that motherfucker on the bridge?" "I'll beat your ass!" "Son of a bitch, I'm about through messing with you." "I been out looking for fucking money!" "I've been out looking for a fucking job to feed your worthless fucking face!" "Yeah, you stupid little piece of shit." "Yeah..." "I know you got money hid around here, boy." "You know what?" "I'm gonna come back." "I'm gonna get it." "I'm gonna find it, and I'm gonna get it." "Hey, wake it up." "Wake it up." "Earl, please get me a goddamn cigarette, man." "Please, I'm begging you." "You're on your way out of here anyway, man." "All right." " I called your bondsman for you." " Thanks, buddy." "How come he getting out of here?" "Knock it off, Cokie!" "Knock it off!" "Man." "Thank you so much, buddy." "Thank you, buddy." "Fucking hell." "What do they got me charged with?" "Shit, a heap." "DUI, assault on an officer, resisting arrest." "You want some more shit?" "You know where they took my truck?" "There's a kid that wants my truck." "Wasn't here last night." "But we can sure find out though." "You were 32 when you went to the pen the first time." "What are you now?" "48?" "49?" "48." "Getting old, Joe." "Be a lot harder on you every time from here on out." "But who am I to tell you how to live your life." " Yeah." "That's a good one." " Come on, man." "Come on, get it together." "Shit, man." "Are you kidding me?" "Yeah, I'd like to get a number on a..." "Like a dog rescue, or..." "You don't have a number on a dog rescue?" "Well, I'm reporting a lost dog." "Yeah, it's American Bulldog." "Brown and white, female, 90 pounds." "What are you doing here?" "Mr. Coleman told me you got into a little trouble with some cops." "That all you heard?" "He said you got put up at that jail, too." "You don't still want my truck, do you?" "Yes, sir." "You do?" "He said you got put up at the big jail one time." "Coleman told you that?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I have." "I..." "I did 29 months in the penitentiary for assault on a police officer." "They pulled me over behind a shopping center uptown." "This one officer, pretty-boy type guy, had some issue with me." "Thought I had something to do with one of the girls he knew." "And I didn't know what the hell he was talking about." "Then they tried to shoot me, after I beat the shit out of all three of them." "Or one did." "Deputy went for his gun and I grabbed it." "And..." "Well, he was fixing to kill me, he told me he was." "All he did was blow his kneecap off..." "The jackass." "My dog run off last night." "You wanna go look for her?" "Sure." " You want me to drive the truck?" " Gotta start sometime." "Now look." "Don't wave to them." "Because they know you're guilty of something when you wave." "Yes, sir." "Yeah, a cop can mess you up if he wants to." "Yeah, I made the mistakes, but they're the ones that won't ever let me live it down." "Hey, can I buy one of them beers off of you?" "I don't know." "You can drink one of these beers, but you cannot buy one from me." "Friends don't ever need to buy things from me." "There you go, nice and cold." "Now, keep your eyes peeled." "For the cops or the dog?" "Both..." "Cops or the dogs." "You hear that?" "That's the sound that gets the hookers excited." "They know you got cash." "They hear that..." "You wanna learn how to make a cool face?" "All right." "Anatomy of a cool face." "Make a face of pain..." "Now smile." "No, smile on top of the pain." "Hold the pain." "Smile through it." "You ain't drunk, are you?" "Shit, I'd better drive." "You know what, Gary?" "You got it made." "Because think about all the beautiful girls you're gonna fuck." "I used to know a girl that lived around here." "Shit, where's my dog?" "I raised that dog from a pup." " Faith!" " There's lots of construction here, because they're building a Hindu temple." "Gonna have lots of Bombanese kids." "Little red dots in the center of their head, like a laser beam." "Faith!" "You better work on that cool face." "You gotta stand like you own land, right?" "Now, you make the pain face, right?" "You got a lot on your mind." "Now smile." "Yeah, it's like," ""I got a lot on my mind, but I can do it." "I can get through it."" "Yeah, there you go, you're getting it." "Yeah, that's cool!" "Dog weighs 100 pounds." "Has long ears, with a docked tail..." "What was that?" "Yes, ma'am, I meant to get around to doing that, but I did a halfway job on my dog." "A halfway job?" " Halfway, then." " Well, halfway how?" "Halfway." "Hello?" " Hello?" " Can I help you fellas?" "Hello." "So I'm missing my dog, and the dog is..." " You want some of this?" " No, that stuff'll make you crazy." "Well now, I'm a pretty long way from crazy." "My dog is about 100 pounds, brown and white, looks like a cow." " Looks like a cow?" " Right." "You have a dog that look like a cow." "Well, it's not that big a deal." "A lot of dogs look like cows." "But here's the thing, if you happen to see my dog, don't matter what time, you call..." " Day or night." "All right?" " Okay." "Have we already done passed that place where you last saw your dog?" "No, why?" "I think the dog'll be there." "No, the dog run off." "If I was Dog, that's where Dog would be." "That's where I would go." " Thank you, ma'am." " Now, you be careful with him, okay?" "All right." "Be careful driving, baby." "Call me." "Okay." "I'll be damned." "Now, wait." "Wait, don't." "Dog likes you." "It has a lot of scars." "Yeah, but all the others, all the others is dead." "Thanks for helping me find my dog." "Yes, sir, no problem." "You work hard." "You got a good heart." "Anybody messes with you, you let me know." "I'll fuck them up." "Right." "Take it..." "You gonna need it." " No." " Get girls..." "That's your mating call." "That's it." "You got it." "Thank you." "You need anything." "You got it." "I'll take this one to the opera." "To the opera, yeah." "Shit, I don't have a lighter." "The numbers from yesterday, we had a high of 92, officially, that's two degrees above the average of 90 for the day." "68 was our low..." "You got a light?" " Yeah." " Hop in." "That boy's a good worker." "That's the hardest fucking work I ever done in my life." " Is it?" " Yeah." " You paying my boy?" " What?" " Are you paying my boy?" " Hell, yeah!" "I ain't seen he got paid none." "Well, he probably saves it 'cause he's smart." "Buying this GMC off of me." "Doing what?" " Nothing." " Yeah." "He ain't so smart." "He don't know nothing." "Hell, neither do you." "I'm gonna shoot you straight." "That boy works his ass off!" "He's earned money, and it's his!" "If this truck's a piece of shit, then you need to get out of it." "And if I find out something has happened to that boy," "I'm gonna whip whoever's ass had something to do with it." "Now get the hell away from me, before I knock what's left of your fucking teeth out." "I had the funniest thought today." "I thought maybe you and I could go out to dinner." "You know?" "Get all dressed up." "And maybe you could hold the door open for me." "I think that would be nice." "You pretend to be asleep, but I know you'd cry if I said the wrong thing." "You know this place is condemned, right?" "You can't just take boards off windows and call a place home." "Gary, why do you stick around like this?" "You're old enough, smart enough, to do your own thing." "What's most important right now is me taking care of Dorothy and Momma, 'cause we kinda got a family problem right now." "Hey, there." "Hey, now..." "Don't talk much, does she?" "She don't talk at all." "What do you mean?" "I don't know." "Nobody knows." "She just stopped one day." "I mean she used to would, but..." "Well, hey, I'm ready to make this deal if you are." "Yeah." "I got my money." "Hey!" "G-Daawg." "Don't you think I forgot about it, bud." "I've been looking for you and that kid." "That boy of yours, he sure thinks he knows something." "I know you, mister." "You my friend?" "I ain't your friend." "Well, you like to make all them funny faces." "I said, are you my friend?" "Listen, buddy." "I think I know a way that you and me can be friends." "There it is." "It looks just like your old one." "Periwinkle blue." "I like it." "I hope so." "Now, you got plenty of gas to get home." "You might want to stop at Coleman's and put a little more in it if you plan to ride around." "Here." " What's that?" " It's money for the truck." "Hell." "I ain't worried about that." "You just stick it back in your pocket." "You're gonna need it for insurance." " What's the insurance?" " Well, yeah, it's a law." "You can't drive without insurance." "You're covered now, but when I sign it over, you gotta pick up the insurance." "I'll tell you what, you come out to the house before long, we'll get you fixed up." "I'm gonna go on." "You gonna be all right?" " Yes, sir." " All right." "You want me to follow you?" "No, I'll be all right." "Hey, Joe." "Thanks." " Nice truck." " Thanks." "You ain't got any tags on it." "Did you just get it?" "Yeah." "You wanna breathe into this for me?" "No, I don't want to breathe into that." "Hey." "Hey!" "Hey!" "Pull over!" "Pull over!" "God damn it!" "I ain't done a goddamn thing!" " Stay in your vehicle!" " I ain't drunk." "You better look for someone else to mess with, 'cause I did nothing!" " Put your hands behind your back." " You and your motherfucking friends keep messing around with me, I'm gonna hurt you..." "Put your hands behind your..." "Come here!" "I guess if I drive off now, you're gonna get your shotgun out of the back and shoot me?" " No." " You gonna shoot me?" " No." " You can do it." "That was quick." "Still got that badass dog?" "Yeah, around here somewhere." "Hold on a minute." "Don't worry, okay." "Don't worry." "Don't worry." "Don't worry." "All right." "I hear you got a new grandbaby." " I do?" " Yeah, you didn't know?" "Not until now." "Yeah." "Little boy." "Marcy saw him at church." "Said he looked just like you'd expect him to look." "She said he's got your eyes." "You okay?" "Your son's all grown now, ain't he?" "Yeah, all grown up." "What's he going into?" "Law enforcement?" "That's what I heard." "You got a new man working for you now, don't you?" "Yes, I do." "I believe you've met him." "Gung ho fella, a little over-eager." "He was looking for someone to fuck with." "Yeah, maybe so." "I'll have his ass shuffling papers for a while until he learns to cool down a little bit." "But that ain't what I'm worried about." "Will you pass the hot sauce?" "Let me ask you a question, Joe, 'cause I really want to know." "Why you wanna go back?" "Why you wanna go back to the damn penitentiary, man?" "Because you can't keep going to folks' houses, killing their dogs, don't matter what else is going on." "And you can't keep fist-fighting the law." "Judge won't put up with it." "He don't have to put up with it." "That's why they build prisons." "Now you done got me back to smoking, damn it." "I been quit for three weeks." "I haven't mistreated you, Joe." "Have I?" "Tell the truth." "No, Earl." "You stuck up for me when you could." "And I used to be as bad as you." "At one time, you were worse." "Yeah, but I'm cool now." "Connie." "Where'd you go, baby?" "Answer the phone next time." "Joe, is it you?" "Estás aquí?" "Yeah, it's me." "Shit." "What happened?" "I need to borrow the truck." "What happened to you?" "I'm gonna kill him." "I'm gonna kill that old son of a bitch." "You think I won't, but I will." "And I'm gonna get mine back." "I just need to borrow that truck." "Come inside." "Come here." "Don't touch me." "I should've given you a boxing lesson." "I don't need no goddamn boxing lesson." "I know what to do." "I'll pop him right in the eye." "He whooped my ass and threw me out the truck." "Because he knew that I was gonna kill him." "I could kill his ass." "I could kill him just as good as you could." "I know you could." "I know you could." "I know it." "But you don't have to do that." "Okay, son." "Just stay here with me." "You'll be safe here." "I'll bring your momma and your sister." "He's got Dorothy." "He done ran off with her." "He met up with some bad men." "I heard him talking about it." "That man with the scarred-up face, the one that I beat down by the bridge." "He's been looking for me for what I done did to him." "She didn't hurt nobody, Joe." "It should have been me." "Do you know where they took her?" "Gary, tell me." "Tell me." "I just need the truck." "To get me some place." "I'm gonna make trouble." "Meet me outside." "$30." "$30 each." "Hi." "Hi, how are you doing?" "You okay?" "No?" "Tell me something, you like funny faces?" "If anything happens to me, you get your ass outta the way." "You hear?" "You take my truck and get out." "And go get Coleman." "Yes, sir." "Tell him to call Earl." "Shit." "No, no, no!" " Don't move." " God damn it." "I'll kill you both if you move." "Joe, listen to me." "This..." "It ain't what it looks like, man." "I'm telling you." "Dorothy!" "Dorothy!" "Get her out, Gary." "Take your sister and go." "Go." "Go!" "You, I don't know you." " Run, before I shoot you." " No, no, no, no, no." "God damn it, Joe." "Listen to me." "Just listen to me, okay?" "Gary!" "Gary!" " Gary!" " I'll get help, Joe." "God damn it." "And that girl, she don't..." "She don't know shit about shit, man." "She's just a piece of trash just like her daddy." "And she's gonna be doing this shit in no time, I'm telling you." "I'm telling you, man." "Look at the moon." "God damn it!" "Fuck this shit." "If you want to shoot me, go ahead and shoot me." "I went through a windshield and I don't give a..." "Are you my friend?" "What have you done, Joe?" "Here's what we do." "We start a little late, around 8:00 in the morning, and we go until 4:00." "I pay by the week, on Fridays." "Some days we go long." "If we run past 40 hours a week, I pay time and a half." "It's hard work." "I don't like a whole lot of standing around." "We'll probably bust our ass and get this spread out by the end of April." "Get out all the bare root seedlings." "Sometimes, we stake them if we got to keep the little ones stable." "Most of the time we don't need to mess with them little pine seedlings like that." "I'm gonna have you join Don L. and his crew on the west end of the farm." "Then if everything goes good on that acreage," "I'll have you help me supervise the Manea project next summer." "Old bastards can be hard to work for sometimes." "But hell, if you worked for Joe," "I think you'll do just fine." "You got any questions?" "No, sir." "When can I start?" "Right now, if you're ready." "Yes, sir." "So you knew Joe?" "Yeah, sure did." "Joe's a good man." "Good man to me anyways." "Good man to me too."