Dear Peggy 2/12

glasses batted in vain "I saw today's column. You had some great things to say". Her interest in him had been obvious to everyone but Simon. He had always considered her just a nice friendly co worker. A real ‘sister’ like friend. She had started off as an intern in her late teens. Somehow Simon still saw her as that sweet kid and never gave things a second thought.

Despite Tina's diminutive frame, her strength and organizational skills made her a powerful figure at the paper. Her abilities quickly made her a valuable asset to Harry when his previous assistant quit due to the stresses of the job. He could not keep the paper running without her skills and ability to juggle schedules, people and manage time so effectively. As a result, Tina was always extremely busy. Some likened her pace to that of a hummingbird who had swallowed a triple expresso. Harry's name might be on the door and the ultimate responsibility for everything was on his shoulders, but when you really looked at who was managing the paper, Tina Blake was really the one running everything. She had taken two weeks vacation several years ago to visit distant relatives and the paper almost ground to a halt. Ever since then, she never took more than a day or two in a row.

Harry ushered Simon into his cluttered office and gestured him to sit. Harry was never one for small talk and banter. His years in charge left him no spare time to waste. "Simon, I’ll come right to the point. Things have been progressively tighter around the newspaper game. Advertising dollars are harder to get, less circulation with everyone getting their information online, costs of operations keep climbing. I am forced to make some changes." Simon cringed. He felt that he was about to get laid off. "I don't want to lose your columns. I don't want to lose any of our regular columns. They are locally written and keep us distinct from those other guys that just use a national syndicated columns to save overhead. So what I am doing to the writers like you is to switch you to being an independent rather than staff position." Simon furrowed his brow "What's that going to mean to me then?" Harry nodded "That's a fair question. What it means is that you will be a freelancer. You will be paid what works out to more or less the same as now but you will be responsible for your own taxes and employment insurance and all those things. The bean counters have assured me that by doing that, we can save a few million with the staff. And since so many of you are working from home anyway, we can clear the lease on several floors in the building here and also reduce the amount of infrastructure. It will save the paper several million more. I simply can't carry the costs of fixed staff anymore." Simon mulled over the shocking news. Harry offered "As I understand it, you can now write off a lot more of your living expenses against taxes so you'll probably come out ahead in the long run. You'll still of course have all your press credentials but when they get renewed, they will list you as independent. Any access or tickets needed for events are of course yours as needed, and as long as we have a press box at the stadium, your seat is reserved. What I suggest is that you hire an accountant to go over all your paperwork and get yourself set up for the transition to make it as seamless as possible." Harry looked at Simon critically. "Are you gonna be alright?" Simon was still trying to absorb the complete disruption to his life "Um...yea...I think so. Who else is being affected by this." Harry responded "All columnists and contributors. I am only keeping a permanent staff of less than a dozen reporters and twenty eight staffers. It's going to be a very small and tight ship. I want you to know a few things. First off, you aren't confined to just writing for this paper. You can do all sorts of other freelance work. Heck if you bring me any scoops, you will naturally be paid on a per item basis. And I'd continue to keep the advice column on the QT. Of course what you always need to remember, this door to my office is always open if you need to talk or anything. None of you guys are 'persona non grata' around here as long as I have a breath left in me." Simon nodded as he left the office. He was still reeling from the news and almost in a daze. Tina chased after him "I'll have the paperwork ready for you by the end of the week... Please call me. Here's my personal number" she said, handing him a business card with a phone number and a heart drawn on the back. Simon thanked Tina and took the card. He was looking at the hand written number on the back and the ‘i’ was topped with a little heart. Under the number was the neatly written ‘any time’. He smiled at how eager and friendly Tina always was.  Before he could say ‘Thanks’ he stopped in his tracks.  Cassandra Heath briskly strolled into the office and to her desk. Simon looked at the tall redheaded reporter. She was five foot ten, confident and beautiful. She had long shapely legs a perfect figure and a face that you could stare at forever. She knew her looks were a powerful tool to get what she wanted and she used it to get the answers that most other reporters never could. Simon longed to be with her. Her perfume, her walk, the way she tossed her long wavy hair with a flick of her head made most men babbling fools under her spell. Cassandra flashed her perfect smile at Simon. His knees almost buckled when she did that.

“You DO know she’s dating Brick Nolan? The guy that is gunning to be the next mayor? The rich former investment banker? Hello? She waved her hand in front of Simon. He finally blinked “Oh sure that will be great. Thanks Tina” Simon answerd. Tina could see that he was lost in her magnetism once again and she retreated back to her desk in frustration.

If Simon had a clue how she felt, Tina could have felt humiliated at the way he fawned for ‘Cassie’ but once again Tina thought to herself that despite her feelings for him, Simon was an idiot, like so many men. ‘Cassie’ turned most men into drooling idiots. She had that ability. Sure it was partly her stunning looks, but the confidence was another large part of it, and there was something else that you just couldn’t figure out, but whatever it was, Cassie had ‘it’. Tina knew she was also good looking but when Cassie was around, nobody else had a chance. They were invisible. Tina would have hated her, but despite her effect on men Cassie was actually quite nice to everyone she worked with.  

Simon got off the bus a few blocks from his apartment and picked up a bouquet of colourful flowers. He walked to his building and took the elevator to the 3rd floor. He knocked on the door and it opened. "Angela, how are you?" he said as he offered the fresh bouquet of flowers to her. Angela Schultz greeted Simon with a friendly hug as she invited him in. She led him to the kitchen where Simon opened the cupboard and took out the crystal vase he knew she would want. He filled it halfway with water and handed it to her. "You always were so thoughtful Simon. I see you more than my own children." "Oh come on, you know they love you too. They just have busy lives" he said to her. Shrugging her sagging shoulders frail looking the seventy eight year old asked "Can I offer you a cup of tea? I was just about to make a pot." Simon offered "Please, let me make it for you Angela." "No no, my dear. I am still able, and the day I can't make my own tea is the day I lie down in a pine box." Her voice had an air of finality to it, she would not accept an argument on the matter even though she never lost the slight smile on her face. "So what is the bad news all about?" she asked while pouring the hot water into the teapot. He smiled, Simon could never hide anything from her. "I am at a bit of a crossroads Angela. The paper is restructuring. They are putting pretty much everyone that's not a hard core reporter onto a sort of freelance status to save money, Closing down a couple floors of the building too." Angela placed the teapot on the table to steep, then sat down at the table with Simon. "How much will it affect your income? You may have to pick up some other work." She suggested. "Yea, I am gonna have a chat with an accountant and look at what the best strategy going forward is. Tina is sending me the paperwork by the end of the week."

Angela shook her head at Simon. He just never caught on "She's a sweet young thing, and very smart. I don't think some people give her the notice she deserves." Simon thought for a moment "I think you're right. She practically runs the paper for Harry. If she left, Harry couldn't handle it all by himself." Angela looked at him with exasperation, started to say something then changed her mind "So let me guess, you are still smitten with Cassandra?" Simon looked off in space "Yea,...." He then felt a hot sensation on the back of his hand. Angela had pushed the teapot against his hand to get his attention back. "Owww, That's hot." "Serves you right dreamboy" Angela chided "Now how are things going with our column?" she asked. “It’s as popular as ever. Thanks to your input nobody seems to have noticed the changeover. So far our secret is still safe. Only you and I and Harry and Tina know you have retired”. Angela smiled, she thought of mentioning that Harry still sent her an occasional cheque for helping Simon continue the column but decided to spare his feelings. “ And I really feel that I am starting to understand how you would answer most questions” he continued. Angela knew that he had indeed gotten the spirit and technique of reading between the lines on the questions written to the column. His answers now were usually pretty much exactly what she would have said. It was extremely rare when he needed to consult her for advice in the last few years. Yet despite all that, he still only saw Cassandra and looked right past Tina. ‘The man is going to be hurting himself, living alone with this dream for a long time’ she thought.

Angela decided to change the subject “Have you done any more work on your book”? Simon stared at the teapot and smiled guiltily “Only a little. A few pages here and there” he lied. “Why don’t you take a week and really go at it. If you focus, I’m sure you will get yourself on a roll and it will start to fall into place” Angela prodded. Simon looked up at her, still with the guilty smile “Yea, if things weren’t changing so much at work, that’s probably the best thing right now. I keep getting a few good ideas but they never feel right when I get them typed in”. Simon knew that Angela was not just a great columnist but she had actually had a few books published back in the day. She would gladly offer constructive help in his own project but he was not ready to share it with anyone yet. He wasn’t ready because he didn’t know what to do with the characters. Letting a published author see that he had basically done nothing would be humiliating. He hadn’t even fleshed out what the story was about. “I am thinking of scrapping what I have and starting over. A clean slate. That might leave me open to go a different way. When I have that figured out, I’ll show you what I have and you can maybe nudge me in the right direction”. Angela could read him pretty good. She knew he was lost from the start. He wanted to write and had a few vague ideas but there was nothing to build a story around. He was facing what every writer sometimes is intimidated by: ‘The blank page syndrome’ they sometimes called it. “You know, sometimes just defining one part can give you enough to build everything on. Get the general idea on paper in vague terms and let the story write itself. You can’t force inspiration” she offered. Simon sat upright and raised his index finger “Ahh yes but you know the old saying, ‘Write what you know’, I really don’t know anything worth writing about”. “Hogwash. You have been in the news business more than enough years to have a few experiences worth writing about, and with the internet, you can research anything you need”. Simon knew that arguing with Angela was a lost cause, she was quite wise and had experienced a full life. Making excuses with her was never a good idea. She’d see through a person and cut them down, in a firm but positive way. It was no wonder he admired her, She had become like a second mother to him in as well as a close friend.   

Simon switched on his laptop at the dining table and read through the submissions to the ‘Dear Peggy’ column. There were always dozens and he had to select only a few for publication, but when sent online he tried to answer them all, even if they never got printed for the rest of the readership to enjoy. He selected one that caught his attention:

“Dear Peggy.

I have been seeing a man of power and importance. He seems to feel the same way but I think his career holds his heart more than I do. I want to keep building our relationship and really start a family with him but that might mean giving up part of my career. Should I pursue things further or wait for a more concrete sign of his true feelings?

Signed: Right said Red”

Simon thought about this one for a long time. His immediate answer didn’t feel right. As he started to write an answer it occurred to him that this might be Cassie. She totally fit the question, He thought further of it and realized that a lot of people might fit that profile. The thought still nagged at him though. He decided to put it aside and work on something else. He answered a few of the easier ‘Dear Peggy’ questions and worked on his sports column. He still couldn’t shake the feeling that ‘Right said Red’ was Cassie. He decided to send a private email from the ‘Dear Peggy’ account and get more details. Regardless of who had sent the message, there was still a few details he needed to be able to give a helpful answer.