MENLO PARK (3) » SUSAN • May • “You came all the way here from Bishop? — Did you like Bishop? That is on the Nevada border right?” “Yes, Bishop is on the far side of the Sierras. It is beautiful there, and you can buy a house for $250K… which would buy you… nothing… in the Bay Area. So our move to Oakland moved us from a house to an apartment” “You couldn’t find a house to rent? A lot of people rent, both apartments and houses.” “No houses on our joint income. Amasa pays me something, but it isn’t much above the minimum hourly wage, which doesn’t buy you much in the Bay Area. I should become a programmer for Facebook, but the schedule for dialysis is getting in the way.” “You could change to a night dialysis, right?” “If we were just patients, yes. But we don’t have that flexibility: the clinics puts us in whatever shift they need us, not what works for us. I thought the stipend would help, but the relationship is actually costing me money. And freedom. For both me and my family.” “I am sorry to hear that. I hadn’t thought that through… everything is so new” “Not for long”
- 31 -
