It summed me up, I guess. It came to a not insubstantial sum, considering. I wasn’t any of the things I’d thought I’d been. I was merely money. Well. They’d been very neat: she’d say the neatest.

I didn’t bother to remove the presidential heads. It seemed too late to deny anything. I went to the window and looked out. They’d be together now, under the skylight. Below, in the unclean snow, a fag went by. A fag and two dogs, a poodle and an afghan. Even from the window I could see the dogs had jeweled collars. A cop went by. I saw him look at the jeweled collars to which the leather leashes were attached and then he looked at the fag in his parka and his ski boots walking his dogs and they all went by. A girl with a large net shopping bag went by. Heavy-wheeled a truck went by. A cab went by. They went by white. They went by black. Old they went by. Middle-aged they went by. They went by young. They went by slowly. Quickly they went by. Cold they went by. It didn’t stop. The going by didn’t stop. It would never stop. Fag cop truck cab girl white black vas you efer in Zinzinatti voulez-vous venir en surprise-party avec moi Vote for Jose Fuentes. Everything went by. Nothing went by. I went by.