Apples &
Ripov/1
by Albert Russo
Ripov lived in a shoddy
tenement house which faced the I.O.U. Insurance
building, a sparkling curvilinear structure whose
bronze-hued mirrors greedily absorbed the
daylight.
Every morning after he'd
opened the curtains, Ripov would stare at the
building with ecstatic eyes. Not exactly a pariah,
Ripov limited his diet to four meals a week. By
his demeanor and by the way he dressed, no one
would suspect his actual social status. And he
would not have had it otherwise. He would do a
few odd jobs occasionally, and then just to cover
his modest needs. The rent of his mousehole did
not amount to much, and, though he did not eat
like most people, Ripov knew his body's
requirements almost to the calorie.
Tall, well-groomed, and
quite handsome, Ripov fit the description of the
aggressive young executive that a success-oriented
society so avidly feeds on. Ripov held no bank
account, no insurance policy, nor for that matter
did he abide by the rigid laws of consumerism.
And yet he always managed to remain within the
confines of legality. A feat he could only be
proud of inasmuch as he was spared the qualms of
the Internal Revenue. They couldn't claim
anything from him: he was penniless. On the other
hand, Ripov was endowed with an iron constitution.
But how happy or unhappy was he? That he kept a
tightly sealed secret. But one thing Ripov couldn't
resist was apples, and I.O.U.'s trademark was a
Golden Delicious surmounted by a Granny Smith.
One afternoon Ripov decided
he would go and inquire about the sign. There
were half-a-dozen people waiting in the lobby ...
and a basketful of apples at each side of the
entrance. Two businessmen and a young lady were
leafing through magazines while nonchalantly
munching on an apple. Ripov swallowed several
times before he approached the basket containing
the Golden Delicious. As he was about to select
one, a doubt arose in his mind and instantly
glued his lips together. He eyed the Granny
Smiths at the left of the entrance. The
receptionist, meanwhile, juggled the intercom and
two telephone receivers, passing on messages and
announcing visitors.
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