I have this terrible habit of buying books. I can’t walk past this new bookstore on Sydney Road called the Book Grocer without going inside and having look – okay, without purchasing. The other day, I found four new Murakami titles. The books are on special at this store. I bought Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman for thirteen dollars. I couldn’t believe my luck. They hardly ever get Murakami at the Book Grocer and now there was four to choose from. I wasn’t going to buy anything but it was too good to pass up. I had only just missed my tram and was killing time. I know I shouldn’t – I still hadn’t read the biography of Murakami I’d bought a fortnight ago nor Entanglement, a book on the consequences of Einstein’s discoveries. (I did read Paul Bowles’ The Sheltering Sky – excellent novel).
At the register, my real estate agent called me up to tell me we had to weed the front garden and cut down a tree looming over the neighbour’s yard. We had talked about that tree which is actually a weed grown into a tree, last house inspection. Vivian, the owner of the house, wanted us to chop it down then but the real estate agent told me it was her responsibility, not the tenants’ for insurance reasons. I was therefore surprised to hear from Michelle about the tree but we are getting pretty cheap rent for the area -it is a good house. We don’t always pay the rent on time (which is a pain in the ass for Vivian as she does not get the pension and all her income comes from our rent). I took it upon myself to fix the garden and chop down the tree, save Vivian some money.
Two days later, I went to the hardware store a few doors up from the Book Grocer to buy a two dollar saw. I’d noticed they had a bargain bin out front on the sidewalk. As I was walking back down the street, I couldn’t go past those last three Murakami titles. I probably wouldn’t get them so cheap again and they probably sell out quickly. I went inside and bought The Elephant Vanishes and Birthday Stories, both anthologies of short stories, the former being authored by Murakami and the latter, a collection selected by Murakami around the theme of birthdays of course.
It was a fine day for a change in Melbourne. Its been raining for about two months it seems this winter hence the reason for the lack of gardening. I hooked into the front garden with the hoe, filling up the green waste bin. After a cup of tea and a cigarette, I started sawing into the weed-tree.
It always looked just like a tree but another weed that was killing the apricot tree near the back fence started growing into another just like it. Thats when I realised this tree was nothing but a weed grown rampant. It had to go. It always sprayed pollen and hayfever contagions into the air in spring time anyway. I hated it. This gave me a good excuse to cut the whole damn thing down.
I started into it with my two dollar saw and it worked surprisingly well. I half expected it to break in no time. The job was a lot bigger than I had anticipated though. So many goddamn branches. Each one I cut was bigger and bigger as I grew more impatient with the task. I started filling up the shed with the branches I felled when it struck me: incredible back pain, seizing up my whole back and my diaphragm. I couldn’t breath for five seconds.
Finally my breathing returned in gasps like a fish out of water. Its like my lungs were being squeezed. For the last two days I’ve been lying in my easychair, reading Murakami, heat pack every hour against my back, taking long baths and covering my back in Tiger Balm before trundling off like an old man to the Social Research Centre. I would have liked to take the day off but I need the money: casual job with no sick pay. I interviewed people about their health and well-being, food, exercise, smoking and drinking for four hours solid every night.
This morning on my day off, I finished the last story in Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman. I went out for a smoke into the backyard and the tree is still lying pieces. I can’t wait to finish it off. Back’s feeling much better today. Better give it a week before I tackle it again. I still have two more Murakami books to read.
