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Novels by Mary Marcus
New on the Blog
The Phantom Housekeeper
I have quite a few single friends both male and female. Without exception every female talks about the concept of “the one” after every promising date. As in “maybe he’s the one.” Or, “I’m not going to see him anymore. He’s not the one.” Though none of the males speak in this way. I believe the concept of “the one” is related to the Knight in Shining Armor, the big Daddy who is going to save the day with his love. Maybe because I made it a habit from early on to listen to the conversations of my brother and his friends, I am not so idealistic. And have never dreamed about the perfect guy, the one who would send me roses, read serious books, remember all significant events in our relationship, though I have to say, I have always yearned to have a relationship with a man who wears a beautiful cashmere topcoat. Obviously this phantom doesn’t live in Los Angeles, because it’s not cold enough here to justify owning a topcoat. Like getting to walk to a museum, it just isn’t going to happen to me here. I do have one long-term fantasy. And that’s of the perfect housekeeper. She’s a very clean Buddhist woman who has taken a vow of silence. Once upon a time she was quite rich and saw the inherent inequity of her life and joined this Ashram where her dharma is to clean and be silent. (This is a crucial part of the fantasy because she can leave her life as a maid at any time and go back to her trust...Sumos
I have an artist friend who says when she feels blue she eats a lot of orange food because orange cancels out blue. And I think she’s right, because I’ve been inexplicably sad for days, nothing can cheer me up. Until I walked into the Japanese market on the corner and saw that the sumos are in. Sumos, like the name implies, are big and fat. In fact they are cross between a navel orange and a mandarin. They are very expensive, close to three dollars a pop, so I am always saying a little prayer and not buying more than two at a time. The rule is if you buy a whole flat of them, they are going to be bitter and hard and juiceless. If you buy only two they will be perfect and you will gobble them up one after the other. What is it that makes a sumo so unlike any other piece of citrus? Weight, is one. A good sumo weighs close to half a pound. It’s dense and heavy, and as sweet as the sweetest orange you’ve ever tasted, but with the added interest and zest of a tangerine. I wouldn’t think of adulterating a sumo in a fruit salad, though if I were a chef at a fancy place I might just make a fresh sumo tart with kiwi and raspberry. Though the custard and the tart are totally unnecessary and sort of a sin when a sumo is involved. Like a great piece of art, a good one stands alone. I only have one friend who feels as I do about...Happy King Day
Maybe because I grew up in a small town in Louisiana at the end of the Jim Crow era, I especially love King day. I love that schools are out, I love that the mail isn’t delivered. I love that the great man is honored as he so richly deserved. I haven’t yet heard the “I have a dream” speech. Someone usually plays it on the radio and I catch it in the middle when I start up the car and invariably if it’s a short ride, just stay there listening to his voice and his words. I cry every time I hear it and I’m covered in goose flesh. I think the “I have a dream” speech is right up there with Beethoven’s Ninth, Mount Rushmore and the great Bronze of Balzac. It’s a perfect piece of art, sui generis, majestic and awe inspiring. Reverend King may your name live on through the ages and your great speech thrill future generations as it still thrills me every time I hear it....
The New Me
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