Joe MacMillan / Reader
“LOL”
You stared at the word on your computer screen and sighed. Oh how you hated that word… “LOL” which apparently meant “laugh out loud” but you found it only annoying. The LOLs were getting into your work emails and ruining your days almost every single day, well every other day at least. You did not understand what was so mesmerizing about them that all your students were using them and you had found them even in the essays that your students had written for their studies.
It was the end of the twentieth century and the autumn semester was about to begin. Just a couple of short months and the year was going to change… and not just the year but the decade, century and the millennium as well. Yes, it was August, year 1999 and you were the teacher of English literature at (your favorite) University. You had been a teacher there for one year already so this was your second time around to kick-start the academic year with a bang; an intensive course to the work of J.R.R. Tolkien because you found it very inspiring in the world of abbreviations and instant messaging.
You were old fashioned in a way; you preferred calling to sending a text message, reading a real newspaper to reading your news online and you did not understand the fascination of IRC or online gaming. If someone asked you, not that anyone did, you thought that the world did not need all the changes… or at least in your opinion the changes were happening way too fast. So fast in fact that it sometimes made you lose your breath. You tried to avoid technology as much as you could and even struggled with the university’s work email because you were constantly being bombed by Nigerian princes who were offering you a possibility to get rich by helping them with some kind of investments by paying a small fee to the accountant.
This kind of intrusion of privacy annoyed you. It bothered you and made you somewhat angry that there was someone, somewhere, who thought that you were stupid and actually had assumed that you would fall for that. Well, you knew some people who had fallen for the lottery-scams and such but you never did because you never surfed the Internet, replied the emails from senders that you did not know or wrote your personal information in any forms online. If someone asked you whether you had an online-personality, kind of presence in chat forums or such, you always stated that you had far too much work with your personality as it was and therefore you did not need any other aliases to go by. It was quite enough that you had your private persona and then the role as the teacher of English literature at the university.
You were sitting in the teacher’s lounge, enjoying your afternoon tea quietly when a tall man walked in with a briefcase, wearing a dark gray business suit and a wine red tie. You had never seen the man before but in a flash you came to a conclusion that he was one of the new teachers of the business faculty… or maybe one of those tech-savvy people who thought that their little inventions could change the world and shake the solid ground that had been forged with words and concrete actions during the years. Yes, the real, tangible world that existed outside the small box called computer.
- Good afternoon. the man said when he noticed you. He had brown, slightly curled hair that he had combed very neatly and he had a side parting which suited him very well. He had shaved very neatly this morning which made him look very... important. His eyes were green and he had and impressive eyebrows, long lashes and when he looked at you, he was really engaging you to give him your full attention.
- Afternoon. I do not believe we’ve met before, Mister- you asked and waited for him to tell you his name. The man poured himself a cup of coffee and sat by the table as well. He leaned closer and offered his hand to you for a handshake.
- MacMillan. Joe MacMillan. he said as you took his hand and shook it firmly. He stared into your eyes and smiled politely but you had a feeling that he was trying to figure out what your status at the university was; were you someone important whose ass was worth of kissing or were you just a teacher… no one of high importance. You smiled at him just as politely and continued shaking his hand even though the shake was getting a bit awkward because it was just going on and on since neither of you was actually ending it.
- Ah… I see. you commented with a tone that revealed that you knew who he was but you were not very impressed. Yes, you had read about him in a magazine and you were not particularly impressed because he was one of those “Internet is the future” –people that you loved so much. Finally you let go his hand and sipped your tea because your break was soon going to end.
- And you? Joe asked curiously because he had noticed the subtle shift in your attitude towards him. Joe did not particularly mind, or care, because he had gotten his fair share of shifting attitudes during his life and his first impression of you told him that you were not exactly a person who spent her time online instead of reading a book. Yes, his first impression of you was that you were a bit old fashioned. He had noticed that you were dressed in a simple sweater and a knee-length skirt, that were both pretty traditional colored; forest green and brown. You had eye glasses and your hair had been tied as a tight bun right back of your head which made you look firm and maybe a bit fiddly. Besides you drank tea instead of coffee so it meant that you most likely had a personal bond with England… or you just liked tea.
- I am Miss (your surname). you replied and finished the tea with one long gulp. It was almost cold anyway and you were going to be late from your class soon. You just had been deep in your thoughts before this Joe-guy had come into the lounge that you had not noticed the time slipping away.
- No first name? Joe asked curiously and took a small packet of mints out from the pocket of his suit. He offered you some candy but you gestured that you were not graving for any sweets at the moment.
- Well, not today. you said, stood up and took the teacup into the sink that was in the far corner of the teacher’s lounge. You took a glance at the man in the fine, expensive looking, dark gray suit and then walked out from the room.
You walked along the long corridors and finally reached your classroom which was more like an auditorium anyway. You set your forthcoming lecture up and after five minutes the students started to gather into the auditorium. They were chattering with each other until you cleared your throat and wrote “Tolkien” with big capital letters on the blackboard. You had heard rumors that there was going to be a new movie adaptation about the trilogy and the news had made you quite excited. Sure you always preferred the book because a movie couldn’t possibly capture the essence of a story because a movie had to make compromises and sometimes it happened that the book just did not work as a movie; many of the Stephen King’s movies had done exactly that. Especially horror was very difficult to capture on film because when you read something your mind painted the picture for you… however when you watched a movie, you were following someone other’s vision of the same story.
You stepped in front of the desk and leaned to it the edge. You went through the students one by one, trying to establish a kind of a connection to each one of them before actually beginning because you did not like to battle for attention. Oh no, in your opinion you deserved to be listened to and also respected by your students because you were the one with the academic degree and they did not. You had been a teacher elsewhere before this, worked as a researcher as well and then applied for a vacancy at the (your favorite) University. It meant that you were the authority and you did not like it at all when someone challenged that authority by being a smartass or not concentrating on your classes. You then, in return, tried to make the classes as interesting as possible and that was the main reason why you had decided to begin the autumn semester with a fictional novel that was filled with plot twists and action.
- Show hands, have you read J.R.R. Tolkien’s most well-known novel? you asked but only a couple of hands of about forty students were being raised.
- Alright… Do you know what the novel is called? you asked and only about ten hands were raised. “This should be interesting” you mumbled to yourself and then walked to your desk, lifted a box filled with books onto the table and then handed books to everyone by passing them on from the front row to back row. There were four rows, ten seats per each row and the rows were kind of curved, as in a half-circle which made you feel like you had been in an amphitheater and because there were no real far-corners, you felt more connected with your students.
You talked about the history of the book, the influences and the meaning of it for English literature. You assigned the students to read the three first chapters of the book, Lord of the Rings, Fellowship of the Rings, and to make notes of things that each student had found particularly catching. You wanted them to get into the story and get to know the characters more personally; to think about their actions, the reasons behind their choices and then preparing themselves to discuss the topic next time.
- That would be all. you said and checked your calendar before adding “I’ll see you on Wednesday.” It was Monday and it meant that your students had one and half days time to read a bit over hundred pages and make some notes. You did not really remember the new schedule by heart and therefore you had been glued to your calendar the entire day. It fortunately had been the last lecture of the day and now you got to go home where a massive amount of home chores was waiting for you.
Yes, one could have assumed that you were insanely clean and organized but the truth was that in your private life you were more or less a mess. You had a creative chaos in your apartment because you much rather spent your free time sitting in a comfortable armchair and reading an interesting book. You were not even dating anyone at the moment since your boyfriend… or ex-boyfriend… had been offered a professorship in another country and you had both agreed that since he had no idea when or if he was coming back there was no real point to get yourself tangled into a web of long-distance-relationship. It had been a rational decision even though the truth was that you had hated making it.
Your ex had been the calmer and more rational of you two. He was a professor of mathematics, a bit boring person to be honest, when you on the other hand loved romance and adventure, great stories and suspense. You were passionate about your work and your biggest goal was to ignite the same passion that you had for stories in your students who seemed to be more interested in entertainment and… and Internet. Yes, that… the place where people were ignoring grammar and shortening words that were short to begin with! It made you almost angry because you loved the way words had been created to describe things and how they had a power to open new worlds and fill your mind with wonderful ideas… and then… and there was just… LOL. Yeah, the millions and millions of years of evolution simplified in one acronym. “What a waste” you had thought many times.
…which then reminded you about the man that you had met today; Joe MacMillan, the tech guru who had been hired by the university to teach the students… something… you did not even know what that something was. You had read about Joe in a magazine… which you still had! You stormed into your living room and went through the basket of magazines and papers that were waiting for being taken to the recycling. You found an issue of the magazine with a picture of him in the cover.
You sighed and sat down to read the article that was more like a biography and told a story of a man who was great at inventing things, coming up with new ideas and inspiring people to achieve things that no one else was able to even dream about yet… but the article told a story about burned bridges and problems with maintaining friendships. However… it was also a portrait of mental growth and character development; Joe had grown from an ambitious and self-centered asshole to a person who was actually pretty emphatic and decent. He was still ambitious, sure, but now that he had left the tech-world due to the sudden loss of a dear friend-slash-business partner, he had found that his true talent was in motivating other people to achieve the un-achievable… and was there any better place to shape young, keen minds than a university? No, not really.
You put the magazine away and sighed. Maybe you had judged him a bit too quickly. Maybe Joe had seen enough to know what he was talking about, he after all had worked for bigger companies as well as small startup businesses, he had created wonderful things… or not… you wouldn’t go that far yet because there was nothing wonderful about the Internet… but he had done great things, such as created an antivirus software during the time when people had not even thought about online security. He had been there when the Interned had taken its shape and he had been the person who had said that Internet was the next step. He had imagined your computer as a gateway to another world and that thought was appealing even to you because you loved another worlds.
The next day you went to the university in the morning again because you had some early classes and around noon you ran into Joe who was getting out from his class and heading to the school restaurant to have some lunch. You were wearing a pant-suit and your hair was tied up again but this time you had put a bit more makeup to make your eyes sparkle behind your eyeglasses. You did not really know why you had put the extra effort today but you had to admit that it was nice to look pretty… and besides you knew that you had gotten a reputation during the last school year… and that reputation was not that flattering; according to some students you were like a governess from another century, a spinster who had no other life than her work and dusty, old books. It was of course quite understandable for your students to think that you were a spinster because they had never seen you with your fiancée… well, ex-fiancée… and when you had decided together to end the relationship, you had not shown any sign of heartbreak at work. You had been played it cool and tucked all your personal feelings behind your professional exterior… which then had created an image to everyone, even to your colleagues, that you had no other life than your work and your love for literature.
- Miss (your surname)! Joe called you when he saw you walking along the corridor, heading to the lunch cafeteria as well.
- Oh, Mr. MacMillan… Have you gotten any apples yet? you asked with a smirk on your face. You instantly regretted saying such silly thing when Joe stared at you with an expression that was a combination of amusement and confusion. Yes, you had a bad habit of being a bit awkward when you talked with handsome men… especially when one happened to be almost two meters tall and had wide shoulders… and looked very impressive in his stylish, perfectly-fitting suit.
- Not yet, but I am sure I should start carrying a basket… just in case. he replied after he had managed to gather his thoughts and chuckled a little. “How about you?” he asked in return.
- Me? Oh, I am not the internationally known superstar. you commented and rolled your eyes. Again, you were making it awkward and you were not even trying… oh no, you were making yourself look pretty stupid even without putting any effort to it.
- So you do know who I am. Joe commented and opened the cafeteria door for you. You thanked him for such polite gesture and entered the cafeteria.
- I did not take you as a person who followed the tech-scene. Joe added with a tone that you were unable to decipher. Was he impressed or flattered that you had known him? Or had he assumed that you did not follow the news or closed your eyes from the world just because you were not in the frontlines of so-called progress?
- I read an article about you. you said and then added “in a magazine”. Joe sighed “I see” curiously and took a tray after you. You both started to gather things for lunch from the showcase shelves and then paid for the lunch to the cashier.
- You know, a magazine of real pages made of paper… you know the thing that you get from cellulose… which comes from the organic material called wood. you rambled on as you looked for a free lunch table. It was the lunch break and the eatery was packed with chattering students. You saw a group of students leaving the table quite far away and headed that way immediately so you would have time to eat your lunch in peace. For your surprise Joe followed you and sat down by the same table than you did.
- Well… I might have heard of it. Joe commented and unwrapped the sandwich he had bought from the plastic wrapping. He had actually skipped lunch at the cafeteria yesterday because one of the professors had taken him out for a lunch. There had been some matters to discuss and a more peaceful environment had been better for business talk. That was the reason why you had met him during your afternoon tea-break yesterday. You secretly followed Joe as you mixed the olive-oil based salad dressing to your lunch salad and chuckled.
- Why do women always eat a salad? Joe asked curiously as he followed you mixing the salad in the bowl. There were pieces of cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red paprika, lettuce and chicken in your salad as well as some cheese. You pursed up your lips and shook your head as you asked him “what?”
- Yeah… From all the things that you could have taken, you decided to take a salad. Why? Joe asked curiously. He was trying to figure out what kind of person you were and to be honest, your lunch-choice was convincing him that he had you figured out; you were an uptight person who did not know how to relax or not count calories. His absurd question made you scoff and even though you did not think that you owed him an explanation, you said
- Well… it so happens that I have decided to buy a large pizza today after the long day at work and therefore I am now eating a salad.
- Uh-uh? Joe commented with a surprised tone. His conclusion had been completely… no… partially wrong which made him intrigued to know more about the person behind the official looking eyeglasses and tight chignon.
- What? You did not think that I eat pizza? you asked and rolled your eyes. You took the small salt shaker and added a little bit of salt into your salad. Then you grinded a little bit of black pepper to give your salad that nice, fragrant scent of fresh pepper. The olive oil had had some herbs, lemon and chili anyway so in your opinion the salad was now perfect.
- To be honest you seem more like a chicken and steamed –vegetables –kind of a woman. Joe commented and took a bite of his sandwich that had been filled with processed ham and chewy cheese. You chuckled a little when you saw Joe’s face change from politely neutral to disappointed as his taste buds relayed artificial tasting flavors into his brain, which he tried to then process in his mind… but the hard fact was that his sandwich did not really taste of anything… anything good at least.
- A free tip from a fellow teacher to another… Never take the sandwich. you said, added “They are disgusting” with a barely audible tone and continued eating your salad.
- Good to know. he said and stole a sweet bun from your plate. You had bought a bun for the dessert but before you had had time to react, Joe had already bitten a generous piece of it and you just decided not to bother. He was surely going to have a long day and if he was not going to eat his sad sandwich, he probably needed the bun anyway. You and Joe talked about nothing of great importance… but it was nice. He told you about his work-history, a very condensed summary of his past and you did the same.
You told him that you did not hate technology per se and you were not the one chaining yourself to the trees to prevent them to be cut down, metaphorically speaking, meaning that you did not stand against progress, but you just found it sad how people were using poorly assembled language and making short words even shorter, just to get as much text as possible rammed into 160 characters which was the length of a text message. Suddenly you noticed that you were rambling on about the corruption of the English language because people were too impatient and hasty to take time to actually express themselves well.
- A purist, I see. Joe commented after you had finally shut up. He had liked to listen to you talking because you seemed like an interesting person. Sure you had seemed like a somewhat boring person at first, deducing from your yesterday’s plain clothes and lack of strong makeup, the way you had had tea and wanted to be addressed as Miss (your surname) but now Joe was actually slightly fascinated to know you more, to know the person who actually ate pizza and was passionate about literature and worried about the corruption of the language due to the revolution of the Internet.
- Well, a bit old fashioned, I suppose. you commented and finished your ice water.
- Hm, I see. So… have you browsed the Internet? Joe asked curiously. He had a feeling that you feared a thing that you did not really even understand because in Joe’s opinion the Internet and the easy access to it was the key for the future and there was no progress, no development… no future without it. He had been working on making a personal computer smaller, planning broader bandwidth to grand faster access to the Internet, created the idea behind the online security and then worked with his friend on making the Internet easier to browse by gathering a team who had reviewed submitted links and organized them based on your personal interests.
- I can’t say I have. For me, Mr. MacMillan, even using email is a nightmare. you answered and checked your clock. It was ten minutes to one and you were supposed to be starting a class in ten minutes. You cursed and got up, took the tray to the dishwasher and hurried out from the cafeteria. Joe followed you because he was supposed to begin his next class at one PM as well. You both ran through the long corridors, and after showing Joe where his classroom was, you ran to yours and got there at the same time with the students. You took a deep breath and apologized being late because it, being late from settled meetings, was in your opinion very rude and you had previously told your students not to be late, ever. You opened your bag as and took some papers out as you tried to catch your breath and get the terrible blushing off from your face… but it was very challenging because the last thing that Joe MacMillan, that tall, handsome tech-professor had said to you before you had stormed away was
- Same time tomorrow?