I wore a white button down shirt, and a red silk tie and a charcoal gray, gabardine suit. My socks were black and my shoes were black and my teeth were brushed and my hair was combed and I sat at the desk in the front of the office where I was told to sit by the woman at the front desk that didn’t tell me her name. She said that Mr. Tally would be with me in a moment. She didn’t smile and she didn’t blink, she just turned and rushed away.

This was my first day on the job and my stomach hurt.

My daddy was a farmer. My granddaddy was a farmer. I told them I wasn’t cut out for this farming thing. I told them I wanted more out of life.

I pictured them both right now in the field-- my daddy in the John Deere, Will and Laney laying out wire, Jed most likely still trying to get that old Harvester to turn over which he never could do and only I could do which used to drive him crazy. I wasn’t sure what they would all think if they saw me sitting here in the front of this huge office with all the windows and the rows of little square cubicles and the ringing phones and everybody doing something they were supposed to be doing and me at the front of it all sitting here doing nothing. I didn’t know if they would be happy for me or embarrassed on my account, but I had a feeling they’d be deeply disappointed.

When I told my daddy that I got a job at “Weaver, Jamison, Tally, and Finch” he snorted and said he never heard of any one of the sons-a-bitches.

The elevator dinged and the door opened and five people rushed out and went five different ways, and not one of them was Mr. Tally.

I found a yellow legal pad in the top drawer and a ballpoint pen next to it. I took them both out and set the legal pad in front of me and clicked the pen and held it ready to write something and couldn’t think of a thing to write.

Jed would never get that Harvester started. I knew he was right now cursing my name which was okay with me because I was in complete agreement, and not only that-- my tie was too tight and my shoes were too tight, and I was pretty sure I was going to throw up at any second and just then Tally came out of the elevator in his bowtie heading my way.

I was going to have to tell him I wasn’t cut out for this city job thing.