The year was 2021 and the number of down and out folks and problems in the world was all anybody ever seemed capable of talking about. Everybody, that is, except for Huw Gittins. That scrappy twig of a man didn’t care whether it was raining or shining, whether he was winning or losing. He was just happy to be involved and participating. His gumption had never won him much in the way of awards or wealth, mind you, but he wasn’t any more or less lucky or unlucky than the next person down the line. Huw just seemed to take the good with the bad and keep on trekking.

As the day dawned one particular Monday morning, Huw tossed back his covers, cozied his feet right down into their slippers, and set about getting ready for the day. He wasn’t one for routine, so long as everything got done that needed doing each day. He made his bed, cooked some shredded potatoes for his breakfast, and washed his face; he only took a shower every other day to keep his water bill down.

Getting dressed was a simple chore but one he enjoyed. His options weren’t vast since he owned only a few pairs of worn blue jeans and a handful of shirts but he still took pleasure in determining which ones to wear. His shirts at least tended to have funny images or phrases on them and those always gave him a good laugh. Today he chose the purple shirt with the flying kittens emblazoned on the front. He liked cats. His current apartment wouldn’t allow pets so he had bought himself this shirt instead.

Huw was just about ready to hit the road and get to work when his phone chimed. Chuffed as always at the bright, musical notes, he whipped out the cell and gave the screen a quick tap.

Hugh, the text read and he immediately knew it was coming from his boss who never seemed to spell Huw’s name right, wont be opening today. sorry. let you know if there’ll be work tomorrow.

Huw ran some quick math in his head, something he’d been quick to master ever since his elementary days. He’d missed a lot of work in recent weeks. It wasn’t just the average joe who was having a hard go of life lately and more and more businesses were having to shutter. The retailer Huw worked at was no exception. Between delayed shipments and lower revenue, they were lucky to be open as often as they were. The numbers weren’t looking good to Huw and he knew he’d need a solution before days end.

Don’t worry about it, Huw texted back to his boss. Times are tough but life’s too important to let it get you down.

Just like that the day’s schedule had cleared like a sky after a storm and Huw found himself marveling over the possible ways he could spend it. First and foremost, he knew he needed to solve his finances, but that was just one thing. There was time a plenty for going to the park, maybe hiking one of the nature trails nearby, and possibly even getting together with some friends that evening.

Down in the lobby of his apartment building, Huw strolled over to the building manager’s office and tapped out a brief rhythm.

“Yeah, come in,” Sanjay said.

Huw always thought Sanjay’s voice was incalculably melodic and could have spent an evening just listening to him speak, no matter the subject.

“How are you Sanjay?” Huw asked as he sat himself down in the firm little chair opposite of Sanjay’s desk.

“I’m fine, thank you, now what do you want?”

“Work’s shut down again today and I might not make my rent this month,” Huw explained. “I’m putting my feelers out for something more reliable but in the meantime I thought I should let you know and see if we can work something out.”

“If you can’t pay the rent on time,” Sanjay stated, “you’ll have fifteen days to make up the balance of your account. If you don’t then you’ll be in breach of contract and you’ll be served an eviction notice. From there you’ll have another fifteen days to vacate.”

“I know all that,” Huw admitted, “but in the contract it also states that I’m also allowed to make other arrangements with the manager if I give at least fifteen days’ notice prior to when my rent is due. Now I can’t help but notice how many other folks have gotten themselves evicted these past few months and it just don’t seem like their apartments are filling back up. For my part, I’m motivated to keep myself from getting evicted, and I figure its better on your side of things to be getting any sort of rent rather than having another empty apartment.”

Sanjay narrowed his eyes but then turned away and began leafing his way through the filing cabinet beside his desk. Before too long he had found Huw’s contract and laid it out on the desk between them. He scanned the contract briefly and Huw wondered if he was looking for proof of what he had claimed.

“I see,” Sanjay said after a moment. “I will give you a one-time extension this month. You will need to be up to date on your rent before next month’s rent is due though.”

“That’s about as fair as I could have hoped for,” Huw grinned. “Let’s get that written down so it’s official and then I’ll get out of your hair.”

There really wasn’t much to be done. Sanjay printed out a simple form, filled out the dates and amounts and then they both signed it and Sanjay filed it back away with Huw’s contract.

“I’ll email you a copy of it,” Sanjay promised and Huw left the office after once again repeating his gratitude.

“You’re the best, Sanjay!”

That out of the way, Huw began messaging his various friends.

Potluck at my place? 6pm, breakfast theme. I may be busy for a bit and not respond, but feel free to discuss options.

He didn’t have much in the way of food at home besides a few potatoes and a half dozen eggs, but if at least a few other people pitched in they could have a really great dinner and no one would have to contribute very much on their own.

Their responses would trickle in throughout the rest of the morning and into the afternoon, he was sure. There would probably be some sort of discussion around the exact starting time, or the location, or even the breakfast theme he’d set, but those would all get hammered out over time.

There were a number of shops and offices nearby and Huw judged them to be as good a place as any to begin his search for a more reliable job. He didn’t want to quite his current job and would really try hard not to take something that would force him to do that, but at the end of it all he had responsibilities to meet and he wanted to keep his promise to Sanjay.

The first ‘Help Wanted’ sign he came to was in front of an office complex that belonged to ‘Harry, Smythe, & Associates’ and looked to be a law firm of sorts. The image of the scales emblazoned across their mirrored glass façade was clue enough for Huw.

Inside was cool and the air smelled of paper dust and printer ink. It was a sort of place that if he closed his eyes he could imagine some arcane or ancient library deep in some forgotten cavern. Not a bad sort of place. He didn’t know much about law, but in a place like this he figured someone was always needed to make copies, run errands, or do any other number of odd jobs that didn’t require advanced legal degrees.

“Can I help you?” a woman asked.

Huw was startled for a moment since he hadn’t seen anyone when he first came in but following the sound of the voice he saw a young woman sitting in an office adjacent to the foyer where he was standing. Beside her doorway (there was no door) was a plaque that read “Receptionist”.

“There’s a help wanted sign out front and I was hoping I could be that help,” Huw told her after moving to be within a reasonable conversational distance. “What sort of help are you looking for? Printing? Odd jobs? Running errands?”

“All of that,” the woman nodded, “as well as cleaning up in the evenings.”

“Sounds like you’re in luck,” Huw said with a smile. “I’m highly expert in all of those things.”

The receptionist cocked an eyebrow.

“Right,” she said and pulled out an application form. “Just fill this out and we’ll see what we can do.”

“Thanks, I’m Huw, by the way. What’s your name?”

“I’m Rosario,” she said and held out the application.

“Pleasure to meet you Rosario,” Huw said and accepted the forms.

He found a seat back out in the foyer and filled out the paperwork. The pay wasn’t amazing but it was better than minimum wage which was a pleasant surprise, and the hours looked like they would be flexible enough that he could probably keep his other job as well.

“Here you are,” Huw said when he’d finished and returned the application to Rosario.

“Thank you,” she said and laid them to the side on her desk.

“I’m happy to start any time,” he told her. “Today even, if your need’s that great.”

Rosario gave a half chuckle.

“Don’t want to seem too desperate,” she warned half-jokingly.

“I just thought it would be nice for everyone to have the matter resolved,” Huw explained. “I’m obviously looking for work. You’re obviously looking for someone to do work. Why delay the satisfaction of neither of us being in our current circumstances?”

She considered him for a moment and then glanced down through Huw’s application.

“One moment,” she told him after looking over his information.

Rosario picked up her telephone and pressed a button. She waited a moment and then began to speak.

“Mr Smythe, this is Rosario at the front desk…yes and how are you?…That’s good to hear. I have a man here who’s looking to fill the office assistant position. His application looks good and I was wondering if I could have him run a few tasks to see how he does?…Mhmm…yes, thank you. Have a good day. Bye.”

She hung up the phone and turned back to Huw.

“Follow me,” she said, rising from her chair and leading Huw around to a glass door, beyond which was a large conference table, a workstation in the back corner, and a series of printers of varying age and condition. Rows of filing cabinets and bookshelves lined the two flanking walls.

Rosario swiped a keycard and the door swung open. Inside this larger room the smells of paper and ink from before intensified in an incredibly satisfying manner.

“This is where most of the work we need done will be completed,” Rosario explained. “Our attorneys will send requests for files or references they need printed or scanned and it’s the office assistant’s job to fulfill those requests.”

She ran Huw through a few tasks, explaining to him what certain abbreviations meant and how he could figure them out on his own if needed in the future. She stated repeatedly that he had not yet been given the job, but that this was just a sort of working interview. He was fairly confident that he’d done a good enough job to secure it but wouldn’t count his chickens before they hatched. After he’d finished all of the tasks Rosario could think to give him he thanked her for her time and left.

He managed a couple more such impromptu interviews but didn’t get any solid offers. That was alright. He had some time still and even if none of the jobs he’d applied to that day worked out he could always find other jobs to apply for.

He checked his phone around lunch time and, as he had expected, there was a healthy conversation going on among his friends. That evening was panning out rather well. Not everyone would be able to make it, but enough that it would be a good time. He answered the few specific questions people had asked him and before long they had all agreed on 6:30pm and to do a potato bar style potluck since pretty much everyone had potatoes.

With a few hours left before he’d need to get back home to tidy things up Huw made his way over to one of the numerous little nature paths that wove their way here and there throughout the city. He was always surprised by how many people didn’t know they were there, but then again, they were somewhat hidden from view. He listened to the leaves rustling and the birds chittering back and forth. He thought he heard a squirrel barking at him from somewhere up above in a tree but it could have also been the brown and gray bird he spotted up there. He couldn’t quite see if there was a squirrel up that tree or not, hence his uncertainty.

With the afternoon beginning to wane, Huw turned back up the trail and began making his way home. Things that day certainly hadn’t gone the way he’d initially thought they would, but it had been a good day so far nonetheless. With friends still to see later that evening he was quite confident that it was going to be an exceptional day.