Read It's a Waverly Life for Free Online

Boring, boring, and more boring. Have I told you how much I hate this job?”
    “Many times. You really need to quit.”
    “I know, I know. I’m just waiting for the right time.”
    “Still dreaming about photography?”
    “Always.”
    “Don’t wait too long. Life is too short to stay in a job you don’t enjoy. Believe me, I know.”
    She started chewing on her fingernail and looked a bit stressed, so I decided to lighten up the conversation. “Hey, I got some great e-mails this morning.”
    “Yeah? Maybe some are from my friends. Seems like they’re all dating crazies these days.” She took off her horn-rimmed glasses and let them dangle around her neck on a retro silver chain. “I mean lu-na-tics. ”
    I laughed. “There are definitely a lot of psychos out there. But on both sides of the chromosome. It’s not just guys.”
    She nodded. “Oh believe me, I’ve done my share of stalking. Thank God that part of my life is over. I think my next tattoo might have to be Casey’s name, just so he feels too guilty to break up with me.”
    “For real?” I remembered Jake’s tattoo story. The thought of anyone’s name tattooed on any body part was just… ick.
    She shrugged. “Maybe. You can never underestimate the power of permanent ink. So give me a good story. Does anyone ever ask you for actual advice ?”
    I laughed. “Sometimes. Okay, I’ve got a good one. This girl who lives in Russian Hill e-mailed me yesterday to complain about a blind date she’d been on over the weekend at Houston’s. She ordered a hamburger, and the guy ordered just a salad.”
    Ivy narrowed her eyes. “Just a salad?”
    “Just a salad. And when she asked if that was all he was going to eat, he said he was a vegetarian.”
    She pushed a few red curls away from her eyes. “Okay…”
    “So the food comes, and the guy starts eating his salad. The girl picks up her hamburger, and as soon as she takes a bite, he makes a mooing sound.”
    “A what?”
    “A mooing sound, you know, like a cow.”
    “You’re joking.”
    “Not joking. So she looks at him, and he says something along the lines of I’m sorry, but I can’t stop thinking about how you’re eating a dead animal .”
    “There’s no way that really happened.”
    “She could be making it up, of course. You never know.”
    Ivy put her glasses back on. “Okay, that’s it. I’m getting Casey’s name tattooed on my hip after work tonight. I’m locking that man down .”
    “You ladies talking about me again?”
    We both turned our heads as Nick Prodromou, the Sun ’s IT guy, approached Ivy’s cube.
    “Hi, Nick, how’s it going?” I said.
    He yawned. “It’s going. Where there are computers, there’s always a need for the master.” He was wearing a yellow shirt that said, “Even Awesome Needs to Sleep.”
    I laughed. “Nice shirt.”
    “Isn’t it amazing? I bought it at Walgreens on the way to work this morning.”
    “You bought it this morning?” Ivy said.
    “Indeed I did. My bowling league was last night, so I didn’t have anything to wear today. I couldn’t just show up to work in my jumpsuit.”
    Ivy and I exchanged glances.
    “Come again?” I said.
    “You wear a jumpsuit?” Ivy said.
    “I’m confused,” I said.
    “The whole bowling team wears them. They’re amazing. Last night my roommate had friends in town, and they were staying in my room, so I hooked up with this new girl on the team so I’d have somewhere to crash. I didn’t have time to go home before work this morning, so I stopped at Walgreens and tossed the shirt on over the jumpsuit.”
    I stared at him. “You hooked up with a girl on your bowling team just so you could have a place to sleep ?”
    “What’s wrong with that?”
    “Do you even like her?”
    He shrugged. “Warm bed.”
    “ Warm bed? That’s your answer?”
    “Very warm, actually. I had to open a window.”
    I laughed. “Don’t you think she’d be upset if she found out the real reason you hooked up