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NURSE EVIL
MY NEW NURSE is an unsmiling despot with a nursing degree. Her name is Janet
Pritchert. “You may call me Nurse Janet,” she says. Her voice is unnaturally high, like an
alarm.
She emphasizes the word Nurse so that I understand that simply calling her Janet will
not do. Her handshake is too firm, as if she’s more used to crushing things than caring for
them.
It’s possible that my view of her is biased.
All I see when I look at her is how much she’s not Carla. She’s thin where Carla was
stout. Her speech is not peppered with Spanish words. She has no accent at all. Compared
with Carla, she’s altogether less.
By the afternoon I’ve decided to adjust my attitude, but that’s when the first of her
notes appears, stickied to my laptop.
My mom has reinstated my Internet access but only during the school day. She says I’m
only supposed to be using it for schoolwork, but I’m sure the fact that Olly has started
school and only gets home after 3 P.M. has something to do with it.
I check the time. It’s 2:30 P.M. I decide not to adjust my attitude. Nurse Janet could’ve
at least given me a chance to break the rule before assuming that I would be a rule
breaker.