You Got a Late Start but...

 You Got a Late Start but...




     Greg loved stories about the characters in my Dad's life. One of those loose screws was Russ Higgins who was allergic to work and familiar with the race track. BC felt sorry for some guys and his inclusion of Russ went back to the 1930's. Lou Silver said of Russ "he don't pay his old debts and he lets his new ones get old." Higgins as he was mostly called hung around Santa Barbara and made a few bucks as a scalper and the trunk of his car was always filled with goods that may or may not have been pilfered. At one time he was driving down to Tijuana and buying cheap plaster items (like piggy banks) and hawking them outside sporting events. In other words Russ Higgins was a loser living on the fringes who also was grossly overweight with a huge bulging belly. BC would sometimes help him out with a few bucks to make the rent or place a bet. Once, I was in the ticket office talking to Lou and Russ arrived in his old car and got out and began to walk briskely toward the front door. Lou said "here he comes...sharpening his teeth!" So, among  Greg and I Russ Higgins and his TJ bull banks were firmly in a place of ticket service infamy. Because of his limited cash flow Russ lived in a crummy apartment in Cudahy where he studied the Racing Form and flopped at the end of a day of avoiding work. At the same time I had begun to right my overturned boat and had enrolled in Library School at Cal State Fullerton. Despite my poverty, I shopped at the excellent Farmer Fred's Market at Florence and California on the edge of Hungtington Park. One day after classes I stopped in to pick up some groceries and ran into Higgins who was probably there because it was cheap and they had a fine selection of affordable meat. So Russ asked me about my status in life and I told him  I had returned to school and was studying to be a librarian. So big shot Russ shot back "You got a late start but you'll be alright." I was twenty-eight years old, had a degree from UCLA in English Literature and was set to begain my life's work. Russ said his piece and returned to his beat up car with a trunk full of Elvis paintings on velvet and Bull Banks ready for sale. I did get a later start but it turned out OK just like Russ said it would.


                                                        in Library School Late Start


 

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