PROGRESS REPORT 12

           June5

           NemurisupsetbecauseIhaven’tturnedinanyprogressreportsinalmosttwoweeks(andhe’sjustifiedbe­causetheWelbergFoundationhasbegunpayingmeasalaryoutofthegrantsothatIwon’thavetolookforajob).TheInternationalPsychologicalConventionatChicagoisonlyaweekaway.Hewantshispreliminaryre­porttobeasfullaspossible,sinceAlgernonandIaretheprimeexhibitsforhispresentation.

           Ourrelationshipisbecomingincreasinglystrained.IresentNemur’sconstantreferencestomeasalaboratoryspecimen.HemakesmefeelthatbeforetheexperimentIwasnotreallyahumanbeing.

           ItoldStraussthatIwastooinvolvedinthinking,reading,anddiggingintomyself,tryingtounderstandwhoandwhatIam,andthatwritingwassuchaslowprocessitmademeimpatienttogetmyideasdown.Ifol­lowedhissuggestionthatIlearntotype,andnowthatIcantypenearlyseventy-fivewordsaminute,it’seasiertogetitalldownonpaper.

           Straussagainbroughtupmyneedtospeakandwritesimplyanddirectlysothatpeoplewillunderstandme.Heremindsmethatlanguageissometimesabarrierinsteadofapathway.Ironictofindmyselfontheothersideofthein­tellectualfence.

           IseeAliceoccasionally,butwedon’tdiscusswhathap­pened.Ourrelationshipremainsplatonic.ButforthreenightsafterIleftthebakerytherewerethenightmares.Hardtobelieveitwastwoweeksago.

           Iampursueddowntheemptystreetsatnightbyghostlyfigures.