Capital Hill:

A Play of Dialogue About Accepting Change in an Extraordinary Place

Thanks.

Anything good happen yet?

I feel like the sky is greener than usual.

Might be that EXT382-B finally set. Move your chair a little, my knees feel cramped.

Yes, sorry.

See those people over there?

No.

Over there. Right there.

Yes, yes, I see them now.

Do you know them?

No, I don’t. So many more people show up here now. Most of them don’t stick around to talk.  

We should scare them away.  

Don’t think like that. Let them be. 

We used to know everyone that showed up.  

And today it’s fine that it’s just them and us. 

That’s fucked.  

But that’s the way things go.  

They probably don’t even know�" 

Oh, look over there, look!  

S**t, s**t, where are you pointing?  

Right over there, follow my arm. You see where the cloud is pushing?  

There it is. I see it.  

They’re seeing it too. Good for them for noticing. 

It’s not good and they need to calm the f**k down.  

You can’t deny that it is exciting. You shouldn’t fault them for that.  

I hope it’s a flat day, that way they don’t come back. 

Well, I hope it isn’t! I was really hoping to see one today.

Fine, I hope one comes out once they leave. 

I guess that’s fine.

Shh! Did you hear that?

No, I don’t hear�"

Shh.

I think it’s just the wind.

Shhh! 

It’s them talking. 

Ah, you’re right. S**t. 

I think they’re on a date. 

Jesus, a date? 

It is serene and romantic up here. There’s going to be a lot more people showing up.  

F**k that. 

If we were able to come upon this place others were bound to, as well. 

Okay, I get it. It just sucks. 

Luxury condos will go right where we’re sitting. 

Are you f*****g serious? That’s fucked. When?  

I’m just joking. 

That’s a horrible joke. 

Look, it’s happening again.  

It’s bigger this time. It probably will happen with them here. 

Oh, let it go. My feet are tingling. 

Why?  

It’s exciting.  

I know. It’s just the way you say it. 

Most everyone would want to see one. You can’t blame people for that. 

Blame isn’t the right word. I just don’t want them here. 

You mean you don’t want this to change?

I don’t want other people here.

Isn’t that the same thing? 

This isn’t like a restaurant where if people don’t show up it closes. 

So what do you think will happen? 

That we’ll never see one again. Okay? Jesus. 

Oh, well, that is a scary thought. But do you actually think that? 

I don’t know, maybe.  I just don’t want to get to the point where it might happen.

Ah! That was loud! 

Damn, that made you jump. 

There, there! A fin!

It’s purple? Am I seeing that right?

Yes, it looks like it is.

S**t. Have we ever seen a purple fin?

No. I would have remembered something like this.

It’s coming through.

Oh my God, she’s pink. She’s amazing.

She’s huge, way bigger than normal. Here she comes.

Her whole body is pink. We’ve never seen a pink whale.  She’s the size of the sky.

No, not that big. She’s coming right towards us.

She can’t see us though.

I read that they could. They’re scared over there.

You should watch her instead of them.

She’s turning back.

Wow. She was great. Our first and maybe our only one.

They’re packing up.

Stop worrying about them.

I can’t believe they saw a rare whale their first time out.

It might not be their first time.

First time here then. It’s taken us this long to see one and they see it their first time.

Does being upset about it change anything?

What are you talking about?

Will people stop coming if you stay angry about it?

I hope so.

The real answer is no. So why stay angry? You can simply enjoy what we saw today and hope that we see one again tomorrow.

Look, they waved.

See, they even acknowledged us.

Yeah.

Do you have to go?

No. Do you?

Nope. Maybe she’ll come back.

Reviews

[Phillip W Parsons]

Had to go back and check to see if you were from Washington. Looks like you are. I've been a bartender in Seattle for 20 years. I am assuming we are thinking about the same Capital Hill.
Such a creative way to express what locals have been saying for years now. This piece confuses and captures the imagination just perfectly.
"This isn’t like a restaurant where if people don’t show up it closes." -This captures the pros and cons of gentrification perfectly. Well done and thanks for the read.

[Sara Lufrano]

Thank you! And yep, good old Capital Hill. I've only been here for five years but I enjoy every minute of it.

[emmajoy]

'Anything good happen yet? ~ I feel like the sky is greener than usual.~ Might be that EXT382-B finally set. Move your chair a little, my knees feel cramped. ~ Yes, sorry. ~ See those people over there? ~ No. ~ Over there. Right there. .. .. '

There's such am original, wayward style in this! At first, I was tempted to stop reading, to move away. However - clever you lured me in, I had to know what the heck was going on! Whilst still unsure, I thought the two were either looking into a fish bowl or were outside it, looking in.

You introduce sound, sight, colour to the dialogue, adding even more strength. That's the cleverness of your words.. they nudge... they beckon. 'There, there! A fin! ~ It’s purple? Am I seeing that right? ~ Yes, it looks like it is. ~ S**t. Have we ever seen a purple fin? ~ No. I would have.. '

Apart from a few irrelevant phrases, this really is an unusual and strangely inspiring piece of writing. You grew as I read, you took the power of words and wove such an incredible pattern!

[Sara Lufrano]

Thank you! This makes me feel really good about a weird piece I was hoping to get a point across with.

[Chris A Jones]

I like the fact that it was all dialog. I actually used a mostly dialog format for one of my novels. I think it makes it interesting and more like the individual is there and eavesdropping so to speak. If there is one thing I would offer, the dialog can be hard to follow if you don't know anything about the characters. You may have intended it this way. But I think it makes the story even more interesting when you can see who is saying what and know at least their motivations behind the conversation.

[Sara Lufrano]

Thank you Chris! This is a difficult story so any feedback on making it better is appreciated. Great idea on making it better!

[Chris A Jones]

My pleasure!

[Author Gus]

It was interesting, just a straightforward conversation between two people that we have no knowledge of. I heard two young males, somebody else could hear a pair of grumpy old men, or maybe a couple of teenage girls. With a little imagination you could read this piece in a thousand different ways.

Positive reviews are nice but not helpful so in the interest of offering a critique; I do think that some of the dialog (which is all of it) was a bit redundant. That being said, I'm pretty sure that was an artistic choice so as always, it's your work and it served it's purpose; entertaining the reader.

[Sara Lufrano]

Thank you! I encourage honest feedback, can't make it better without it. I can comb through it with that in mind and see what I can adjust to make stronger. Thanks again!