The big right hand at the end of the big right arm slammed down on the counter. A fork whistled off the counter and stuck in the forehead of Jimmy Carter. Well, actually a portrait of Carter above the coffee pots to make sure crazy rabbits stay away from the coffee, hot and ready for the next customer. A plate was sent spinning much like the ones a juggler would use at the end of those long skinny poles spewing left over sausage gravy and bits of biscuit and pieces of scrambled egg like arms of a far away galaxy. The thunderclap of the slap of hand on counter made most of the folks eating their dishes of breakfast jump under tables they sat at or stopped open mouths ready
for the next bite from forks or spoons suspended in mid air.
"Hot damn Jim that was funny!" the big man said after slapping his hand against the counter.
Budreaux was certainly a big man. And not just because of his big right hand, his left hand matched. But he was one of those drivers that did all his exercising by getting in and out of the cab of the big rig he drove. He wore those Osh Kosh overalls and you could hear the buckles at the shoulder straps, "help me! Help me! I'm gonna let go. The weight! The weight!" Budreaux had a big gut, no doubt about it.
"Ya know Budreaux I saw this sign on I10 I think it was in Aridzona or New Medico. No No it was on 20 west of Weatherford in Texas. Ya know what it said?" asked Jim to his friend.
"Goddamn it Jim, just how in the hell am I supposed to know that?"
"Well, that's the thing Budreaux. It was on a billboard that had a black background with huge white letters. It went like this here: If you have to curse, use your own name, signed God."
"Well I'll be goddamned!" Budreaux explained.
"No Budreaux. Don't you get it? It's 'I'll be Budreauxdamn'".
"Well hell be! I like it!" His big hand hit the counter again. Not much was left to stick into Jimmy's forehead this time however.
"Goddamn it Jim!" hollered Maxine, the waitress from the far end of the counter. "Quit gettin Budreaux worked up with your damn silliness. He'll wreck the place."
"No Maxine. It's Jimdamn it," says Budreaux.
"Come on Maxine, ya know we're good for it. You don't wanna lose your tip do ya?" says Jim.
"Tip? Tip? don't make me laugh you cheap bastard," she said with a smile.
"Well, anyways, you know we are your favorites. Right Budreaux?"
"Damn right Maxine. More coffee please Maxine."
Maxine saunters over with the coffee pot. She pours a refill for Budreaux and Jim. And she leans over just enough to ensure a good tip. A new driver sits at the counter and she moves over to service his needs.
"Listen Budreaux I gotta finish this coffee and go do my logs before I turn in."
"Did mine already. Ya gotta do that stuff right away ya know. You gonna forget someday and it'll cost ya."
"That day has already been here and gone Budreaux. Hard lesson learned."
"I bet Jim. I bet."
Jim takes a swig of his coffee. "I learned another hard lesson as well Budreaux."
"What's that Jim?"
"Don't turn your back on a black cloud."
Budreaux just sits. Waiting. For Jim to start his story.
"Well, I was having one of those days, ya know? The wife calls and starts bitchin about this and that. 4 wheelers darting around the truck like they had a death wish. Late for the first appointment because the dispatcher gave me the wrong address. Hell, even the cat was giving me a bad time."
"How's that Jim?"
"Every time I reached for the shifter she grabbed my arm, dug in with her claws and started chewing on a knuckle, all the while her hind legs whipping against my arm like she was trying to dig all the hairs out!"
"That would surely make it hard to shift there Jim."
"Ya think Budreaux? Hell yeah it does, having a cat hanging on your arm like that."
"So what about the cloud Jim?"
"O yes, the freaky cloud with attitude. What a friggin day."
"Well, out of no where this black cloud formed over my truck. Weird it was. Full of moisture. Full of electricity. Full of mischief it was. No matter where I went it went. Kinda like Pigpen."
"That dirty kid on Peanuts?"
"Yep, only I had a rain cloud and not a cloud of dust. Anyways, it got so bad Budreaux that every time a lightning bolt struck the cat would spin in her chair like a top. At one stop the shipper said that it had been a clear sky till I drove in. Nothing like it he'd seen his whole time at that warehouse. Hell, I had to tarp in the rain seeing clear skys all around me!"
"Damn, no shit? How'd you get rid of it Jim?"
"Crap Budreaux I just started laughing. Laugh and laugh and laugh. So hard I cried. Had to pull over and set the brakes. Couldn't see for all the tears. Cat staring at me weird like. Matter of fact I told her she had such a weird look she laughed! That's when I saw sunshine through the tears. The cloud had lifted."
"Really?"
"Yessir. Finish your coffee and I'll walk out with ya. I'm done. Ain't no clouds hanging over me ever again."
Jim and Budreaux got up from their counter stools and headed out the door to their trucks. Giving a hand wave to Maxine on the way out.
