Before season three of White Lotus made it a national conversation, Bookpimp and Dutch were testing the waters of brotherly affection. 

They, Bookpimp and Dutch, were driving cross-state in the night to a family event. They got a late start because one (or both) of their minimum-wage jobs had them working late. Given their meager means, they had the practice of sharing drinks and snacks at gas stops. At the last fueling, Dutch got a 32-ounce Big Gulp drink. This places our story in the early nineties, when both of them were in their twenties, because 32 ounces was the prominent option of the day. If this story happened now, it would likely be a 64 or even 96 ounce beverage and in a plastic cup instead of the styrofoam one they had this night. That it was a 32-ounce cup matters not only to date the story but also because this was a time when car cup holders could not yet hold these bloated canisters. Due to this, the accepted practice was to hold the cup between your legs to ensure it did not spill. 

They’d been going several hours and were talked out, making the only sounds in the car coming from the stereo. In time, Bookpimp was ready for a pull from the drink. Without looking, he reached over to grab the large cup from his brother’s lap. His mind did not initially register the information his fingers sent to his brain. I imagine his mind flickering like a home’s electricity pulsing on and off. Perplexed, he looked to his right. He saw the white of Dutch’s eyes staring back at him, the cup in his raised hand, and the straw in his mouth. Neither of them had to look down to know what Bookpimp’s hand was holding.

Calmly, Bookpimp returned his hand to the steering wheel, looked forward and with great equanimity, said, “When you’re done taking your drink, I would like some, please.”

Those were the only words ever said by the brothers about this shared moment in a car racing down a nighttime highway to a family event. However, I do believe at the next fueling, there were two Big Gulps purchased. 

Best friend Mike, known around these parts as Bookpimp, recently turned 50. To mark the milestone, he had planned a gathering of his three best buds, which techinically is two best friends and a brother. The original celebration got axed by the pandemic but was salvaged in late 2022 when things started normalizing. Months before the gathering, I reached out to the other two invitees, unbeknowst to...

dutch engelbrecht

(what with my brain's workers still on a full work-stoppage given their mistreatment over the last few months, i thought i'd share the words of someone whose cerebral employees have not left him in a lurch.)