Hey, wanna start a fire
One that’ll never go out
Burn a hole through the center of my mind
Let all the bad thoughts out
This is not a love affair
This is something more complex
Hey, wanna start a war
I’m tired of this old one
And history is true
And it goes round in circles
Burn down the house, there’s a devil in the closet
And everything I say is true
And I go round in circles
I’ll burn down the house, there’s a devil in the closet
My Path Belated and Devil in the Closet were originally one chapter, but I divided it into two, rather than have four short scenes in one long chapter, I think two short scenes apiece in two short chapters works better at this point. Everything is (and, at the time, was) moving so fast in many directions.
The character Jane is named after the subject of the Bob Dylan song Queen Jane Approximately. I referred to her as Queen Jane shortly after we became friends, in the sense of “I have no idea what I’m doing or why things are happening, won’t you come see me and explain, Queen Jane?”
But after the adventure with Tania in HR, the more pertinent lyric was the penultimate line of the lyrics: “And if you want someone you don’t have to speak to.” Thanks to Tania in HR, Jane got what she wanted. Ha.
The “we all have our role to play, Queen Jane” line in the dialogue at lunch with Jane, way back in The Token (Chapter 4), was actually the last message I sent in the last IM exchange I had with Jane before the HR complaint, on the afternoon of Thursday, April 12, 2018.
Damron: Are you in the D&I [Diversity and Inclusion committee] meeting?
Jane [from the Mixx conference room]: Yes
Damron: Is The MP in attendance?
Jane: Oh yes. No meeting is complete without his presence.
Damron: We all have our role to play, Queen Jane.
Twelve days later, Tania in HR came to call.
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