Shanice and the Questionnaire

*** Ryan Joins a Bowling League ***

Everyone on the city bus was paying attention to Ryan. He: was in his mid forties, white, five eleven, clean shaven, dark curly hair, dark eyes, and a noticeable smile. He was wearing: a simple green spring jacket, green cargo pants, an orange colored polo shirt, hiking type of shoes, and a tan baseball cap with a bowling ball and pin embroidered on the front; a cap his Sister-in-law sewed him. Next to him was a rolling three ball bowling bag, on the seat next to him was a single bowling bag with his spare ball, and he was carrying a print out. He believed the bus would be dropping him off in front of the bowling alley just before league was starting; he hoped he would have time to practice. He was looking forward to joining a league with two of his friends from work. Without this invite he would have never joined a league at this bowling alley; living in the city for three months he didn't even know it existed until the guys at work asked him to join.

Ryan recognized he was sticking out like a sore thumb but taking the bus was his only way to the bowling alley. Ryan believed as long as he minded his own business and stuck to the front of the bus he would be okay. Ryan moved to a city with three million people with a large population of the city filled with a variety of minority groups. Ryan was from a population of 44 thousand people where minority's composed of only 2.5 percent of the population. Basically there were five to six minority families in this Wisconsin community. After moving to the city he realized how expensive it was to own a car in the downtown area. Instead of paying these prices he decided he would use public transit until he could move out to a decent suburb. His niece was happy to receive his car but was concerned on what bus routes his Uncle was willing to take.

The bus driver. An intense black man who had played college football was often given this route. He was a bus driver for twenty years and he never witnessed a white guy pulling bowling balls on any of his routes before. With it being Monday and an early evening the bus was pretty tame. There was the possibility this would change when this white guy was coming back into the downtown area. With it being Monday there was less chance of trouble; but there was still a chance of trouble. This was what concerned the bus driver.

He looked up in the mirror and asked, "Where you headed?"

Ryan answered, "Me?"

The bus driver answered, "Yeah."

"I'm joining a bowling league tonight."

"Isn't it late in the season to join?"

Ryan answered, "Two of the guys I work with mentioned they needed someone to fill in for them."

The bus driver knew of two bowling alley's on his route. One was way at the end of the route in a southern suburb of the city. The other was in an upper middle class black neighborhood, the name of the ally was "All Star." The bowling alley itself was in one of the safest neighborhoods in the city. Anyone who wanted to cause trouble avoided this neighborhood because the people who lived there wouldn't put with with any drama. The situation changed three blocks north of this bowling alley. White people visited this establishment usually on the weekends to see popular jazz and blue acts. Most drove there. Certainly, no white person took the bus there to bowl; there were other bowling alleys within the city and out in the suburbs were most white people bowled.

The bus driver felt compelled to ask him, "What bowling alley?"

Ryan said, "All Star. I guess it has a nice jazz club and restaurant attached to it."

"Are you sure you want to bowl there?"

Ryan said, "I promised I'd be there."

The people in the bus gave him looks.

Ryan: pulled the string, there was a ding, and the front bus light went on and a sign lite up saying, "Stop Requested."

The newer buses had: a sign up front with a running digital messages, a computer voice would say what stop it was, it sometimes mentioned the bus routes it crossed, they had a brand new card system, and some even had hydraulics to lift a bus up or down; this bus had none of those things. When the bus driver first started he took his CDL license on a bus exactly like this one.

Ryan let an older black woman pass him. He: stood up, swung the single ball bowling bag over his shoulder, yanked the three ball bag out from the seats, made sure he didn't roll over anyone's foot, and waited for the bus to stop. The people he passed were honestly shocked at what they were seeing.

The bus driver reluctantly stopped the bus, "Are you sure?"

Ryan was excited on the inside but said in a calm manner, "I see the bowling alley."

The bus driver shook his head. Just about everyone on the bus was shocked to see Ryan drag his bowling balls off the bus.

This bowling alley was built in the early sixties. It started out as a six lane bowling alley with a very small bar. It was now: the whole block, it had 24 lanes, a good sized bar, a popular restaurant, and a decent sized stage. The same family owned this bowling alley for three generations. There had been many changes over the years, there were many pictures hanging on the inside walls of this establishment showing these changes. It was a staple of the black community. During the week the sit down area was more of a restaurant. Starting at four PM on Friday night this was turned into a Jazz and Blues club. Many local acts appeared here and from time to time national acts would play. It was known to have good food; it was very popular within the black community. On Sunday evenings there was often guest speakers or stand ups who would talk about a wide range of topics. On many weekends a floor was placed over the bowling alley to host weddings and other large gatherings. During the week Monday through Thursday there were leagues some of these were large and others were not so large; Monday night league covered all twenty-four lanes. This league started when the bowling alley opened and there wasn't any signs it would end. Some of the best bowlers in the city bowled on this league. Very few white people ever bowled on any of the leagues. Certainly they wouldn't choose this Monday night league, not because they were never welcomed, its just they never did so. Some might say this was good, others might say this was bad, most really didn't think about it one way or the other.

Tyrone one of the guys Ryan worked with was smoking a cigarette outside of the bowling alley. This is when he spotted Ryan step out of the bus.

One of Tyrone's friends said, "Look at that!"

Another questioned, "It looks like he wants to bowl?"

Someone asked an old timer, "When was the last time a white guy bowled here?"

Very serious, "It was Stan Bossly."

One of the middle aged guys mentioned, "He lived up the street from me."

A friend asked him, "When was that?"

"When I was a kid."

Tyrone demanded, "Don't mess with him."

They looked at him and the middle aged guy said, "What?"

Tyrone said matter of fact, "He's an okay guy. He's our replacement."

He received looks from the guys standing there.

Tyrone said again, "He's a good guy. He's with us."

He threw his cigarette on the ground and quickly entered the bowling alley. He used a different entrance, an entrance used during league nights and during the day but was locked from entering any other time (there was a bar on the inside so people could easily leave in an emergency). Being as cool as he could he walked up to Leroy. Leroy set his bowling ball on the ball return.

Tyrone said, "Your not going to believe it."

"What?"

Tyrone answered, "I told you he'd show up."

Leroy looked at him, "Who?"

"Ryan."

Leroy said, "I didn't expect him to come down here."

"He's stepping off the bus."

Leroy looked at him, "He took the bus?"

Tyrone mentioned, "You know he doesn't own a car."

Bubba, one of their team members asked, "Are we using a sub again?"

Tyrone and Leroy looked at one another.

Leroy said, "Put a guy named Ryan as the second bowler."

Bubba looked at him, "Ryan?"

Tyrone pointed, "He's over there."

Bubba and Isiah looked at Tyrone and Leroy; then they turned toward the front counter.

Isiah asked while Ryan was stepping up to the counter, "Are you sure?"

Tyrone answered, "He says he has a one ninety average."

They gave him faces. In this league this average was good but not great; but they needed a replacement. All of the guys were sick of paying for a person who wasn't showing up.

Slowly the whole bowling alley became quiet. It had been years since a single white guy stepped into this establishment to bowl.

Ryan pushed open a door, walked through a long and wide hallway. On his right was an entrance to the bar, restaurant, and nightclub. Above this doorway was a neon sign in fancy letters saying: "Blueberry Hill Club." Underneath the writing were bright white piano keys, left of the writing was a saxophone. On the left side of the hallway were a set of restrooms, on the long wall passed the restrooms there were historic pictures hanging on the wall; most of these were of famous musicians who played in the club. When acts played the doors were closed and at least two bouncers were in front. At this time the doors were open and a bouncer was sitting on a stool off to the side. He was just as surprised as everyone else to observe a white guy just walk through the door on a Monday night at: "All Star Bowling Alley and Blueberry Hill Play House." It was easy to tell he intended to bowl. The regulars at the bar were just as shocked as the bouncer. The bouncer quickly headed to the front.

Ryan stepped out of the hallway and immediately realized he was the only white person (except for three white women who were married to couple of the bowlers). He felt out of place. He shrugged this off because he was invited to bowl here. He walked up to the counter.

The owner pushed himself up to the counter, "May I help you?"

Ryan said, "I'm here to bowl with Leroy and Tyrone. I guess his team is short a guy."

The bouncer showed up. A petite light skinned college student behind the counter was staring at Ryan. There was no doubt a person had to work hard to work here but she felt it was worth it because her family were musicians. Her uncle, a regular sax player at the club; was the one got her the job. The bouncer and this woman glanced at one another.

The owner asked, "Which Leroy?"

Ryan answered, "Leroy Jones. We work at the same warehouse together."

Leroy and Tyrone met him at the counter. Leroy said, "He's with us."

The owner and the bouncer looked at the two guys and made a face, "He is?"

Ryan stood there watching.

The owner said, "He needs to be sanctioned."

Ryan answered simply, "I'm sanctioned."

The owner looked at Ryan, slid his glasses down, and asked: "Where?"

"A town in Wisconsin."

He was asked, "What town?"

When he said the name everyone just looked at him.

Ryan simply stated a fact, "It's difficult to pronounce because it's a native American name."

They all looked at one another, the owner grabbed a sheet of paper, "Write down the name of the place you bowled at, your average, and the name of the league. If you have it I'd like to see your bowling card."

Ryan pulled out his wallet and give the card to the owner. He just set his wallet on the counter and wrote down the information the owner asked for. All of them took note on how he just left his wallet sit there.

Tyrone asked, "What's your average again?"

"A 190 but I'm sometimes inconsistent. I'll have some bad games. But I'm working on it."

They all glanced at one another.

Ryan gave the owner the slip. The owner gave him his card back. Ryan put it in his wallet and slipped the wallet back into his pocket.

The owner looked at Ryan, looked at the woman who ran the register, "Ring him up."

Ryan paid the woman and went to the alley. Everyone watched him set his stuff against the wall where everyone else set their stuff. He: put on his shoes, grabbed a towel, and took two bowling balls to the lane. In front of each lane was a table that sat five. Everyone watched as he set his cell phone on the table just like everyone else. Leroy introduced him to the other team members.

Behind the lanes were many tables. During league nights people moved them around so friends and family could sit together. On Monday night this was especially true because this night drew the most people. The three waitresses earned their money on a Monday night.

*** Two and a half months later: Shanice arrives home ***

Shanice pulled her SUV into her two car garage. Shanice was: darker skinned, in her mid thirties, was five nine, had an oval shaped face, rounded chin, soft jaw line, short but wide nose, noticeable cheeks, and had a nice smile. When she smiled: her upper lip stretched out, her full lower lip became very noticeable, her small cheeks became well defined, they were directly under her dark eyes, and her upper teeth became visible; her teeth were always clean and straight. She: was in good shape, had small breasts, long legs, a noticeable backside, nice hips, worked out on a fairly regular basis, and believed in eating well. She was wearing a gray woman's business suit with a long skirt and matched this was a red long sleeved button blouse and red heals. She was looking forward to changing out of these clothes and wear something more comfortable. She: set her purse over her shoulder, grabbed her woman's style briefcase, grabbed a cloth bag, and her computer case; which protected her laptop. She took out the keys from her purse and unlocked the door between her garage and the house. She stepped into a short hallway. To her right was a utility closet and just passed the closet was the opening to her large kitchen. She took off her shoes and carried them into her house.

This is when she received a text message from her friend Diamond. Diamond believed Shanice should come down to the bowling alley and find a good man. Diamond's plan was for Shanice to meet Bubba. He had been a pro football player for the city's team. Instead of moving back to Georgia he stayed in the city and now owned a string of local gas stations and was a regular on the local sports talk station. Besides Bubba; Diamond had mentioned three other successful men who bowled on this league.

Shanice set her stuff down at her kitchen table and sighed. It had been three years since she dated. Before this self imposed single life she had two long term relationships that ended badly. Before these long term relationships she had gone through a season of boyfriends and two guys on the side. Before this her heart was broken when the man she fell in love with cheated on her. She would freely admit to both herself and anyone else dating many men and a willingness to sleep with them was a horrible approach. This season in her life led to the rumors she had slept with hundreds of men. She would readily admit the nine guys she slept with during this time were nine to many, but to have the rumor she slept with as many as she did was both ridiculous and hurtful. She was forever grateful she never ended up pregnant or ended up with a sexual transmitted disease. She mustered the courage and was tested for everything.

Then their were the rumors she was a dominatrix. She heard of the rumors she had a sex dungeon in her basement, was an angry lover, would belittle lovers, and enjoyed beating the men she was with; none of this was true. These rumors came from the fact: she would stand up for herself, she liked sex, was willing to say what she liked, and was willing to engage in kinkier type of sex; but she was far from a dominatrix.

She was looking for a long term relationship that would lead to marriage. After her last two long term relationships she wondered if this would happen for her. She felt the only reason the second guy wanted to date her was because of the rumor she was a dominatrix. As much as she tried to have it work with her first long term relationship it failed because of their poor communication. She wanted a guy: she could talk to about anything, wasn't focused on wealth, actually had a job, had some sort of plan, wouldn't be jealous of her success, would be manly, would never cheat, and was into kinkier type of sex.

Diamond texted her a few more times.

Shanice texted back saying she was uninterested.

Diamond called her.

Reluctantly Shanice changed into comfortable clothes and made her way to the bowling alley. Her goal was to enjoy the time with: Diamond, Simone, and Jasmine. Shanice considered these three ladies true friends. One of the more hurtful aspects of her "reputation" were the people she believed were her friends but turned out to be something different. The least thing she was looking for was a man in her life. She felt the last three years of being single helped her become an overall better person and a better small business owner.

*** Six weeks later: At the bowling alley; Shanice at the table***

Four ladies were sitting at one of these tables. Simone was married to Leroy. Diamond was married to Tyrone. Jasmine was dating Isiah. These three ladies showed up every week. Other friends of theirs would often show up; how many varied from week to week. For the last six weeks Shanice was showing up. This was the first time she ever showed up for this many weeks in a row. Based on outfits she had worn the last five weeks she was trying to get someones attention. They believed Shanice was interested in Bubba. Many of the ladies were interested in him. As well as the other highly successful black men who bowled on this Monday night.

Simone mentioned to Jasmine, "You know he takes the bus."

Jasmine gave her a look, "Why doesn't he drive?"

Diamond answered, "He believes it's to expensive living downtown. He told Tyrone as soon as he moves out of downtown he'll buy one then. He's been taking the bus to work ever since he started working with the guys. I guess he's never missed a day."

Jasmine asked, "Isn't he the only white guy who works there?"

Simone answered, "One of the maintenance guys is white. Oh, there's two Korean guys working there now."

Shanice glanced over at Ryan. She hoped he was bowling well.

Diamond said matter of fact, "Tyrone says everyone likes him."

Shanice asked something she knew already, "So he works with Tyrone and Leroy?"

Simone answered, "He moved up here from some small town in Wisconsin."

Shanice asked, "Why?"

Diamond answered, "Because of family."

Shanice asked, "Where does he live exactly?"

Diamond answered, "A block away from City Park."

Shanice made a face.

Simone answered, "He's not gay. He didn't know what neighborhood he moved into. The studio apartment he lives in is pretty cheap. He says it saves him money and he's close to all the bus routes."

Shanice asked, "What's the name of the town he's from?"

Simone rolled her eyes, "No one can pronounce it. It's some native American name." She added, "I guess he asked out a lesbian in his building."

Shanice asked, "Why? Does he like lesbians? Is he on some sort of conquest?"

Diamond mentioned, "I heard the story. She's a woman who lives in his building. I guess they became friends and he asked her out. He couldn't figure out she was a lesbian."

Shanice answered, "I thought maybe he was looking for a threesome."

Simone mentioned, "I don't believe he'd be into that."

Diamond added, "Me either."

Shanice wanted to believe them.

The guys on his team took turns taking Ryan home. None of them wanted him to take the bus at night. The following week Ryan would either buy an appetizer platter or buy a round of drinks. Around Christmas time he gave all the guys a gift card to the gas station chain Bubba was associated with.

Diamond mentioned, "Why doesn't he bowl that good all the time?"