Another great character study in the Times today, this time about a 83-year-old man who has been the doorman at the same building since 1960. He has a number of wonderful things to say about life, love and working at the same place for 50 years. My favorite part of the story is when he describes his diet:
What he eats for lunch: Only homemade eating. No restaurants. Everything from home. Today I have ham salad and cake. Cake has to be every day. I love cake. Cake every day. This I have to have. My wife makes the cake. If my wife don’t bake, then I bake. Soup and cake. This is my favorite.
As an exercise:
What’s the one thing your character does every day? Do they eat cake like this doorman or wake up to Sonny & Cher on the radio like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day or scrape away at the wall under a Rita Hayworth poster like Tim Robbins in Shawshank Redemption? Why do they do it? Habit or necessity? What happens if they don’t do that thing?
