Marlon adjusted his glasses and turned to his wife. "How do I look?"
"Like a supervillain?" Peggy replied.
The jokes were not going to stop with her. But that was the price he would have to pay to wear the glasses to the reunion. His cover was that he had to keep them on for work. But the truth was, they were his crutch; if they worked correctly, he would know any family member's name before they got the last syllable of 'hello' out of their mouths. It had taken all week to convince his wife; saying that her family members all looked alike had not helped matters. But she relented, on the condition that his subterfuge would remain undetected.
Their timing was perfect: the first of the grilled masterpieces were being served. Peggy's mother, Lorraine, 58, greeted them by herself. "You made it! And Marlon's trying to look like he's money!"
"If you knew how much I paid for these, you'd know I was, Lorraine..." He leaned in to get his cheeks kissed. "Your daughter'll make me a cabana boy any day now. If not, you need one?"
Lorraine giggled. "The boys are over by the grill and the beer, of course." She shooed him away, taking her daughter with her.
The grill was unmanned when he walked up to it. His glasses were already sizing up the nutritional values and remaining cooking time for all the meat selections, when a large hand gripped his shoulder.
"Marlon! You made it!" Marlon turned to face... who was this? "Peggy wouldn't let you talk your way out of it, huh?"
The glasses started to work as soon as they detected his voice. In the right-hand corner, Marlon saw
Ed Solowitz, 48, Lubbock, Texas
"Ed!" Marlon shook his hand, as he rapidly watched his glass. "Geez, Ed, how long you been here?"
Current Wife: Emma, 26 ; Dogs:2 - Rusty, Lady Marmalade
"First thing! Emma wanted to help Mom out-
First wife: Doreen, 45 ; children: Mark, 17 ; Ellen, 15; Neil, 8
"-as in I get to make all the trips to the grocery store. You lucked out!"
Traffic citations: 1998, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2009
"Yeah, thanks for taking that bullet, Ed. How are you and Emma doing?"
Emma Solowitz, 23, dance instructor, Lubbock, Texas ; owner, Stripocize Fitness, Inc.
"We're doing great!-"
Employed: Southland Resources, VP Finance, Dallas Division, 2008-present
"We had a good quarter-
HEADLINE: Southland Resources VP harrassment suit dismissed
"-might get a vacation redo sooner than I thought."
HEADLINE: Norovirus strikes again in Corpus Christi cruise ship
"Well, you deserve it, Ed."
Ed raised his beer can. "Don't I know it!" In the corner of Marlon's eye, a pair of luscious lips blew him a kiss.
Coors Lite: Tap the Rockies
Marlon looked at the beer can in his hand, then back at Ed; he was wearing a virtual handlebar mustache.
OLD MILWAUKEE: The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous!
"Hey, Marlon - why's your eye twitching?" Marlon blinked hard and focused his gaze on Ed's square face.
ALOPECIA: male pattern baldness, afflicts up to...
"I got a thing."
"Is that why you're wearing the glasses?"
Marlon tried to focus his eye square at Ed's head. "Yeah, it's supposed to help."
ROGAINE: Use it or Lose it!
Marlon took the glasses. "...but I think I need a break."
inspired by Discover Magazine article, "Google Glass: A Futuristic Fantasy that Already Feels Retro"
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