Her name was Jewell Greene (she spelled it that way). Forever, one of my best friend's...

I met Jewell about 13 years ago in Houston. I had just left my then husband, and moved into the apartment opposite her's. Feeling quite lost and very alone (1800 miles away from everything that I knew), I was immediately drawn to her genteal smile.

We exchanged pleasantries and seemed to be the only neighbor's who spoke to each other in the entire complex, but we didn't care. In retospect, knowing her, was more then enough.

We noticed one another coming and going in very familliar outfit's. UNIFORMS! We were both nurses! No wonder we were drawn to each other, even though we were from two very differnt worlds.

She was in her early 70's and came from Little Rock, Arkansas. I was in my mid 30's and came from the East Coast. But we were the best of friend's. I yapped about Sade' and Rod Stewart concerts, as she served coffee in demitasse cups, and Ladyfingers pastries, on embroidered linen napkins. What a pair we were.

Because of her age, bad knees and hips, she stayed away from the hospital setting and did mostly private duty cases through an agency. Mainly sitting with elderly persons.

The pickings where slim for this type of case because there were so many nurses vying for an easy duty job, so Jewell had a case that no one else wanted. The patient's name was Joe.

She hated this case. Joe wasn't that much older then her but he was a full fledged "loon". She never knew what he was going to do next.

He seemed to delight in tormenting her, but most annoying to her were his tendencies to cop a feel or pinch her boobs. She had to be on her gaurd at all times with this man.

Joe spent the day alone except for his visiting kids and grandkids but had to be supervised during the night. That is where Jewell entered his life.

He would stay up all night looking for something to get in to. She was nervous as a cat on this case, BUT...

One evening she was heading out and she said that "she was on her way to "Crazy Joe's", as she rolled her eyes. I felt bad for her. I don't know why such an elderly woman was working a full time job, but I got the impression that she had been put in this position by her x-husband. I said, "have a good night and see ya tomorrow".

She fretted all the way to Joe's house, what would he have in store for her tonight?

When she got to the house, she hopped out of the car and opened the gate, which swung open to let you in, then you'd have to close it behind you once you drove into the yard.

She opened the gate and turned back just in time to see her car coming at her. It ran completely over her BUT she was totally unhurt because it had mashed her all the way down in the red clay mud of the driveway! She only suffered a tiny bruise where the car had made the initial contact with her.

It continued to roll on till it hit the incline in the yard where it halted.

She went up to it and discovered that she had left it in DRIVE when she hopped out to open the gate. That whole time Joe was peering out the window and she was beside herself and not thinking I guess.

She was covered from head to toe in red clay mud and to make matters worse, when she tried to go in the house, Joe had dead bolted the door! She said that she spent a good hour pleading with him in the window, to open the door as he went from window to window, peeking out through the curtains then disappearing. All the while, the mud was hardening.

He finally let her in and she went directly to the bathroom. Unfortunately, there wasn't much she could do but clean her face and hands. He didn't have a washer and dryer (his kids did his laundry) and besides she could not risk slipping into something else, not knowing what this man might do. So she put a towel on a kitchen chair and there she sat, covered in red clay mud that was getting harder by the hour, for her entire 12 hour shift! (7P-7A)

The next day I was rushing out in the morning, only to see a bright red/orange Jewell, hobbling up the sidewalk on her way home. In shock, I started to say "what happened"? But before I could utter a word, she said "don't ask" and "I'll tell you about it later". I KNEW it involved Joe, but I couldn't imagine how?

I rushed over to her apartment later that day, to find her still in her robe. She had went directly to bed after her shower when she got home that morning. She even went to bed without drying her hair, which is probably why it was standing on end (her hair was fine white fluff which she kept tinted red) so she had this Bozo "do" thing going on.

She reinterated the details of the evening before. I strained so hard not to even crack a smile, that my eyes bolged and watered. I was afraid of getting hysterical.

Finally I could take it no more and I made up some lame excuse about hearing my phone nextdoor. I darted over there just in time. I was doubled over and trying to muffle my "roars". I kept trying to go back over but as soon as I opened the door, my composure left me and I had to go back in.

I finally made it back over to Jewell's but I never really knew if she had heard my hysterics next door, or if she had noticed my red swollen eyes and nose from crying while I was laughng so hard? Bless her heart, she was so traumatized, I sure hope she didn't!

She moved away after we were neighbor's for about 5 years. Her daughter wanted her to come back to Little Rock, but she just moved to a different part of town.

Then, life caused us to lose touch. Once I tried tracking her down through the agency where she worked but she was gone from there also. Maybe she went back to Arkansas, surely she has passed by now. BUT, I was sooooo lucky to have had her as a friend and neighbor for those 5 years.

This story will forever be one of my life's most comical memories (thank you Jewell). I can only hope that she somehow derived as much pleasure from knowing me, Lord knows I gave her enough reason's to laugh (LOL).

She would be so tickled to know that she had made it to the WWW, it is the very least I could do to honor her memory. I will forever miss her, it's that way with best friend's you know.

Until we meet again, sweet Jewell...