Mike's Story Part 26: Pills

By Jenna Orkin  

From Mike  11-27-2006: 

Ray --

   I left with [a lawyer], [the] employee file [of the female employee who was suing Mike for sexual harassment] with the information that it contained large amounts of exculpatory evidence. X has reported that she has filed a sexual harrassment complaint with the Dept. of Labor but we do not have the information yet. [The lawyer]'s information is above and below.

   We need to find out where that file is and respond quickly. I am clean on this. The web site has the full story which will be my testimony.

   She is banking that my serious health issues will not allow me to respond and she'll get a default judgment. We can beat this case easily if we respond and [the lawyer] can help us locate the file. It will be harder without the file that was left with [the lawyer] but is still doable. That was one of the most important items I gave him before leaving. I hope it has not been misplaced. 

 

From Mike 12-2-2006: 

Ray:

   I'm concerned by some things you need to know about and feel that if I brief you a little bit it may make your job easier. Again, thank you so much. You have been a saint. Please stay very healthy. Speaking of which, do you know good doctor?

   PROBLEMS RELATED TOTHE SALE OF THE WEB SITE

…Someone has had a real patry at my expense in Ashland.

   Rght now I am fish in a barrel. To weak to do anything about anything. But you needed to know about this before closing a deal with [the prospective buyer.] And [the prospective buyer] needs to understand that we are kind of helpless to actually transfer the site to him unless you can find a way to get/make Z to cooperate.

 

   Also, in the agreement with [the prospective buyer] it should be stipulated that no disparaging comments about me should go up after the sale. Easy language should do it. I think [the prospective buyer] really wants to help but I think you can understand why I'm a little paranoid.

   In the batch of letters you gave me there was one from a very kind attorney in Salem, OR. Would it be worthwhile to le him know of our troubles and ask if he can help?

   Thanks Ray.   Mike

From Mike to Ray 12-14-2006:  What does [the prospective buyer] mean by "non-compete". I hope that wouldn't prohibit me from writing for others at some point when I have something coherent to say.

   Also want to ensure he wouldn't print anything disparaging about me. I'll leavethe rest of the contract with you until I get more stable. All of these little problems getting fixed are leaving the one big one glaring in my face.

  Keep being wonderful.  Mike

   "You scared me when you told Ray I was sleeping twenty hours a day," Mike said one day. "My mother did that right before my father divorced her."

   "Was she on any medication besides booze?"  

   "She was probably on tranquillizers I didn't know about. For a while she took Miltown. That was nasty."

   On another occasion, Mike said that his maternal grandmother had also been on tranquillizers until she was eighty.

   "After my father divorced her, my mother just died. She didn't date, hardly went out.  Just stayed home and slept and smoked," (as Mike had been doing for the previous week.)  "She had lost the one thing that mattered to her," (as Mike had lost his company.)

   "In some crazy way, she thought she was punishing my dad.

   'I didn't talk to her for many years. Just called her once a year on Christmas. Some years I drove two hours to see her. Another two to see my dad. Then back home where I'd be alone. That's why I hate Christmas.

   'Then in 1997 when she had her third heart attack, my uncle X called. I went to see her and took care of her for the next four years. That was when FTW was going strong. Every week I had to go see her because it was my duty. Mike Ruppert always does his duty," he said with bitter irony.

   "Why was your dad the one thing that mattered to your mom?"  

   "I can only speculate. But I think it was because he rescued her from her own father."

   "Can you think of some good things about your mother?"  
He thought for a moment. "She always believed in me. Even when she was crazy, trying to light a cigarette with a mascara brush, she believed in me."  Then he relayed the story, previously described in the post entitled "Friends," about the time his mother found some cookies, as requested by a potential "friend" who'd invited Mike to meet a gathering of teenagers at the pool.  The invitation turned out to be a ruse and he, the butt of their cruel joke.  

   "When she was dying, they gave her a sedative, the one that would put her to sleep forever.  She couldn't speak but she made the Elmo sign at me." With his fingers he made the sign of Elmo the dog.

   "There was one time in high school. I can't remember what it was about but something happened and my father didn't believe me. I didn't do it. But that taught me to keep records of everything. In LAPD I documented everything that happened....

   'That's the way X sounded after she spread the rumors that I smashed my own computers.

   'I said I didn't do it.

   'I don't believe you.'"  He imitated the former ally who'd turned against him.  "Exactly like my father."