The lamp wouldn't turn on. That was really the least of his problems. It meant the electricity had finally been turned off. So had the water, the cable, and the gas. At least they had waited until the spring. It was warm enough to not risk freezing that night.

Jacob wondered through his house, filled with useless possessions. He touched the television and the fridge as he walked by them, exiting the house and into the beautiful April morning.

The birds were chirping and a steady drone of cars racing down the highway filled his ears. He took a deep breath and released it, trying to calm his racing mind. He looked around his yard, littered with rusted out trucks and broken windows. Small mountains of trash surrounded his dilapitated home. He considered cleaning up the yard, trying to turn some of that scrap metal into money but realized that his truck didn't have any gas and his aging body couldn't lift half the pieces alone. Plus, he didn't know the last time he had a tetanus shot.

Jacob instead pulled a chair out of the wreckage. He gently brushed off the dust and pulled the old coca cola cooler near it. He sat gingerly on the rusted chair, careful not to set too much pressure on the back leg which was sagging inwards. He reached into the cooler and pulled out a PBR, the last one in there. He popped the tab and took a sip as he watched the morning pass him by.