Spotted: Nickiosaurus at Work

Dad sent me to Malborough today to observe a different portion of the family business: milling.

Milling is essentially the opposite of paving––it involves removing old asphalt and sometimes recycling it as a gravel like material. A few years back, Dad put my older brother Nicholas in charge of selling the millings and he did so on CraigsList. Dad nicknamed him the Craiglist Killer. Ahh, another tasteful Amorello joke.

Today was challenging for a few reasons. First of all, I was driving this:

The Corvette. My dad fixed it up years ago. Ya know, for the most part.

I’m well aware that this is infact a cool car, especially on a beautiful day, but I had a few issues with it. A few minor things don’t work. Sure, I don’t need to adjust the seat when I can sit on a pillow, and air conditioning is for the weak, so I wasn’t worried about that. But I was a little more concerned about other issues, for instance, the speedometer doesn’t necessarily measure the speed of the car, um, you know, as much as it kind of just says “0”. I had to just drive along with the other cars and assume I was under control. Nothing I can’t handle. Anyway, I digress.

I showed up to the job, seriously sweating after 35 mins in the vette, and made my way over to the action. There was no clear path toward the Amorello trucks so I just climbed around things and definitely concerned some unfamiliar workers, who most likely wanted to know who I was and why I was invading their space. I offered no explanations. I just moved foward until I saw my brother.

Nick. He’s the unique Amorello.

Unlike his 3 younger siblings, Nick takes care to never draw attention to himself. Even more so, he refrains from ever encouraging the rest of us when we’re doing so. If you’re looking for Nick’s approval, shouting and performing is not the way to get it. Neither is, well, anything. As far as I know, in order to recieve any kind of praise from Nick, I’d have to become one of the Gallagher brothers from Oasis or get drafted into the MLB. He has high standards. I respect that.

Whenever somebody asks about my mysterious brother, the one they never met or the one who seemed quiet, I tell them the same thing. Unlike so many people, Nick doesn’t speak unless he has something to say. Instead of talking about nothing, he saves his breath and says only what he means. That’s just how he is––thoughtful and conservative. “He makes about 12 jokes per year,” I tell whoevers asking, “and I swear, they’re always funny.” That’s a damn good average.

I’m not sure if Nick noticed me right away, standing there in the middle of the torn up parking lot. See, even at home, you never can tell if he’s noticed you, because if he doesn’t say hello, it’s just as likely that hes choosing not to acknowledge you as opposed to unaware of your presence.

I don’t mean to make him sound cruel. He isn’t. Nick doesn’t easily engage in discussion but he finds other ways to participate in our relationship. You know, like buying me a sandwhich at Subway. He does that kind of thing often, and is actually very generous. I can appreciate that too.

I watched him running the milling machine. I had seen the machine before but this was the first time I realized how obviously magnificant it was. I thought it looked just like a mechanical Brachiosaurous. Large, slow and long necked. As a lifelong dinosaur enthusiast, I was delighted.

Nickiosaurus.

Brachiosaurus.. Umm.. SAMSIES!

I snapped pictures and tried to get good angles but I was afraid to move into the wrong place. I didn’t want to get in the way. Or dirty my sneakers. So I stayed put and took some pictures and videos of my brother in action. After about 10 mins, he looked at me, perhaps accidently. He gave me a head nod.

I smiled and waved. A head nod from Nick is pretty much like a hug.

I stayed only a few more minutes and then journeyed back to the corvette, without a word to or from anyone. It wasn’t bad. I love a good silence, really. It’s nice to stay quiet and in tune with just yourself once in awhile. I think Nick has the right idea.

Hard working dinosaur.

Well, I’m off for the weekend. Farewell until next time!