Prince Avalanche

To see you.

To see you.

To see you.

To see you again.

Nice to see you again.

It's nice to see you again.

What are you doing?

I was falling asleep.

I thought it would be a good idea to change the station situation.

It wasn't. I was listening to that.

I know, but it's boring for the rest of us.

I was falling asleep doing work.

So what?

So... l want to play this tape.

I want to play this tape to get motivated and pumped up...

I know, I know, I know you want to play that tape, but look.

You know what, Lance? I'm not here to start a fight.

That's not what I want to do,

but I need to listen to my language tapes

in order to become proficient and perform to the best of my abilities.

What about... What about the equal time agreement?

That doesn't apply to studies and education.

What do you mean?

The equal time boom box agreement

doesn't apply in this case, all right?

- That's just for recreation. - Oh, come on!

Hey! Don't push my buttons, all right?

You are not the boss here.

I'm the boss. I hired you.

Now, we have a lot of work to do.

We could sit here arguing about language and music

and blah-de-de-blah, but we got a lot of work to do,

we got a lot of lines to paint,

and it's a very long road.

I suggest you start the machine and keep it going.

- Okay. - Yeah.

- Alvin. - Yeah?

You have your tool belt on backwards.

Let's just enjoy the silence.

Dear Madison,

Thank you for your poetic letter.

There's so little to do out here.

I must have read it a hundred times.

Being out here helps me see things more clearly.

Sometimes it's heaven, sometimes it's hell,

but out-of-doors physical labor is just what I need

after those endless night shifts in Garland,

which certainly contributed to our troubles during the spring.

I do feel much better, although I miss you and Olive.

I can't say I miss city life.

I was beginning to feel like I was

one of those heads carved into the mountains

of those presidents of the United States in the Dakotas,

lonely among all those people I couldn't talk to.

As for your brother,

the countryside isn't teaching him anything

other than how much he misses the big, active nightlife.

I think that you and the family need to think of something else

as far as his occupation.

He, quite realistically, could never amount to anything.

How can you be his age and not know how to gut a fish

or build a tent or tie a knot?

Sometimes I wonder if he is learning-disabled

or has a bad disease,

not that I dislike him or anything.

He's totally fine.

Alvin, I'm finished.

I'm done with this one. Could I have another one?

- Yeah, well, put that one back. - Okay.

Wait, you didn't do... you didn't write in it, did you?

Yeah. I worked the puzzle.

Oh, no... don't do that.

Don't do that, please.

That's a collector's item. It's an antique.

It's rare. Do you understand?

I'm out here to have my things treated well, with respect.

I get it. I get it, yeah.

Do you really?

- Yeah. - You hearing? You are hearing me?

- Yes, yes. I get it. - Are you hearing me?

- Yes. - What are you hearing me with?

My ears.

No. I don't want you to just hear me with your ears.

I want you to hear the whole thing.

Okay.

The weekend is coming,

and I'm thinking of spending some quiet time alone.

Your brother, on the other hand,

can't wait to get back to the big city

and get the little man squeezed, as he puts it.

As for me, I've been studying tons

for our German journey in the fall.

You're right. If I don't speak the language,

we'll never adapt to life with the natives.

Besides, there's no future for me in Garland,

and this new life can only be good for our little family.

Yours, Alvin.

P.S.

Alvin.

Alvin.

What?

Never mind.

Hey!

Hey!

What are you doing in the middle of the goddamn road?

We're working on the road crew.

The stripe crew.

Well, it's about time.

I'm going up and down this road

with a heavy load trying to get through the pass.

They finally moved all the boulders.

Yeah, it got all messed up.

Yeah, you got that right.

Hey, you guys got time for a drink?

There you go.

Here.

- Take that. - Thank you.

Yeah, let me take them tops off for you.

Cheers.

Hey, wait a minute. I forgot the most important part.

How about we spice it up a little?

What do you think?

Dump some of that out.

We don't need that soda pop there.

Here, give me some of that there.

Okay, hold that there.

All right, here we go.

Here's to fire in our hearts.

Drink up, boys.

I love the impurities.

Nice.

Mother, may I? Yes, I may.

So, it was you painted these, the lines?

Not me. Alvin did most of them.

I just started working for him.

How many'd you do?

I haven't kept an exact count,

but I've hammered in a boatload of posts

and painted a whole bunch of stripes.

Yeah, don't forget the posts. The posts are important.

Yeah, you're telling me.

You know, would it be all right if I had one of those?

All right.

Do you have a light, by chance? I...

Thank you.

Nothing but desire?

You got it?

- I know how. - You know what?

You shouldn't smoke.

Oh, yeah, I know. It's bad for you.

No, I mean you shouldn't smoke.

You look stupid.

You been out here for a while?

Longer than you want to know, son.

I don't know what I'm doing out here, man.

There's no girls out here at all.

Well, you got to take care of that on the weekend.

You got to go to town, meet a lady.

But...

I can't discuss that too much 'cause,

you know, I got a lot of bad memories there, you know.

- Really? - Yeah.

Sometimes you get involved a little too young,

things happen, and then more things happen,

and she takes off,

maybe takes the child with her.

You just don't know. That can be pretty rough.

Well, I got to go. I'm tired of fooling with you guys.

Here. Say...

Take that.

Oh, no. This is too much.

No. Just my way of saying thank you.

Thank you.

Have a good day.

Take care of that. That's good for you.

Thank you.

Aren't you gonna eat that?

What?

Aren't you gonna eat that?

- The skin? - Yeah.

No.

It's the most nutritious part.

Oh, God. Farts?

Relax.

We're having a very nice evening. Enjoy your hot fish.

Seriously, are you really cool not getting laid all summer?

I don't really have much of a choice, do I?

I mean, when you were out here for the spring by yourself,

didn't you get lonely, like, so lonely?

There's a difference between being lonely and being alone.

- There is? - Oh, yeah.

I reap the rewards of solitude.

How do you do that?

Well...

I write letters to your sister,

I...read,

I paint, I sew.

I had a cat, so I used to take care of my pet before it was killed.

I have a lot of prescription medications,

but I try not to use them.