The Fast Lane (rough draft)

So here's a very rough draft of one of the stories for my book. I'm thinking of breaking up the text so that it enhances the fast-paced tone of this half of the book and speaks to the fact that nowadays we tend to skim words or sentences when we read. There will be one sentence/chunk per page along with a frame of the animation.

Marty Swift is a speed junkie.
He eats fast,
talks a mile-a-minute...
... to five different people at a time...
... drives like a fugitive...
... and is always looking towards his next milestone.
“It’s called multitasking.” he says triumphantly to himself...
... as he slurps down a bowl of cereal in the shower.
To fuel his turbo routine, Marty consumes a crap-load of caffeine....
in the form of coffee,
Red Bull,
Rock Star,
Power Horse,
Full Throttle,
Tab,
Jolt Cola,
Steven Seagal’s Lightning Bolt.
..it’s a real drink,
caffeine pills.
He’s tried them all.

And what does he do with this caffeine-fueled vigor?
Everything!
Marty is the proud owner of many “time-saving” devices
On top of all the usual suspects
(electric stove, flush toilet, hot water system, toaster, kettle, blender)
Marty also owns
The Roomba vacuuming robot,
instant coffee,
automatic garage door,
push button ignition on his car,
and several of those electronic picture frames that cycle through images of friends and family so that you never have to change it.

Marty has a lot of friends,
but he connects with them briefly.
a chat over coffee here,
a short e-mail there,
or a quick phone call,
interrupted of course,
by a beep on the other line...
... that just HAS to be answered!
He flits from one social encounter to another...
... like a butterfly...
... but with less grace.
You see...
... all that fast food...
... and “no time” to exercise...
... has not done any favours for Marty’s waistline.
Drive-throughs and microwaves are Marty’s culinary companions.
If it ain’t fast it ain’t gonna last!...
...is his motto.
But do these “time-saving” devices and technologies really given him more time to enjoy life
as they claim
?
or does he just use this extra time to become even more busy.

Marty works at an advertising agency –
Think F*#%$ing Quick (or we’ll lose our jobs) Studio.
Where vague briefs, tight deadlines, and even tighter shirt collars are a way of life.
He’s been competing hard for an upcoming promotion...
...to a faster-paced, more hectic job than the one he currently has...
...which is already supersonic.
Speed is king in the workplace!
Of course, all this haste results in cut corners...
... inside the box thinking...
... and many, MANY mistakes...
...but as long as they meet the deadlines right?
“I need this yesterday!” yells Marty’s boss.
There’s no time for reflection.
“Didn’t we make the same mistake when we worked on the Cheese Whiz account?”
Ah well, no-one will notice anyway...
...they’ll all be too busy rushing around in their own lives.

Not surprisingly, eight of Marty’s co-workers are off sick today...
burnt out,
anxious,
depressed,
exhausted,
...on the verge of cardiac arrest...
Or at least another pimple.
But not Marty!
well
not yet anyway.
Marty won’t find out that he has cardiovascular disease till next month
because “Who has time for a visit to the doctor these days?!”
and even after he discovers this alarming fact
Marty will continue to push himself.
He’s more afraid of failure than his impending demise.
Too obsessed with punctuality, productivity and progress.

He did take a vacation
once.
He went to New York for a week,
tried to squeeze in as many possible sights, day trips and tours as possible,
and ended up coming home more exhausted than he had been when he left!

Instead of taking a proper vacation
Marty tries to cope with his stress induced anxiety...
... by smoking.
but nicotine is actually a stimulant.
Don’t be too hard on him though.
It’s not his fault.
Speed is a natural part of our daily lives...
... where each fast aspect...
... is necessary...
... for the other fast aspects to happen.
It is part of our vocabulary...
... “You snooze, you lose!”
So “Get up to Speed!”

One day...
as Marty is rushing...
... out of his car...
... to a very important meeting at work,
he sees himself
just a glimpse...
... in the reflection
of the door as it slams shut.
A tired resemblance of his former being..
wrinkles
shadows
the fast life is taking it’s toll.
The biological cost of his need for speed:
accelerated aging.
He’s been pressing “fast forward” without realizing that...
... there’s no rewind on THIS remote.

Multi-task THAT!