31
“Ahhh,” Dr. Venn says as I unpack his lunch and set it up on his desk. “Thank you, Audie.”
The soup container is too hot and heavy for him to hold, and I almost offer to do it for him, but he’s already adjusting the height and angle of his chair so he can come right up to the edge of his desk and safely spoon in the soup himself. His hand shakes a little, but he manages it.
“How long have you …” I gesture toward his chair, then realize a second too late that maybe that’s not a polite question to ask.
But Dr. Venn doesn’t seem to mind. “It was gradual. Age weighs a body down. But I designed this machine myself so I can still stand when I want to.”
“You designed this? How cool.”
“Normally everyone looks to only the mechanical physicists to design their machines. But I know how to ma
