Summary

As Chapter 14 begins, Rob was living off unemployment, which was a serious blow to his ego. Jeff, narrating, says that Rob measured his worth in his ability to provide for others. For almost two decades, he had been leaving money for his mother, for example. Jeff states that Rob could have been lived well on a teacher's salary. He didn't have extravagant tastes. Sometimes, giving that money made people respect him more. That might have been his motivation.

Rob had a period of bottoming out here; unemployed for a few months, he had fallen into a routine of living around Newark and the Oranges. He stayed up late, hung out with friends, and did not make any forward progress at all. Besides a plan of going to grad school, he didn't really have any plans.

Oswaldo remained in the picture. He felt...