Chef Nathan and Evil King Paprika the First A Children’s Story (That Adults Might Like Too) Dedicated to Nathan, Natalie, Cathy and David, remembering Astor Avenue and Germany Once upon a time many years ago, in 1973, there was…
Author: admin
Ain’t Over Till It’s Over
[Sept. 22, 2016. I’ve been working on this story for a while. It seemed appropriate to publish it on the anniversary of Yogi Berra’s death.] The voice from the next booth, in the elegant Sur le Pont d’Avignon, belonged to…
The Walk Around the Pool
You’re not sure this is a good idea. But, guided by your girlfriend Lorrie’s soft hand in yours, you feel your way into the pool area. You know everyone will stare at your bandaged eyes. The first thing you smell…
Too Old to Scream
Marcella wanted to scream. Two years ago she would have. But she was twelve now. It wouldn’t do at all. So she didn’t. She knew it had been a dream. She was in the kitchen, about to open the pantry…
The Lost Boy
“Kyle! Kyle!” Harriet fought through the woods, her frantic course like something dictated by a crazy pinball machine. She gasped for breath; her body ill-prepared for these demands. She wished the world wasn’t so dim, so blurred, so far away.…
Review: Girl Waits with Gun by Amy Stewart
These days we take female police officers for granted, even if they still don’t have the same status and representation that male officers have. These days we take the legal rights of labor—to organize and strike—for granted, even if management…
Threads of Time
The house was always quite bare. Like most buildings in Rattlesnake Gulch, it was rough-sawn and unpainted. The only decorations in the parlor were an Indian rug on the wall and a faded photograph of Mama. Today, it was…
Escalation
It all started when I needed the fly swatter. The buzzing would stop for an instant, but I was always too slow to whack my nemesis. Amazing that anyone can make a bare-handed snatch of something with that many eyes.…
The Chinese Checkers Murder
“You’ve lost your marbles!” Sondra told George, her father’s long-time lover. “He was an old man like you — 68. He died of a heart attack or heart failure. Don’t let your emotions go wild.” She was sitting in the kitchen, breathing…
The Arroyo
Image by Lynn Underwood Rebecca guided the buckboard down into the arroyo, the “highway” back to Rattlesnake Gulch. The problem of Josiah weighed on her heart. On that terrible day, three months earlier, she had torn desperately at Josiah’s pants…