Madeline tells her virtual assistant to play the invitation again. Did she really hear the antiquated phrase, in-person? Pandora says, “repeating anniversary party details from George and Lydia” and yep, there’s cousin George’s avatar, declaring he’s 40 years married in 2040 (!) and guests can attend the celebration by holographic teleportation or in-person.
Continue reading “AI Husband by Claire Massey”
Parental Guidance
There’s one bit of advice that my late father gave me when I was too young to scrutinize advice, yet it remains something I’ve neither forgotten nor defied: “Don’t eat canned stewed tomatoes.”
Continue reading “Week 492: Parental Wisdom; August Reading; Food and Fodder”
When the shock of the diagnosis wore off, I figured if I was going down the tubes anyway I might as well take some people with me. So I made a list.
On top of the list was Ray, who beat me up good in junior high school.
Continue reading “Ray by Ted Gross”
It was the second day of our trip to Madrid. We were in a restaurant not far from Plaza Mayor with the massive stone walls whispering the secrets they knew, trying to eavesdrop on ours. We had almost finished the bottle of Cava, I was a little dizzy from the alcohol and too high on you, my friend. You watched me with those magnet eyes of yours, a wicked smile played on your lips, and I was asking myself if you’re even real.
Continue reading “We Were Everything and Nothing by Lydia Baham”
When the poor shall have nothing more to eat, they will eat their children.
Or starve, was the unadded addendum. Many had chosen to starve. Many had not.
Continue reading “When the Poor Have Nothing More by Sparrow Grace”
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Beezer and Barkevious claim to be brothers. That’s unlikely in the physical sense–Beezer is a British Bulldog and Barkevious is a Scottish Terrier; but nowadays you can be anything you want to be until you try to buy life insurance. Then again, since they are talking Dogs who live in the make-believe realm of Saragun Springs, such a claim remains possible. Regardless, the boys were wandering the realm’s countryside sniffing for rancid stuff to roll in when they saw Conrad the Blackface Ram headed their way.
Continue reading “It Had to Be Ewe by Leila Allison”
On that day, as on most days, the 8:22 was right on time. Book in hand, I boarded a nearly empty car and secured a seat facing west, so as to avoid the blistering fire of a Colorado sunrise. The city burned amber and rose as the doors dinged closed and the train lurched forward. I gazed out the window as we glided out of downtown, past campus, and under 6th Avenue. At Broadway we met I-25, which we would parallel for the remainder of the journey south.
Continue reading “Missed Connections by J.D. Strunk”
Here we are at Week 491.
Getting close to 500 – Don’t really know what that means but surely it means something!!
I had something happen to me this week that emphasised how old I’m getting. Okay apart from the usual aches and pains and hating the world for existing!
Continue reading “Week 491 – Can Only Us Scottish Folks Say Bach? RIP Dad For The Second Year And Winifred Atwell Enhanced Him!!!”
The L train had stopped at the Lorimer Street Station on its way from Manhattan back to Brooklyn when the young man sensed a sudden excitement in the car. He raised his eye from the book he was reading as a full-size stand-up bass sailed past. In moments, a trio of Mexican musicians had set up in the middle of the car.
He nudged his girlfriend “Look,” he said.
Continue reading “Ta Da Dum Bing – a story by Michael Henson”
literally stories 