“I want something edgy,” says the client. Bloody hell. I’m a hairdresser not a miracle worker, thinks Pauline, running her hands over the bleached helmet of hair in front of her. “How do you mean?” Pauline asks, smiling professionally into… Continue Reading
Gertie weathered the donkeys’ endless braying — sharp and grating across the pasture: A HORSE’S PLOW WE WON’T ALLOW Their voices cracked hollow, like imaginary whips against which they rebelled. “Ignorant jackasses,” Gertie muttered. “The field’s been fallow for weeks.”… Continue Reading
Two nearly identical men in dark suits and mirrored sunglasses showed up at my door. One was about 6 foot tall. The other was maybe 6’1″. “We’re here with the Treasury, Fraud Division,” said the taller one. “Come in —… Continue Reading
When I moved to the quaint town it was cicada hatching season. The noisy insects wouldn’t shut up with their high-pitched squeal that buzzed on some hellish frequency day and night. I started going insane and spent my days pacing… Continue Reading
It all started out so innocently. The week before Easter there was no news. Absolutely none. Admittedly, not much ever happened in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, but this was serious. No crimes, no traffic accidents. Not even a school board meeting. Amy… Continue Reading
The pew was not visibly broken, which was part of the disagreement. “I didn’t break it,” said Ewan. “You absolutely broke it,” Nadia said. “I adjusted my position.” “You stood on it.” “I did not stand.” “You mounted,” Miles said.… Continue Reading
The oxen steadily trudged through the damp field, turning the soil neatly, while Isidore whistled tunelessly at the reins, only stopping on each turn to tell his two sons, sitting on the back, “Make sure to look out for rocks.”… Continue Reading
It wasn’t Spring. The temperature fluctuated from one day to the next, teasing us with sunshine and warm weather, and the next day, temps plummeted and froze again. The cherry tree, azaleas, and buttercup blossoms turned brown and withered. One… Continue Reading
He was full of the blarney, this one. The nuns had taught us how to fend off the amorous advances of boys but they hadn’t really told us how to cope with our own desires. Maybe they thought we didn’t… Continue Reading
Big Sassy had a knack for breaking two things — balls (not the bouncy kind) and hearts. I’d been stationed at Lunar-Oho on mining duty when I first cast eyes upon her magnificence. Hair caked in grease, a pot-belly that… Continue Reading