On the day my mother died I woke to rain, a rhythmic tick-tick-ticking against the windows, the first real downpour we’d had in months. I roused Oliver, crouching beside his tiny bed and tugging at the blankets, the blunt comma… Continue Reading
Working from home, Zoom meetings each afternoon, haven’t worn a pair of pants in months. Conducting all my business in a collared dress shirt and boxer shorts, from my bedroom/office. Enough to drive anyone insane. Looking for any excuse to… Continue Reading
Fuck the ugly dog. That’s what he said as they were taking him away. Somebody shouted to him as the police were leading him away, “Hey, Joe, what do we do with the Boy?” and he just leaned back over… Continue Reading
Sometimes I can’t sleep at night, or maybe I don’t want to. I don’t know, but sometimes when I don’t sleep I drive to the supermarket nearby which never closes. In the deep end of the night there are few… Continue Reading
Stickers from local hardcore bands and chewed gum are all over the rocket ship outside the Winn-Dixie. “I wanna go for a ride,” my little brother says. I had to put him in a t-shirt with the least amount of… Continue Reading
That summer I was sixteen. I had a job at a dog groomer’s. I cleaned clumps of hair out of shower drains. I brushed down show dogs. I clipped long, crescent shaped toenails, trying my hardest not to cut the… Continue Reading
It was supposed to be a quick in-and-out job. I only needed some fruit. Nothing fancy. Some bananas, some apples. Maybe grapes if they were on offer. A simple trip. Until I saw the blueberries. The ripe, purple-blue, bubbles gleamed… Continue Reading
He wore an expensive suit and expensive-smelling cologne. Black or dark brown eyes took her in, took in her shopping cart. He didn’t have a cart. A bouquet of white daisies was cradled in his left arm near a handful… Continue Reading
Jack’s still waiting around for his wife, Frances, to hurry on up and pay for their groceries already so he can have his supper. Ain’t that why we come here in the first place? She’s still talking to that goddamn… Continue Reading
The advice sounded simple. “Try changing the tone of your inner voice. Make that voice appealing, make it sexy.” After a lifetime of walking past the book in the grocery store checkout I had finally caved and bought it —… Continue Reading