Blog Archives

Staffing Issues, by Teri Wright

29/9/2023

Daniel observed the people in the staff room: the lady in clogs shouting and gesturing wildly; the thin gentleman, his back to the others, topping up his mug; the group of younger adults huddled together, their voices a whisper.

The bell rang, followed by a collective groan as the teachers gathered their belongings.

Clog lady pushed past the others as she approached. “You’ll love it here Mr. Briggs. I’ve been here 26 years, they can’t get rid of me!”

Daniel smiled as he recalled the governors’ insistence that staff cuts were necessary. Clog lady would be the first to go.

The Sucker, by K.G. Song

29/9/2023

Larry eyed an old man fumbling with an ATM machine next to him. The old man appeared totally confused by various buttons and prompts. Larry laughed silently. A sucker. A perfect target.

He offered to help, and the old man gladly accepted it. After Larry withdrew a wad of bills, he told the old man it’s all done.

The old man, however, asked for the receipt, thus closing the transaction, and robbing Larry a chance to withdraw extra cash. Larry seethed but obliged.

The old man drove away. Then Larry realized his wallet was missing, and he was the sucker.

Too Cold to Launch, by Guy Fletcher

29/9/2023

The astronauts waved excitedly before entering the "tin can."

Lucy watched on a beautiful sunny day as the countdown began and then the rocket surged into the ether. unfortunately a minute or so later the rocket burst into flames like a day-time meteor.

"Oh my God," she shouted. Her sister was on the flight.

Karl was in charge. He knew the risks for it was too cold to launch but money talks. He lost the bet and now he and Lucy will be haunted by the harrowing image for the rest of their lives.

The Team, by Brian Mackinney

29/9/2023

“Thank you guys. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
There they were up in the box absolutely delighted that their protege had won the trophy and four million dollars. They felt so proud of what they had achieved.

The main coach, complete with cap and sunglasses, had provided the finishing touches. The day-to-day coach doubled up as the confidante and the hitting partner. Squeezed in was the fitness coach, the physio, the specialist coach, the dietician, the agent and the family.

It felt so good but who would still be there for the next tournament? There’s room for improvement.

Almost Gone, by Don Tassone

29/9/2023

“We’ve been through this before, you know.”

“What?”

“Almost going extinct.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, about a million years ago.”

“What happened?”

“Climate change wiped out about 99% of all early humans. And the population stayed that small for more than 100,000 years.”

“What brought it back?”

“Nobody knows.”

“How many of us are there now?”

“Who knows? Maybe a few thousand.”

“And climate change is killing us off again.”

“Yeah, but this time, it’s our fault.”

“Think we’ll bounce back this time?”

“Probably not.”

“Well, if we don’t, maybe some new life form will take our place.”

“Hope it’s more intelligent.”

In Between, by Bill Cox

29/9/2023

A quiet country road passes through the middle of nowhere, on its way to somewhere. I find myself here, standing at this unremarkable spot. You see, something happened here once, though you wouldn’t know it now. All the debris, the broken pieces of glass and plastic, the tyre marks, the little sparks of blood, the small shards of bone, they’ve all been weathered away. Now there’s nothing here. Nothing to show that once, in the middle of nowhere, something happened.

Except me, of course. So, in limbo, I stand witness, hoping one day to finally continue my journey to somewhere.

Don't Plan on Sleeping Tonight, by Brian Taylor

29/9/2023

Her ringtone played at 5:12. She grinned as she answered.

"Hey, handsome! Where you at?"

He laughed. "Hey, babe. Just made it into Dallas."

"Ooh, Dallas! I hope you're being good, cowboy."

"Yes ma'am, I am. I won't be bad until I get home."

"Oh, my! Any idea when that'll be?"

"Hmm, sometime between 10 and 11. Don't plan on sleeping tonight, cowgirl."

She giggled as they hung up.

*9:37 pm. Single vehicle accident. Apparent heart attack. Driver was D.O.A.*

She didn't sleep that night, as he'd told her. Nor would she sleep through her nights ever again.

A Wonderful World, by Sankar Chatterjee

29/9/2023

Lecturing in class, Prof. Roberts felt a sharp tooth ache. He called his dentist Dr. Hart. Soon, lying on doctor’s recliner he heard that dreaded word “root canal”, needed to be done immediately. But the reassuring doctor mentioned about the latest quick-acting anesthetic agent.

Prof. Roberts felt the pinch of the needle, soon entering into a blissful world. Rainbow colors were crashing against each other like the waves of an infinite ocean. Unbeknownst to him, the medicine detoured inside his brain arriving at pleasure region instead of pain point.

Later, he heard doctor’s voice: “OK, you can go home now.”

True Riches, by Alyce Clark

29/9/2023

They mock her. Make fun of her behind her back. Ignore her attempts to befriend them. Amanda isn’t their sort and they enjoy excluding her.

Seeing her speak to Wesley, sets tongues wagging. “A girl like her hasn’t got a chance,” they say, pointing and whispering.

“He’s just being polite,” they assure themselves. Laughing at the notion that a poor girl could have relevance. Desirability. Especially to a handsome, sought after man of means.

Yet day after day, he draws closer to her. Seeing that she’s rich in everything that matters... And realizing his life is richer because of her.

The Mills of the Gods Grind Slowly. . ., by Tony Covatta

29/9/2023

October 1953 Kenny (9) trudges home from school, down the alley toward his backyard. Next door, the old Lebanese guy’s fig trees droop with succulent fruit. Mouth watering, Kenny scales the rickety wire fence, leaning backward at a 45° angle, dangles forward atop, plucks two figs. Purple. pulpy, delicious. Only two. He’ll never notice.

October 2023 Kenneth (79), marketing, spies and buys figs. Mouth watering, he eats two. Purple, pulpy, delicious. Nestles the package into the fridge.

Next day. "Honey, where’d all my figs go?”

"The grandkids were here. Bring enough for everybody or get used to only having two.”

The Lure of Opportunity, by Krystyna Fedosejevs

29/9/2023

Fred waited. When the sun slid into darkness, he exited his boarding house room unnoticed.

Once he had a loving family. Debts, excessive drinking and divorce pulled him into a solitary existence.

He fumbled in his pocket for the expired transit ticket he had found. It could take him to the shopping centre but someone could recognize him.

For blocks he shuffled. Past billboards illuminating unaffordable items. Past stores he never stepped into.

He reached the tavern where he almost killed someone in a brawl. An individual emerged from the shadows.

“Fred, is that you? Want to make extra dough?”

Strange Davie, by Tom Baldwin

29/9/2023

‘Davie, can you proof-read this draft for me?’

‘Certainly. When do you need it by?’

‘Davie, can you cover for me at tomorrow’s meeting?’

‘Of course.’

‘Davie, can you chase our suppliers again?’

‘OK.’

At home that night Davie collapsed in his chair, mentally exhausted as usual. A lifetime of studying and copying people’s behaviour without ever understanding it had made him an indispensable member of staff. Some thought he was a little strange at times, but none suspected his secret.

There was no-one in Davie’s life. He knew that a loving relationship was beyond his ability to fake.

You Promised, by John Cooper

29/9/2023

David knew all about promises.

First came the grand visions offering longed for delights, full of magic and colour and leading to sleepless nights of expectancy.

Then these anticipated joys were somehow forgotten for a while as daily life trudged on with no sign of any fulfilment.

Next, but probably after a nudge or two from himself, plans became transformed as excuses were made about increasing workloads and busyness.

Finally a ‘present’ was given – something overwhelming that was never spoken of or wanted, but which would “have to suffice for now”.

Yes, David knew all about his parent’s

A Country Divided, by Gretchen VanOstrand

29/9/2023

Caleb’s class was studying the Civil War, so a field trip was planned to The Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum in South Carolina. The bus ride from Pittsburgh was long, but visions of soldiers wearing blue and gray danced in Caleb’s head.

“Class, single file,” Ms. Johnson shouted.

“Sammy, look!” Caleb elbowed Sammy in the ribs. On the side of a van, Caleb read:
NOW RECRUITING. THE SOUTH WILL RISE!

“Ma’am, you Yankees better have a good reason for bein’ heeyah!” the van driver yelled.

This was no reenactment.

Ms. Johnson quickly ushered the class back onto the bus.

Theme and Variation, by Cheryl Snell

29/9/2023

Like balled-up socks spilled from a drawer, the flock spreads out as if the parking lot was sky. The woman in the only car idling there takes off her glasses to imagine the seagulls as eggshells. She had been walking on plenty of those lately, her house ricocheting with grief.

Plenty of eggshells in a sky made of idling seagulls; balled-up like grief, they ricochet from car to house, and spread out. The woman in the car on the parking lot takes off the glasses lately spilled like socks from a drawer. She imagines her lot: there is only grief.

War Zone 2023, by Jo Riglar

29/9/2023

Svetlana shivered though she wasn't cold. The siren made her jump so much that Gregor reached out.

It was impossible that their beloved city should be in this position. ‘A military operation.’
What did that mean?

Her neighbours loaded up their Dawoo Lanos with their belongings, children bewildered and unsettled as mothers swept them up and made a bid for safety.

'I can't bear that you have been called up Gregor. It's like...' said Svetlana sobbing and squeezing the saturated tissue, 'It’s like I'm leaving my heart here in Kyiv.
I’m not going without you.’

Light-minute, by Mary K. Curran

29/9/2023

Editor's Choice

Cosimo knew his speed date was from another planet as soon as she arrived sporting a headband with googly eyes antenna and immediately began prattling on about alien abductions and bad food.

Cosimo yelped when she leaned across the table and flicked his pointy ear with a black-painted nail and nearly bit her when she opened his shirt to see "how far the green goes down."

"You're definitely not my type," she announced and left.

Earthlings would never be his type. Cosimo whimpered with relief when one of his own kind sat down and enticingly flashed a neon purple eye.

Crazy Days, by Rod Drake

29/9/2023

Scientists are blaming Climate Change and Global Warming for the time rifts that are appearing spontaneously around the world.

Just this morning one opened in the park across the street, and a Triceratops leaped out of it, in full run through the children’s swing
set and jungle gym, only to be followed, a moment later, by a Tyrannosaurus Rex, in heated (and hungry) pursuit.

The neighborhood got to watch a real savage Jurassic battle until the army showed up and tranqed them both. Next the Mayflower appeared resting in the town’s gravel pit. Climate Change; who would have guessed?

A Sweet Mistake, by David Margolin

29/9/2023

St. Nicholas’ descent down the chimney was uneventful, but instead of stockings hanging from the mantle he found a menorah and some Mogen David wine. He made a mental note to have the elves update the database, then carefully selected eight gifts, small enough to fit into the spaces for the menorah candles, and placed them gently therein. He helped himself to a generous sample of the wine, and left a note, “Thank you for the wine, but I prefer something less sweet. Happy holidays, St. Nick.” Although slightly tilted, he ascended successfully, and flew off to the next chimney.

Kerulian Dawn, by Paul A. Freeman

29/9/2023

Lieutenant Dalcos-Da, a Kerulian Space Force fighter pilot, regained consciousness. Cradling a broken appendage, he pondered his species’ ill-fated attempt at colonising this, the Mu-Han quadrant of the galaxy.

The Mu-Hans, concealed behind their gas giant planet, Perjitu, had ambushed them. The Kerulian armada’s troop carriers succumbed to their enemy’s Vodic cannons, the ultra-low-frequency rays ripping through their vessels’ hulls, spilling the legendary Sabre Battalion into space.

From the cockpit of his crashed fighter, marooned on the Perjituan satellite, Oi, Dalcos-Da vowed vengeance. Diligently, he tracked the Mu-Han battle fleet returning, undamaged, to the safety of their home planet, Earth.

Silk, by Mimi Grouse

29/9/2023

Swish. Brush. Hiss.
Brooms, dusters and spray. Down with the cobwebs, sweep up those horrible eight legged things...why were there so many? Had someone given birth, for goodness' sake? But soon they were gone and Cynthia could look around her spotless house with relief. She was safe from creepy crawlies.
Hot bath, supper and bed.
She dreamed of shrouds, awoke sweating and unable to breathe. Clawed at the sticky object covering her face. Shuddered at the whispering.
'Tighter, Spinnerella. Tighter. She killed our babies.'
'She killed our babies.'
Cynthia didn't know spiders could weep.
Silken tears filled her throat.

Dr. Bauernew's World, by David Sydney

29/9/2023

"Dr. Bauernew will see you soon."
Ralph and Frodo followed the technician into the brightly-illuminated examination room that smelled of disinfectant. She mentioned that the veterinarian would examine Frodo next. Ralph's physician was Dr. Fruman, whose office did not compare.

The veterinarian barely looked at Raph. He preferred cats and dogs. Even those like Frodo and the occasional ferret were better to examine than human beings. But who could blame him?

Yes, human beings were pet owners. And in Bauernew's world they deserved to be billed as highly as possible for that.

Ode to a Tropical Storm – a Mashup, by Sherri Bale

29/9/2023

Ophelia, you’ve been on my mind like a drug, like a long-lost love, ever since you made the ocean rise and caused my basement to flood; You were madness from the north-north-west, made of water and wind, and you died a muddy death in an overflowing brook that swamped my yard when I let down my guard.

I understand you were angry you were never upgraded to Hurricane and had to travel in coach with the other tropical storms that had barely earned a name, but, Ophelia, I wish you had just gone right out to sea and drowned yourself.

The Promoter, by Scott C. Holstad

29/9/2023

I met the promoter at the coffeeshop, ordered a Spiked Nitro, sat down and said, “Make it short.”

“Dude, I talked to the band. They love your work, big fans, well Dave is. They want to meet ya, talking a concept album, your poems and stories. Freak ‘em out, fuck ‘em up, yeah!”

I said, “So a Scoot Hagland thrash metal album? Was that Disturbed or Ministry again?”

The promoter jittered, “Right. We just need to go to Chicago to meet and hash this out. Can you snag us a flight?”

I finished my Nitro, got up and walked out.

Canine Poker King, by FC Malby

29/9/2023

Dogs clutch cards close to their torsos, swig beer as the clock ticks, edging closer to one. The counters stack up in towers between swirls of pipe smoke on a green felt table. The pug grimaces at the terrier, the collie crosses his legs, leans back. Time remains fixed on twelve fifty-nine momentarily. The beagle counts studs on each thick collar, rests his paws on the edge of the table, looks up at the Monet on the wall, remembering a trip to the Musee D’Orsay in Paris and a walk along the Seine. They wait.

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