Most read stories

Standing aloof

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I think it cumbersome to walk within a darkened room. Too awkwardly uncouth, for one with such a corpulent frame, to hug the hungry. It weighs one down, to wave airily, to wildlings By cages, and pain, made tame. Best to look away, than…

A Slippery Slope

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a distinct hardness that translates into solidity, and a lightness that translates into beauty, and I thought I’d find you there,

Bands I Have Known

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Flu Fighters Hood Ornament Good Hydration Jacques Strappe Tar and Feathers Bad Oyster Band Mysterian and the Skid Marks Nimble Candle and the Streakers Uniball and the Supporters The Skinny Rubber Band

"Bitter" Revision

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I was thinking that the feminists pounding the city pavement had increased rent with every footstep, not that I was not one, but we had not earned our money at it or put our money together.

Belonging

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Vanessa wasn't going to get another choice in this game. This was her only chance to be a part of the Ian-crowd. All she had to do was choose correctly from the three cards sitting between her and the group facing her. In the cold and dimly-lit room, Vanessa stared intently…

The Monster

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I wanted daddy to stop for ice cream, but I didn't want to say so. I wanted him to stop by himself, or because somebody else asked him. If I asked him Delia would make fun of me.

Collectors

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Touch the wrong thing and everything will crash down around you. This was the fatherly advice Warren bestowed upon me as we entered his Miami apartment.

For Your Consideration

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Are there places that words cannot go? Consider words going where they were never intended to go.

Back Story

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I wanted you in the worst way but that's not how I got you.

Five Million Yen: Chapter 19

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The vibrations gave her a real charge. It works dressed or undressed.

nothing special on a night in february

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as i stepped out to cross west 163rd, the grey, icy sludge in the road looked almost like ballpark mustard illuminated by the streetlights, and it felt like walking through a recently emptied movie theater.

Toad

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“I come from a long line of Toad Kings,” Huckleberry said, “and we never back down from a bet.”Phyllis, a great white heron, lowered her long white neck so she could get a better look into her friend's golden eyes.“I just think you…

Breaking Up, Chicago Style, On Hardwood Floors

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We shut the door of her new apartment while Andy went back down to the car for one last load. Terry went into the bathroom and pissed blue. Blue, for God’s sake! Some pills she was taking. But she came back into the living room completely naked and pulled

The Man Who Loved Purple

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If it had a surface, he painted it purple. If it didn’t have a surface, he painted it purple.

The Pre-Game Show With Al and Chris

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Al:In the contest for the Worst Century Ever, the Twenty-first could be a real contender. Chris:The Twentieth looks unbeatable, sure, what with the War to End All Wars, the Great Depression, Hitler, Spain, the Second World War…Al:…Stalin, and Enola Gay. The genocides alone…

Remembering a Life

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“Yes. You should probably bring her in.” This was what the receptionist from the Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital told me. My dog, Goldie, had a bloody nose and was breathing heavily.

Tuesday Night at The Shop and Shoot Damn, I look good,” Damian says as he checks himself out in the mirror in the locke

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Tuesday Night at The Shop and Shoot Damn, I look good,” Damian says as he checks himself out in the mirror in the locker …

The Last Will And New Testament Of Henry J. Worthmore, Jr.

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I, Henry J. Worthmore, Jr., being of sound mind and failing health in my 73rd year do hereby set down in words this final and irrefutable disposal of all my worldly goods.

Mistrial

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His tie was made in France. Shoes: Italian. White, broadcloth shirt —Brooks Brothers, I'm guessing from the way the collar stood at attention under his medical jacket. He looked professional, but for a doctor, his attire, like the social worker with him,…

clouded

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a current forecast

Admission

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I can’t hold a job I can’t hold a hammer

Dog, Deer, and Boy

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A black and white Malamute chasing down a deer to the edge of the water, and putting her mouth on it. The hurt deer fallen into the water to escape. Red blood floating out into the water like cloth. The boy racing down the slope into the reeds t

Knowing the Ending

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“No!” Shouted Jon. “I don't get it!” Clarissa stared at her hands in her lap and tried not to cry. She knew it was her fault they were there. She was the one who cheated. But she could not understand why Jon wanted, no needed, to…

Woman

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There's an old woman sitting in the corner of the bar. Her blue skirt flirts foolishly with the blood-red wall.

Politicouscous I

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Were the coffee and gas not cheap,/ and in the case of the coffee, good,/ I’d never stop again.

The Ringlet: Part III

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The sand was covered with shards of mirror glass, which reflected the bright sun in myriads of twinkling daylight stars.

Naming the Scourge We Made

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To give proper credit where due, one name suffices for what humanity likely will be dealing with for decades or centuries to come, and that name is “Technogenic Climate Change”.

Spiral

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To understand, you have to count the stars.

Morning Concerto

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the continuous racket, a buzz saw trumpet

Justice for Mr. Boogedy

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Whence came a tapping at my door, a tap tap tapping...