THE MAGICIAN’S THUMB By Dennis Scott Herbert It wriggled and writhed on the floor attached to a string that we could all see but pretended not to because Rodney was trying so damned hard and he hadn’t drunk a drop for three months. But when the dog swooped in and bit that thumb up in … [Read more…]
KRYPTONITE By Nick Kocz Hours after Jill gave birth to our first child, Superman knocked on the door to our maternity room. We were friends, Superman and I. The previous day, he foiled one of Lex Luther’s diabolical plots. Now, he swaggered into the room carrying six dozen red roses that he tossed on Jill’s … [Read more…]
BEACH BLITZ VI By Michael Fischer The day before the last Beach Blitz fishing trip, we practice-casted our donated surf rods on the children’s ward lawn. Beach Blitz was a tradition that would end when Mid-State Psychiatric closed in the winter and we were shipped to group and foster homes, or other hospitals not yet … [Read more…]
WHAT IS A BEEHIVE HAIRDO? By John Zeugner At his first luncheon in Keio University’s Hiyoshi campus faculty cafeteria Moran slid into a series of dislocations. He noticed a slight, short professor wearing a Harris tweed jacket despite the late September heat—that was off-target enough, but, more significantly, the fellow sported a bow tie, the … [Read more…]
HOW TO EAT FLUORESCENT LIGHTS By Aaron Coder Begin with those spent tubes stored haphazardly on end in the corner of the garage, crisscrossing like loose rifles, all held in place by cobwebs. You can’t throw them out, right? You’re supposed to take them to the “proper disposal facility” where it’ll all get smashed into … [Read more…]