Theodore Hears a Sound

19. October 2012 · Write a comment · Categories: Animals, Gravity, Humor · Tags: ,

Lady and Man were asleep. Man was snoring. Theodore was awake.

A sound had woken Theodore. He’d heard voices and other sounds, and they had woken him.

Theodore emerged from beneath the covers and jumped to the hardwood floor. The thump and claw clicks did not wake Lady andMan.

Man had failed to shut the bedroom door. Theodore worked the door back with his nose and snuck through a thin opening. He shuffled across the hallway and into the guest bedroom.

Man continued to snore.

Theodore leaped into the seat and then the top of the chair near the window. He peered through the linen curtains.

The scene outside was dark and still. Theodore surveyed the yard, walkway, houses, street, trees, cars. Wait. Lady’s car was different. It was parked off the street, but that was normal. It faced away from the tree, but that was normal. White markings smeared the windshield, windows, sunroof and mirrors. This was not normal. Theodore growled. The white shapes and words were not usually on the car. Theodore continued to growl. Man and Lady still slept.

A head bobbed above the car’s hood. Theodore’s ears perked. Another face appeared near the car’s rear. Theodore’s building growl returned. More »

What If It Goes in the River?

15. October 2012 · Write a comment · Categories: Gravity, Sports · Tags: ,

 

It’s not an island. It’s a riverbank. Maybe a peninsula. It’s a park near the river.

“If it goes in, we have to get it,” Cyndy said.

“I wouldn’t worry either way,” Ted said.

“It was my brother’s.”

“Someone’s going to have to really smash it for it to reach the river.”

The Interstate crosses near here. The passing cars, trucks and motorcycles make roars in a vacuum, loud clicks echoing beneath. One of the pillars supporting the bridge was painted white partly, and black numbers teased what Cyndy hoped were impossibly high flood marks.

Cyndy’s brother had crashed through the barrier on the other side, but the river was the same. These waters and currents are the same.

People call this an island, she thought to herself. It’s not. It’s a park below the boulevard and near the river. Ted watched as she gazed, and they waited without conversation as others arrived. More »

Eyelashes

14. October 2012 · Write a comment · Categories: Gravity, Humor · Tags: ,

He backed away from the shower stream until it was hitting his chest and allowed the shampoo lather to slide down his forehead. His eyelids were shut tightly.

This was his idea: To allow the suds to settle in his eyelashes.

“Is that white gunk still in your eyelashes?” Anne asked as they sat down for lunch at the diner.

“It might be dried shampoo,” he said.

“Are you not rinsing your face in the shower?” she asked, genuinely confused.

Kurt enjoyed the newfound ability to detect confusion on his wife’s face without the help of contact lenses or glasses. He could see her sandy hair poof just a bit in the back, a hint of teeth between thin, maroon lips and rounded chin. Lint on the black, wood coat. Strands of fabric reaching from the black and white checkered scarf. A melted snowflake on her silky, lime-green collar.

“Why are you staring at my neck?” she asked. “Are you okay?”

“I see a line where your makeup ends,” he answered.

“That’s fantastic,” she said with a smirk. “I’m happy you’re using your new powers for good.” More »