I think this was the first one. It's the oldest one I can find, anyway. Mom says I was about eighteen months old, so as of this posting, this would be approximately forty-eight and a half.
Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
Although Octavia Butler's classic novel Kindred does involve time travel, the story is, in the words of the author, a grim fantasy, rather than science fiction. First published in 1979, it is as relevant today as it was then, if not more so. To say this story is “grim” would be akin to saying Rammstein … Continue reading Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
Dream #267: Hunters Become the Prey
I was part of a team sent to represent the Lincoln chapter of PFLAG at a national convention in Arkansas. The convention was at a church, in a town where much of the industry that had kept it alive had dried up, leaving whole blocks deserted and streets in disrepair. The church was also a … Continue reading Dream #267: Hunters Become the Prey
Dream #232: Sopranos and Dead Cats
A great darkness had fallen over the city of Lincoln, placing all power in the hands of a very few, making it so we could not get jobs and were persecuted for not conforming. A group of us went to a big trailer in the Near South neighborhood that had been converted into a church, … Continue reading Dream #232: Sopranos and Dead Cats
Sterling
Original Pub: Plains Song Review Volume VII 2005 A sun pillar in the middle of June. I-80 whispers underneath and a pine wind slips in through your half-open window, racing round inside my Toyota, trying to escape again, scattering the haze of sun-drenched vinyl and old Doritos. And, straight ahead, that improbable, fugitive monument to … Continue reading Sterling
Dream #77: Dream Girl in White Convertible
I was a teenager again, living on the farm. A girl my age named Laura came to live with us. She looked like my old college roommate, with pale skin and long, dark brown hair. Her sister had died a violent death and her brother had died of some degenerative disease. I didn’t know what … Continue reading Dream #77: Dream Girl in White Convertible
Dream #244: The Orange Slice and the Centipede
I went to an old restaurant/antique shop with Todd and his son. (This kid was not one of my stepsons. He was about ten, with straight brown hair.) We climbed an accordion staircase up to a big, musty attic full of broken, dusty furniture. It was very hot, and we decided to leave without … Continue reading Dream #244: The Orange Slice and the Centipede
Jimmy’s Roadside Café: Kindness in the Heart of a Stranger (Drabblecast Director’s Cut)
So, I was having kind of a crappy morning. I’d been up way past my bedtime in a futile chat session with a support tech about my screwed-up computer, which culminated in the tech taking remote control of the computer and doing a bunch of stuff that screwed it up even worse. When I finally … Continue reading Jimmy’s Roadside Café: Kindness in the Heart of a Stranger (Drabblecast Director’s Cut)
Tootie Frootie
When I was nine, my arch-enemy was a Speckled Sussex rooster named Tootie-Frootie. Whenever I went outside, he’d be waiting. A lot of roosters wanted to kick my ass, but Tootie-Frootie also drove me insane with his shrill, annoying crow. He would follow me around, trumpeting his presence, and I’d chase him, and then he’d … Continue reading Tootie Frootie
Wingman
I was always your wingman, whether I liked it or not. I got used to it. Whatever insane scheme you came up with, I covered for you, backed you up, because you and I, we were family—sisters in every way that mattered. As children, we could spend hours discussing everything from bigfoot, to the city … Continue reading Wingman
Shoshana Sumrall 