I jus’ saw my wife sanitizing the hand-sanitizer.

Inspired by Guy de Maupassant’s “Was it a Dream?” Tired of the face mask, talk of plague, social distancing and the other various ways to avoid one’s neighbor, I drove to Virginia City with three one-fifth bottles of rot-gut, for I wished to become drunk and falling down. My destination being where all eventually fall,…

This day’s been face masks, wildfire smoke, boredom and isolation. Night time is arrived and a certain loneliness encases me beneath the covers. My wife’s already sleeping. I cannot. Quietly, gently, I climb from bed, dress, slip out the door, into my truck, pulling from our drive. To the Truckee River I head, to a…

It’s a simple throw rug purchased on line. The thing that makes it so special is that it creates an optical illusion so strong, not even my dogs will go near it. The illusion is that of a black hole with a series of white and black squares around the entrance. It has brought many…

Essence of literary burn out Seems to be mine, not yours As I etch into computer code Many words few wish to read. Does my pain beget pleasure?

Deborah was a beautiful redhead and I wanted to sleep with her in the worst way, and I did. Later, I had to kill her to protect myself. Let me explain: It began a week ago, jus’ before the full moon. I met her at a family gathering, she was the date of one of…

Bought a chicken to make sandwiches. It doesn’t. It shits on the floor.

As I walked by Mister Nate’s home, he called me up onto his porch. I could tell the nonagenarian had something on his mind. I took the cushioned rocking chair next to his. “Son,” he started, “I jus’ got back from visiting my kids in California.” He paused. I didn’t interrupt. “They’ve gotten stupid,” he…

Since March 20, 2020, I’ve been unemployed, because of the state shutting down for a two-week  period to ‘flatten the curve’ on COVID-19. That is 150 days ago. During this time, the company I worked for permanently closed its facility, and I’ve been unable to collect any unemployment benefits because I can’t get through either…

Day 150 of a two-week period that is promised to flatten the curve…