November 2011
5 posts
The State of the Lonely
I drive across the border again, my bags tied tightly to my shoulders to make sure they dont get lost. They drag me down, but will protect my back from griffin-fletched arrows, so I leave them on. There are no signs, but I am going nowhere, so it doesn’t matter. We have come to sit and wait.
Everyone is there. You can cross the border in pairs, but oddly, nobody does. They assume that the...
The Waiter
The waiter spoke three languages, and I couldn’t help but feel inferior. He excused himself every now and then to squawk a rubber chicken into the microphone before making an announcement, which was a relief, because before realising what he was doing we had thought we were the only patrons able to hear the mysterious chicken. I remember thinking, now it all makes sense. Then I thought,...
Tessa
‘So you’re gay, then?’
I gave him a long look, slowly reaching for the offered bottle and then pulling away from him with a sharp movement that hinted at my anger. ‘You know I’m not’, I responded finally.
He seemed impatient, leaning back on his palms with an unintended sigh and glaring out towards the highway. I wonder if I’ve hurt him and I feel bad until he tells me that he doesn’t get...
Hunting
Most misunderstood technique: putting everything in caps. As far as I can tell, it’s intended to demonstrate excitement. NO MORE BORING DAYS, one potential employer has written. APPLY NOW!! another urges. Why? Why would I apply for this job? It’s possible that I’m easily frightened, but there seems to be no need for these capital letters other than to imply that you are shouting...
The Mango Stall
It’s a roadside stall, set up in the tray of one of those lowered and suped up utes that would be useless as an actual utility vehicle but are frustratingly attractive to me. A sign is propped up on it, advising that the mangos are for sale. There are three well muscled men playing cards, smoking lazily as I pass. It looks like a den. A mango den. These men dont sell mangos, no no. They only...