FLASH

Small but mighty, these short, incisive pieces cut to the core in a just a few words.
dead roses
The Cycle

It all started with the curse of my tits. Women’s bodies are cursed. Everyone tries to look at them, everyone tries to ignore them.

Little Cow

A man with a fistful of showbags said, “That cow sounds like a person trying to sound like a cow.”

Ruminations

Through the dusty window in my parent’s bedroom, I watched the neighbor’s cattle graze.

Cost of Care

I reached for my invoice, which Dr. George, holding it between thumb and forefinger as if it were a soiled diaper, dropped into my hand.

Junk

It was spring and the hills were irradient, like they had to get out all their green in one short burst before catching fire.

Swoon

Jenna says that he typically goes for redheads, so I run to Target and buy a box of hair dye.

Familiar Territory

Could someone hating you really cause a physical unease? Sure, why not.

rotarty phone
My Wife’s Phone

Sex is not a thank you card in this house.

graffiti on cement
Slabs

We drifted junk with a sledgehammer looking for juice. Sometimes the rage.

Alan Rickman and the Mermaids of the Conch Republic

Sound engineers believe Alan Rickman possessed the perfect male voice. Early acting teachers told him he sounded like he was speaking from the back of a drainpipe.

Greetings From Baja California!

Sitting at the bar on Pacific Avenue. With the seashells in the walls. Same bartender from last year, still here, making the same lethal Mai Tais.

The Rift

None speak of how the streets collide in coarse seams like scars, the fresh cobbles unable to level with the ones shaken from their mortar by uncountable seasons.

Teeth and Boyfriends

With great reluctance, I agree to meet a cousin for an outside lunch…

Here in East Greenwich

He used to hold my hand on Commonwealth. I wonder sometimes if he ever still thinks about my mouth.

Smile.

At twenty, the world is yours because you’re beautiful. But never acknowledge your beauty, or it makes you a bitch.

In Rare Cases…

You’re joking, I say, interrupting the steady bumping of the doctor’s bushy white mustache.

The Sweetness

I’m dancing with my best friend’s husband, under the influence of his jaws and thighs.

Damn Good Listener

I know you shouldn’t keep wild animals as pets, but I’ve had the same spider in my bathroom sink for over two weeks.

Post Pregnancy Examination (Shortened Form)

Infant’s Name: A
Delivery Date: August 1, 2002

forest fire
When The Ten Thousand Ton Trilobite Attacked

We said, Heck, that’s really something.