Categotry Archives: Flash
Fence
Fred walked out to the back forty to find Barb standing by the fence. Some of her long, beautiful hair had gotten caught in the barbwire. She picked and tugged at it. “Morning Barb! Got yourself caught again? You know, neither one of us has run cattle on our property in a long time. I’m not planning on changing that. Are you?” “Nope.” She ripped the hair loose. “Why don’t we just take this fence down?” “It’s the way I […]
Hieroglyphics
“But what does it mean?” Akron3a traced the lines in the book. There was something familiar about the shapes, but he couldn’t quite place why or how. “It doesn’t mean anything,” Beta425 said with a condescending smirk. “It’s art. That’s what art is all about – stuff that makes no sense. That’s why we don’t have any of our own in the colony. Put that book back in the foreigner’s bag before he notices.” “I guess it doesn’t matter.” Akron3a […]
Elated
Anywhere is fine Among the skyscrapers around the Capital Square Or the tall grasses by Lake Monona I will search for you everywhere As long as your heart continues to turn toward mine When your camera takes you away I will wait When your sails can’t hold wind I’ll call them for you Anytime is fine I’ll rush to your side through snow drifts or rain I’ll hold your books or your hand As long as you are still mine […]
Low Art
Ted caught Ruth as she was leaving her house. “I heard you’re an art collector. I’m an artist. I brought over one of my faller installations. Would you like to see it? It’s in the back of my pickup.” Ruth considered making a break for it, but her car was right next to his pickup and at ninety years old, she wasn’t exactly moving fast these days. “Alright, young man. Lead the way.” The only think in the back of […]
My Precious
Over the course of ninety years, a woman can collect a lot of things. Ruth had more than her fair share, much to her pride. She had the ormolu clock given to her at a prestigious university after a poetry reading of her finest work. It sat in the window next to her yacht racing trophy. Even the house itself was a masterpiece – a mansion built on the best piece of land in town and handed down by her […]
Dead Batteries
“Hey, Martin. You got a minute?” Ted carried a rusted steering wheel as he walked up to Martin’s car. “Whoah, Dude! Nice battery collection. Can I have it?” “No way. You’ll turn it into some weird art project that will only get thrown away just like your car. I’ve been collecting these for years. I’m on my way to the recycling center now. Want to come?” ”Sure!” The clerk at the hazardous materials center tossed the jar over his shoulder […]
The Junk Yard
“It’s junk,” Matt said to Martin. He had one foot on the wheel of his flatbed trailer. He patted the ‘junk’ strapped to it affectionately. “It hasn’t run in nearly a hundred years. My grandfather should have gotten rid of it ages ago. Instead, I inherited it.” “To think this is one of the earliest cars. It’s a symbol of all that was wrong with the industrial revolution and our society’s descent into pollution and over population.” Martin glared at […]
Turning Time
“I’m telling you, it’s the real thing.” She skipped down the path into the garden. “Can’t be. Time turners are a made up thing. It’s from a book.” He followed grudgingly. “See?” She proudly pointed to the hour glass built into a sundial. “Yeah, but it’s just a model. It’s not like it’s a real time turner.” “Yes it is. Let me show you.” She ran up to the hourglass and gave it a spin. “See?” “But nothing happened.” “Sure […]
A Flower for Kimberly
Matt took a shovel with him into the yard. Somewhere out here under the snow was a flower that Kimberly liked. Some kind of yellow, trumpet looking thing. She always made a big deal of it. He dug in one drift, and then another. That flower always popped up through the snow. It had to be out here somewhere. Probably in a month it would be easy to find, but he didn’t have a month. He didn’t want to cave […]
Rice Among the Lotus
Miyamoto Musashi cut down a hundred swordsmen in a single night. A ronan, he destroyed many dojos as proof of his power. He fought and defeated some of the most famous samurai of his day. Yet, broken and alone, he arrived in a destitute village as a beggar. Given the chance to farm, the rice paddies defeated him. In his defeat he discovered enlightenment. When at last the emperor’s men came to ask his allegiance, he no longer had the […]
On the Job
Drew stood outside the building. He had a wire, but it only went to a recorder hidden under his bomber jacket. His partners didn’t know he was here. They thought the drug king pin worked out of a warehouse somewhere on the edges of Albuquerque. Drew’s informant said the man could be found here and he could get in by saying, “Tell El Jefe that Dave sent me.” The dogs were chained. They buzzed him through the gate when he […]
Stairway to Heaven
“What are you going to show me? Where is it?” Alicia followed a step or two behind Sally as they walked through the woods. “This way.” Sally strode along with confidence. They reached a stairway leading up the side of a hill. Sally didn’t even slow down. Despite how cracked and old the steps or rusty the railing, she went right up. Alicia followed a bit slower. At the top she tried to take in the view, but panted too […]
First Flight
“What was that?” The young man seated next to Marge on the plane that was supposed to take them from Rinca Island to Bali gripped the armrests with white knuckles. It was the third time he had flinched since he sat down. “Whatever it was, I’m sure it wasn’t important.” Marge flipped through the in-flight magazine. She thought she might need to order a bourbon despite the short flight because of his nerves. “How do you know?” He looked at […]
At Least It’s Not A Bridge in Brooklyn
Jane and Marge met up in a coffee house in Clinton Hill, Vermont. They hadn’t seen one another in several months. “So?” Marge arched an eyebrow over her cup of decaf. “Why did you want to see me?” “It seems like we are both so busy traveling around the world that we never see one another any more. Don’t you miss the old times?” Jane smiled ingratiatingly. “No,” Marge said bluntly. “I’ve got the perfect solution.” As usual, Jane ignored […]
Dreadful Sink
That dreadful sink. Audrey pulled out the plunger and gave the drain a perfunctory clearing. Over the thirty plus years of her marriage the drain had clogged thousands of times. She didn’t dare complain because she was the reason it clogged so easily. When they built the house the plumber had said the sink must go in a place that the carpenter said could not be opened up for a window. Visualizing year after year of staring at a wall, […]
