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Small but tasty
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Short Stories
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by Jesse
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| My busstop, when I was young, was the stop sign at the nearer end of my road. Truly, the stop was more dominated by the ... |
| September 02, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| One of my writing friends recently asked me to write something for his 'zine. I'm an ego whore, so I immediately agreed.... |
| August 23, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| Stop it, he goes, and I just laugh a hateful laugh and run my arm across another table, knocking every damn thing onto t... |
| July 28, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| Do you ever wonder if you're a good person? I think most of us assume that we are, right? You get up in the morning, yo... |
| July 07, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| "You think we're gonna be okay?"
I look at her, and I wonder how she can ask something like that. You know that expre... |
| June 07, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| I wrote a post ... |
| May 27, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| It's so stupid. Stuff like this always is.
But fuck it.
Sometimes stupid is exactly what you need, right? When the... |
| May 03, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| Dirt scuffed to dust, caught in the wind, a cloud of nothing, and she tells herself it's time to cry, but she doesn't b... |
| April 29, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| I'm lost. Whatever is supposed to separate the past from the future or the present, whatever's supposed to differentiate... |
| April 18, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| "Hell man, you wanna blow my heart apart, you have to at least look while you pull the trigger, you owe the heavens tha... |
| April 11, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| "Alcohol isn't the answer," she says, giving me that look. Not quite disapproving, but almost, and mixed with sadness a... |
| March 17, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| She says hello, and I almost scream. I didn't know there was anyone else around. There shouldn't be anyone else around.... |
| March 11, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| "You know what the problem is? I mean, you know what the real problem is?"
"Yes."
"Fuck you, you don't know." She g... |
| March 08, 2010 |
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by Ray
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Last year, I did this thing where I wrote a story for a friend of... |
| February 27, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| A while back, the Austin Chronicle had a short story contest. It had to be an original, unpublished work of a certain le... |
| February 10, 2010 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| Focus.
He's talking. I'm listening, watching, and feeling.
Pain, sadness, guilt, fear.
I pull my... |
| February 01, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| I ended up digging through some old files tonight, mostly to appease a friend of mine, but also because I was curious. I... |
| January 10, 2010 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| "Let's test it one more time."
I groaned.
"Oh, come on! What if doesn't work?"
"Seriously, Maggie, we alread... |
| January 08, 2010 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| "Now?"
"No, not yet. That was only one assailant."
"Yeah, but he had a gun!"
"We can't take any chances on ... |
| January 08, 2010 |
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by Charlie Mine
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I so hate Walmart. It's not just the zombies wandering brainlessly from aisle to aisle, getting in my way whil... |
| January 07, 2010 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| "What the fuck?" I willed the bastard to meet my eyes as I took another drag on my cigarette.
"What now?" M... |
| January 06, 2010 |
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by Ray
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| The blood smears messy across the back of my hand, and I can only laugh. Really? This is my life?
It's so stupid, it'... |
| December 18, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| I wonder for a second if this is because there's something wrong with me. Shock? Am I paralyzed? I don't know, I don't ... |
| December 02, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Her tears, that's what I can't get over. Who was it, Jerry Seinfield that made that joke? About how if all women had to... |
| November 27, 2009 |
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by Kenne
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| Lucky Punch
I'm standing here, squared off with my mortal enemy.
That's a bit of a stretch, he's just some jackas... |
| November 12, 2009 |
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by Kenne
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| Birds and Bedrock
Dr. Juliet Rose Galena wasn't at all the kindly maternal figure once she was inside her O.R. It's ... |
| November 12, 2009 |
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by Kenne
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| Tweety and Juliet
“Next!”
Doctor Juliet Rose Gallena called out with a voice that sounds more like a DMV bureaucra... |
| November 12, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| It's like looking into a mirror. One that doesn't show your physical self, but your insides. Not like organs and black ... |
| November 11, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "Sending a kid. This is a low blow. You know that, right?"
He shrugs his shoulders and rolls his eyes just a bit, a m... |
| November 09, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| In the movies, this is where it the guy would lean forward and begin mumbling, and the audience would be left out. Then... |
| October 21, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "What do you want?" I ask.
"You bastard!" She screams. "You asshole!" My phone, it's a piece of crap, some puke-yello... |
| October 17, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| He slams the shot glass down so hard that it sounds like a firecracker. But it doesn't break. You gotta tilt it a littl... |
| October 05, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "You know, I always thought I'd be more."
"More? Like what?"
"I don't know. Like, I thought that one day, I'd do so... |
| September 26, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| She keeps asking why, and I wish she would stop. Why why why? And I don't have an answer for her. Not a good one, anywa... |
| September 25, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| He keeps telling me he'll do it. He keeps telling us all. I'll do it, I'll do it! I'm crazy!
Over and over again, any... |
| September 10, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| The anger doesn't last, and for just a moment, that feels like the worst part--that I don't get to hold on to the anger... |
| September 06, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Flashes.
Of vision, of smell, of noise. What happened? What is happening? The panic builds up inside of me, no release,... |
| August 24, 2009 |
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by rik
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| I lean against the railing surrounding the balcony and light a cigarette.
"It's hot tonight," I say.
"Yep." He is fidg... |
| August 12, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Who am I? It doesn't matter. You want to call me something, you can call me Jack, I guess. That's what they call me at ... |
| August 03, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| It's like this game we play, but it isn't a game, and both of us know it. It's a thing, a thing like Russian Roulette, ... |
| July 26, 2009 |
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by me
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| How do you change that godawful dog picture profile?... |
| July 23, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| The bad part is, like the really shit thing, is that people don't understand. Which means they don't believe.
You ca... |
| June 23, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| My mom once asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I was eleven years old at the time, and we were driving throu... |
| June 09, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| I hate this place.
I hate it.
What a bunch of freaks.
With their hate disguised as love, and their disgust disgu... |
| May 20, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Darren sits on the cement steps in front of his house, and to the casual observer, he looks the same as he always does ... |
| May 15, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "I don't..." The tears make it hard to form a complete sentence. Well, not so much the tears, but the sobbing, the runn... |
| May 06, 2009 |
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by Trey
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| This is a continuation of an ongoing story started years ago. To see the previous chapter and links to all th... |
| May 01, 2009 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| "Maybe I'm just tired. Or shot one too many steroid injections this week. Whatever. I oughta be happy for you insensi... |
| April 21, 2009 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| Memory is a funny thing. Most days, it seemed like he couldn't rely on it at all. Yet, there were times when it would ... |
| April 20, 2009 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| He kept his eye on her as she moved about the mission house that night. She was new to this scene, fairly young, with e... |
| April 14, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Mink didn't want to wake up. Wouldn't have, except for the throbbing in his head and the twisting in his gut. He grabbe... |
| April 12, 2009 |
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by Charlie Mine
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| "Mitch!"
Jimmy's harsh whisper was irritating. "What?" The snarled response was intended to silence, not encourag... |
| April 09, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| I started this story a while back, when I accepted an odd sort of a challenge. A friend of mine came up with three rando... |
| April 05, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| Cheap liquor, greasy in the reflected light, splashed carelessly into a shot glass and pushed over scarred wood, throug... |
| March 29, 2009 |
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by Ray
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"So this is how it's gonna go?" She asks. "This is how you're going to en... |
| March 29, 2009 |
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by James
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| So, we had to inter them in the ground. It wasn’t exactly fun, but, you know, we needed to do it. There is just... |
| March 17, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| I don't know why I decided to be a killer. I was bored, mostly, and I know how terrible that sounds, but that’s what it... |
| March 10, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| I wrote this story for an internet friend. Her birthday is coming up, and I let her pick three words and/or phrases to i... |
| February 25, 2009 |
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by Ray
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... |
| February 16, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| The music's thub-bumpin' so hard I can feel it from the back of my eyes to the bottom of my nutsack, and the coke's kic... |
| February 15, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| He meets her in a bar, not because he's there to hit on women, but because he just went through some stuff, some pretty... |
| February 13, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| It isn't a smile, not exactly, because he's straining too hard to display a true smile. Sweat drips from his forehead o... |
| February 11, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "Do you know what it is to dream?"
"I have dreams all the time. Just last night, I had a dream where my toilet came a... |
| February 07, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "Jimmy, why don't you wait up in your room, okay, buddy? Your mommy and I need to talk about some things."
Jimmy nodd... |
| January 26, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| My show was on, and my DVR had been screwing up, so I couldn’t record it. I know that’s a stupid reason, but there it i... |
| January 23, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| A long time ago, Trey started a story called She Walked In. Either because he was hoping to give other writers so... |
| January 19, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| You see the scars, you can't help but wonder what caused them, you can't help but fill in the blanks. You can't help bu... |
| January 05, 2009 |
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by Ray
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| "Why are you so sad?"
"I'm not sad," I tell her.
"Yes, you are. And you lie about it."
I feel her stare on the si... |
| December 02, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| It isn't something we want, it's something we need. She's muttering, it's hard to understand what she's saying, with h... |
| November 04, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| “Look at you,” She says.
“I’d rather not,” I tell her, my words slurred, my eyes unfocused.
“All hydro’d out and st... |
| October 13, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| The numbers, they’re out to get me, I can tell. Don’t tell me no, what, are you in on it with them? I knew, by the w... |
| September 13, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Too much.
The thought has gone through her head before, many times in her life, but it has never been ... |
| September 02, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Junior High, and fuck me if it wasn't worse than anything I've had to deal with in adulthood. Third grade was worse, of... |
| August 20, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| She asked, What kind of monster are you.
I’m the kind of monster who comes to your home in broad daylight, with... |
| August 16, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Whispered wishes into make-believe ears, almost as pointless as throwing hard-earned cash into a well. The dark hides h... |
| August 11, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Overwhelming is an understatement. It’s not a cloud, it’s not a wave—it’s just everything, all of the sudden.
She tol... |
| August 04, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| You learn things as you fumble through life, you know? You learn stuff about the world you’re fumbling through and you ... |
| July 20, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Tell me you want me. Tell me you need me. Tell me you love me. Her mouth doesn’t say it, but her eyes do. Desper... |
| July 12, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| “You know, right? About the drugs and the counterfeiting thing and the debit card scam?”
“Yeah, man, I know.”
“And ... |
| July 11, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| They go, “Clear!” They go, “Get away!” And I wish that I could. Something like lightening hitting me in the chest, an... |
| July 05, 2008 |
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by Ray
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With all due respect to hurt:
What…love?
Shit.
I been there. Her name was Candy, but she wasn’t near as swee... |
| June 26, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Like what? Like lighting through my soul, man. She’s moving out there, on the dance floor, under the flashing lights an... |
| June 24, 2008 |
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by Lynne Grey
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| Here's that story I promised........
I feel like a stranger parked in my own driveway; the driveway where I parked ... |
| June 12, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Her hair dances in the wind, as beautiful as a child’s surprised giggle. She was out of the car and into the field bef... |
| June 11, 2008 |
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by Ray
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Alarms ringing in his head, and no matter how many times he hits the clock or answers the phone, the ringing continue... |
| June 04, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| May 30, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| May 25, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| May 16, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| May 12, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 27, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 18, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 12, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 11, 2008 |
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by Jesse
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 09, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| ........................................................................................................................... |
| April 02, 2008 |
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by rik
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| What is a god?
A god is a creator, birthing life and magic from everywhere and nowhere. The reason a newborn baby fi... |
| March 31, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| I never thought I’d be that guy. I’ve seen them before, maybe sitting in a booth at IHOP, over ignored cups of coffee,... |
| March 11, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Here’s the deal, kids: I have to be out of town for the next couple of days because a certain best friend of mine has ... |
| February 13, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| April 14
Vulture Point, that’s what the town-people call it. Called it. It ain’t much, but ... |
| January 14, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| Waking up, eyes red and aching…again. Headache of a million mourning brain cells. How many they’re mourning for is an... |
| January 07, 2008 |
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by Ray
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| So what you have to ask is this: Is it forbidden because of how wonderful it is? Or is it so wonderful because it’s f... |
| December 16, 2007 |
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by Jesse
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| The phone rings, and I say Hello? And they say Hello. And I say Hello. Oh, can you hear me? Of course I can, I say. I'm ... |
| December 13, 2007 |
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by Jesse
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| I’ve had it since I was born. Carried it all my life, drawing on it when I need it, but time blurs all things – memory, ... |
| December 13, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| She glances in my direction and I avert my eyes: to the chalkboard, to whatever nonsense the professor has just writte... |
| December 08, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| It isn’t madness, exactly, but it’s definitely a kissing cousin. The city isn’t alive, not any more than it usually is... |
| November 28, 2007 |
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by Trey
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| The sun glows red as it touches the horizon.
Bill Parson lowers his binoculars, steps back from the cliff edge, and put... |
| November 21, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| It certainly would explain a lot of things. I didn’t believe it for a second, because you’d have to be batshit insane ... |
| November 21, 2007 |
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by Jesse
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| I wake up in the morning, and I take a pill. I wretch. I don't know why. It's so little. It takes ten minutes and my sto... |
| November 06, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Do you even know what you want out of life?” Mary asks.
“Does anyone?”
“Beside the point. I’m asking if you |
| November 06, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Paula didn’t realize she had zoned out. She had been working in the area she called her serenity garden—a self-made po... |
| October 29, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I try the door, hoping that it’ll be locked. If it is, I have to pick the lock, which takes around ten to fifteen seco... |
| October 21, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Where is he?” I ask because it’s my job to ask. I hate my job.
“Three-eighteen—up the stairs and take a left.” ... |
| October 21, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “We could have been a movie together. We should do that next.”
I stare down at her, wondering if she’s joking. At t... |
| October 10, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Foul things are afoot tonight, children, whether you know it or not. Sit still, breathe deep, can you not feel it? It... |
| October 03, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I don’t how she can manage to move so fast in her oversized combat boots, but she busts hump like a champ, which is goo... |
| September 28, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “I ever tell you I could fly?”
I glance at my watch, hoping that it’s closer to closing time than it feels. We still... |
| September 21, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I can only pretend I don’t see it for so long. The name on the envelope—my name—is written very neatly, very carefully... |
| September 10, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| The gum doesn’t cover the scent of the booze, but it gives it a minty companion smell, so it’s easy to make the mistake... |
| September 09, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Have you ever wanted to make the worst mistake of your life? Don’t lie.
You ever stop to think that maybe Pandora ... |
| September 04, 2007 |
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by Trey
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| I use the railing of the fire escape to pull myself to my feet. I wipe the puke off my chin and go inside to change pan... |
| August 24, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I’m sitting on the couch. She’s sitting in the chair on the other side of the living room. That’s how it goes, I gues... |
| August 20, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Disclaimer: I wrote this story a while back and then lost it. It should in no way b... |
| August 12, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I handed her a cup of coffee, pitch-black and strong enough to wake the dead. As she reached out for it, her baggy t-s... |
| August 06, 2007 |
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by Derrick Cummings
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| I've been visiting the Strangelands for a while now, after reading a post where Ray (who I don't know, aside from his wr... |
| August 03, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Hey, wait, pull over here!”
“What? Why?”
“I need some aspirin. Or beer. Both. Pull over here.” He jerked the ... |
| July 28, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I woke to frantic pounding that I didn’t understand. I looked at the clock on the front of my DVD player and saw that ... |
| July 27, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Look, I’m not saying Hitler was a good guy, I’m just saying that he had some really good ideas about how to…okay, it’s... |
| July 26, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| The cliché thing would have been a cup of sugar—that’s always how it goes with neighbor stories, right? I didn’t need ... |
| July 25, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Every ice cube tray in the house is empty, the water pitcher sits on the counter, bored, warm, and dry. The only bottl... |
| July 18, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “On a roll this morning, saving the day; tipping my worn baseball cap to the ladies and driving a giant motorcycle into... |
| July 16, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| It’s weird, you know? You live your life, you try to do the right thing, you try to do good…
And what? Like, you en... |
| June 28, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Tell me about the girl.” He wasn’t giving me a look, exactly, but there was something there, like he was watching to ... |
| June 18, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Hey.”
“What?”
“I know this is silly, considering, but…”
“What?”
“I always thought there would be music.... |
| June 09, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Note from Ray: I entered a flash fiction contest the other day. The guidelines said ... |
| June 07, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I go, “I missed a call.”
She goes, “Who from?”
I go, “Wasn’t it supposed to rain tonight?”
I pick up the phone,... |
| April 26, 2007 |
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by rik
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| If you're going to read this, don't bother.
After a couple of pages, you won't want to be here. So forget it. Go a... |
| April 19, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Jeremiah Bennington cocked his head as if the silence told him something that it concealed from others. He shook his h... |
| April 16, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| A short while later, the bells over the shop door jingled again. Jeremiah Bennington looked up from his work and smile... |
| April 15, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Jeremiah Bennington looked up from his workbench when the bells above the door rang. Each one was a different size and... |
| April 14, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Is this what makes you happy?”
He ignores her and holds up a piece of cardboard to one of the many passers-by.
“... |
| April 06, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I named her Stephanie Megan, and she was the most beautiful baby that has ever graced the planet, or that ever will. I... |
| March 27, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| My mom moved in with me for a while, and my wife’s parents got a hotel room at the place down the street, and they help... |
| March 27, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| I was right there with her, even though we weren’t sure if that was a good idea—I’ve never been good dealing with the s... |
| March 26, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| He just stares at me. I stare back. I’m not sure if he’s thinking about taking the money or if he’s thinking about de... |
| March 26, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| It’s late. I should be in bed—work tomorrow, and Mr. Jenkins is getting sick and tired of seeing me show up to the Mon... |
| March 14, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| Note: I wrote this story last summer. I took it down because I had entered it into a ... |
| February 22, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “I just realized that I can rank the females I’ve dated in order of love, and the girl that used to give me handjobs af... |
| February 13, 2007 |
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by rik
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| "Are you sure you want this?"
"I'm sure."
"The answers you're looking for aren't in here."
"You don't even k... |
| February 08, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| So it’s like, what? 11:35? Doesn’t matter, really, but that’s what the clock says when I slump down onto the bed.
“... |
| February 07, 2007 |
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by rik
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| Note: (Please don’t think that the entry that follows this little explanation is actually an excerpt from my own diary. ... |
| February 05, 2007 |
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by Ray
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| “Give it back.”
“No.”
“Do it... |
| December 22, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| He steps into the circle and looks around. The feeling in his stomach is familiar, but it’s not something he’ll ever r... |
| December 21, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “So what you’re telling me is that you’re a bad guy. I gave birth to a bad guy.” She opens a packet of sugar and dump... |
| December 19, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| RING!...RING!...RING!...
“uuuh…hello?”
“You know what your problem is? You got no passion. You got no idea about h... |
| December 14, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| We’re standing by the river when she pulls the gun. We’re by the river because this is where she said she wanted to me... |
| November 20, 2006 |
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by Jesse
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| Reluctantly we danced, gangly arms outstretched.
Crumpled wrappers strewn, still no satisfaction.
Bubble y... |
| November 06, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 1—November 2
“I did it.”
“I know.”
“No, I mean I did it. |
| October 31, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 2
I did it.
The doctor said I would lose time, so that part wa... |
| October 31, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| This has been around for a while, so you may have already seen it splattered all over the internet, but just in case yo... |
| October 30, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 1
They spend most of the day talking about anything other than the present sit... |
| October 30, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 2
The thing about small towns is, you never really get to have any... |
| October 29, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 1
The walk across the parking lot is one of the most surreal exper... |
| October 29, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 2
My name is Jackson Tye. I am twenty six years old, and I live i... |
| October 28, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 1
“Talk to me.”
“I didn’t kill her, but I’m glad the bitch is dead... |
| October 27, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| November 1
Jackson Tye opens his eyes and uses up a couple seconds of his l... |
| October 27, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| October 31
Kristy Brown paused the movie she was watching and rose from the couch. Sh... |
| October 27, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| If you’re into spouting over-used cliché’s you could say that he showed up out of the blue. I wouldn’t say that. I wo... |
| October 18, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I’m in the local convenience store—Allsup’s—buying some beef jerky and a 7Up. It has been a long, stupid day. To tell... |
| October 16, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I have a story I’ve been meaning to tell you. It’s not a story entirely my own, but even the stories I make up don’t r... |
| October 15, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “The first time, it was because I thought he liked me, you know? I know, I know, I’m so stupid, so naïve, so…wh... |
| October 11, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Don’t start with me, Dillon.”
“Don’t start with you?” Dillon said. Not quite a yell, but almost. “Don’t start ... |
| October 11, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| She’s already there when I arrive, sitting with her legs drawn, her chin resting on her knees, just the way I remember ... |
| September 26, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I realize I’ve been rambling on about my princess and weddings and love and stuff like that lately, and I guess I need ... |
| September 20, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Do you understand, I wonder? Is there any way that you could? Surrounded by love and warmth and companionship, and st... |
| September 18, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Rain. Of course it’s going to start raining. I mean, seriously, how could it possibly not rain at this point?
... |
| September 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Our eyes lock, and although it doesn’t seem like I should have the time to think, I still mange to wonder if I scare hi... |
| September 11, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| When I first started this deal, I wanted this camera to be sort of like a journal. It didn’t take me all that long to ... |
| August 29, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| The jangling of the bells on the ice cream truck proved one of the precious few things in life on which you could depend... |
| August 22, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| The thing that really makes my soul ache is the feeling of wrongness that constantly batters my mind and my heart. “Th... |
| August 16, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| How long has it been? Offhand, I don’t even know. I make marks in the sand, but I doubt they’re accurate. I have a w... |
| August 15, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| So they made the first water drop today. I watched from a distance as the helicopter lowered the huge yellow tank down... |
| August 08, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I forgot to bring cold medicine. Also, I didn’t count on having a runny nose when I did the math on how much toilet pa... |
| August 06, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I slept like a baby last night. The tent has a little flap that you can unzip, and you can see the stars through this ... |
| August 05, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| So it’s my first day out here. Incidentally, by the time you’re hearing this part of the track, you’ll already have be... |
| August 04, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Is…is this thing on? Hello? What do you want me to say? “Testing?” Are you serious? Isn’t that a little cliché? N... |
| August 02, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I was walking home from work when I saw the lights. It was around five in the morning, and still more night than day.
... |
| July 28, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Heybuddy didn’t come back the next night, but Matt did, and he brought a few of his friends with him. They came in rig... |
| July 27, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| The way it worked was, on the weekends, there were two cooks, two busboys, and five servers for the graveyard shift (or... |
| July 25, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Oh, holy shit, what’s this all about?”
I understood his reaction. Working the graveyard shift at a pancake house, y... |
| July 24, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Roy skipped out of the family room clutching his package. He whined, “It’s the comohshul an’ I gotta pee-pee.”
For th... |
| July 06, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “I don’t…I don’t understand why!” I’m drunk, and although I’m not so far gone that I don’t realize this fact, I... |
| June 23, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| He shows up about thirty minutes later, a bottle of Cuervo in one hand, and a plastic rose in the other. I open the do... |
| June 22, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Mrs. Bailey demonstrated awkward nonchalance and continued: “Fr. O’Bannion and I think you should try to act more like J... |
| June 14, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “People change.”
The words sting me. No apology, no excuses, just those two words, blatant and blunt and sad. What... |
| June 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I don’t cry when I get to the bathroom, and I don’t throw up (which is actually what I thought I might do—I’ve never be... |
| June 12, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| What he didn’t know was that I already knew about his website. It was a fluke that I ever found it. I just happened t... |
| June 09, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “What’s up, Jackie?” He asks. He has changed. I should know—I was secretly in love with him for six of the ten month... |
| June 08, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Note from Ray: I wrote this for a contest I was gonna enter, but I forgot to read all t... |
| May 30, 2006 |
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by Carey
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| She reaches for the leash and attaches it to my collar.
“Hold up, I smell an intruder lingering on this fire hydrant.”
... |
| May 14, 2006 |
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by Trey
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| Four A.M.
Twenty dollars and the pink paper invite from the DJ gets us in.
The greasy Italians in the tracksuits and ... |
| May 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Broken Up
I hate her and she hates me, and it doesn’t even matter, because we’ll never stop. She zips up her p... |
| May 12, 2006 |
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by rik
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| Wow, this was much more difficult than Jesse made it sound, but here goes:
She walked up the stairs to her apartment,... |
| May 12, 2006 |
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by Jesse
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| Preface: Hello, Strangelanders. I was reminded of an exercise ... |
| May 12, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Sister Mary Esther turned, faced the children, and raised her hands, poised to conduct the children, above her head. She... |
| May 09, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I had a bit of time on my hands, so I decided to go track down an alien to interview. I’m not talking about the illega... |
| May 07, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Jonas weeps and wails and sobs and cries, and in the end, he sits shivering, trying to hold onto his sanity. “How?” h... |
| May 03, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s called the grove by the people that call it anything, even though nothing grows from the trees. In fact, most of ... |
| May 02, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| She hasn’t stayed the night at her own place in over two weeks. Tyler has practically moved out, claiming that the ste... |
| April 26, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Surprisingly, she actually likes his outfit, which is too bad, because the shirt is too tight and the jeans make his le... |
| April 25, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| “Lemmee tell you something Kitty.”
Kitty giggled and leaned forward.
Mr. Bailey also giggled as he indicated Mrs. ... |
| April 24, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Dude, it’s totally got you.”
“It doesn’t have me—it’s just becoming a problem, is all.”
“Addicts never admit they ... |
| April 24, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Well, what do you think?” She looks at him expectantly, a huge smile on her face. She thinks that she’s done somethi... |
| April 22, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| The hazy rays of the intense sun targeted the lawn chair into which Tony Poda had wedged his fat ass. It parboiled his e... |
| April 20, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I wake up quickly, but I’m not sure why. I look around the room, wondering what could have caused my heart to race so ... |
| April 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I don’t even want to know what time it is. We’ve been kicked out of the bar, but Jessica somehow managed to talk the o... |
| April 12, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Tell me about when you grew up.” I’m three drinks in, which is not nearly enough to justify why I’m even considering ... |
| April 11, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| He fumbled with the adult-sized handset as he used his five-year-old hand to lift it from the cradle. Then he reached wi... |
| April 09, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| We get to Hederton just as the sun is setting, which is probably for the best—it’s not the kind of place that you reall... |
| April 08, 2006 |
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by Jesse
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| Somewhere, on a lonely street, a perfect line of elms keep the company of a roadway whose intent is long forgotten. It i... |
| April 07, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “This is getting too easy.” I start the car as she straps herself in. It’s two days later, and we’re already done wit... |
| April 06, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “I think he’s cheating on me.”
Oh, shit, not this again. I roll my eyes, exaggerated, so she can’t help but see it a... |
| April 05, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “What are you doing here?” It’s been about ten seconds since we heard the sound of his car starting up, the engine rev... |
| March 22, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| “He’s always embarrassing me! He’s so immature! He’s just jealous ‘cause I’m practically a grown-up, that’s all.”... |
| March 22, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s foggy as shit. Three, maybe four feet in front of me, that’s what I can see clearly. Five feet past that, it’s l... |
| March 21, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I’m about halfway through it and I realize that I’m bored. She doesn’t seem to be having the same problem, though, so ... |
| March 20, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| For just a second, I freeze. It isn’t because I’m too scared to act, it’s because I can’t decide the best thing to do.... |
| March 15, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| I’m up early, and it’s still dark. The dark of the morning isn’t nearly so bad as the dark of the night. With the mo... |
| March 14, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| What woke me up was Mr. Roth shaking me. He didn’t do it gently, not like my mom did on school days to get me out of b... |
| March 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s dark. Darker than it ever gets in the city, which is kind of weird. I mean, even if you stand in the closet with... |
| March 11, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Daddy?” I asked, because I didn’t know what else to say, but I think it was already too late. He died quick.
“Ho... |
| March 10, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s dark. Darker than it ever gets in the city, which is kind of weird. I mean, even if you stand in the closet with... |
| March 09, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s dark. Darker than it ever gets in the city, which is kind of weird. I mean, even if you stand in the closet with... |
| March 08, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| It’s dark. Darker than it ever gets in the city, which is kind of weird. I mean, even if you stand in the closet with... |
| March 07, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “Okay, it’s time we checked you out,” Natalie Portman tells Beth Anne Williams. The emergency room has cleared out, an... |
| February 27, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Back when he was young, he memorized the facts. Friends, family, pets, jobs, hobbies, interests, loves found and loves... |
| February 24, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| The figure walks through the hospital, not paying attention to any of the hustling, hurrying people around him. Most o... |
| February 23, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Frankie Smith has seen all kinds of crazy stuff during the night hours of the ER, but he has never seen anything like w... |
| February 22, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Frankie Smith is worried about what he’s going to tell Dr. Mendon about the missing bed. As the elevator rises, he run... |
| February 21, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Natalie Portman looked over and saw that the old woman was coughing up blood. She was doing it as quietly as possible,... |
| February 20, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Frankie Smith isn’t the brightest crayon in the box, and he never has been. He knows it, and he knows that other peopl... |
| February 19, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| The spot advertising the Ploughboys on the Shorty Harris Show must have been in last-minute heavy rotation. Roy h... |
| February 16, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Natalie Portman sits at the desk, thinking about her problems. She knows she should be thinking about other people’s p... |
| February 15, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Cancer
The word whispered through her head like a child tiptoeing through the house on Christmas morning, hopi... |
| February 14, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Rodney Benedict is not a man to wait. Or at least he wishes he wasn’t. He’s wants to be an important man—he’s ... |
| February 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Beth Anne Williams looked around. No matter how many patients were escorted through the corridors of the hospital, the... |
| February 13, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Cody Burns sits at the desk, trying to stay awake. He is not what you would call a happy camper, by any means. Cody B... |
| February 10, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Beth Anne Williams sat on the edge of the seat, aching horribly. She had lived for eighty-two years, and she wasn’t su... |
| February 09, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| Tom Miller removes the cigar from his mouth and glares down at the clipboard. The cigar isn’t lit—it’s been illegal to... |
| February 08, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Mrs. Bailey continued, “Well it was so obvious. Can you just imagine? That—God bless me—harlot winked at you!”
This p... |
| January 28, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| “You are a terrible man,” she whispers.
“I’m worse than that.” I grab her arm and haul her down the steps. She does... |
| January 18, 2006 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Mrs. Bailey sounded detached after the excitement. “Oh him. He stumbled out front and is getting sick on the lawn... |
| January 05, 2006 |
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by Ray
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| He kicks open the door, gun drawn, anticipating whatever. For just a second, I wish I could be up and ready, guns blaz... |
| January 01, 2006 |
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|
by STRANGE GIRL
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| ok the margaritas are gone and the hight is nearing an end as well as other things. air supply CD croons of lovers split... |
| December 28, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| The guy with the glowing grill, he didn’t seem to like getting shot too much, but it didn’t bother him enough for me to... |
| December 19, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
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| “Oh a group of them just passed on their way from the bar out to the parking lot. They were playing ‘Zip-A-Dee-Do-Dah’ o... |
| December 17, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “Wake up, you sonuva bitch!”
I jerk out of my daze, and almost piss my pants. What is the matter with me? This hell... |
| December 14, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| The hallway is like maze, a new door every five feet or so, and it seems to go on forever, but he never even pauses as ... |
| December 13, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| Dream is the method by which we have resolved to reconcile this we urge to be truth with that which, by any means, must ... |
| December 10, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| ”How was your day, Davey?”
“Not so good.” David is four years old, his grandpa is ageless. He sits in his grandp... |
| December 10, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Roy still giggled as he bent over and pressed STOP. He examined Janie’s face hoping to find approval. Instead he found t... |
| December 02, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| I spent the rest of the afternoon sipping from the bottle I keep in the top-right drawer of my desk. In the top-left s... |
| November 30, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| He’s almost here…has to be. Fifty floors or not, even if he’s worried about me laying some traps, he’s got to be getti... |
| November 29, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
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| "What does this Shame-O guy do anyway?"
She displayed the awe of a child describing a magic trick as she explained, "... |
| November 19, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| The smooth, cool glass had fogged over and become spotted with his fingerprints. He stared down into his hand in contemp... |
| November 14, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| Donny was a mouse of nominal stature, but all the other mice in the neighborhood new him as Big Donny...
Big Donny woo... |
| November 14, 2005 |
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by Trey
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| *an answer to ray's two heart beats. a new story for anyone who wants to write on it... if there's any takers.
It... |
| November 02, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Jim Bailey turned up in the family room futzing with his tie knot and grumbling something about being under-appreciated ... |
| November 02, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| Note from Ray: I didn't get a chance to proof-read this, and I'm not too sure about the ending, b... |
| October 31, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| In 2185, things had gotten out of hand. The latest and thus far most outrageous boom generation had just come of age in ... |
| October 29, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| He walks slowly, making sure to look like he’s enjoying himself. The jeans he’s wearing are uncomfortable, too tight i... |
| October 21, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| I was smiling lightly and stepping briskly, making my way out of the computer lab to eventually make my way toward my bu... |
| October 13, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
|
| Roy said and did nothing to annoy Emily while Patty's scheme almost succeeded but fizzled out when a nosy classmate got ... |
| October 12, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “What’s goin’ on up there, Wrath?” What floor is he on right now, I don’t know. He’s closer, and that’s bad enough. ... |
| October 12, 2005 |
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by Jesse
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| I'm thinking of getting a tattoo. I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of a guy with a sweet face, dressed in engineering ca... |
| October 11, 2005 |
| |
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by Dave Riley
|
| Fran Bailey used both hands to fasten her right earring while she hurriedly descended the carpeted stairs of the Bailey'... |
| October 01, 2005 |
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by Dave Riley
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| Grandpa Bowser grasped Tiny Little Rosie's hand as they strolled down the street. He towered over the small girl and had... |
| September 18, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| I hear the steps creak, it sounds like he’s about fifteen stories up. Petey. Now there’s a story. We started out as ... |
| September 13, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| My real name isn’t important, really. I left it behind so long ago that most people don’t even realize that I have one... |
| September 03, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| Nothing feels right tonight. Things going on that are more than likely none of your business, or entirely too much you... |
| September 02, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| A Note From Ray: Listen, man, this story is not a happy one. I started it a long time... |
| August 25, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| Sitting in the diner, the rain is pouring down like a Hollywood effect, it’s ridiculous. I stare at the circle of spil... |
| August 17, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| Here’s what would happen in a fight between Superman and Freddy. Freddy being the menace from all the Nightmare on Elm... |
| July 25, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “Welcome to the events today, ladies and gentlemen! My name is Gentry O’Mally, and beside me is Tug Whattabe.”
“Howy... |
| July 24, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| It’s his breath that wakes me up, I think. Once I’m awake, it’s difficult to say for sure what woke me up. Maybe it’s... |
| July 03, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| I sit on the deck, smoking my cigarette, listening, knowing that it won’t be long now.
I wonder what it’s going to be... |
| June 24, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| June 03, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| Hello, children.
I was going to try to finish up another Portly Boy tonight, but it didn’t work out too well. What h... |
| May 25, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “Do you have the answers?” I don’t know who she’s asking, but I don’t feel like talking, so I just assume she’s talkin... |
| April 28, 2005 |
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by STRANGE GIRL
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| the night at the big apple....
i told them....we gotta find it.....
it is the best....I had heard.....
I told them.... |
| April 23, 2005 |
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by Alicia Young One
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| Why is it that things sometimes don't go as planned? Why don't things always work out?
Despite my age I do... |
| April 23, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “Ray, tell me a story.”
I sit up suddenly, a sweat forming on my forehead immediately and cooling almost as quickly. ... |
| April 16, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| “Ray, tell me a story.”
That’s what the child says. He’s got dark hair, brown, but so dark that it almost looks blac... |
| April 06, 2005 |
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by STRANGE GIRL
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When she asked?
When do I matter?
Have I done something to deserve this silent treatment?
Do I deserve to b... |
| March 21, 2005 |
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by walt valentine
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today i sat down and slowly finished the final pages of a well
recommended book. enduring and endearing to t... |
| March 10, 2005 |
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by STRANGE GIRL
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| Ahhhhh...The sweet sound of my fingers tapping the black buttons. What a joy, What a thrill. The world of my imaginati... |
| March 05, 2005 |
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by Ray
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| You sit on the couch, wondering where all of these people came from. Your eyes itch, and your cheeks are wet with tear... |
| October 12, 2004 |
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by Ray
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| It was a pretty good time--if you like the feeling of your brain being date-raped.
He opened the door, all smiles. W... |
| October 12, 2004 |
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by Carey
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| "I don't think we should see each other anymore." Words that were spoken out of the blue by the girl who thought she had... |
| April 23, 2004 |
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