The Lobster Pot Stomach rumbling, I spied a restaurant sign ahead: The Lobster Pot. It wasn’t seafood, just a dimly-lit diner at the end of a long hallway. “I’m curious,” I asked when I was paying, “why call it The Lobster Pot?” “The way it’s built,” the waiter replied, smiling. “Easier in than out.” A…
Tag: fiction
Down the AI Rabbit Hole
Down the AI Rabbit Hole It started on a Friday. I only remember that since I was planning on a relaxing weekend as I walked out of my graduate archeology seminar. “I loved your essay on the new dating system for bronze age sites,” Dr. Acharya said as I passed her desk. “You made some…
Tunnel of … Something
Tunnel of … Something Hannah and Brett floated on a small boat through the dark tunnel. Pop music played softly. They passed a TV showing a baseball game. “You doing okay?” Brett asked. “Yeah.” “You think it’ll rain tomorrow?” “Maybe. Ugh, I need to think of something for supper tonight.” “Get a pizza.” “I’ll just…
The Universe and I
This story is a response to the Muse on Monday writing prompt from January 6, 2025. The Universe and I It was January 1, 2025, and I decided I was going to make a New Years resolution. I hadn’t done that in a while but here it was a new year, and I wanted to…
Jeff’s Bucket List
Jeff’s Bucket List “Hi Mom! There you are. Jeff! I got Mom on Facetime. We’re at that monkey hot spring in Japan, Mom. The one on Jeff’s bucket list. Okay, there he goes. You see him? The monkeys look nervous. Okay, a few are coming over. They’re climbing on him. Oops, they’re holding him under…
Freedom of Movement
Freedom of Movement Jax stared at the ancient watercolor. “The cars had wheels? Why?” “They stayed on the ground.” “But what if there were trees? Or water?” “Well, you couldn’t drive on that part, just on the road.” “That’s so narrow! They must have felt suffocated.” “No, it was normal then. You don’t miss what…
Working Very Remotely
Working Very Remotely Mia digs her toes around the rough gravel of the beach and opens her laptop. It is 4:55 am here on Pitcairn Island, one of the most remote islands in the world. Her laptop connects to the satellite internet just in time for her meeting on Teams to begin. “Hi all,” she…
Doommates
Doommates I came home to see my bike bent out of shape. And blood covering the front porch. Not again. Jorgan the Doomhammer was on the couch, watching an infomercial. It was the same old story: you meet a barbarian in another dimension, he saves your life, follows you home. “You broke my bike.” I…
The Shell Forger
The Shell Forger I didn’t plan to be a seashell forger. I saw one once: rounded mottled back, with a narrow ridged opening underneath. Easy enough to carve from a piece of antler. My neighbors snickered as I kept carving my shells. My village was far from the sea, that mythical place where all rivers…
The Bus Stop
The Bus Stop The Mare Nectaris line bus was late, again. Jac kept his helmet’s visor opaque, watched a video playing on the internal display. He hated waiting at the bus stop alone, especially when the bus was late. Space was big, of course, but in practical, human terms, Space was small and cramped. Space…
The Green-Walled Treehouse 