Rex, his wife, another couple, my wife and I shared a big booth to celebrate our recent marriage. I called it a wedding aftershock party. A few days earlier, the temperature had dropped more than 50 degrees to below freezing just in time for our outdoor mountain ceremony. The day after, it had rocketed back …
Billy’s snores rumbled through the dark hotel room, like a dirt-stuffed garden hose choking and sputtering. He rasped more air into his lungs, like a dentist pulling back his drill before plunging forward again, penetrating deeper into our brains. Three of us shared the hotel room: Billy, me, and Wally. A little before midnight, I’d …
As Wally and I drove east on 285, the mustard yellow and tomato red of Wells Fargo and Target came closer and closer, then fell behind us. Tokyo Joe’s. Noodle & Company. Just like any other Denver plaza – but these images simmered on the front burner of my memory. It was Day 2 of …
“That wine’s dank,” the server said as she scanned the menu. My friend Wally and my wife sat by the window of Indulge Bistro & Wine Bar in Golden, Colorado, on the corner of Washington Avenue and 13th Street. The sun had set. Like hearing a word spoken in a foreign language, my brain passed …
My partner and I stood 25 yards away from the first truck as it rumbled through the bay doors and hit the rubber barrier. One worker hopped out of the cab as the other unlatched the trucks doors. They helped the truck vomit its contents into bags. Dirty pants, shirts, floor mats, towels, mop heads, …
“He turned around, looked at me, and said, ‘I will rearrange your face.’” Nina grabbed my leg and stretched it as she continued her story. “But you know what? I was really proud of myself. He didn’t cock his arm back. I saw that. He wasn’t actually going to hit me. So I didn’t flinch.” …
“My employees can tell you. I’ve gone from being a big dick…” he gestured with his hands. “…to a little dick.” He spread his thumb and forefinger just a couple inches apart. The crowd chuckled as he paced back and forth, like a human metronome, black hair forced into place with half a tub of …
I was on the ground floor of the UMASS Amherst library, shelves of dust-covered tomes looming over me. I flipped open a book as big as a bread loaf. As I sifted through the pages, a woman stared at the text with the crumb-size letters. “Looks like fascinating stuff.” Quick! Think of a clever reply! …
The truck meep meep meeped a warning as it slid into the bay doors and thudded to a stop. Its odor seeped into the warehouse. When this happened, my first strategy was denial. Maybe I could just ignore the smell. Or maybe it’d be different this time. We’d unlatch the back door, grab the handle, …