A friend once told me a story about a kid he'd known who played right field and caught flies. Not fly balls – this kid hated Little League,... more

To the editor: 

I enjoyed your baseball preview issue but wholeheartedly disagree with your predictions for the... more

I had worked in a bottle factory, a bottle-top factory, a paper factory, a nut factory, a bolt factory, a clock factory, a wall... more

Tom had been promising for some time to take Stevie to the zoo, and today was the day. He paid their admission and the two entered the... more

I wanna have cool recurring dreams, ones that'll make me sound smart when I describe them to people. Right now, I only have the same... more

Her heart swells like someone turned a faucet on. It is enormous. A fast-moving cloud of blackbirds dissipates into the trees. Or are they... more

7:13 

Tate found a sawbuck turtle near the metal shed. He called inside for me. I sat at the kitchen table, a napkin spread across my... more

After work on Fridays we'd usually go over to The Holly on 27th for a beer.

One night I'm working late so I don't get there till... more

His name is David and he's in the hospital with a lot of things stuck in his arms, nodes pasted to his chest, tubes going into his nostrils... more

I'm a big fan of blue. The dark, deep blues. Like that James Taylor song, deep greens and blues are the colors I choose. Green's nice,... more

Up to our lunch room table came the newest, biggest loser in the ninth grade -- Intercom! We called him Intercom because he wore a big... more

Earl Jenkins was a security guard at PNC Park where the Pittsburgh Pirates play baseball. Every time he worked one of the... more

Sometimes the name they give you is all wrong. Sugar or Baby, something sweet, something helpless, something you are not and never... more

Before the curious series of events that stunned a quiet community, Calvin Flack DDS wondered if he would ever find the perfect dental... more

And the earth died screaming
While I lay dreaming 
--Tom Waits 
 

He came from Wal-Mart. Some fellow was loitering by the... more

It's August, and it smells like grass and cranberry fruit snacks. I pick my brother up from the post office where he works.... more

The pet store was across from Planned Parenthood. Rob and June just sort of wandered over. They were allergic to dogs and cats, and June... more

At school, we were allowed to wear costumes but were not allowed to bring treats. So we'd made the most of it -- we wore our costumes, we... more

The cobble gloss contained inchoate images underfoot. Miram broke his stride and knelt to inspect the watery sheen but could not catch the... more

We spread a blanket off to one side of the boat launch, under some trees. Island Lake, in Shelton, Washington, is surrounded by... more

He knew what he was doing. He knows I don't say hello to him, knows that when I see him I see an empty spot, but he walked into the meeting... more

The boy found the helmet perched atop a bag of trash set out in front of Mr. and Mrs. Traska's house across the street. Well, only Mrs.... more

The apartment smells of burnt toast when Marcia arrives home from work. Her husband, Gary, having toasted two loaves that afternoon,... more

I'm functional in the sense that I make it to evening confrontations. At the sushi bar, Gita keeps talking about some girl she works... more

I rest my head on a pillow, falling in and out of sleep. Outside the windshield, locusts reflect light like shooting stars as they catch in the... more