1.

A cheap leather coat K’s father lent me when we were visiting and the weather turned cold. It had belonged to... more

There was a bump on his head, and that’s what made him crazy. That’s the story he tells whenever anyone asks about it, the... more

At nearly 2am, I took my trumpet down to the ocean, slung down against my leg like a weapon. I live across the street. A last minute... more

You never know when you’ll turn the corner to find it staring you in the face. You might be on your way to dinner at the kosher... more

The boy wore a powder blue tuxedo and he tap danced around the house in shiny shoes. He wiggled the long tail of his fancy suit. When a... more

In bed with the wife of a guy that I work with, and this isn’t the beginning of the story, but the end of it, and then she calls... more

When Isabel Araya was born in the southern tip of the pampas, twenty-one years, three months, and seven days before she would hold Juan... more

Ernie peered over the dash with a cigarette in his left hand and a can of spiked Pepsi in his right, fingertips grazing the ribbed... more

"Now Mr. Nguyen, here, he could benefit from a little trip over to Harold's Running Bull. Quaff a few, soak up the local culture, and... more

At dinner your friend took your cell phone from your bag and took a photo of me and put your cell phone in your bag. Everyone noticed and I... more

Melissa and I have been together for almost a month, descending through the center of Australia from Darwin near... more

And then somebody said the magic word. Whale. It echoed and bobbed up and down the beach, and into the dunes, where I was relieving... more

Truth:

Once upon a time there was this balls-out bike rider out to visit all the Cistercian monasteries in this here... more

The Robot is constructed from only the finest and shiniest of all bolts and metals. All of it is stainless steel, because rust on a robot... more

The guy at table six wiggled his fingers. “Mind if I asked a personal question?”

“Go ahead,” said Miranda, reaching for the... more

Andrew peeped out the window and noted that the end of the world, astoundingly, was small as a bee. 

"When's the last time... more

On an unusually sunny February afternoon in Pittsburgh, I had the pleasure of... more

Dave wondered what had happened to the TV.
 

He had faraway memories of nature programs, black and white comedians with European... more

As I was preparing to go away on a three-week women's backpacking retreat, Teddy said he was going to grow a beard in my absence. To be... more

A note shoved under a sticky honey jar on a wooden spool table:

Maggie – 

So sorry I had to leave without saying... more

We ride the hook of route 87 straight from Utica to Newark without once stopping. The two of us go like vagabonds through tunnels and... more

cheney stadium, home to the now defunct tacoma tigers and current tacoma... more

Little Johnny Damon enjoyed working in the produce section at Whole Foods. He took pleasure in stacking the... more

Tony Montes had always dreamt of the moment he would stand in left field at Candlestick for this, the third game of the World... more

It was like a chicken farm—a million bodies pressed together, and everyone was gulping at the cooler air overhead. I was still... more