Times Are Changing

Cartia was home working when the phone rang. The call was from Algernon. He wanted her to come to his place to read a letter. “ What letter?” She knew someone had a plan. “ A love letter Fagan received. It's real mind blowing,” Algernon. “ Why would I want to read his letter. It has nothing to do with me.” “ This one you should read,” he encouraged. “ Is Fagan with you,” Cartia asked, not wanting to spend time alone with Algernon. She didn't want to be known as one of Algernon's pillow-talk friends. “ Fagan and Orson are here.” “ Fine. I'll be there, soon.” She slammed down the phone. She didn't want to go out. She wanted to stay home to finish her work. When she arrived, she was handed a folded piece of paper. Unfolding it, she began to read the scribbled words. The language enough to singe the fingers holding the paper. The malevolence was arranged haphazardly on the page was suppose to be Serafina's way of expressing her love. Cartina...

It had been a hellish few months. Work had taken over her life. She had never had a free moment to spare from her work life. Enough was enough. Sandra put on her coat. She grabbed her keys, and purse, then walked out of the doorway to her office. She hurried past her secretary. “See you when I return.” she cast the message over her shoulder. Sandra kept moving to escape before anyone was able to stop her, now, she had made up her mind. “Where are you going. You have appointments all afternoon. When will you be back.” The shocked face of her secretary stayed with her on the way to the lift. Not once had she witnessed her boss leave the office without her briefcase packed full of work. “I'll tell you when I make my way back to the office,” shouted Sandra. She waved. Stepped into the lift to take her all the way down to the car park. She hummed a happy tune while she made her escape to freedom. No one would be able to contact her for the next few days. Her hideaway w...

                                          Magic of Christmas. Carina snuggled up in front of the roaring fire of her lounge room. The wind rattled the windows of the log cabin. Snow covered every inch of the landscape. Snow piled by the side of the cabin walls where the wind had blown it. There would be no escape from the mountain valley until the snow had thawed, except by the use of a dog sled, or a snow mobile. Carina didn't want to escape. She had come to the log cabin to escape from all the happy people who were waiting for Christmas to arrive. For Carina, Christmas was a time of sorrow. A sorrow so great she hadn't been able to overcome the tragedy of losing her beloved husband, and six month old son on Christmas Day. A time of joy turned to a time of sorrow. The cold seclusion matched the weather outside the cabin. Life frozen in time. No leaves dangled fr...

Jack Crane needed to find some new places to cut down trees. He had taken all the best, straight, winsome trees, which had been allotted to him from the forest. He decided, on this warm sunny day, to travel further afield in search of new horizons. After driving for an hour, Jack found a place overloaded wit first class winsome trees. Trees to make wonderful pieces of furniture. He found a vacant area where he was able to park his truck. Taking the axe from the back of the truck, Jack set off into the forest in search of the best trees. While searching, he came across strange looking trees with funny shaped branches, and leaves. He'd never seen such trees in all his life of being a woodcutter. He circled the tree looking to see if it was good enough to cut down. “I wonder if it is soft wood,” pondered Jack. If the timber was hard it wouldn't be of use for making furniture. He took a sharpening stone from his pocket to smooth over the paper sharp blade to m...

 Business in Dodge had slowed. The gun toting outlaws disappeared from town. Killing stopped. Drunken brawls no longer caused damage to person, or property. The doctor sat on an old rocking chair on his front veranda his booted feet propped on the railing. Beside him on the floor he'd placed his black doctor's bag. Everywhere was quiet. No horses hitched outside the booze houses. Dogs hid beneath the verandas in the shade. Edgy. Sheriff Coleman walked along the street his spurs jiggled with every step. His gun hand rested on his hip above his holster ready to fire in the event of trouble. “Who are you...” Bomber Claymore spoke, from where he stood in the shadow of his funeral business. Sheriff Coleman grabbed his gun from his holster with the speed of light his finger on the trigger ready to fire. He spun on his heels. The gun pointed at the chest of Bomber Claymore before he quickly stepped to the side out of range of the barrel. “What the h...

Grandmother's attic was a mystery to me. I wanted to venture up those steep steps to reach the sky. But the stories I heard made my mind boggle. The place dark because there wasn't any light. Spiders lived in the attic. Their webs strung everywhere. The silken threads stuck to you like glue. Large monsters with long hairy legs. Red eyes. The monsters guarded the olden treasures hidden inside. On the night of the full moon was the worst time of all to enter the attic. The moonbeams lit up the room. Hungry spiders came out to play. Those stories kept me at bay. I'd sneak up the squeaky steps in the hope the sound didn't waken the huge spiders. I'd sit on the top step to look beneath the closed door. No spiders did I ever see. The smell coming from the room was awful. You can believe me. How anything lived in there puzzled me. With a handkerchief covering my nose, I slid on my bottom down the steps to escape outside to the ...