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  It was during the 1990’s. My sister and I were usually home alone during the summer break. Each day before our mother left for work, she would write a list of daily chores on a yellow legal pad. My sister, my elder of four years, took the role of chore management. To this day she will not admit to it, but she would often delegate a few of her intended chores into my list. An early lesson to 12-year-old DC that shit flows downhill. Either way, that’s not what this story is about, I just wanted to document that injustice somewhere. The chores would consist of vacuuming, laundry, dishwashing, dusting, mowing, etc., or… my least favorite chore… pulling the weeds out of the brick paver sidewalk that led to our front porch. I’m pretty sure that is why my sister was outside that strange and peculiar day. I was inside the house; probably examining the chore list for clues that my sister had altered it in her favor. I heard a scream. My sister ran into the house in a panic. She didn’t...
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This is not a confession. This story is not legally binding. I will deny its authenticity to the death. This one time… I helped steal a car.

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  Many years ago, I knew a woman with a name I don’t member. It was Irish-like. Irish names use letters and phonetics in a way unnatural to the human tongue. Pronunciations for the likes of sea witches and banshees. Anyway… let’s call her Moira. Moria was from up North somewhere. I believe she had relocated to the Appalachian Mountains due to a relationship that didn’t work out. She was stuck here until she could figure her way back home. We had crossed paths via online personal ads or a dating site or something like that. We chatted a few times but hadn't met. She wanted to once, but I chickened out. I believe that subconsciously I knew I wasn’t ready to be ravaged by this Irish storm. Sometimes adventure calls and you have to say no for your own health and safety. Anyway, we drifted apart as quickly as we met, and I assumed that I would never hear from Moira ever again. But then one day, months later, after work there was a voicemail on my phone. Moira needed help. I’m paraphra...
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Another Vape Shop - a short story, a cautionary tale

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There was nothing alarming about the vape shop that replaced the GameStop. Vape shops had been popping up around town over the past several months. Yet I couldn’t help but notice that something had changed. As much as I want to blame myself for not seeing it sooner, there was no way I could have known. Who could have? Even if I could have predicted our downfall, I’m not sure I could’ve changed anything. I simply would have had to experience everything with the absence of hope. What I didn’t know then was that this vape store, and all the other vape shops were located in precise intervals spread over town. Gary Summers, my God rest his soul, showed this to me on a map once. He also showed me a chart showing the exponential growth patterns. What started as 2 vape shops spread over a 20-mile area quickly became 4 shops spread equidistantly. Only a few months later there were 16 vape stores. When there were 256, it was already too late. As aggressive as the growth was, it was still subtl...
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ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK? AN APPALACHIAN ANECDOTE.

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  I’ll admit to being afraid of the dark. I don’t believe that I have an unhealthy fear. It doesn’t really affect my life and the older that I’ve gotten I think I’ve learned to embrace the darkness. But I’ve never really felt comfortable in being unable to see my surroundings. There are important differences between being inside or outside, and in familiar locations versus unfamiliar. The worst place to be in the dark must be outside. I’ll go a step further and say that being outside in the woods is the worst. There is a 100% probability that there is something else out there in the dark with you. Sometimes that “something else” might be what you least expect, and sometimes, the things that “go bump in the night” stay with you, burned in your memory forever. Many years ago, I found myself in the dark, outside in the West Virginian mountains, early in the morning and alone. At this time in my life, I was working in the oil & gas industry, specifically methane gas wells in West...
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