Rain

I admit that we had our moments of excess. We had an extravagant house and more than a few wild parties. Really, if you can’t have both Barnum and Bailey and all of their animals at your kid’s birthday party, then what exactly is the point? I squirreled money away--lots of money--for a rainy day, as I knew one day I would be damn grateful for an impenetrable umbrella. I’ve been watching the weather channel and it’s calling for rain. In fact, it just might be a monsoon.

I just had to act normally through one last dinner party. Just one more evening of expressing interest on the lives of the rich, vapid and empty “friends” with whom we surrounded ourselves in this hick town in the Rockies. Luckily it was a hick town that only the wealthiest could afford to play in, so they were wealthy hicks. All the better.

Acting perfectly normal when such a momentous event is at hand is quite difficult, especially when the goal is to arouse no suspicions. Not even my wife’s. They say money can’t buy happiness, but I’m guessing that ‘they’ don’t have any money or they would never say such a thing. Not only can it buy happiness, even by the hour when necessary, but it can also buy creative solutions to problems. Even life’s biggest problems. Talk about thinking outside the box.

Everything and everyone has their price and the reason most folks get nowhere all their lives is that they cannot pay the price. Can’t or won’t, I’m not sure which. That and they don’t have the drive to succeed at all costs, like me. I wasn’t born filthy rich. I worked extremely hard all my life to get where I am. That money wasn’t going to steal itself and migrate to my bank account, you know. Someone had to be out there, actively stealing nest eggs from those little old ladies and socking it away in Swiss bank accounts. And Cayman Island accounts. And anywhere else I could think of. Call them insurance policies. Call them whatever you like, just as long as there’s no paper trail, not that anyone will be looking for one.

So tonight is the big score. I am to be on the plane at 2:05 at the private airstrip and the plane will fly me to the aforementioned Cayman Islands. But, I have to walk through the woods, as I can’t be seen. And I can’t take more than a briefcase of passports, identities and bank account numbers and passwords. Of course, I won’t need anything else, and if I do, there’s American Express. In the name of my new identity.

From the Caymans, I will pick up my new boat and start a new life. It does sound appealing, doesn’t it? Everyone should get the chance to start over with a clean slate (and lots of dough in the bank). After all, think of all the mistakes you’ve made in your first 64 years. Tons of them, right? So, if you have half a brain, then you’ve learned from them and wouldn’t make those same mistakes again. And having all that cash to begin again….it boggles the mind to think of it.

Anyway, I digress. At about midnight, with a little help from his friends, my newest friend will ingest a fatal dose of nitroglycerine in his nightly shot of whiskey. It will be enough to throw his heart into a fatal arrhythmia and though help will be called, in this podunk town, that means an ambulance that mostly serves to scrape up road kill. There will be no chance of revival. They will try, but two electrodes attached to a car battery probably won’t help anyone, not even the road kill, unless you’re ready to cook it. But it will look quite convincing. Hell, a 64 year old man, tons of stress over the last few years, horrible diet, no exercise. Men like that drop dead every day. And today will be no different. Except that, I will be an extremely wealthy man because of this one man’s date with my destiny.

I am already insanely wealthy, but the gods are fickle and my fortune is at risk. So is my freedom. This is my way out. This is the only way to be sure that the money I have so carefully stolen and hidden all of these years remains with its rightful owner- me.

I have made the necessary arrangements, made the elaborate plans that allowed for contingencies. I had a back up plan- another “victim” the following night if for some reason this didn’t go according to the plan. And I am on my way to the Caymans.

Me, and that guy, what’s-his-name, are both on our final journeys. Mine is a nicer place, however. His ashes will conveniently be scattered in my stead where no DNA can ever be recovered -in the ocean- from my favorite yacht by my favorite wife. But he won’t get an obituary, only I will. Mine will be on the front page of every newspaper in the world, as it is not every day that one of America’s most creative, most reviled thieves dies. Especially after being convicted but before being sentenced. It’s almost like dying in a state of grace.

Actually it turns out that it IS dying in a state of grace. Just ask my extraordinarily well-paid lawyers. They will soon argue that Ken Lay, since he died before he could exhaust the appeals process, deserved to have his name cleared posthumously, and thus the government does not have a right to his estate as restitution for his crimes. And, they will win.

And, if someday, I were to appear on US soil again, I am merely a dead man, and I'm not even a felon. And even if my picture were on the front page of every paper, how many of you would recognize me when you pass me on the street? I’m just another white haired old coot in plaid pants sporting a great tan.

My old friend Jeffrey Skilling will spend the next two and a half decades in prison. I bet he was ticked when he read the news--I always was one step ahead of the game and at least three steps ahead of that pinhead. That would be why I was CEO and he wasn’t. Maybe I’ll pay him a visit in a few years- THAT would be fun.

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Dream

The long awaited day had finally arrived. I could not wait to get home to check the mailbox. The results would be there, just waiting for me. For all us. It’s really cruel that they send the results out via snail mail. What’s wrong with e-mail? A phone call?

Months of waiting followed months and months of jumping through hoops. All of the testing. It was unreal what we had to go through. There were appointments with medical doctors, psychiatrists, financial planners, sociologists (I still don’t know what they had to do with anything, but there they were, collecting their $500/hour fee).

It started as a wisp of an idea. We want the best for our family- who doesn’t? And, because our best is so much better than anyone else’s, that should qualify us right there. We overheard some super-achievers at the park talking about the school and we thought we should check it out. So we did. Of course, we had absolutely no idea how competitive it is to get into the “BEST” school. Not schools. There’s only one.

We got caught up in the dream, sure that the school was perfect for us. How could we not be perfect candidates for the school? We’re rich. We give money away like candy, and we fill the pool with crystal champagne-- a little unorthodox, but hey, why not? We’re snooty and elitist- we have a staff. I can’t see how they wouldn’t pick us. There is no way. We funded the new wing- the entire sensory deprivation wing came from us at the very beginning of the process.

The testing was extreme. And thorough. Talk about leaving no stone unturned… think about leaving no body part unturned. We had to undergo more testing than Jack did. That seemed a little weird. It was a feat of endurance to make it though all of their hoops. Literally. We trained as if to run a marathon, as that was part of the application process. The very first step was for the adults to run in the next marathon. We had to qualify for the Boston Marathon in order for our prodigy to even be considered. That means we had to do it in under 3:25. I now saw why people started their training long before they even had their candidate. You can’t apply prior to the arrival of the candidate, but immediately upon their arrival, the calls, e-mails and appointments begin. The application process itself takes over a year.

With a little (okay, a lot) of help from the local subway, we barely managed to qualify for the Boston marathon. We didn’t actually have to run Boston, but we had to qualify for it. We thought about running it after all, being as we qualified, but I’m not as familiar with the rapid transit system in relation to the marathon course in Boston, so it seemed risky. But, they had many other things in store for us anyway.

There was hypno-regression for those of us who could speak. It wasn’t enough to prove that we were ridiculously rich in this lifetime, but we had to be regressed to make sure we came from elite stock going back generations. I had heard, but did not have confirmed, that if you weren’t a 500-head slave holder with a plantation in a previous life, you may as well quit right then. Because your little bundle of joy doesn’t stand a chance. Which could be a relief, but what would the neighbors say? Not to mention the genteel folks at the club. Can you imagine the snubbing? It would probably make the Queen’s response to Diana look like a friggin tea party.

After the marathon came the intelligence tests. Because it was too early to test Jack’s IQ accurately, they tested ours. We both had to score in the top 5 percentile of the Mensa crowd. Lucky for us, we worked day and night for weeks to find the answers on-line and thus were well prepared. I figured if you’re smart enough to cheat your way in, the IQ question is moot.

Then came the financial inspection. If it was anyone other than Ken Lay researching us, I would be confident that we could snow our way out of that one. Luckily, if there’s one thing Ken Lay understands, it is secret bank accounts in remote locations. I guess that was lucky for all of us—mostly for him, as I believe Ken has had the opportunity to draw on that account now that he’s been re-born. Or un-dead, if you prefer.

Next up, the mental stress tests. Well, frankly, if we could find a way to maneuver though the rest of the minefield, this part was a cakewalk. All we had to do was some exhaustive research on the Psychiatrists. Just a boatload of cash and some plane tickets to an investigator and our psych tests were the shortest in history. We walked in, threw some pictures taken from his most recent Thailand vaca on his desk and walked out with stellar psych references.

That was everything. Well, aside from some plastic surgery--as the candidate had to look his very best for the interviews and tests. Just a little cosmetic work and some implants and he was ready to go. We actually got the family plan- Tony and I had the works- pretty ,much everything was lifted, separated, and suctioned and Jack had whatever was needed to make him more appealing.

We all lived at the clinic for 3 months. We told everyone we were all in rehab- that’s so much more respectable than showing up with stitches and bruises all over. Of course, no one recognized us when we came out, but that’s okay. We didn’t like most of those people anyway, so we’ll just befriend the younger ultra-rich set.

After almost a solid year of jumping though these hoops and being scrutinized within an inch of our lives, we were finished. Now we waited to see what the executive committee had to say. I wonder how they felt sitting in judgment of us. And all of the loser families that were also trying to get a leg up for their prodigies by getting them into the country’s most exclusive academy.

We had discovered that the right school, even at one year old, can make all the difference. The right connections for later in life. The right past for future schools. There is no way anyone would not be impressed- he would travel with the elitist of the elite and never look back. The very basis of his career would rest on the school that he attends, and if we were to chose poorly (or if the selection committee chose poorly), his entire career and thus his entire life would be ruined long before it even starts.

The only problem that we couldn’t solve was bribing the selection committee. Turns out those amoral bastards will take everyone’s bribe and lie through their teeth about their allegiance. If you don’t bribe them, you get the thin letter that says “We regret to inform you…” immediately, instead of waiting 3 months with everyone else. The only way we could deal with the jury was to put a contract out on all of them, in the event that we weren’t deemed good enough of their school. We did do that, however, it didn’t help us to get Jack in.

The day arrived. They told us when to look for the letters. I whipped the maid so she would hurry to get the mail. She waited at the mailbox for three hours; I think she didn’t want to spend any more time with me and the whip than she had to. I was breathless. I had to steel myself with a few bottles of Jack Daniels in order to stay conscious. Then it was even harder. Jack and I snuggled up to await the news of his future. He did not seem to realize the importance of this event, despite my repeated and slurred explanations. I think he was tuning me out.

Finally, the maid drove up the driveway. I was all-atwitter. I couldn’t stand, I couldn’t sit. I ran out to meet her and ripped the mail from her arms. I tried to focus on return addresses, throwing letters, catalogs and other detritus in the rosebushes in my desperation. There it was. I had it. It seemed thin, but I was actually seeing three of them so that may not have been a reliable observation. Jack wasn’t even out there with me. I think this meant far more to me than to him.

I had the maid open it and read it to me. “We regret to inform you that YuppyPuppy Elitist Academy has determined that you and your pet do not meet the standards for the incoming class….”


Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Love Lost

I still cannot believe that you’re gone. You flew in and out of my life in a mere moment, but you left your mark on me and you will always be in my heart. You will always be a part of me. It is with much sadness that I must say my final goodbye. Though we had only recently met, it was love at first sight. It felt like we had known one another forever, maybe in another lifetime? I can’t be sure, but you put me immediately at ease and it seemed like you knew my deepest secrets, but you didn’t hold them against me.

We had some great times and I don’t regret a moment that we spent together. You liked to stay at home and hang out, never really wanted to socialize, and I was okay with that. You were content to hang out with me and watch a movie every night. I loved that about you. Spending those quiet evenings at home, starting with the day we met was so special. I have trouble believing that it could ever be the same.

We’ve all heard the clichés…”time heals all wounds,” “it’s for the best,” “you’re young, you’ll find love again,” and, “in a better place now.” Yikes. Spare me the crap.

And all I can think is yes, they are clichés. The people who spew those crusty platitudes are thoughtless, clueless people who have no idea what real loss feels like. Clearly they have not lost the love of their lives or they wouldn’t say anything so stupid and inane. I could write a book to explain it to them, but l don’t think they’d get it, even then. Maybe I could even read it to them and keep telling them “this means you,” but again, I don’t think it would stop the clichés that flow like waterfalls at times such as this.

To think that, after all of these years, I finally found the love of my life. And then, in little more than a heartbeat, I lost the love of my life. Thirty-five years of searching at every AA meeting, every church social and under every single rock, and just when I had finally given up on finding love, I ran into you in the grocery store. And you were perfect. It was fate. I guess that maybe love at first sight is a cliché too, but I’m telling you it was just that.

You were so sweet, so understanding. If I had a tough day, you were there to comfort me. You never judged me, never criticized me. It was a perfect relationship, albeit far too short. You were always there for me and I really appreciated that. I know that many relationships don’t have that depth, that people start being absent, even when they’re physically present, because they get bored. You never got bored, your existence revolved around mine and that was so refreshing. I had never encountered that before and now that I’ve had it, I don’t know how I’ll get through a day without it.

I guess I will get to be the judge of whether time heals all wounds or not. I suppose that it probably will, but I doubt that it announces itself during the process. “Attention: you are now 50% healed.” So I probably won’t realize it until long after the fact, and only then will I begin to feel complete again. I will find out eventually, I guess.

Mostly, I will miss the taste of you on my lips. I will miss your sweetness, and the perfection of US when we were together. I have been around the block enough times to know when there is a one-in-a-million connection. And we had it, there is no doubt. And then you were cruelly taken from me. I will forever treasure what we had and you will be with me forever. Probably on my hips.

Tomorrow, a stop at Wegman’s on the way home. I’m thinking chocolate chip this time.

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Quest

Nestor Livingston’s senses were heightened; every nerve was on high alert. This would be the fight or flight reflex that we’ve all heard about all of our lives. He was ready. And he was sure that this time, he’d fight. He was tired of turning tail and running away. Again and again. And again.

After his embarrassing retreat the last time, Nestor had been steeling his mind. Working on the iron control required to overcome his body’s natural reflexes. He had spent a lot of time in the self-help section of the library and in Half Price Books. He had bought, or stolen, just about every book out there that might be of value. However, for every book of value, there must be 2,500 other books that are just crap. It’s time consuming to sort through them all for the cream of the crop.

He started with The Self-esteem Companion: Simple Exercises to Help You Challenge Your Inner Critic & Celebrate Your Personal Strengths and if that didn’t work, there were 137,615 other books—one of them was bound to help him. He opened it up. The book said that he was supposed to take a personal inventory and analyze himself—the before picture, if you will. He wasn’t interested in that kind of research. He needed a book that would tell him what to do, without making him think. The last person he wanted to get to know better was Nestor. He found himself to be a creepy dude.

He re-shelved that one with the diet books. He figured someone would latch onto it in blind relief that it wasn’t a diet book and maybe the sad sacks searching for diet help would be happy to grab onto something that celebrates their personal strengths and lets them forget their weakness, which I presume is anything in, on, or even within three blocks of a grocery store. Or a mini-mart.

Next up: You Don't Have to Learn Everything the Hard Way: What I Wish Someone Had Told Me. Well, that sounded promising. He flipped through it. Great pictures, mostly of car accidents—that must be the “don’t do this” section. Apparently, the author had spent their lifetime personifying the word “loser” and has only now decided that there was a way to capitalize on it. Or, more likely, the most recent in a long, long, long series of therapists couldn’t possibly take another session, and suggested that the epitome of losers should start writing things down, in order to avoid being forced to jump out the window during the loser’s final session.

Nestor filed that one in the children’s section. Where else to put a book that is supposed to save people from making dumb-ass mistakes in life? If it’s not kids reading it, then it’s probably already too late, cause the odds are that if someone’s shopping in that section for the store, that they’ve already made at least a few of the biggies and are desperately seeking for the rewind button.

The next book that he grabbed was Self-Help Approaches for Obesity and Eating Disorders: Research and Practice. He wasn’t remotely interested in that one, but was sure it should be relocated to the cookbook section. Just for kicks. Nestor was certain that someone would find that funny. He did, anyway.

This one was funny, Button Therapy: The Button Therapy Book: How to Work on Your Buttons and the Button-Pushers in Your Life -- A Practical Psychological Self-Help Book & ... Manual for Mental Health Professionals. Well, clearly that had to go in the sewing section. Who doesn’t need a little button therapy? It had buttons sewn on the cover. Just a little creepy. And, if anyone knows creepy, it’s Nestor.

The next one may have been the best one: How an Idiot Writes a Self-help Book. He wasn’t making that up—go to Amazon.com and see for yourself. It was a picture book. Apparently, the idiot that the author had in mind was illiterate. I don’t know how the author thought they would find the book if they couldn’t read, but maybe they thought that the idiot’s companion monkey would select it for the idiot. And they might. That got filed in the ‘How to write a best selling novel’ section. It seemed appropriate.

Ohh, he found a fun one. Stay Sober and Straight: How to Prevent Addiction Relapse with the Rational Self-Help Treatment Method. That one is definitely going in the cocktail recipe book section. And they do have such a section. He thought that the alcoholics would really appreciate that little reminder when they’re looking for new tributaries for their rivers of denial.

Next up, The Incredible Marketing, Success Principles and Inner Game for Self-help Books Businesses 3 CD Power Pack. That clearly was headed to the Bankruptcy section. DOUGH! Hey, if you can’t find something to laugh about as your world crashes around your ears, you need an attitude adjustment. He was sure the destitute would appreciate a laugh before they go home and put the hose in the tailpipe.

Last, but not least, Help Yourself Slow Down the Pace: A Self-Help Program for Workaholics (The Help Yourself Audio Series). This should definitely be in with the how to find a job/resume section. He thought it would be a nice taunting for the unemployed.

Of course, he was a regular in most of the self-help sections, so he would probably be the only one to notice the paradoxes. But that’s okay, as long as he was amused.

Back to the purpose of the visit to the bookstore. In addition to speed-reading the perfect book (Evelyn Wood style, of course), he was really going to talk to her this time.

Candy Samples was working the register. He had loved her from afar for so long. This time, with the newly found confidence from Dating for Losers, for Men Only: An Uncensored Politically Incorrect Self-Help Guide to Meeting and Dating Women he could do it. Not that he considered himself a loser, he knew he was a winner, mostly because he told himself that every day while looking in the mirror and smiling at himself. Even he found that a little freaky, but the book said that women find it irresistible. He was sure that he could talk to her this time.

He was getting closer to the front of the line. He was starting to sweat. Profusely. Probably no one would notice. The book that he was actually buying, The DaVinci Code, was a best seller, so he thought he’d open with discussion about that. Of course, he had bought the DaVinci Code from her every week for the last 3 months. From what he gathered, everyone had read that book, so he should be able to ask her about it. One of these days.

He was next. He had his money out and was beginning to feel that sick feeling in his stomach… hurry up. Oh oh…despite the superior mind control of a monkey in crack rehab, it wasn’t working. One of the signs of the flight reflex was the very full bladder that would not be contained. Nestor was left with the usual option—throw down a twenty-dollar bill and run, hoping to get to the car before anyone noticed the wet spot in his pants.


Author's note- all book titles are real- culled from Amazon.com. I cannot take credit for the titles, not even the button one, or 'how an idiot writes a self-help book', (though I just assumed that it was a picture book, I did not confirm).

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Press

Timmy and Max were inseparable. They went everywhere together, shared all of their secrets and spent hours and hours playing outside. Mom never had to tell them to go outside to play. It was all she could do to get them to come inside for dinner or to go to bed.

Max hadn’t lived in the neighborhood for long. He was a new addition, but as far as Timmy was concerned, he was THE BEST thing that had ever happened to that neighborhood. Their rural neighborhood consisted of open fields, heavy woods, swamps and a real live creek. And not too many people to yell at them for playing where they shouldn’t. There were a few neighbors that they had to watch out for. They couldn’t play on Mr. Thuman’s lawn with bikes or heavy toys, especially when it was wet, because they would leave marks.

They spent all day, day after day, climbing trees and playing hide and go seek. When you’re playing hide and seek with just two, in a five-acre radius, it can take all day to just be found once. If one of them was lucky. Or unlucky, depending on how you looked at it. Many of their games consisted of a nice nap in the sun while waiting to be found. Counting grass blades and searching whole fields for four-leafed clover were also frequent activities.

Since it was summer, they were free to do as they chose all day, every day. Timmy was the organizer. The idea guy. Max was happy-go-lucky and followed Timmy around. Max seemed to have sinus trouble, as he was always sniffing. Especially in a new environment. Max was a little younger, so every idea that Timmy had seemed like a brilliant idea to Max. Just so he didn’t have to stay at home by himself, that was all he cared about. If he was with Timmy doing anything, he was happy.

The day they spent wandering around the old barn was a great day. They had so much fun and found so many great treasures. You and I would not consider them treasures, but for those who are blissfully ignorant of the cold realities of the world, stray marbles, dusty feathers and ancient farm machinery are to be cherished. Of course, they couldn’t all be tucked into pockets and carried home.

When they walked into the barn, they stood for a minute adjusting to the dim light. And the ancient odor of a million musty yesterdays. Max was sniffing as though his life depended on it. Timmy sniffed a few times, but the got used to the mustiness.

They began to explore, going in opposite directions. Max found a dead rat in the corner. It looked ancient--mostly from its style of dress—no self respecting rat would dress like that today. It was perfectly preserved, including the top hat. If you didn’t know the rat had to have been dead for 70 years, likely more, you might have thought it passed away yesterday. They really did some things well in those days, that’s for sure.

Downstairs there was tack on the walls, as this was originally a horse barn. There were several stalls, most of the walls still standing, but long empty. At least of their original occupants. There was evidence of many others living here, or at least passing through over the years. Timmy and Max studied the feathered remains, the droppings, the flotsam of the birds and rodents who had refuged here at some point.

Then they went upstairs, very carefully, as half of the floor was gone and the other half was going fast. They made extensive use of their athletic abilities just to get up the stairs. It was like jumping hurdles, but vertically. Eventually they arrived upstairs and once up there they poked, and poked, and poked.

They found scraps of old newspapers. Max found one from December, 1917. The headline was sensational: “ATTACK.” Timmy had found one sticking out of the wall that was dated 1898. Could that be? His father had told him that this was the original barn and that it was the only original structure still standing. If you can call that standing. Some might call it listing.

His dad said it was old. Timmy had thought that meant it was really old, like twenty years or something like that. He was surprised to learn that it was, according to his third grade math, at least 90 years old. That was beyond Timmy’s comprehension. And definitely beyond Max’s.

The rafters were amazing. They had to be a foot thick and still had much of the bark on them. The supports and the studs in the walls were all at eight inches square, except they were mostly semi-square and semi-round. They no longer found it amazing that the barn still stood. Instead, they questioned the poor quality of materials used on the horizontal planes. The floorboards and the stairs had not held up so well. One exterior wall was mostly missing, so it apparently wasn’t all quality all the time. That must have been the “Friday wall.”

Timmy spied some ancient machinery. He hop scotched across the soft floorboards to get a closer look. It was a printing press. Timmy explained to Max how it must have worked. A few of the letters were still in the rack, the rest scattered through time. They were fascinated. That explains that crazy headline and more so the crazy dates. Someone had been coming up here and printing out crazy stuff to leave around for impressionable little kids to find. An adult misinformation campaign. Now Timmy was expecting to find a paper that was appropriately yellowed and with a headline of “Timmy to go to prison for not cleaning his room,” or some such nonsense.

Still, despite the campaign, the press fascinated them. Max found a few other letters and brought them over. There were still several missing, but they decided to make it their project that week--or that summer--to search the barn until they had scoured every inch in order to find as many letters as possible. Timmy figured that the stuff had to be more than twenty years old. Once he was done playing with it, he could have his dad sell it on eBay for at least twenty dollars. That’s ten dollars each.

Timmy tried to drag the press out into better light. It didn’t budge. Max came over and they pulled together. It started to move, and then, with a high- pitched screech, it moved. Too fast. The press crashed down on them both. Max danced away, he was struck while it was on the way down, but had cat-like reflexes. He shook it off. Timmy, however, was pinned and he was screaming bloody murder. It fell across his legs and at least one of them was bent at an odd angle, with the press on top of it.

Max didn’t know what to do. He tried to pull it off, then using his body weight, to push it off. After a few understandable moments of panic, Timmy got control of himself and pushed with Max, but the press wouldn’t budge, even with both of their efforts. Exhausted from both effort and fear, Timmy realized that Max would have to go for help. They were too far away from home for anyone to hear screams, so Max would have to go. He told Max what to do. He had to make his way down the stairs, and go home and bring mom and dad back with him. Max listened intently. He stood next to Timmy for a minute and then he began his journey.

Timmy could hear him picking his way down the stairs. There was a tense moment when he heard Max hit too many steps all at once, too hard, but it sounded like he recovered and Timmy heard him scrambling below him, then he heard no more and assumed that help was on the way.
Max got to the doorway. He started for home, his nose in the air, running hard. He was halfway there when he smelled something that brought him to a dead stop. He froze, one rear leg still in the air. He sniffed.

Yes! He made a ninety degree turn and took off as though his life depended on it. Lassie was in heat. It just might be his lucky day.

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Wheels of Change

It was so quiet. I couldn’t even hear myself moving down the hallway. It seemed that there was a sound vacuum. The walls, the floor sucked up every wave of sound. I’d never heard nothing quite like it. The hallway was long. So long that you couldn’t see next week or next month, let alone tomorrow. After what seemed like miles of silent transport down the never-ending hallway I came to the door.

It isn’t just any door, but The Door. I had envisioned this moment for so long that I wasn’t sure what to do, how to proceed. I didn’t dare touch the knob. I froze and both time and space stood still. It was massive, at least ten feet tall. Made of quarter-sawn oak, brilliantly finished. The light refracted in a blinding array, even though the nearest overhead light was twenty feet away. It was as though the oak itself were alive, breathing. And shining. The knob was ordinary. Pewter, but not the kind of grand knob with a solid gold knocker that I might have expected from such an important door.

Outside the door, a million possibilities ran through my mind. This could be the answer to all of my questions. All of my hopes and dreams. It could change the course of my life in an instant- could be the key to every cookie cabinet everywhere in the world. I don’t believe that I had ever fully appreciated the potential of any other door. I suppose they all held equal opportunity to be life changing, I just never saw it.

Swallowing hard, I decided that I had to do it- I had to go in there to face life’s possibilities. And to embrace at least a few of them. I reached my hand out for the pewter knob. I felt a shock, as though it was electrified. That can’t be right. I tried again with the lightest of touches. I began to turn the knob to the right. The handle snapped back in the opposite direction. I jumped back, my heart thundering. Was someone on the other side trying to get out? Deep breath. Another one. It had to have been the natural action of the knob, just moving back to neutral after I held it lightly while turning. I forced myself to believe that, as the thundering of my heart lessened.

I tried again. I took hold of the knob, firmer this time and turned it, expecting resistance. There was none, the knob turned easily and then the click and the door moved. Without giving myself time to reconsider, I pushed the door open and entered. I stopped. I had to take some time to gaze around, to take in the grandness of this place. It looked like…well, it looked like just about any room in any office building anywhere in the US. Antiseptic smell, beige floor tiles, small sealed windows, Ikea furniture. Nothing remotely special about the interior. I must be missing something. There must be something grand here somewhere to indicate the importance of this room.

I took a spot at the empty table to continue my search. There was no one to be seen. No sign of life anywhere. There were doors off the main waiting area, but no voices, shadows or other remnants of life. But there must be something going on here, somewhere. I would figure it out. On the table were issues of O, Oprah’s magazine. Lucky me. It looked like the complete collection since the very first issue. I wouldn’t have known such a thing, except for the card that said “This is the complete collection, in order, of O Magazine, please do not attempt to steal them, as an alarm will go off.”

I sat, tapping my fingers on the table. Waiting. I still had no idea what it was that I waited for. It would come to me soon, I was sure. A long way off, down one of the corridors, through one of the doors, I thought I heard sounds. I listened intently. Maybe this was why I had come. The sounds did come from above. Maybe one of the doors led to stairs. I was certain now that I could hear voices and footsteps. There were at least two people, coming toward me. At a snail’s pace. Didn’t they understand how important this was to me? What this could mean? It’s hard to remain calm in the face of such a life changing force, but I did my best. I tried the Lamaze breathing that I’m always seeing on TV. I’d just skip the “push” part. There probably was no need for that at this moment. The breathing seemed to help the people arrive a little sooner.

Suddenly, the door opened, and I saw steep stairs climbing into shadows, stars and brilliantly colored lights. It looked like a doorway to another universe and one of the strangest people, scratch that, creatures, I had ever seen walked through the door.

It said “We’ve been waiting for you. What has taken you so long?” The other creature did not walk through the door.

I stuttered “I..I..I..”, not knowing what to say and being dumbstruck to boot.

Luckily the creature took no notice of my lack of the most basic of linguistic skills. It looked like a wizard, but had a long snout, similar to that of a dog. And pointy
ears. It actually looked like the wolf dressed up as grandma. It had big teeth too, but it was smiling and it looked like a genuine smile. It was not scary, which is usually a good thing when you’re being offered the opportunity to pass into the realm of another universe and your guide looks like the wolf that ate grandma.

It took in the rest of the empty room and then looked at me “Well, are you ready to go?”

I said, “I have been ready to go for twenty-five years. Yes, I am ready.”

I wheeled my chair over to the doorway and it stared at me as though seeing a ghost. It just looked down at me sadly, stepped back and closed the door between us.

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The apex predator (that’s me) waited. It was the easiest part of the job. Just lie there in the swamp and wait for dinner to show up. It’s like a buffet on wings- and fins. What do I feel like tonight? I’m sorry for animals that actually have to go hunt down dinner every night. For the small number of us at the top of the food chain, dinner comes to you. Ideally.

It’s like seniority in the workplace. The longer you’ve survived out here, the more respect you accrue and, thus, the more people cater to you. Until they can hire two newbies for the price of your annual salary. Then the well-earned respect goes out the window, and so do you. I bet human ancestors thought that once they crawled out of the swamps and built a civilization, they could escape the daily battle of wits that is survival of the fittest. But no such luck. I guess, no matter who -or what- you are, you have to struggle every day to make it to the next.

I spent the day thinking it was like every other day. Well, as much as my ancient reptilian brain can think of one day versus another. I was lounging in the sun. Sometimes my jaws were open- when it got too hot and I needed to cool down via thermoregulation. Sometimes I would dip below the water and only a practiced eye could pick my eyes and snout out of the water amid the cattails.

After a few hours of such lounging, I started to get hungry. Well, it could have been boredom, actually, but the pea-sized brain would not allow for pondering such as that, so I went with hungry. Either way, it was time to eat.

The next big decision was what to have for dinner. Wood stork? Too stringy. Ibis is always a good option. Keep that open and watch for glossy ibis, they taste better than the pink ones. There’s always that nasty aftertaste whenever you eat anything pink or red- so much of the coloring goes into it, it leaves a terrible taste on the palette. A snake would be good, but not a venomous one. Maybe a brown snake? Common Moorhen? Ohh- A purple gallineau? Those are always so tasty. Those shimmery purple feathers just add something to the flavor. I can’t explain it.

What I’d really like is puppy dog, but those are hard to come by. That’s more of a special occasion meal and not something to count on being readily available. Too bad though, I’d eat them by the boatload if only I could find them in bulk somewhere. It’s probably for the best. I’m sure they’d go right to my tail. I’m a little self conscious about the size of my tail.

Time to head for the feeding grounds to make a final selection.



The apex predator waited. Waited for things to seem familiar. You would think my natural habitat would seem more natural to me. It doesn’t, it seems foreign. It even sounds like all of the birds are talking with funny accents. The plants are similar to what I’d expect, but different. I used to know exactly what plant housed what kind of dinner, but now I’m not sure what to expect. Just rest a moment, and maybe it’ll come back to me. Or, maybe I can make sense of things.

The cacophony of the great outdoors was coming back to me. The funny-sounding bird calls everywhere, the splashing of the water and the smell of plenty. That smell I remember. Well, it’s a little different, but the point is the same. Dinner is here and I just have to figure out what I want. Not knowing the language and local customs puts me at a disadvantage. I don’t know what they eat here, nor how they do it. I don’t want to display my ignorance of the local customs by making an ass of myself.

I will keep my eyes open and see what I can learn. Sooner than later, I will have to bite the bullet. Well, hopefully not a bullet, hopefully a nice juicy morsel or thirty. One nice big morsel would work, but that’s probably too much to hope for. I guess I’ll start smelling to see what I can whip up. And following my nose. Which is difficult, being I don’t technically have a nose. I guess I’ll just follow my sense of smell. That should do it.

Oooh … look at that. That looks like an all you can eat buffet. I haven’t eaten for a few months, so I hope that my eyes aren’t bigger than my stomach. No, I can do it. That would really hit the spot, eventually. I wonder what it’s called. It doesn’t look like anything I’ve swallowed before, but you have to try new foods when you travel. Even if I didn’t ask to travel from my homeland in Africa to a big glass box in some idiot’s garage for a few years and then on to this place, I may as well make the most of it. And make the most of that, whatever it is.

I snuck up behind it. I am stealthy and haven’t lost my touch, and the pea-brain had no idea that it was in trouble until it was too late. By then, I was already wrapped around it, starting to squeeze the breath out of it. Hey! Are those jaws? It’s biting me. It clamped those massive jaws down on my coils and it won’t let go. There’s a fair amount of pressure being exerted here and I do not like this at all. When I squeeze harder, the jaws clamp tighter and my flesh starts to rip open. I suspect this will be a very short lesson- for both of us.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and sometimes you both sink.

Copyright 2007 Antigone Lett. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.