Susan Cavanaugh (Whittaker) Political Editor, Santa Fe Express (361 words, 2 minutes read time.} Just Say Cheese (part one of two) I feel embarrassed for the state of the world these days. Not that the situation is my fault, but it is my responsibility. I count the many cameras on my route to work each... Continue Reading →
~ It’s a long, close reach to Avalon
~ Brett Cavanaugh ~Private Spy ~ (2,198 words, 12 minutes read time) ~ never be too sorry... I had thought to have great fun with this one. A college cutie, nervous, insecure, and sometimes devilishly insincere. She bought my stories, my lies of being a published poet, and my tales of college prowess. It all... Continue Reading →
~ platened sheets
Op Ed: William Whittaker, Senior Editor Santa Fe Express (467 words, 2 minutes read time) I'm not very fast at texting, and I can't do that squiggly finger texting thing. I'm not about to go out of my way and run to Best Buy, or mail order some gizmo just to revise, restyle, or reassert... Continue Reading →
~ Cheating on the World ~
(Gladguru's Everland Ashram in Santa Barbara, CA.) (255 words, 1 minute read time) >~~~ gladguru ~~~< God doesn’t bother with the small stuff anymore. Never really did. The guy that’s acting like he thinks he’s god, the fool with the fake injured ear, he can only really damage himself, and of course the world at... Continue Reading →
~ don’t count on my books.
by Susie Cavenaugh (417 words, 2 minutes read time) Some say that size doesn't matter. I've met very few women who will agree with such nonsense. They will state that it is a misnomer, intended only to placate inadequate husbands, poorly proportioned boyfriends, and temporary playmates. Women know how little confidence most men have. That their... Continue Reading →
~ I’m Mandy, call me…
Brett Cavanaugh* (327 words, 2 minutes read time) Our chat ended abruptly. Her final words: “sorry, this session has timed out. It is now concluded and at its end. You should hang up now, walk away, and carry on with your life, or perhaps call back later…” I knew better. I didn’t hang up. I knew,… Continue Reading →
~1986 ~ Susie’s Journal ~
(303 words, 2 minutes read time) 12-13-1986 (transcribed from my old diary) I begin this totally fictional, free-form journal on my sixteenth birthday. Consider it my personal, uncalled for, rant on the world. Papa suggested it. It’s an alternative to the trap of poetry. Here, I will write without doubling back, proofreading, or second guessing... Continue Reading →
~ Carmalita
>~~ Brett ~~< (436 words, 2 minutes read time.) That's an easy one! I wasn't expecting to find Carmalita, my third (or was she my fourth?) wife on Royal Street in New Orleans. At my age, it's hard to keep track of them anymore, but I know there were seven. Three in my early years,... Continue Reading →
~ Reyn responds to Patreon gripes
(403 words, 2 minutes read time} >~~ Reyn ~~< (Santa Fe)~ A couple of weeks back I received gripes from a few disgruntled Patreon subscribers. These troubled souls, rich beyond belief, are obsessed with me simply because I'm eternal. It’s true, I do have a great publicist. Nine of these Nouveau stooges bothered to use... Continue Reading →
~ unrequited joy
~~> Bill Whittaker (2025) <~~ (316 words. 2-minute read) PERSONAL JOURNAL. 12-13-25 Honestly, I did make some minor changes to a few clauses on that last preface draft, but only because I failed to make that midnight deadline. >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~< Oh, wait… What was the prompt again? Something about… Oh, yeah! First day of doing someone…. Continue Reading →
~ A tale of two houses…
~~~> Denise and I after a long day of fishing. Secret Fort in the background, Bougainvillea, and garage to left. ~~~< (473 words, 3 minutes read time) As my parents’ family grew so did their house requirements. Until the one day they discovered a special forever home on Casa Linda Drive. Of course, this story… Continue Reading →
Always enough time…
"Imagine me and you. I do! I think about you every night. It's only right!" * (375/431 words, 2 minutes read time.) >~~~~~OOO~~~~~< We can sneak out, like really late, after dark, when there’s no school the next day, and then meet somewhere. Maybe at one of our secret places. The attic, or even better,... Continue Reading →
~ Let X equal X…
“Your eyes! it’s a day’s work, just looking into them…” * (320 words, 2 minutes read time.) >~~~~~X=X~~~~~< Another Monday. Wake up with hopes to dive back into the writing routine. 300 to 500 words a day, 15 to 20 hours per week. Not a big deal, right? Try to get to it by 10:00.... Continue Reading →
~In our dreams…
... our wetish sci-fi dreams... (275 words, 1 minute read time.) Had you asked me when I was ten and building model rockets that shot to the sky, some in stages that glided home or landed gently in trees after drifting softly down tethered to parachutes that popped from their nose cones at apogee. I... Continue Reading →
No work at all
963 words, 5 minutes read time. I was interviewing for a copywriting position at WorkStress, a minor distributor for retail book giant Barnes & Noble, when this HR interrogation guy asked me, right out of the blue, right at the last minute, what had been my favorite subject in school? I thought the interview was… Continue Reading →
~skipping stones.
-1962-thirteen skips. We were playing alongside the monoliths of Stonehenge when I picked up this rock. I thought it was a trilobite. It wasn’t. It was just a flat rock. I knocked off the muddy crud that covered it and saw it to be a perfect skipping stone, so I sent it sailing across the… Continue Reading →
Cloning around…
what happens at the lab may not stay there. I was in the lab, drifting on and off near sleep, and reflecting on the holograms we were developing. How they might serve mankind well as disposable proxies for humans in vocations such as search and rescue, police work, firefighting, and other risky occupations. How they... Continue Reading →
Stop by, but call first.
We know how much you've wanted to see our place, everyone does, and unfortunately, geography makes it difficult for regular visits. In the meantime, we offer problematic or potential visitors this partial virtual postcard tour. So pull up a chair, have a cup of Chai, and click away! Mmmm... It smells like Nalini is cooking up some wonderful snacks and treats to share. So, pull up a chair and welcome aboard, let's catch up!
Hack Haiku,
Academically Speaking I don't like writing things that aren't from the heart. So, rather than that, I write what I call heartless haikus. Mostly just to pass the time. Like now, while I'm here waiting for you to come to. They are quick, simple, and unlike limericks, they don't even have to rhyme. Hell, they... Continue Reading →
Travels With Putt-Putt
(Letters From the Dog Box #1) The first car I remember my mom driving was a late-fifties Ford two-door. We called her the Putt-Putt. She seemed old and worn, not flashy like the newer cars of the day, with their bright paint and fancy rocket-style fins. But to Denise and me, she was a privately... Continue Reading →
> an occasion for the ageless
Above: untreated scaly skin as it begins to fossilize (pre-Saurism) >> an occasion for the ageless << Due to renewed interest in reading, online studies, audiobooks, and other traditional methods of learning, a provocative return to the classic forms of studying history, science, social behavior, and core studies has become the new norm. Time travel… Continue Reading →
Cancellation of request and invitation-
(obligatory photo security photo (1/251) My apologies! The cleaning party scheduled at our house tomorrow has been postponed indefinitely. My father-in-law has taken a slight turn for the worse. Not terribly worse, but worse enough for my wife to delay her return home for a bit longer. Also, while in Jaipur, she’s had an opportunity… Continue Reading →
The Salvations of Abda- (part two)
from: Sixteen Hours in Qatar. A collection of short stories Dear readers: this is the second installment of the first chapter of “The Salvations of Abda.” I must have neglected to save a more embellished version of it, therefore, it is what it is. The text itself is still accurate. I will be taking a break from… Continue Reading →
The Salvations of Abda (part one )
(from: Sixteen Hours in Qatar. A collection of short stories) (492 words, 3 minutes read time) My wife, Nalini, meant it as a joke- "Why not register Adba as an ESA animal, now, before we go to India?" Abba, which means 'calamity' in Sanskrit, is our rescued animal. We recently saved her from the Santa Fe Animal... Continue Reading →
never sorry.
But no more. She blamed her newfound confidence on me. Said I had brought her out and into herself. And here, I thought I was just using her. Maybe we both had just blossomed. Found ourselves in each other.