With hundreds of police officers lining the street across from the cemetery on one side, and 3,000 Hells Angels attending a funeral and a shooting at the same service inside the cemetery, the resulting traffic jam between the two sides made for an interesting Saturday afternoon on October 15, 2011.This essay IS NOT an account of the funeral for Jeffrey "Jethro" Pettigrew and the subsequent shooting that took place inside the cemetery. This is about what happened outside the cemeter...

A minister and her unemployed driver argue about the spiritual consequences of driving in the fast lane to get to a church meeting in San Francisco on time while running late in rush hour traffic in Silicon Valley.A shorter version of this 2,340-word short story was first published on Fictionaut (October 2012).

An experienced contractor runs the gauntlet for a late night tech job at a financial institution in the heart of Silicon Valley, getting past the trigger-happy security guard, dealing with younger co-workers who expect to get paid fabulous money for doing nothing, and saving a desperate project manager when everything goes wrong.This 4,190-word short story was first published in Fictionaut (02 January 2014).

A trio of short stories about the sorrows of family life."Walking Into The Night" - A little boy watches the darkened street from behind the plate glass window of the barbershop after midnight, counting the taillights of the passing cars as his mother and the barber makes out behind the cash register."The Hungry Red Devil" - As the hungry red devil cichlid fish paces the 50-gallon fish tank in their living room, Derek and April discuss their dire financial situation after b...

As Claude prepares his surgical instruments for Plain Jane, a petite prostitute he brought back to his motel room, she unnerves him with her cravings for alcohol, inexplicable incidents that belies her plain appearance, and knowledge of the Las Vegas serial killer. Naked underneath a ceiling mirror that exposes all, the wild and passionate sex of a one-night stand begins. One will walk out alive, the other in small pieces.A shorter version of this 3,730-word short story was first p...

After confronting a prominent attorney with three young sweet things for not leaving a generous tip, Charles Goodwin, the cannibalistic owner of The Giggling Mongoose, fumes at not being able to teach the old goat a lesson in restaurant manners until the scorned wife makes him an offer he can't refuse.This 5,530-word short story was first published in "Behind Locked Doors" anthology (Wicked East Press, March 2012).

A trio of short stories about traveling to strange worlds."Silent Observers" - After a deaf person leaves behind a pen and card requesting a donation, money wasn't the only thing being collected. A team of xenobiologist students from another planet are monitoring the eating habits of humans in their most natural environment: the shopping mall food court."The Kitterun Five Tourist Trap" - Although Humans and Kitteruns (a feline-humanoid species) are the most physically compa...

If you're ever invited to attend the Apple Store Job Fair at the Cupertino headquarters, don't drink the water. The employees pushing the cold bottles of water are store managers. If you find yourself with an urgent need to urinate during the two-hour presentation and activity session, don't use the restroom. You will piss away your job interview if you do.An original 8,300-word essay being published for the first time.

A trio of short stories about spiritual faith in uncertain times."A Leap of Faith" - A young man contemplates suicide by leaping in front of a speeding train when an old bus driver shows him the miraculous wonders of everyday living that makes life more meaningful."The Devil Came A-Collecting" - A middle-aged man wakes up at midnight to find the devil from an old amusement park ride waiting to collect his little boy soul for a sin he committed in kindergarten."Saved...

With 15 minutes left on the clock until the county courthouse closes for the weekend, Leticia was all alone at the front desk, deep into a bodice-ripper paperback and hoping that no one walks in at the last minute. As fate would have it, an old man walks through the door wanting to pay his tax bill. In pennies. After trying to convince him not to pay in pennies, he gives the place a good look over and promises to come back. She locks the door after him, ready to go home. Or so she thought....

Have you ever wondered how far a grandmother would go to get the hottest Christmas toy for her baby granddaughter? I never did until I witnessed how desperate my mother was to get a Cabbage Patch doll in the early 1980's. A fist-punching brawl between mothers and grandmothers at Toy "R" Us that forever changed my childhood.A shorter version of this 950-word essay was first published in Soft Whispers Magazine (November 2009).

After his uncle disappears into the forest with a bucket of lard in hand, Little Billy and his grandfather tracks him down to an isolated area of the family ranch. Along the way he learns about the birds and the bees, what being a girl-crazy teenager meant to his father and uncle, and the dangers of putting his stick into the larded knothole of a tree possessed by something more angrier than a disturbed beehive.An original 2,515-word short story ebook.