The salesman wanders from door to door, an endless collection of wonders kept in the back of his car. A magician taking his art to the people, one household at a time. He knows what we want better than we know ourselves.
Doorbell pressed. Smile engaged. Anticipation building within him like electricity coursing through a Tesla coil.
There is no escaping your own desire.
__________
Notes:
1. Written on 25th May, 2023
__________The rules of the eclipse were you could only look at the sun when there was no more sun left to see. And even then you still had to wear glasses.
It wasn’t any fun at all.
__________
Notes:
1. Written on the 2nd of July, 2023
__________“Two scoops?!” Tina said, wide eyed with awe. “I’ve never had two scoops before.”
“Mine’s got two scoops too,” said Daniel. “In different flavours!”
“Mine has two scoops and a flake!” said Ethel. “I don’t know what’s gotten into dad but I like it.”
“I think maybe he’s just sad,” said Tina. “He’s not been the same since the mermaid ran off with that walrus last year.”
There was a moment of silence as they contemplated their father, as he counted out his sand and seaweed covered coins at the ice cream counter.
“Yeah, well mine has THREE scoops!” Claire shouted, quickly getting back to what was important. “And I’ve got two of them!” She pulled her arm out from behind her back with a flourish a magician would have been proud of. “You’ll never beat that!”
__________
Notes:
1. Written on May 26th, 2023
__________The tennis courts were empty. The gates were shut, locked, padlocked, chained, bolted, and, quite possibly, even welded. No one had set foot inside since 1985 and no one would set foot inside again until 2055 at the very earliest unless something catastrophic happened and even then it was unlikely to be catastrophic enough to change anything that drastically.
The nets fluttered in the wind, as close a thing to genuine ghosts as anything in material existence could ever hope to be.
__________
Notes:
1. Written on May 26th, 2023
__________In Ted’s collection of Ted’s things in Ted’s shoeboxes in Ted’s shed in Ted’s Mum’s garden there currently resided:
1. Spider (large)
2. Spiders (small)
3. Cockroach collection
4. Mouse (dead) + maggots (not dead)
5. Slow worm
6. Fast worm
7. More worms (various speeds)
8. [Escaped]
9. Stick insect
10. Stick that looks like an insect
11. Cocoon (unknown inhabitant)
12. Wasps’ nest (empty)
13. Bee hive (full)
14. Ant colony (writhing)
15. Cat (asleep)
16. Rock that looks like a fossil but probably isn’t a fossil
17. Rock that doesn’t look like a fossil but actually is a fossil
18. Assorted skulls
19. Assorted bones
20. Snails
21. Slugs
22. Slugs AND snails
23. Venus fly traps (plus slugs)
24. Shoes (plus snails)
25. Feathers (unsorted)
26. Eggs (dozen)
27. Discarded Selenite shell
28. Doll (awake)
29. Rusted toy car collection (plus a space shuttle)
30. Toenails/teeth (own)
31-50. [Awaiting exhibits]
___________
Notes:
1. Written on 26th May, 2023
2. Ted previously appeared in Tale #34: The Boy With The Box
3. In case you had forgotten such a memorable chapter in all our lives