tales from the town

Tales From The Town #73: Surveillance Tapes (21-23)

21: Loft/Basement (simultaneous recording)

(unidentified voices rising then falling, occasional jubilant(?!) screams)

“…the witch?”
“The witch!”
“There’s no one else!”
“Only her!”
“Not the little ones!”
“But the witch!”
“The witch!”
“We have to ask her!”
“Ask the witch?”
“Ask the witch to help!”
“To help!”
“We have to make her promise!”
“Make her promise to help!”
“Tell her we can pay!”
“Tell her we know the price!”
“The price of a promise!”
“A promise to help!”
“It’s the only way!”
“The only way we can help!”
“Help the little ones!”
“And the big ones!”
“Help the house!”
“And the tree!”
“And the cat!”
“And her evil claws!”
“There’s no one else!”
“Just the witch!”
“…the witch?”
“The witch!”

22: Hall

(phone rings)

Agnes: Hello?… No, I’m sorry, I think you must have the wrong number… No, there’s no Mr. Terafina here, I can assure you….It doesn’t matter how you spell it…. Yes, I am quite sure… That’s none of your business, Madam!… I am being polite… You’re the one accusing me of all sorts… Well, you do that, then. I’ll tell them exactly what I’ve told you.,,, For the third time, there’s no Mr. Terafina here… Well, I don’t know why he gave you my number, but he doesn’t live here… This number’s as old as the house and as old as the exchange. It hasn’t changed since forever… And good day to you, too!…(click)… Urgh!

(the phone is placed back in its cradle with an audible bang)

23: By The Swing (Saturday afternoon)

Tina: What’s wrong Claire?
Claire: …
Ethel: You look all funny.
Claire: ….
Ethel: Have you been eating Wotsits again, Claire?
Claire: …..
Tina: You look like you’ve been eating Wotsits again.
Claire: ……
Ethel: You know you’re not allowed to eat Wotsits, Claire.
Claire: …….
Claire: ……..
Ethel: Mum! Claire’s been eating Wotsits again!
Claire: ………

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Notes:

1. Written in May and also August, 2022

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Tales From The Town #71: The Mirror Of The History

For all of us to see hangs the mirror in the hall.

The mirror reflects perfectly, yet leaves nothing looking quite the same. It lives on spite, on kindliness, on despair, on care, love, insecurities, fear, memories.

It is as permanent as our sense of self, as ephemeral as the glance of our eyes, as fragile as the glass of its making.

The mirror itself is never seen. We look beyond its surface. Everything it contains is borrowed from outside.

In the hall the mirror hangs for all of us to see.

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Notes:

1. Written on May 10th, 2022

__________

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Tales From The Town #71: The History Of The Mirror

In the hall the mirror hangs for all of us to see.

Everything it contains is borrowed from outside. We look beyond its surface. The mirror itself is never seen.

It is as fragile as the glass of its making, as ephemeral as the glance of our eyes, as permanent as our sense of self.

It lives on memories, lives on fear, on insecurities, on love, care, despair, kindliness, spite. The mirror reflects perfectly, yet leaves nothing looking quite the same.

For all of us to see hangs the mirror in the hall.

__________

Notes:

1. Written on 10th May, 2022

__________

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Thank you!

Tales From The Town #70: The Children’s Court (first session)

Topic: The Lodger And How Awful He Is And What We Know He’s Done So Far
Attendees: Claire, Ethel, Tina, Daniel, a doll, some dogs
Location: The Hollow On The Hill
Evidence To Be Presented: (verbal admissions only)
Ambience: Grasshoppers, contrails

Claire: …and he filled the freezer up with bread and I hate him. (pause) That’s the end of my evidence against the lodger. Oh and he broke the swing, remember?
Tina: That was ages ago.
Ethel: And he apologised.
Claire: What’s that got to do with anything? It’s still a crime. So who’s next? Daniel?
Daniel: He’s been trying to steal my dreams.
Ethel: What?
Tina: How?
Daniel: I dreamt he was asleep and dreaming he was me and when I asked him to stop he said no.
Claire: That doesn’t even make any sense.
Ethel: It does.
Claire: It doesn’t. Which makes it even worse. (pause) Good evidence Daniel.
Tina: I think he stole my poetry book.
Claire: No one stole your poetry book. It was exactly where I said it would be! In that drawer in your bedroom that you forgot to look in before for some reason!
Tina: Well, maybe he put it back there. Anyway, I still think he stole it. He definitely looked at it.
Claire: That’s not evidence. That’s supposition.
Tina: Well it’s better than insinuation.
Claire: It’s not!
Ethel: So why do you think the lodger stole your poetry book, Tina?
Tina: He quoted one of my poems back to me.
Claire: What does that prove?
Tina: My poems are a secret!
Claire: That’s stupid. Secret poems might as well not even exist.
Tina: Well now they exist and I don’t like it.
Claire: I hope Ethel’s evidence is better than that!
Ethel: It is! (pause) Wait, I mean, it’s exactly as compelling as that, Tina.
Tina: Thank you!
Ethel: So anyway… the lodger has been spying on Anna and Oya!
Tina: What? That’s awful!
Ethel: I know! And even worse, he’s been passing off Anna’s opinions as his own!
Claire: How’s that worse?
Ethel: They’re her thoughts, Claire! Not his! It’s plagiarism.
Tina: Plagiarism of the mind.
Claire: Maybe she’s passing off his opinions as HERS!
Ethel: She wouldn’t!
Claire: She would!
Ethel: Whose side are you on Claire? I thought you hated the lodger! I bet he’s never even read a book! Anna’s read loads of them!
Claire: I do hate him. But that doesn’t mean I should just believe anything you say about him. This is a court of law!
Ethel: Why can’t you agree with anyone, Claire? Just once. Please.
Claire: Because I’m right and you’re wrong! (pause) Although actually this time I do agree with you, Ethel. Because no one would pretend to have opinions as awful as his. Not even stupid old Anna!
Ethel: Stop being mean to Anna, Claire!
Claire: No! This is all her fault. If she hadn’t fallen in love with Oya and made Oya move out of her room and into Anna’s room then Mum wouldn’t have needed a new lodger and then the new lodger wouldn’t have moved in to the new rooms and the new rooms would still be empty and I could have moved into one of them instead and had it all to myself instead of having to sleep in the same room as all of you!

(silence)

Tina: What are we arguing about again?
Claire: EVERYTHING!

The court was adjourned until the afternoon.

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Notes:

1. Written on 22nd May, 2022

__________

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Tales From The Town #68: Surveillance Tapes (1-4)

1. Kitchen (breakfast time)

Ethel: Someone’s eaten my yoghurt!
Tina: Someone’s drunk my milkshake!
Daniel: A milkshake is a yoghurt in a bottle.
Ethel: Mum! Someone’s been eating our food?
Agnes (from the garden): Was it Claire?
Claire: NO!
(pause)
Daniel: A yoghurt is a milkshake in a pot.

2. The Hall (lunchtime)

(phone ringing)

Agnes: …Yes? Hello?….Oh, hi Mum. How are you?… Well, if you want me to answer faster why don’t you ring my mobile instead of this old thing in the hall? I was upstairs… We have a lot of stairs, remember? Actually I think we’ve got even more now since the last tme you stayed… Yes I know how far away you live, Mum… and I know how much it costs!…. I wasn’t complaining at all…No, everything’s fine here, Mum. I don’t know what the children have been telling you but really he’s just this totally unremarkable man. I barely even know he’s here. I see that boy in the mirror more often than I see him… He is not a ghost, Mum. We’ve been over this before… He’s just a delayed reflection… Well, you believe what you want and I’ll believe the truth, okay?… Fine… Yes, okay, I’ll tell the children you called…. No I won’t tell the children WHY you called…. Goodbye….Bye…. Yes, bye Mum….You’re always welcome here, Mum, you know that…. Of course I mean it!… Okay, bye…. Speak to you soon….Bye… [click]…Urgh…

3. By the swing (after school)

Claire: I’m the oldest. I should go first.
Ethel: You’re not the oldest.
Claire: Well I’m the biggest. And the loudest.
Tina: That’s not the same thing.
Ethel: At all.
Claire: It is.
Ethel: It isn’t.
Claire: It should be.
Ethel: It still isn’t.
Claire: Well someone has to be the oldest and it might as well be me.
Tina: None of us are the oldest.
Daniel: We’re twins.
Claire: But there’s four of us.
Daniel: Twin twins.
Ethel: We’re all the same age.
Claire: That’s stupid. One of us must have come out first. And I bet it was me!
Tina: None of us came out first.
Ethel: We all came out together.
Claire: How could that work? We wouldn’t fit! It’s not like they sliced Mum open and pulled us out all at once.
Tina: I think that actually is what happened.
Ethel: That’s why Mum’s got that big scar.
Claire: That’s disgusting! (pause) How awful. Poor Mum. (pause) I’m still the oldest I just know it.

4. Dining Room (dinner time)

Agnes: Now I spoke to Christopher and he said it might have been him who ate all your yoghurts and drank all your milkshakes.
Claire: See?! I knew it! I hate him!
Agnes: Might have been him, Claire. And if it was he apologises.
Claire: He hasn’t apologised to me!
Agnes: Claire! He didn’t even eat anything of yours so I’m not sure why you’re so angry about it all..
Claire: Only because he forgot to look in the freezer.
Tina: What?
Ethel: What are you putting things in the freezer for?
Claire: I’m allowed to put things in the freezer if I want.
Daniel: A freezer’s a fridge that freezes food.
Tina: Not if it’s bread.
Ethel: Or cornflakes.
Claire: I didn’t put bread in the freezer. Or cornflakes! What sort of idiot would put cornflakes in the freezer?
Daniel: A fridge is a freezer that foodens the fridge.
Ethel: Well what are you putting in the freezer then?
Claire: I’m not telling.
Tina: We can just look you know?
Agnes: Yeah, what exactly are you putting in the freezer, Claire?
Claire: It’s a secret.
Ethel: I’m taking a look.
Tina: So am I.
Agnes: Be careful you two! I don’t want one of you falling in there again.
Claire: Ha! I’ve never fallen in the freezer at all!
Tina: It’s okay Mum we’ve got a stool.
Ethel: See!
(pause)
Tina: My milkshakes!
Ethel: My yoghurts!
Claire: They’re not yours. They’re mine. I put them there.
Agnes: Well, they’re everyone’s now. You’ll have to share.
Claire: I don’t want to share.
Agnes: Claire…
Claire: Fine!
(pause)
Agnes: And you know Claire, you really shouldn’t put cornflakes in the freezer.
Claire: I didn’t put cornflakes in the freezer. I already told you that!
Agnes: Well someone did. And so much bread!

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Notes:

1. Written in May (2, 3) and July (1,4) 2022
2. There’s a chapter in An Escape that has the same name, very similar illustration as this.
3. Although I think the tapes there are probably nicer looking.

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Thank you!