Three Drabbles
Appreciating Orthodoxy
The clown surrogates are raiding the library again. Their theory is that the library has been little used since the return of the clowns to town, so rid the library of clown unfriendly books, and once again the library might be socially acceptable for dallying and idle browsing. Could be, it might be seen as a sign of good character to be in the library perusing the clown positive works. For the moment, though, it is simple entertainment to watch the raid—books tossed out on suspicion of content, or simply to have something to toss. Who brings the flame!
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Be Practical
There are openings at the bomb factory. Good pay. Flexible hours. There is a premium for the slight risk that a bomb is gendered too eager and goes off amongst the workers. They carry good insurance for such and make sure couples work on different shifts so one mistake won’t take out a complete household. This economy needs bombs. If you need a job, you won’t care how the bombs are used. Someone else’s smoking crater is not your business. You have a place in the line, tilt something, pour powder, imagine a pension, wait for the line to move.
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Building A Case
He was arrested for being an arsonist. The tale he tells of it at first is engaging. He was home with his wife and two daughters, sitting in his underwear and now famous red checkered bathrobe. His daughters were in bed, his wife disinclined for romantic gymnastics. A knock at the door. He answered without looking out. The neighborhood once was that naïve. Two men grabbed him, handcuffed him in that bathrobe and with another guided him to a squad car. There had been no arson, but it needed to be controlled. A few retellings, and the story is old.
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