Lot

by Donald Jett

I came to on the floor of the parking booth, a bloated beer can sweating in front of my face like a one-night stand. Not my type. I sat up and pressed at the knot on my temple until the pain became familiar. Then I grabbed the beer, held it to my head between drinks. When I was done, I tossed the can back into the night... bang bang. The owner of this lot is not liable for any damages.

6S

Donald Jett is looking for a new job.

Wires

by Carrie Lorig

I needed to make a patch, so I threaded my needle with some strands of longitude and latitude. I had no idea using them would pull the wires out from under the birds. On several farms, barbed wires unclotted and went smooth enough to step over. I heard lanterns collapsing and popping outside. Only then did I realize what I'd done and the herding that would be required to fix it. I thought of the orthodontists I would need to catch floating teeth, and of the equator writhing loose in a street far north where no one speaks his language.

6S

Carrie Lorig is living and teaching in Seoul until the first day of Fall. She blogs, but not well, here.

The Photo of Four Navajo Girls

by N.P. Tarpey

In the late-morning sun, we parked the pickup by the side of the road, lowered the tailgate, and put down a bowl filled with water for our two dogs to drink. Four young curious Navajo girls noticed the dogs, and without hesitation or fear, they climbed up onto the tailgate and took turns petting the tail-wagging canines. The girl in a pink long-sleeved shirt giggled when the old beagle licked her dusty face, but the girl in the white shirt was disappointed because the fox terrier was more interested in staying alert and watching the desert, than in chewing the squeaky hotdog toy. I knew to request permission before photographing Navajo people, so I asked the two women selling silver and turquoise jewelry at the nearby table, “Can I take a shot of your girls with our dogs?” The women smiled, and the older one said, “Yes, it looks like our girls have already made themselves at home in your truck.” Eight years later, the photo of the four Navajo girls makes me smile, even though the beagle is dead and the terrier is old, yet I sometimes wonder if the girl in pink laughs a lot and if the girl in white still has unmet expectations?

6S

N.P. Tarpey, after working 19 years as an alcohol, drug and family counselor, is in his third year as a sportswriter for the Times-Standard in California.