Down 112 Steps

Down 112 Steps

Photo by Scott Anderson Old stone steps wedged in loam wind down the gorge to forest then river. Here shadows hide before noon and the world-weary congregate— cottonwoods, maples, oaks. Brown switchgrass. A hollowed out log worn smooth by wind, water, the work of...
How to get a good apartment in Lagos

How to get a good apartment in Lagos

Photo by T. Obi, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons This story, as with all stories about apartments in Lagos, begins with a girl searching for home on lost shores and fading highways. And the sellers of the city conning naïve buyers in the streets, drying out...
Becoming Alive in Bosa

Becoming Alive in Bosa

Photos by Claudia Lundahl We land in Alghero and the air feels like a warm bath, tepid and gentle, soothing my senses – a corporeal lullaby that triggers an immediate shift in my mindscape. I’ve been here before, several years ago, and my body seems to remember. I...
The Meter’s Jammed, So I Left You Some Quarters

The Meter’s Jammed, So I Left You Some Quarters

Photo by Monica Louzon People hurry out of your way when you’re a meter maid. I should know — I’ve been one in Cape May for eleven years. They’re always running to add quarters to expiring meters or scurrying away, hoping they won’t catch your...
Dragon Driving the T

Dragon Driving the T

Photo by Fletcher6 via Wikimedia Commons license CC BY-SA 3.0 Zuke the aquamarine dragon had been a train conductor for the T since 1889. Since the dragon couldn’t fly via levitation or wings, the train was the next option. In his younger years, Zuke loved to travel...
A Familiar Frottoir

A Familiar Frottoir

A different kind of sunlight that day—the day Bisque sat out on the stoop, shucking pistachios and the gleam of the air settled in on his face, casting half a shadow, a shadow full of cracked thoughts and known uncertainties. The day itself sounded like a broken...