Dearest Rachel – Weekends are the ‘slow news days’ of my life; and while we need days like that on a regular basis, it does cut into anything that I might have to tell you about. There is the fact that five out of six of us managed to get together yesterday afternoon at aContinue reading “Susan Amid the Wreckage”
Tag Archives: story
The Synthesis
Dearest Rachel – She is a genius. Oh, perhaps not to the extent of that of the professor she works alongside, but certainly a prodigy in her own right. She has an almost uncanny understanding of the neurological network that is the human mind, and with her mentor, she works tirelessly to help him create,Continue reading “The Synthesis”
Story Arc
Dearest Rachel – It would amuse me no end for some theorist channel to happen across this sheaf of letters, read a whole bunch of them over your shoulder, and try to make sense out of them as if they were the components of an ARG or an extended literary work. Applying the tropes ofContinue reading “Story Arc”
Random Groggy Thoughts
Dearest Rachel – I don’t know if it’s more funny or annoying (I suppose it all depends on how groggy I am at the moment); I can be falling asleep trying to watch a YouTube video of an early evening, but as soon as I decide to make it official, and set the channel toContinue reading “Random Groggy Thoughts”
Enlisting
Dearest Rachel – You’d think I’d been eating too heavily too late at night on a regular basis, judging from the number of weird dreams I’ve been having (and telling you about) lately. and maybe I have, come to think of it – it is the holiday season, after all. Although, considering my continuing effortsContinue reading “Enlisting”
Singapore
Dearest Rachel – Well, we’ll soon be in the last place on my itinerary that I’ve been to before. The funny thing is, the one moment I most vividly remember from this place has little to do with it as such, and was just an incident whose circumstances could just as easily have happened anywhereContinue reading “Singapore”
A Fever Dream of Dream
Dearest Rachel – I think I may have the bed piled with too many ‘reindeer skins.’ Oh, it’s a comfort in the evening, when it’s just a little too cold to just sit around in, but by two o’clock this morning, I was waking up in a sweat. Then, again, it may have been theContinue reading “A Fever Dream of Dream”
Work Stories Lost: The Dying Industry
Dearest Rachel – I promised myself, at the beginning of the year, that when Daniel and I would go over to the folks’ for dinner, I would make an effort to record the conversations we would have when we gathered in the family room after the meal. The point of this was not so muchContinue reading “Work Stories Lost: The Dying Industry”
The Challenge of Storytelling
Dearest Rachel – It happens so much less often these days – especially during busy seasons, such as the impending Christmas holidays – that you would think I would have plenty to tell you about when the girls come over. But it doesn’t seem to work out that way in practice. To be fair, whileContinue reading “The Challenge of Storytelling”
The VCR in the Rafters
Dearest Rachel – It was just the sort of dream that you would have considered to be a nightmare; the kind of story that would have justified all the hoarding you ever did. I don’t know where I was when I found it – after all, it’s not like our house even has exposed raftersContinue reading “The VCR in the Rafters”
In Awe of Scheherazade
Dearest Rachel – The framing device behind the Middle Eastern folk compendium One Thousand and One Nights is the story of the sultan Shahryar who, upon discovering he was being cuckolded by his consort (which he only found out because of his brother being similarly betrayed by his wife, leading Shahryar to investigate whether suchContinue reading “In Awe of Scheherazade”
つづく (To Be Continued)
Dearest Rachel – Well, honey, I did say I was going to have to continue the story I began telling you about on Tuesday, as I wasn’t able to get you over to the jewelers’ that day. It’s a fairly short story, though – at least, for now. But first, I think I need toContinue reading “つづく (To Be Continued)”
Nineteen-Twenty-Three
Dearest Rachel – I had a dream, it was a mysteryI dreamed of science and of history iDeoLa (Mark Heard), “Is It Any Wonder?” from Tribal Opera (1987) There is a certain item of presidential lore that tells of letters written at some point in time between Election Day and Inauguration Day by the outgoingContinue reading “Nineteen-Twenty-Three”
On Disgust and Fear
Dearest Rachel – There are so many reasons why I wish I could have you back here with me. Most of them are perfectly obvious; I miss all the things we used to do together – and would like to continue to do them with you, rather than do them alone, or try to findContinue reading “On Disgust and Fear”
What We Would Watch
Dearest Rachel – Last night, while occupying my evening with YouTube in the bedroom while the boys were doing likewise in the family room, I was presented with an AdSense question that, at the moment, struck me as rather strange. It was asking me how often I watched horror films and series, with responses rangingContinue reading “What We Would Watch”
Only in Fairy Tales
Dearest Rachel – Every so often, someone tells me that “oh, don’t worry; God has someone out there for you.” And, as much as I like hearing that, and I’d like to believe that, I really don’t dare – and I rather wish they would stop (to be fair, it’s tapered off over time, soContinue reading “Only in Fairy Tales”
The Return of Samurai Dan
Dearest Rachel – For all that I’ve talked about the atmosphere surrounding the convention, I haven’t told you anything about the actual scheduled events. Part of that is because, even when we were attending these things together, we were rarely all that concerned about the panels, the guests, the screenings and all the other scheduledContinue reading “The Return of Samurai Dan”
Setting My Rules Aside
Dearest Rachel – I promised myself I would wait for the girls, but there’s only so much I can do about self-imposed restrictions when I want to break them. I’d apologize, but to whom? I’d gotten my hands on that anime series I’ve mentioned a few times since Anime Central; A Place Further than theContinue reading “Setting My Rules Aside”
Passing Thoughts
Dearest Rachel – After writing you yesterday’s letter, I was surprised (although perhaps I shouldn’t have been, given how my mind works sometimes) to find myself coming up with possible scenes that could go into a story about the two of us as well as my attempts to cope with being on my own –Continue reading “Passing Thoughts”
A Manga for This?
Dearest Rachel – Some days, when I’m recording what’s happening to me, in order to assemble it into a letter to send to you, I find myself distracted (if that’s the right word) by the events surrounding me. Granted, these are the very events that I’m trying to take in so as to tell youContinue reading “A Manga for This?”
Let Others Speak
Dearest Rachel – We didn’t have a word or a name to apply to it when we were in primary or secondary school, but we both understand and remember what it was like to be the ‘Hermione’ of our classes. You know the type; the one who had an answer (or at the very least,Continue reading “Let Others Speak”
Ahead of the Curve
Dearest Rachel – Now that I’ve gotten back to a certain semblance of normal – while at the same time always having to acknowledge that nothing since the lockdowns has been, and nothing since your departure will ever be, truly “normal” again – life has been a matter of reconnecting with those in my circlesContinue reading “Ahead of the Curve”
Other People’s Stories
Dearest Rachel – Ever since I mentioned the possibility of turning recordings of your voice into future conversation (and bemoaned the fact that I have more of Mohinder’s voice than yours), I’ve been reminded of recordings we’d planned – but never got the chance – to make. When Daniel was making plans to enroll atContinue reading “Other People’s Stories”
Walking the Fine, Fine Line
There’s fine, fine lineBetween love… and a waste of your time “There’ s A Fine, Fine Line,” sung by Kate Monster (Stephanie D’Abruzzo) in Avenue Q Dearest Rachel – Well, I got what I expected to out of yesterday’s adventure. I didn’t actually have a lunch date (in fact, I didn’t have lunch there atContinue reading “Walking the Fine, Fine Line”
The Love of the Legend
Dearest Rachel – As much as I might complain about not meeting people on this weekend’s camping venture, I happen to know that a lot of it is my own fault. You’ve already heard about how I hadn’t felt comfortable talking to the ‘guests’ as a mere worker, but that sort of reticence applies toContinue reading “The Love of the Legend”
No Plot, No Point… No Problem?
Dearest Rachel – There are times when I don’t know why I’m filling this space with the scenes I see at night. Most of them don’t have a story to them, and the ones that do leave me wondering if they were supposed to mean anything, and being unable to come up with any reasonableContinue reading “No Plot, No Point… No Problem?”
Infinite Loop
Dearest Rachel – Sometimes it’s ridiculous what my mind comes up with overnight these days. Other times, it just ever so slightly depressing, if only for the fact that it spoils the fantasy. But you being you, you would ask about my dream in any event, and while the details are already starting to fadeContinue reading “Infinite Loop”
A Date in Time
Dearest Rachel – I tend to take it as a good sign when I’m able to construct an entire story with my mind in my dreams. If nothing else, it suggests that I’m getting a full nights sleep in the process. I wish I could ask you about this story, because it seems so familiar,Continue reading “A Date in Time”
I Wish I Had Taken More Pictures
Dearest Rachel – So, last night we met the girls for dinner. I’m not gonna lie, it was a bit of a fire drill; not gonna specify, either, because I’m not sure which nationality applies here – Chinese, Bavarian, or some other – and regardless, it’d probably be racist, or at least ethnist, to doContinue reading “I Wish I Had Taken More Pictures”
God Bless
Dearest Rachel – Another day of the season, another song to talk about. But this isn’t just any day; it’s Christmas itself. The day of Our Lord. The day when, as my dad often puts it, “the complaint department is closed.” So I will just talk about a song for whom my only complaint isContinue reading “God Bless”
Missing the Clicks
Dearest Rachel – I don’t mind telling you, now that I’m home relatively safe and sound, I find myself wondering what to write to you about such that I’ll get the kind of attention that I’ve had for the past week or two. I’m not going to make any secret of the fact that IContinue reading “Missing the Clicks”
The Pointlessness of it All
Dearest Rachel – It hasn’t been the easiest night for sleeping, and I’m not entirely sure why. Maybe it’s because I allowed myself to fall asleep in the chair yet again – I’ve really got to stop doing that – but considering how short a period of time it was that I slept there, itContinue reading “The Pointlessness of it All”
The Seventy-Two Who Wait for You
Dearest Rachel – It’s not really my story, but I figured I could embellish it on this, the twentieth anniversary of one of the most defining moments of still-remembered history. When I first encountered it, it was a fairly elaborate story that ultimately wound up as a joke, although there’s nothing particularly funny about theContinue reading “The Seventy-Two Who Wait for You”
Kevin and the Prize
Dearest Rachel – I haven’t written to you about Sparks since you left, and I suppose I ought to fill you in. Although, we’ve only met the one other time before tonight, so there hasn’t been much to fill you in about. In fact, the first Monday after the accident had been canceled – notContinue reading “Kevin and the Prize”
Honey
Dearest Rachel – In an effort to avoid working on my impressions of the worst day of my life, I’m going to tell a story. You, of course, already know this story, but it needs to be told nonetheless. It’s the story of how you came to see me as more than an arrogant jerk,Continue reading “Honey”
Letters to Rachel 