The city was empty, like the set of a sci-fi movie when the aliens have chased everyone away or a nuclear explosion had wiped out all life.
Usually, a hero would be walking through the streets, preparing to fight a giant opponent or searching to rescue some helpless victims.
But the only person walking the streets was Amanda. She was nine years old.
She woke up one morning to find that everyone was gone, without explanation.
So, she did what came naturally. She walked to the grocery store. It was only a couple of blocks down the street. The automatic...
The year was 1986. There wasn't anything to do, but there was everything to do.
When you're 11, life is simple. You go to school, and you try to get good grades. Food is taken care of, and you don't need a job.
What else is there to do? Go out and play. Mom never had to tell me to get out of the house. We had a lot of boys in the neighborhood, so I was always playing baseball, football, and basketball. Dad was a big kid at heart, so he often played with us.
Pro sports were also...
Mary wandered through Arlington National Cemetery. She was looking for her grandfather's tombstone. In a sea of perfectly aligned crosses, Grandpa's tombstone stood out.
That's because it was different: a crescent moon shape. Grandpa had earned the distinction of saving three of his comrades during World War II.
His heroics became known as the Moonlight Run. Wandering through the forest behind enemy lines, Grandpa had rescued three wounded soldiers, leading them out of the forest with only the light of a crescent moon to guide him.
Grandpa never had a movie like "Hacksaw Ridge" made about him, but Mary knew...
They walked hand-in-hand over the foot bridge, surrounded by tourists.
"This reminds me of the Great Wall of China," Bill said.
"Have you been there?" Sally asked.
"No, but it's on my bucket list."
"Why do people have bucket lists? If something is so important that you want to make sure you do it before you die, why don't people do them first? You never know when you're going to die. I mean, this bridge we're standing on could collapse right now!" she exclaimed.
"Don't say that," Bill replied. "But that's a good point. "Visiting the Great Wall of China...
Sally hesitated before entering the beauty salon. She had lost the bet, and it was time to go blonde.
Do blondes have more fun? Do gentlemen prefer blondes? She was about to find out.
When Sally emerged from the salon, she had long, straight, blonde hair. She discovered that most people didn't recognize her.
"Wow, the color of a person's hair is more important than I ever imagined," she thought.
She decided to take advantage of her new identity by trying new things.
She went to a different coffee shop. She attended a concert at a new nightclub. She even...
The wizened beast crawled across the savannah, dragging the old cart with dilapidated wheels. The grassland swayed, tickling his nostrils. He made his way to the coffee table after pulling his head out of the carpet.
"Daddy, you can't stand yet! You are supposed to be pulling my wagon!"
"Daddy needs his coffee, son." The man scratched his stubble and his backside, retaining the mannerisms of his cattle form. The child scampered around the couch, catching the beast at its watering hole.
"Alright, back on the trail. Where was I heading?"
"Oregon trail. You have dysentery."
"So to the toilet...
"If you weren't strumming that chord over and over, I might think you were asleep," said Howard.
"Yeah, you might be forgiven for thinking that," replied Memmy. "No, I just rest my head on the body of the guitar. Here. Like this." Memmy's head didn't move. It was already on the body of the guitar.
"Don't you guys play electic guitars," asked Howard.
Memmy didn't look up. "Not when we're depressed. Hey, hand me that bottle, would you?"
"Which bottle?" asked Howard.
"The one that's not empty," said Memmy. He still hadn't looked up.
Howard shook several in sequence. One...