The Ten-Minute Storyteller

This week we meet Pat. Pat got fed up with America. For any number of reasons. The politics. The stress. His marriage.  So Pat split. Headed to Portugal. A nice little beach town on the coast. Where life could not be sweeter.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Jerry. Jerry’s been arrested. Jerry’s in jail. For something he insists he didn’t do.  But humans are not designed to readily admit their bad choices and screw-ups. It’s a bit of a design flaw.  Jerry’s brain conjured up some thoughts that likely had very little to do with reality and now, well, now a pretty happy go lucky guy is dead. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Stan. Stan’s an old-timer, living out the tail end. But he still remembers the glory days. When he was full of the usual piss and vinegar. Stan longs for one more rodeo. His wife long deceased, Stan would like one final conquest before the call comes in from his Maker.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Storm. Storm is a serious deep sea fisherman. A passionate deep sea fisherman. Even if it’s only his hobby. Even if he only gets to do his thing a few days each year.   Storm has the boat, the tackle, and the knowledge to catch the big fish out in the deep water. Too bad he doesn’t have much time.   And no matter what the Stones might have told us back in 1964, time, that most precious of all commodities, is definitely not on our side. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Thomas. As in the Biblical Doubting Thomas, who had some concerns about The Resurrection.  Like a lot of us, Thomas raced into adulthood and left his youth behind. Including his religious upbringing. He sought new frontiers and new philosophies everywhere he turned.   But now he’s older, in his late forties, the father of three young children. And suddenly wondering about those things he left behind. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Joey. Joey’s in a bit of a pickle, got himself stuck in the jar with the lid screwed on tight, and he’s not at all sure how to extricate himself.  It was all fun and good times for a while, well, for a very short while, but now, not so much. Just a lotta stress and three snot-nosed kids.  Take a listen to learn how the human race guarantees its survival through procreation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Shelia. She’s had it up to her eyeballs with her two-timing husband. A liar and a serial cheater. But she can’t think about that right now. The house has been invaded by yellow jackets. Can’t think about anything else till she rids the house of yellow jackets. Shelia grabs her phone, races outside, and calls the exterminator.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Guy. Guy needs underwear. Heads for the mall. Where some white kids get tangled up with some black kids. The N-word careens around the food court. One kid pushes another kid. Fists fly. Blood spills.  The cops arrive. Put the white kid in a chair, the black kid on the floor. Tempers flare. Guns drawn.  What’s Guy going to do? What’s Guy going to say? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Sock. Every evening Sock and various companions meet at the park to go for a walk and discourse on a variety of lofty topics.   On this particular evening, cold and blustery, it appears it will only be Sock and his faithful hound Sally. But just as they set off, a young lady appears and together the trio ambles up Lyceum Hill.   Soon talk turns to Camus' Four Conditions for Happiness. A lively discussion ensues.  But then, suddenly, this newest member of The Walking Philosopher's Club bids farewell and vanishes into thin air. Was she ever really there? Or had Sock merely conjured her up?   Does it matter? Does such a phenomenon as reality even exist? Join the walk and see what you think.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Dick. Dick’s at wit’s end. Bill Monroe owes Patrolman Dick Benson ten grand. Has owed the police officer ten grand for nearly two years. Dick wants his dough.   And more than wants it, Dick needs it. For his family. His wife and daughter. On several occasions he has begged and pleaded with Monroe to fork over the cash. All to no avail.  Well now Dick has a plan. A crazy-ass scheme to get his dough. And tonight's the night.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Noah. Noah’s known loneliness. Been well acquainted. Knew it as a kid when his older sibs left the nest. Knew it in college freshman year without a bud in sight.  But he definitely didn’t expect to experience the emotion now. Not now as a middle-aged guy with a wife and three daughters. A crazy, chaotic life. Busy busy all the time.   But here she blows, that old foe loneliness, roiling through his head at three o'clock in the morning. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we meet Bull. Tim Bull. Bull was a heck of a high school athlete. Big. Strong. Fast.  Bull had a dream. He dreamed of a world without rancor. A world where cooperation, not competition, ruled the roost.  Bull’s middle age now, where Dreams go to die.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.