January, 2011 Archives

25
Jan

His First And Last Day On The Job

by thegooddoctor in 100 Words

Shawna James was the only female butcher in the tri-city area. She was known to be impatient with the new employees, especially as they looked at her as some kind of aberration.

But she wouldn’t have trusted anyone else with explaining how the machinery works. No one else cared as much.

“This here’s the mincer. First you need to wet the sausage down. If it’s too dry, you might create friction. Then you need to insert it into the slot. If it doesn’t fit, don’t worry. Just keep pushing until it goes all the way in.”

“That’s what she said.”

15
Jan

Institutional Negligence

by thegooddoctor in 100 Words

They found her body–tattered, ripped open at the seams with the fluff bleeding out–in the middle of the sidewalk. The authorities labeled it accidental murder; she was the victim of circumstance.

But murder is never an accident. It takes nerve and planning and years of resentment piled on top of envy and systematic failures. Triggers don’t just pull themselves.

Neither of the authorities wanted to hear about it. They refused to own the fact their institutional negligence had allowed Mrs. Cassidy to be chewed to death by Chocolate, the cocker spaniel. Her parents were always skirting the blame.