by Fred Nicholson | Jun 20, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
I saw a sign,’Support Immigrants’Made me wrinkle my brow. Support immigrants?Even the buffalo immigrated here,from some where. Think about it.We’re all immigrants.Support which immigrants? f ADDENDUMA friend said buffalo were always here or may have...
by Fred Nicholson | Mar 18, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Love is the Answer, Stories
all is Still. [OK. Take a slow breath or two or more ] Still is never enough, is it?[Here comes the preachy talk.] Still is defined by the ‘and’ or ‘what’ words.More short stories in the making. Can you imagine your MindStill in still with...
by Fred Nicholson | Feb 13, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Before you read this or not, please be forewarned. What follows may not be a poem, but once it took off, I could not stop it. Not sure if throwing in line breaks turns words into a poem. There I go ‘wording off’ again. *****the Agreement We had...
by Fred Nicholson | Feb 12, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
falling forthe CARROT and the stick WORLD Carrots are used for many purposes. Some folks may cover their mouths, aghast.Others think about a glass of fresh squeezed juice.Me? I’m talking about the donkey carrot, the greyhound rabbit, and the human...
by Fred Nicholson | Feb 9, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
TRUST is not a continuum,though like all else,it appears to be. “OK, I just stepped out of character.” I have no idea where this is heading.Let’s follow and see if we break a leglike they say in showbiz OR wind uptapping [Delete], saying good night...
by Fred Nicholson | Jan 18, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
‘no name, 4’ The first 3 sentences plus 3 words in ‘no name, 1’ follow.I lay down to rest last night and the word ‘forgiveness’ sprang up. I thought we were going to be talking about my relationship with dad. My lined yellow pad was...
by Fred Nicholson | Jan 16, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
no name, 3 OK, ‘no name, 3’* was at the top of tonight’s agenda. I cooked dinnerdid dishesSpent time with Kaiaand the mirrorStacked booksFlapped Jacks None of that matters.The intention was to sit and write. Give the distractions any name you...
by Fred Nicholson | Jan 10, 2019 | All Mixed Up, Stories
the ‘Master Manipulator’Our President is a ‘Master Manipulator’. He has made the current negotiation about getting or not getting a physical barrier between the U.S. and Mexico. He says, “You Democrats don’t want to protect our...
by Fred Nicholson | Oct 30, 2018 | All Mixed Up, Stories
a Pig’s tale We just had the yummiest smoked ham hocks ever eaten by 2 beings, one human, one canine. Two days ago I was shopping in Central Market and saw these petite, ankle-sized hocks (4 of them) packaged together. Normal sized hocks look like...
by Fred Nicholson | Oct 5, 2018 | All Mixed Up, Stories
‘You will die today’, greets me in the morning, some times. I used to quake, be rattled, and scrunch up under the bed covers. Now I get up, accept today is the day, shower, flush, brush, dress, collar Kaia and pull the door closed behind us. I help her up...
by Fred Nicholson | Sep 27, 2018 | All Mixed Up, Stories
a Blank Page She was ninety-five and bedridden for 30 plus years. There were caregivers and her window faced the Catholic Church spires. Laying there, looking out praying, she died. Deb and I were offered the apartment, if we moved everything out and did all the...
by Fred Nicholson | Aug 26, 2018 | All Mixed Up, Stories
a Tall Tale or a Short Story? Dinosaurs walked these streets before us. We named them streets. Earth is earth, no matter what you call it. Give that a thought or longer So here we are, walking dinosaur streets. What follows? A Tall Tale, this wasn’t. A Short...
by Fred Nicholson | Jul 23, 2018 | All Mixed Up, Stories
These are dangerous times when a U.S. President is willing to create a ‘Crusader War’ with Iran, to mask his own evil rise to power. Amazingly enough, he made the same threats to North Korea, before he and Kim Jong-un became bosom buddies. The most...
by Fred Nicholson | Jan 9, 2015 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Your Worst Nightmare I am your night mare bitch in heat volcanic ash budding embers laying-low until next time. Dishes pots and pans full food cans flung across the room puts ‘I love you’ to the test. Do you pass or fail to see the light of day each...
by Fred Nicholson | Apr 21, 2014 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Taxiii . . . When I returned from Vietnam I held many different jobs for short periods of time. For more years than I can remember I drove a New York City taxicab at nights and had a multitude of memorable experiences doing so. I once picked up three young people, a...
by Fred Nicholson | Apr 21, 2014 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Hey woman, run next door and tell Charlie we’d like some hotdogs. What did you say? What, I gotta repeat myself? This is the fourth of July. We supposed to have hot dogs. You must have lost your mind. The shock of them repossessing our clothes, furniture and...
by Fred Nicholson | Apr 21, 2014 | All Mixed Up, Stories
bang bang banging on the door. “Open up! It’s the police!” I look down at the busted jug and at the dent in the wall, where the statue virgin mary whizzed past my head. Sure, I could have left run away years ago but each time we took another gamble. The gambling is...
by Fred Nicholson | Apr 21, 2014 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Rachel climbed the stairs. ‘One leg up down and pull up the rest of me. Left . . . right . . . left . . .’ More than a few times she stopped to suck in some thinning air. Rachel looked up through the spiraling steps. She still had a long way to go. She was like that...
by Fred Nicholson | Dec 2, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
What you gonna do when HE comes for you? When HIS ship lands HE will first whisk all the other living organisms aboard, from land, sea and air. When they’re all comfy cozy HE will say to us humans, “I’m taking Christian, Muslim, Jew, and all other faiths too....
by Fred Nicholson | Nov 18, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
I’m visiting a couple of friends. We’re eating dinner and drinking wine. Sex enters the talk. He winks at me, looks at her and says, ‘My wooden leg nourishes our sex life. Don’t believe me, ask her’. Sylvia gets up to clear the table,...
by Fred Nicholson | Aug 24, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
If I had eaten a million and 2 apples, and each was more golden delicious than the last, I’d love apples. When I chomp down on the one-millionth and third and choke on a mouthful of rot, maggots and worms, our love affair may be changed from then on. Fear,...
by Fred Nicholson | Aug 13, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Smile! What’s the use of crying? Though your heart is aching and breaking, just keep smiling and maybe the sun will come shining through. When there are clouds in the sky, you’ll get by if you smile. Light up the gladness. Hide the sadness. Although a tear may be ever...
by Fred Nicholson | Jul 2, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Merriam defines it as ‘an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger and accompanied by increased automatic activity’. I say, ‘Huh?’. Roosevelt said the only thing to fear is fear itself. I agree with him....
by Fred Nicholson | Jun 27, 2012 | All Mixed Up, Stories
Here’s an interesting read. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_empires This Wikipedia page lists the world’s largest empires by land area and GDP. For some unknown reason America doesn’t make the list. The USA has the largest military deployment in the world...
