Joe Swanson

“The Truth About a Lie,” by Joe Swanson

The lie about truth,where does one even begin to slip beneath the secrecy that masquerades itself as truth. Lies are assumed to be overt distortions of words or actions, that like a sleight of hand, directing your attention one way, while deception is applied with the other. Most magicians are not liars. However, they are promoters of self-disillusionment. A common ailment of the day, which can’t apparently be cured, because it has its roots in truth but its visibility is replicated in plastic. Woody Guthrie once sai...

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“Cyanide Punch” by Joe Swanson

“She is toxic. She is a piranha; show any signs of weakness and she’ll attack. Don’t think your immune from the poison, there is no bubble that exists she won’t invade and lay waste too.” “Why is she like that? I’ve known others who are particular about how things are done. Believe only they have the one way to do something, but no one as controlling as you claim she is. I guess I haven’t experienced first hand the retributive nature you describe. Do you think it could have something to do with being a woman in ...

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“Nothing Is Revealed” by Joe Swanson

“Would you mind stepping this way.” “Are you sure it’s safe? I remember reading this article in the paper about this guy who thought he was getting into an elevator, but the floor of the elevator was missing. Does that happen often here?” Oh God, not another one of those days. Pretending to understand, be engaged, empathetic to a cause that I know will one day end, in me looking for the elevator with no floor. Fritz has taught me one thing, don’t take anything for granted, or at face value. Things are not always what they...

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“Super-Sized” by Joe Swanson

I believed at first, it was luck. His prophetic insistencies were irritating. I had no way to prove or disprove his predictions, but I know, that no one can see the future. I’ve heard all about the Déjà vu types, but I can only attribute that to tricks, playing mind games with people. All magic is the same. Your vulnerabilities are exploited by your need to believe, especially when, the predictions are favorable. But this was different. Maybe because I don’t know any palm readers or clairvoyants personally.&nbsp...

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“Blinded By Sight” by Joe Swanson

Blinded by Sight There is something about being blind, even if for only a few days, well a week. The explosion, the flash, something, no one is entirely sure, triggered something in my mind that shut down my ability to see. It wasn’t that I was physically impacted, like being hit by something, but I remember the flash. I’d had bright lights shined in my eyes before, flashes from cameras, strobes at a concert, but nothing remotely close to the impact of the explosions flash.  Some people that stopped by the hospital asked how...

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“King of the Road” by Joe Swanson

“You see that guy over there. The one with the bowler hat, and that shirt with Buggs Bunny and Porky Pig on it. He says he a King from someplace. Wouldn’t say where. Do you think he looks like a King. He don’t look like one to me.” “You had too much to drink. Everyone should look like a King to you. You ask him his name, where he’s from, ask him anything?” “He don’t say much. I talked to him for quite a while, then I realized I was basically talking to myself. Then he says right out of the blue, “...

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“Saddle Up” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #105

Jesse James, Cole Younger, George Armstrong Custer, had brothers, friends, cohorts to play off of. Even Pinocchio had a Jiminy Cricket, I got Bob. Bob is one of those characters, who not only believes there is nothing he can’t or won’t do.  It is because he is the best at everything he does, according to The Book of Bob. Thinking, even knowing sometimes, doesn’t make a wrong a right, or stupid, smart. Bob ain’t figured that out yet.  Bob is a used car salesman; he is the patented descriptive nature of a used car salesman....

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“Knee-deep in Nonsense” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #105

The devil he claims is a friend of his. I know he doesn’t mean that, but then again, maybe he does. I gave up a long time ago attempting to analyze the unanalyzable. I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense, but then you don’t know Jude. I hope!Jude is one of those people who believe in astrology, stars, moons, horoscopes, and hororscopes. Most people believe in all kinds of things, but not hororscopes. I asked Jude what that even means. I know what a horoscope is; like being mind read by the celestials, who...

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“Hindsight” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #105

When I fell, I thought nothing of it. I’d fallen before. Some would say I was clumsy, some that I should know better. Being old has its advantages, being steady on ones feet is not one of them. Some nice young lady helped me up, picked the things that had fallen from my bag from the sidewalk, and placed them in my bag, and handed it to me with a smile. I thanked her for her kindness and sat on a bench by the street to gather my thoughts. We have a lot of benches here, there are a lot of us old reptiles crawling aroun...

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“Three Times the Charm? ” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #105

“What did you see? Be honest, don’t embellish, we are just trying to get to the truth, we don’t need a novella on this one. Short story version would be best as time is of the essence. The longer it takes to get our questions answered the more likely it will be that something is forgotten, changed, unremembered, or simply in an attempt to impress us, lie. Don’t do that.”Sargent Grimes sat across from three people who would admit to having witnessed the shooting on Mayberry Street. Mayberry Street is one of those areas whe...

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“First Person Plural” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #105

I saw it happening in real time. Happening to me, right before my eyes, and there was nothing I could do about it. It was like a dream I often have, where I’m being chased by something or someone, probably myself, but can’t get away. It’s not that I get caught, but I get bored and just give up. Sit on the curb, and wait. Nothing happens, no noise, no lightning, no visions, or ascensions, nothing.  This is different. It feels different, because I’m awake no doubt, or at least I think I am, but then I’ve been...

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“Ying-Yang Dynasty” by Joe Swanson

When two people both believe they are right, does it really matter if one of them is wrong, or does it only matter if one is necessarily wrong because it matters to the other person. It is a question we ask ourselves as a means to keep from believing if we see something, why can’t others? There is no definitive answer.  We have one abiding rule however, and that is when given the opportunity to participate in this tug of war, we must win. Our assumptions are based not on a scorecard that we keep, that would be too blatantly adverse...

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“The Edge of a Flat Earth” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #104

“No one states that the world is flat, unless the words are used as a euphemism to make a point.”“Oh, I don’t know. There are a lot of people who have their minds set on just being disagreeable. You know, the person who if you are in favor of something they are most assuredly against it. Some people like to exaggerate a cause or an idealism, to gain the attention they crave. They know it is not commonly held belief, or so it is said about declarations like that. There are also those who believe we are all part of elaborat...

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“Finally” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #104

Finally a night alone. The rat race continues, everyone striving for more, better. It never seems to end, and worse they want me to be part of it. Being with people constantly doesn’t allow one the time to be oneself. We always have to be someone that conforms to one mold or another. We can never truly be when with others, who we know ourselves to be. We have to primp and prune, remain quiet, laugh, sometimes be forced to sing. God I hate karaoke. It is not that it is embarrassing for me because I have...

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“Half Moon Bray” by Joe Swanson

Submitted to Contest #104

“Are you coming tonight?” Why do we always have to be going someplace. Not that I don’t enjoy going out, but sometimes I think we do things, like go out, just to have an excuse to avoid one another. Being physically alone is a one way of keeping others out, but the same can be true of being with others. Getting lost in the interaction. It taking the necessity of sharing from one level and places it on another, a more nebulous, unassuming one. We do this intentionally at times to provide a form of escape from things we don...

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