Monthly Archives: May 2005

Darcey Steinke, "Milk"

A young mother takes her baby for a walk and waits for her husband to come home.

(from Black Clock #3)

Well, plot-wise, there’s not a lot going on, but this is a pretty day-in-the-life examination of a deep and sympathetic character. Aha, this “story” is really an excerpt from her new book, also called Milk. So, there’s probably a for-real plot TK. I’m not a book person. I read short stories, approximately one per day. But I’m guessing it’ll be a good, warm, humane book that somebody would enjoy.
Steinke runs a “web project” called Blindspot, which you can find here. My browser is not compatible with it; I use Firefox. To me it’s all floating icons and secret handshakes.

Robert Harris, "PMQ"

The Prime Minister tries to set the record straight on that fateful night in his personal statement to the Speaker of the House.

(from Speaking With The Angel)

Nice. This Robert Harris guy has just the right steadiness of hand to make this silly story work. Official versions of grandly embarassing events, an established genre at this point, require a firm touch to keep things from straying too far into farce. This is all about a guy making stupid mistakes in a moment of weakness and trying to save face at every turn. It was adventurous and winding like a movie, but that format wouldn’t have much place for the dwindling dignity of the narrator, nor would it forgive his unexplainable actions, and without those things this would be a farce. As a story it is comfortable and believable and hilarious.

“It’s none of my business, but don’t you think he’s due for a sorting, the way he’s going on?”

Robert Arellano, "The Two Stevens"

The narrator is of two minds about the men he (or she?) usually ends up killing.

(from Tin House, vol. 6, number 3)

Within the confines of its very familar genre (the ol’ first person inside the mind of the maniac killer who’s all sexed up and confused), this story is original enough to make it memorable and distinguish it from others somewhat like it. It might even be super super original, if my one theory is actually true. That the narrator and all the men are hamsters. It’s not a perfect fit, but it would explain so very much.

Today I bought this, my first copy of Tin House. It’s their “obsession” themed issue. I also bought Black Clock #3, even though I’ve barely touched #2, because it’s so very pretty and because I’m just buying a lot of things which contain stories. Too many, even for somebody who reads a short story a day (or tries to).
Then I saw The Mountain Goats, my favorite band.

I hopped on back of the bike
wrapped my arms around you
and I sank my face into your hair
and then I inhaled as deeply as I possibly could
you were as sweet and delicious as the warm desert air
and you pointed your headlamp toward the horizon,
we were the one thing in the galaxy god didn’t have his eyes on
900 CCs of raw whining power,
no outstanding warrants for my arrest.
hi diddle dee dee
god damn!
the pirate’s life for me!

Tessa Brown, "In Reference To Your Recent Communications"

She’s right and he’s wrong. Here’s why.

(from Harper’s Magazine, May 2005)

A funny, sharp and appropriately short story. Even its occasional, jarring forays into broad, silly comedy are steered by a light touch. And I’m a sucker for comedic footnotes.
The story comes with this note: “Tessa Brown is a freshman at Princeton University. This is her first published story.” A good start.

* * *

It took every dime I had — the only money I’d ever saved in my life — but I got myself a new laptop. (Like its predecessor, my brother Mike and his credit card made it happen. This time, though, he gets miles.) So game on. I haven’t given up on the t-shirt idea. I need to save some money to get them made.

Helen Fielding, "Luckybitch"

An older woman with a penchant for fast livin’ falls down in her bathroom and can’t get up.

(from Speaking With The Angel)

This is a funny, somewhat cartoonish though occasionally very plausible, story about an old woman’s pride and diminishing prowess. I read this review which claims the author has contempt for her character but I didn’t get that at all. She was treated with equal parts dignity and humanity and that’s about all any of us can hope for.
She’s definitely an example of the Mona Complex. Named after Mona Robinson from Who’s The Boss, this refers to any older or otherwise classically undesirable character who is regarded as absurdly sexually viable by herself/himself, surrounding characters and/or the creaters of the fiction world in which the character lives. Other famous Monas include Sam Malone (Cheers), Suzanne Sugarbaker (Designing Women), Sandra Clarke (227) and, perhaps the finest of them all, Blanche Devereaux (The Golden Girls). Your call on Fonzie.