Really, Really Dead. Â Dead. He was dead. No doubt about it. He was really, really dead. I now sat at the desk of the intake officer, where his computer was taking forever to upload some forms. Vaguely glancing at the photos of him fishing in Scotland or somewhere equally cold and bleak, I was […]
A Murder, I Think. It wasn’t what I was expecting. The police station looked more like an ordinary office, with houseplants, a pile of Hello magazines on the side tables, computer monitors, and IN and OUT boxes. It was a quiet Sunday morning. Apparently the chaos of the night before had been sorted, and the paperwork […]
Could This Be My Diggory Venn? I’m at The Beatnik as they open the next morning, but Dennis isn’t there. An older woman with a streak of blue in her hair is taking orders from a few young people at a table when I walk in. But there he is: the American is standing at […]
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Why would I not order fish and chips here? The Eagle and Child, when you hit it right and it’s not too crowded, is the best pub on the planet. A literary pedigree, low ceilings, a bright and helpful staff, and fabulous cooks. Even featured in the Inspector Morse TV series. I’m early, so I watch Dad […]
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I guess it can’t be the guy from Dover. “Dad! You scared me out of my wits!†I’m panting, clutching my heart. “Why didn’t you phone that you were back in Oxford?†“Oh, come on, honey, you know sometimes I get called last minute for lectures. Tomorrow night it’s Thomas Hardy, the Industrial Revolution, and […]
All Those Violins Can’t Be Good. I creep through the small forest surrounding the church and enter from a side door. The old ladies crowded into the church pews look back at me. I may be the only one not wearing a hat. But someone else is coming in from the opposite side door. A […]
“Definitely Not that Creep from San Sebastian†The next morning, as I stirred cut-up strawberries into my yogurt, I asked Sarala, the breakfast server, if she’d seen any strange people in the neighborhood. She’d seen nothing unusual but said she’d ask her friends who worked in the hotels next door and down the street. I […]
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“Not always, Mrs. P. Not always.†Ti Jean was mad. He’d knocked over two of the begonia pots, then pulled tissues from my bathroom tissue box, and had shredded them all over my bed cover. Maybe September 30 couldn’t come fast enough. “But I fed you, you bad cat! And I was only gone two […]
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Mr. Briggs Before I meet Mrs. Briggs and Dennis in the waiting room, I stop for a bracing tea and scone, then find my way to the hospital vending machines. I don’t want to rush into this depressing situation. Nothing looks good in the machines, but I get three coffees and three Kit Kat bars […]
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A turn for the worse Ti Jean is my gray striped rescue tomcat. He’s 17 years old, I think, but I’m not sure. My vet, Mr. Mukhurgee, says Ti Jean is in good health but a little overweight. At each visit, Mr. Mukhurgee also says he’s going to retire the next month. I tell him […]
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