Christmas

By Doug Mathewson
99 words


It still seems commonly held that God created man in his own image. Well, more likely we created him in ours.

Either way we lost touch, just grew apart. We both had such busy lives. We had different friends, didn't go to the same parties.

I still remember him though from when I was a kid. I hadn’t actually thought about him in just ages, but at Christmas his name came up.

Would we even recognize each other? I wonder if he ever thinks of me? Maybe next year I’ll be more organized and try to send a card.




Doug Mathewson continues his love/hate relationship with reality from his home in eastern Connecticut. He favors hats, and rarely turns down desert. His work most recently has appeared in The Boston Literary Magazine, Cezzane’s Carrot, Gloom Cupboard, Poor Mojo’s Almanac(k), Tuesday Shorts, and 55 Words. Sporadically he is grasped by fits and starts of inspiration, equally he can be swept away into infinite worlds of busy-signals, radio static, and elevator-music. To read more, comment, or just poke-around, please visit his current project, True Stories From Imaginary Lives, at www.little2say.org.

Death by Shovel

by Doug Mathewson
87 words

At lowest tide I visit our town beach. A purposefully unfashionable time after all the poets searching for god have finished walking their dogs. Scrup-fwop, scrup-fwop, can be heard beyond the jetty.

I see two lifeguards young and tall, their sun-blond hair in matched French braids. With long handled steel shovels from Parks and Rec they scoop up jellyfish and casually lob them up to a hot dry death upon the rocks.

The oversized orange windbreakers our teen guardians wore urgently proclaiming “RESCUE.” Mercifully, jellyfish can’t read.




Doug Mathewson lives on Connecticut’s eastern shore and writes very short stories that occasionally become poetry or essays of their own volition. He is interested in how an individual’s perception can change shared reality. Fiction creates new realities, and strangely how reality changes itself. His catalogue can be found here, or is shippable via rail. His current project, True Stories From Imaginary Lives, can be found at www.little2say.org

Poor Snuffie

by Doug Mathewson
85 words

We needed warmer costuming for our travels to the north. The money was already spent on on plane tickets, art supplies, and snacks.

A gift from above - 50% off coupons from “Bargain Barn” came just in time! Always fashion forward, we choose the blackest of ultra-soft vests.

At check out time my wife says “these things are so soft, I bet they’re made out of muppetts!”

Eyebrow piercings scrunched together as our clerk slowly read the label, ‘no mam, says here it’s all acrylic”.

Doug Mathewson writes very short fiction that occasionally changes of its own volition into poetry or essay forms.

Most recently he has been published by The Boston Literary Magazine, Doorknobs & Body Paint, Pen-Pricks, e-Muse-zine, riverbabble, Six Sentences and Tuesday Shorts. His current project, True Stories From Imaginary Lives, can be found at www.little2say.org

The New Job

by Doug Mathewson
99 words

Everybody had photos in the cubicles of loved ones, pets, and friends.
Having none of the above I cut out an old magazine picture of Courtney Love and put it in a cheap frame. She looked great in this smokey live concert shot. Her hair whacked-out, lipstick badly smeared, cigarette upthrust like FDR, and mayhem in her eyes. She had ripped the broken-strapped tacky sequin bra far from one shoulder, slick with sweat her bare breast exposed, nipple defiant.

The department supervisor made his courtesy visit, saw the photo,
and conversationally inquired , “So, ah... is that the Mrs.?”

Doug Mathewson writes very short fiction that occasionally changes of its own volition into poetry or essay forms. He has been published here and there online, most recently at The Boston Literary Magazine, Doorknobs & Body Paint, e-Muse zine, Six Sentences and Tuesday Shorts. His current project, True Stories From Imaginary Lives, can be found at www.little2say.org

How Things Were

by Doug Mathewson
56 words

Family called us difficult children. School and the neighbors called us worse.

"Your mother's nerves can’t take it," Dad would angrily yell.
Late at night, I would squirt lighter fluid on our boots, my sister would strike the match, and we would run screaming through the house.

Stunts like these just made our folks nuts.

Doug Mathewson writes very short fiction that occasionally finds itself being essay or poetry. He is current project is "True Stories From Imaginary Lives." He has been published most recently by PenPricks Micro-fiction, Creative Soup,and Tuesday Shorts. His poetry will appear in the March issue of eMuse-zine.

More of his work is available at his own blog, www.little2say.org

Copyright © 2008 Doug Mathewson