The Arcade is a holdout from my childhood. Once upon a time, it was the Full Enchilada: a bustling miniature golf, bumper boat, and race cart wonderland PLUS arcade and pizza parlor. Yeah, my hometown had quite the diamond mine in the Enchilada, and locals still recall fond memories from its heyday in the '80s and '90s. Over time, trends changed as did the business ownership, and its popularity wa...

Hashing and rehashing this tale of olde will do no good, unless this time, the truth is finally told regarding what happened after Goldilocks fled the scene of the home she invaded and trashed before being chased away by the then obscure Bears Three. Ah, yes, you have heard of them! Goldilocks takes credit, of course, as having “discovered” them when they were unknowns.

You see, Goldilocks came ...

Was this what they wanted? That we all look the same

In the dark they keep us. We never get to see the light

Of day. Just told what’s good for us and some have fallen

Silent in belief that we are all the same, but they don't even look

Anymore; their eyes are closed. Pretending once, but not

Anymore. Painful

To admit: I figured it out. We are all a part

Of the same but each different, unique

I sai...

I actually am very good friends with my other half. They (honoring pronouns here) bring the lightness of being, to try and describe them, and my gratitude for them is limitless. But you know, sometimes, they’re just wrong. Freaking wrong! I know, by definition (ha!), that I am right. Even if I am left, but that’s a different argument for another time. Left behind, that’s what this one’s about.

—

M...

Birds circled overhead. I told my grandson they were foraging for insects. I knew better, though, and it was only a matter of time before he knew it, too: Birds aren’t real.

They once were, ages ago. A virus had spread in the populations that had wiped them out by millions, and the government had "euthanized" the rest to prevent the virus mutating into a human variant. Not a lot of people knew t...

The mist was extra thick this morning. The bicyclist would swear it, to anyone he encountered. He would nod, call out in greeting, and say, "Quite the fog!" That would be sure to garner a friendly reply. Maybe even a chortle. At least something in response, if just two words like, "I'll say!"

He pedaled faster. There were figures out there, but they never seemed any closer, or farther, for that ...

How did I get here?

Amnesia hit unexpectedly this time;

It is easy to get lost in the underworld.

Let us help you once again

Find which way is up

So you don’t fall down farther

You poor pathetic exercise–

Sorry–child.

Would you like to try again?

Try standing.

Oopsie-daisy, there you are.

Off you go.

That’s right now.

Uh-huh, buh-bye.

No, no, you take care.

You better....

I do look back and wonder

At when the road diverged in a late springtime wood

I retraced my steps thinking that old way led to better.

Here I am in yellowing leaves, surely this was but one way

At the time, my heart said the only one was back waiting

In truest regard, willfulness had already set his path

Off track, though I believed, surely what was promised

Was simply around this obstructed v...

All candy, when done right, should tantalize the senses. Eye-catching. Good bend or snap, depending. Fragrant. Suitable feel in the hand and mouth texture-wise. Delectable on the tastebuds, possibly inducing rapture, but at the minimum, pure joy.

Some candy, when done right, should transport the consumer to other times and places—literally.

Both types of candy were found in Ye Old Candy Curiosi...

Nothing here remains but the sand

Creeps in with plans for future dunes

"Don’t worry, sweetheart, I’m going to take

Real good care of you."

(Yes, I remember, and trust me, it's important that I do.)

Someone's been there obviously,

Long foregone in search of belongings,

Though taken full account and decided:

Let that old man who lost his only son

Off the hook. Look at those treasures, for won;

If...