The Color of Rabbits

I think I’m in Asia, but there’s no way to tell for sure. There was no grand ceremony marking the epic milestone that this beast of steel and iron officially crossed the boundary dividing Europe with its gigantic distant relative to the East. No voice calling out over the intercom (not that I would have [...]

Conversations With Russian Grandmothers

The archway is silent as I approach, slowly, peering around corners like a secret agent from Mission Impossible. There are no people. I wish there were people. Someone to hear me yell when the mob pulls up in their jet black tinted-window conversion van and someone with a hooded mask jumps out and throws me [...]

Gecko Tails

It takes three hours for the police to remove the door. Near midnight, we finally get a call at the apartment that I can go back. No one broke in. The door’s lock was too strong for the crow bar and the would-be intruder had mangled it in a failed attempt to break in. Probably [...]

Flirting in Czech

The narrow walkway runs down the length of the car, separating our enclave from the others. On the other side of this walkway is another bench/bed and above that is another bunk (in which the four-year-old is now thoroughly tucked in). So each “compartment” potentially accommodates six passengers and there are nine compartments making up [...]

Sideways

A bell is ringing.Shut up bell.Ring ring ring.Shut up, I mean it.Ring ring ring.Hey bell, stop it.Ring ring ring.Are you—Ring ring ring.—f—ing serious?!?Ring ring ring.My eyes open. There is a round sideways woman staring at me. Two seven-year-old boys sitting next to her, also sideways, also staring. She has two gold teeth. I know this [...]

The Great Hanoi Hangover

The memories started coming back. Tom. The bartender. Shots of rice wine. Ohhh, shots of rice wine. Those were not good. Dear liver: I’m sorry for that. And all the rest, too. Don’t hate me. We’ve got a long way to go.Vicky, Tom and I had headed out with Tom’s Chinese girlfriend, Chin, and another [...]