By Janita Le Grange. Chapter One. “Hello, this is Rowan speaking.” “Good afternoon, Mr. Moore. My name is Ellie, and I’m calling from Rhynes & Hearn Attorneys,” a polite voice replied through the speaker. “If you have a few minutes, I would like to set up an in-person meeting with you.” I frowned, leaning back…
On the road, distance is measured in metres. Manfred and Martin discovered that the more interesting distance is the one between caution and aggression, rules and instinct, and what a driver does and what everybody else thinks they are doing. By Manfred and Martin, in the Swimming Club, Germany. There is a moment when the…
Janita can search Strasbourg before she ever leaves South Africa. What she cannot search so easily is which bakery to stop at, what will work with a seven-year-old, or how a local turns a list of sights into a week that actually works. By Fabrice, France Janita already knows some of the things she wants…
Scrambled eggs, plenty of bacon, something salty and a very cold Coca-Cola. Ralf’s answer to the morning after starts with breakfast — and his scrambled eggs have a surprisingly precise technique. By Ralf The Grillmeister. This is what I like after an evening when there was perhaps one last drink, followed by another last drink….
One man likes strangers about a metre away. Another spent twenty minutes silently listening because he did not want to interrupt. Somewhere between a crowded bus, an empty waiting-room chair and a dance floor, Ismar and Ritesh tried to work out how close is too close. By Ismar, Campo Grande, Brazil, and Ritesh, Bangalore, India….
Five minutes early, one hour late, a barbecue going cold and an old friend who would get into his car at two in the morning. My clock has rules, but fortunately life keeps arguing with them. By Ralf the Grillmeister. I am normally early. Not dramatically early. I do not want to arrive while somebody…
By Frank Peters Words we learn are seeds. How we use them makes them grow. Other lives take root.
Have you ever stopped in front of a noticeboard or a sign and thought to yourself, Who on earth made this rule? There is a large noticeboard outside my son’s school that lists the basic prohibitions: no weapons, no sharp objects, no alcohol. Now, that all makes total sense because, obviously, there are children inside….
From classroom fairness and mysterious school rules to forbidden sweets, a very serious penguin and a suitcase heading for Spain, Sarah discovers that some rules make perfect sense, some need explaining, and some deserve a little revolution. By Sarah, France. I woke up about fifteen minutes before my meeting with Janita. Really, fifteen minutes. But…
Fruitloop brought Boris the monster, a moon demanding annual leave, a rebellious toaster and a pirate with a troublesome parrot. I brought rather less: not much humour, very little headspace and, eventually, a confession. By The Mayor & Fruitloop There are days when Peeling Potatoes begins with a carefully considered intellectual premise. This was not…
