“Hey Mom!  Are you ready to see what college is like in this century?” “Haha, very funny Jeremy.  It was only twenty years ago when I was in college.  I’m sure it’s changed a little, but not that much!” “Yeah, it has changed a lot.  And so have I!  You might be in for some surprises!” “Well let’s see! It’s going to be fun shadowing you in your classes today.  Let’s get breakfast and get started.” Jeremy and his mother, As...

"It's just not fair."  From the tone of her friend's voice, Claire Davis knew Jan was only half-joking. "What's not fair?" They were in Claire's cramped, one-person dorm room, preparing tuna fish au gratin on rye toast for supper.  "It's not fair that you actually met a good-looking single guy under ninety on that geriatric unit disguised as an ophthalmology ward." Jan was in the midst of opening a large can of tuna fish....

Katherine sat quietly, reflectively outside the cafe, at an al fresco table. It was a cool autumn day in October but it was still warm and bright enough to need no sweater and to wear her sunglasses. "Misty" was playing softly and unobtrusively in the background. She took a sip of her camomile tea and reflected upon the events of the day. "Hi, Barkley. Get back here you wretch," interrupted her chain of thought as a pair...

“Mom, is daddy really going to be naked in front of all these ladies?  In front of my teachers and friends and their mothers?  Oh God, in front of me?” Annie demanded to know! “And in front of me, too?” Shelly wanted to know.  Shelly and Annie have been best friends since kindergarten.  While Shelly had stayed overnight at Annie’s house many times, she never got to see Annie’s father naked!  At best she saw him in his box...

I got home with my friend Seth late Friday night.  I could hear giggling and laughing and talking coming from the patio.  We walked out to find my mom standing naked pouring wine for her friends in the hot tub. “Hi Richie, you know everyone. Say hi to your teachers,” mom said. “Uh, yeah, hi Ms. Nelson.  Hey Mrs. Carey.” As seniors in high school, Seth and I had Ms. Nelson for advanced calculus.  Last year Mrs. Carey was m...

Tim worked hard all day at two things. First, he tried to concentrate on school and not what has been going on at the health club.  He would catch himself reliving the shower scene with his friend’s mom or the pool play with Miss Tomlinson.  And then he would hear, “Tim?  Tim?  Nice of you to join us,” from the teacher bringing him back to reality. The second thing he did today was to favor his right foot and act as if it...

Just a few more months, he thought as he erased the blackboard, avoiding the show that Sabrina was no doubt putting on as she rose from her desk at final bell.  Only when the room was empty did he breathe a sigh of relief and put down the eraser. Jacob picked up his things in preparation to leave, but there was a new vigil to observe first.  He waited for a half hour, watching out the window, until Sabrina’s red Audi pull...

While most teachers, students and other school staff were enjoying the last day before classes started, I, teacher Philip Caan, was waiting in my classroom to speak with a student I had met at the end of last term. Harper Stone was a seventeen-year-old soon to be senior who, as of the end of last term, was a shy, slightly awkward girl with a lot of issues fitting in with her peers. I met with her and her parents at the en...