She looks him up and down. Quickly up, skimming his face, his shirt, his tattoos, papers he has clutched in his fist. And back down again, where her gaze rests on his feet.

She has those boots. Not in black, in maroon.

But they're the same shoes. Maybe he'd gone to X20 too, spoken to the same clerk with the vapid smile.

Maybe he used a credit card, like she had, broke.

Part of her wants to ask these things - but most of her wants to run. Most of her doesn't care where a Neo Nazi buys his Doc Martens.

That's good, ita. Nice twist. Funny too. Deena, I like that one. I feel like a real cheater, writing something fannish, but Kay has such a strong personality, she wouldn't be denied.

ita, you just took me right back to the Rock Against Racism free concerts in South London in the late seventies, with the Clash and Elvis Costello. And Joe Strummer waving one foot and yelling, "Don't let the National Front make you think everyone wearin' Docs is a fucking Nazi!"

Another interesting challenge! Mine comes, kind of, from Saturday's NY Post, which mentioned Hemingway's famous micro-fiction, which is the notice posted in the drabble.

• **

The notice is posted to the bulletin board outside the market. “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

She hefts her daughter on one skinny hip. She’s come looking for a room, or even a roommate. They need a place to crash, and the peanut toddles over the boardwalk just fine on her sturdy bare feet. A guitar would be nice, though, or a few books.

She wonders what happened to that other baby. Dead? Never born? Maybe neither—maybe she was as happy as her little monkey, sand between her toes and the waves a cool kiss on her ankles.

• **

Off to read the others...

They're all so good this week!

It's like some LSD-addled exercise in spatial reality

This cracked me up. And the other one, Deb, the courtroom room, was perfect.

I've just drafted an email to let those friends and family who haven't yet heard I'm a freelance writer know what I do. Is it OK if I post it here for feedback? I just want to make sure it's not too obnoxious and spammy.

Those are really hard e-mails to write, Susan. I say post away.

OK, here goes:

Dear Friends and Family—

I apologize in advance for sending out a mass email like this, and I promise not to make a habit of it in the future.

As some of you know, I’m a writer. I did some freelancing for one of the local weeklies back when I lived in Philadelphia, and I’ve sold a few magazine articles, including this one, which appeared in Marriage Partnership last winter: [link] Also, I’ve finished a 100,000-word novel, and I’m working on my second while I search for a publisher for the first.

Now that Dylan and I have a baby, I’ve decided to make my writing more than a hobby by becoming self-employed as a freelancer. I specialize in writing and editing resumes and cover letters. While most resume writers focus on managerial and executive clients, I like to help entry- and mid-level workers take the next step up in their careers by giving them application packages that stand out in the crowd.

I also do general freelance commercial writing, including press releases, nonprofit fundraising materials, newsletters, ad copy, and proofreading/copyediting.

While I’m not going to make a habit of spamming my friends and relatives with advertising, I thought I’d send this one-time email to let y’all know what I’m doing. If you’re interested or know anyone who might be, I have a website at [link]

And on a purely personal note, if you want to see the latest baby pictures, Annabel has a blog at [link]

--Susan

My only thought, Susan, is that I think you can just drop the first paragraph. You say later that this is a one-time e-mail. I think it's a perfectly reasonable letter to send and I don't think you need to apologize for it.

Yay...I think that is perfect, Susan. BTW, I'm getting serious use out of your old writer's market this week.