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New to Five Minute Observations? Welcome. I’m Joe Class III, and I write stories and essays about what I notice, the encounters that reveal something true, and the moments that stick with you after they’re gone. If you’re just getting started, these three pieces will give you a sense of what this space is about:…
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Grant’s thoughts about purchasing the Toyota snapped away when the officer softly tapped the driver’s side window. “Hello? Can you roll down the window for me, sir?” Grant didn’t realize the young officer was standing next to his door. The lights were blinding and hypnotizing all at the same time. “Yes, sir. Absolutely.” He quickly…
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Red and blue lights flashed behind the beat-up Toyota Corolla. The car was still intact, one color all around, except for a few rust spots peaking through the rear metallic silver bumper. The tags were still good for another month, and the windows, albeit dirty, were passable by California safety guidelines. None of that mattered…
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Nick avoided bars and alcohol, but today seemed like a good day to break that rule. Once in a great while, he would share a glass of wine with his wife, Angela. And there was a time when Nick sipped a 25-year-old scotch with one of the hospital’s biggest donors. He didn’t enjoy it as…
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Saying I was uncomfortable would be an understatement, especially with Jasmine and Adam keeping tabs on Amanda. Amanda and I were inseparable. She stuck by my side, making me feel like I had a girlfriend, even for one night. Jasmine wasn’t thrilled with keeping secrets from her best friend’s boyfriend, even less so because she…
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“Son, I can’t believe you finished your internship and decided to practice here at UCSF Medical Center. Why in the hell did you come back?” “I came back for you, Dad.” Red rolled his eyes and laughed. “Came back for me? What do you think you’re going to do, Nick? Save me?…
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“Relax, Nicholas. It’s not like I died or anything,” Red took a swig from the bottle wrapped up in a brown paper bag. The vodka went down warm, not that Red could taste it anymore. For him, it was like drinking water. “But you could’ve died.” Nick knelt next to Red, an odd thing…
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Looking through the plexiglass window to the man sitting on the passenger side of the back seat, I heard him ask me something. “Pardon me?” I asked. “What did you say?” My thoughts wandered for a second, driving through traffic on the 405 freeway. “I said, ‘Do you enjoy driving through this traffic? It…
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Laying the microphone down the stage, feedback reverberated through the sound system, making the audience cringe. “I want to be whole again,” the egg-shaped man replied. “What’s your name?” the mysterious magician asked. “Humpty.” “Sir, you have a crack through your shell. And,” he wandered around the man, “it goes all way round, does it…
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His hair was dirty from sleeping in the local park, still matted with leaves, twigs, and dirt. The downpour refreshed the homeless man, a smile creeping across his toothless mouth. Holding both hands out, palms upward, he threw his head back, laughing. Onlookers stared, wondering where his joy came from. “Mister,” the young girl asked,…
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Smiling and hugging, the two men greeted each other like long-lost friends who’d not seen each other for years. Thirty years. That was the last time they talked face to face. Several life changes happened to each of them. One tragically lost his best friend to a massive stroke, and the other lost his son…
Stories. Enjoy!
