Five Minute Observations

Tag: romance

  • The Missing Building – Part III

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    The shower didn’t help. Twenty minutes of hot water, and I still couldn’t figure out what to say to Agent Johnson. Or whoever he really was. After eight men show up at 3 AM looking for my cousin Ruby, I need answers. But when I dial the number on his business card, nothing is what…

  • Bad Math

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    Joe Class III
    in

    The foam hits my knees. Two linebackers line up their play. Someone’s going down hard tonight—and it ain’t gonna be me. Where’s Jessica?

  • Wrong Place, Wrong Time

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    🚨 Locked out. Soaking wet. Wearing a towel. 👍 Jack Stevens just wanted his water bottle. 👎 Instead, he sparked a showdown with clinic security, crashed a wine gala, and accidentally became a performance artist. Sometimes a bad day isn’t a disaster — it’s a spotlight. “Wrong Place, Wrong Time.” A story about being ignored,…

  • Truth Wears the Crown: Why Integrity Matters

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    Joe Class III
    in

    No sugarcoating. No fibs. Not even the little ones grown-ups call ‘harmless.’ Tiny little Anya, four years old, wild blonde curls dancing in the sunlight when she ran. When adults looked her in the eye, they could see something missing in most people – honest, heartfelt emotions. At Happy Trails Daycare, Anya’s preschool, all the…

  • The Post

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    One post. One friend. A lifetime of trust—shaken. When Gwen sees Rob’s inflammatory social media post, it’s not just political—it’s personal. The Post explores how a single moment online can fracture years of friendship, and asks: can we still reach across the divide before silence becomes permanent?

  • Swimming through Cultural Slime

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    Joe Class III
    in

    Two restaurants, one time for brunch, the second for an early dinner. Four retail stores, which included a stop at Target. One stop for gas. All that in less than twenty miles, round trip. Our smiles, sincerity, and caring attitude, netted us various replies, like “Wow! Thank you for being so considerate.” “I really appreciate…

  • Communication = Love

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    Joe Class III
    in

    “Ugh! My freaking bank, Marcus! Sheesh. Why can’t they get things fixed?” “What is it now?” Marcus asked, glancing over the top of his laptop screen. Marcus was a screenwriter for Netflix, trying to develop a script for a pilot television show. The cursor was angrily blinking at him, not that it mattered much. He…

  • The Fire at Shady Grove

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Genny had oversized p.j.’s with yellow smiley faces plastered everywhere and black thongs on her feet, her long brown hair piled loosely on her head held in place with a Spongebob pencil she snatched from Isabell’s nightstand. Ten years ago, a car accident put Genny in the hospital with no recollection of who she was…

  • Meeting Jules at the Beaverton Fair

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    Joe Class III
    in

    Carnivals. Fairgrounds. Smells of cotton candy, that sticky, sweet, sugary smell mixed with fresh popcorn, caramel apples, hot dogs, funnel cakes, and the nearly burned smell of oil that all kinds of deep-fried food are dunked into. If you think those smells are bad, stick around for a few days. After a few days, the…

  • After Hours at McMinimin’s

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    Joe Class III
    in

    Officer Keyes sat in his patrol car, the door slightly ajar, his left foot dangling, trying to put together pieces of what exactly happened to Kyle Patterson. The EMTs were saying heart attack. The young men who caused all the excitement bailed before Beaverton Police arrived on the scene, and Patterson had a coronary event.…

  • Scouting for a Video Project

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    Joe Class III
    in

    A thick layer of dust coated a covered loveseat. It wasn’t the only piece of furniture in the room. There was a stack of uncovered chairs, a massive table covered in a canvass-like material, and three candle operas atop the covered table, the candles themselves melted down to the base of each holder. It didn’t…

  • Overheard in Public

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    Joe Class III
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    “I just need to buy that car. That’s all.” “What in the hell are you talking about, Geri?” Geri had a way of starting a conversation in her head out loud, confusing her BFF Beth. “You know I can’t keep up with you, right? You start out in the middle of a thought . .…

  • Amber’s Observation (Sisters – Part III)

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “And how do you know that?” Amber asked. “Do you have a picture?” “No. But Bud’s not a cowboy, farmer, or rancher,” she said, putting a finger down for each one of the things Amy liked that Jamie didn’t. “He didn’t wear cowboy boots.” Another finger down. “Bud didn’t own a massive rodeo belt buckle.”…

  • Emulsion Plastics: Now Hiring

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Pulling off the highway onto the gravel road leading to the new plastics facility, Emulsion Plastics, Kathy’s heart raced, thinking about the different kinds of work she could soon do if the hiring manager decided she was the right fit. Instead of wearing the uniform for the diner, she wore a very modest dress with…

  • The Harrow Club

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Jasper spent more hours at the Harrow Club than some of the club’s guests. As the maître d’, he knew how to attend to all the staff and the club’s patrons. He was gifted with an uncanny ability to understand what someone needed before they asked. His mother, a prim and proper servant of the…

  • One Day in the Cafe

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    Joe Class III
    in

    “It’s not that big of a deal,” she said. “I mean, I really. I didn’t. No, I didn’t really want coffee. Not really, anyway.” Ten seconds earlier, she held a precariously balanced iced vanilla latte between her philosophy textbook, a day planner, and a hand-me-down iPhone 13 from her grandmother. Unlike other twenty-somethings, she refused…

  • The Old Friend

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    Joe Class III
    in

    “Well, well, well. I wondered if I would ever see you again, Zack.” I recognized the voice. Not the hair, makeup, and clothes. I closed my eyes, wondering if it might help me remember the perfume she wore. It didn’t. I must’ve looked like a deer caught in headlights standing at the valet station because…