Five Minute Observations

Tag: Writing

  • Emulsion Plastics Opens in Iowa

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “Are we ready to open next week, Cole?” Cole Wilkes, the Global Human Resources Director, was working hard to hire new staff to open their latest hub facility, a segment of their production line that would utilize cheap U.S. labor to assemble each of the pieces needed to complete a variety of products overseas. RDF…

  • Emulsion Plastics: Now Hiring

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    by

    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…

  • Ground Zero: Melton’s Plan

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Zander Melton wasn’t the brightest student in law school. He wasn’t as adept as his classmates at retaining information. And what he lacked in actual intelligence, he more than made up for in his ability to see where the pieces on the board were moving. Zander was a strategist, and a good one, at that.…

  • Moloski’s Take-Over

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “Twenty-one days, Jim,” Gerald whined. “Twenty-one days I’ve had to listen to alcoholics talk about getting clean, getting sober. And for what?” Jim didn’t see him pull out the cigarette or light it. But there he was, the former President and CEO, smoking a cheap cigarette. “All so I can prove to everyone that I’m…

  • Moloski Returns to Plastics

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    After parking the Lexus in a secured parking garage close to the Burnside Bridge, both men got out. A few minutes later, they were at the spot where Jim Barton met Gerald Moloski. Sitting between two homeless men, Gerald passed his bottle. On Gerald’s left sat Miguel, and Edward on his left. Miguel had Parkinson’s…

  • Emulsion Plastics is Hiring

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Cole Wilkes wasn’t comfortable in small towns in Middle America. Emulsion Plastics employed him as the Global Human Resources Director for new production facilities. Hiring and training new employees was his only job. Only after all the staff was hired and consistent production levels were achieved could Cole move on. His latest assignment was the…

  • Kathy’s Second Job

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “I heard they is gonna be openin’ a factory just up the road. Some kind of assembly work is what I hear,” Beatrice whispered, even though the number of people inside Janice’s Diner numbered less than five, not including the staff. Betty and Beatrice sat at the third booth from the door. Doc and Jim…

  • Detective Barry Lawson

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “So. You two drove this guy here. All the way from Iowa?” Lawson shook his head, yawning. “Get any sleep?” “Get any sleep?” Detective Adam Murray’s tone dripped with sarcasm, his eyes narrowing. “You are a piece of . . .” Murray lunged at Lawson, ready to beat the snot out of him. “Knock it…

  • Check-In with Floyd

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “You know somethin’ Jim,” Doc said, rolling down his window halfway, “the ladies is right. Somethin’ ain’t right ‘bout Floyd not being in the diner for a week. I sure hope we ain’t goin’ to find him holed up inside the house, windows locked tight, shotgun in hand, ready to shoot whoever decides to come…

  • The Zaterelli Family

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “Mr. Zaterelli? There’s a Zander Melton here to see you?” The voice on the other end of the office intercom was silent. “Melton? Zander Melton?” Rin Zaterelli looked at the two goons on either side of his mahogany desk, puzzled. Both men stood in unison, ready to bum-rush the door. Zaterelli hired them as bodyguards…

  • Janice’s Pancakes

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    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Waking up early was never a problem for Floyd. He’d been waking up before 4 A.M. since he was twenty. He greeted the morning with a cup of black coffee, stopping chores just long enough to appreciate the simplicity of his life. Work. Eat. Sleep. Nothing complicated about it. Doc asked him at Janice’s Diner…

  • U.S. Bankcorp Tower

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    “Growing up in a small town farming community? It gives you a different outlook on life, family, hell, everything.” “Save it, Penrose. This ain’t Iowa, and it ain’t Middle America. And you, kid? You got mail to deliver, son.” James Penrose worked in a mid-level business office for one of the many Fortune 500 companies…

  • The Harrow Club (cont.)

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Six minutes later . . . “Good afternoon, Mr. Barton.” “Good afternoon, Jasper.” “Right this way, sir.” Jasper led him through the dining room, seating him very close to James Penrose and two other business partners. Jim didn’t recognize the other two men. Based on their attire, he assumed they were angel investors looking to…

  • RDF Plastics – Cujo and the Man

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in ,

    Continuation of RDF Plastics.

  • RDF Plastics

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in

    Looking into the mirror, he saw the reflection staring back at him and thought about saying the infamous line, what are you looking at. Instead, he chose to smile at the audacity of that particular thought. “You’re being ridiculous. Everything is going to be fine. Smile. Nod. Shake hands and walk out. That’s all you…

  • What Do You Do?

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in

    When confronted with this question, how do you respond? Do you say I’m a custodian? Or are you an industrial arts technician? Or do you work at Popeye’s, McDonald’s, or Wendy’s? Maybe you are an assembly line worker punching a time clock. Perhaps you work as a roofer, but you dream of being a published…

  • One Day in the Cafe

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    by

    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…

  • Two Weeks’ Notice

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in

    “This is your what?” Shelly’s supervisor, Angela, held an unopened envelope in her hand. Angela sat behind her mahogany desk, polished to a shine, making those on the other side of the desk feel uncomfortable, as though they were in the presence of royalty. Unlike most interoffice hard copy full-size 8 1/2”X11” envelopes, it was…

  • Silver Reclamation

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in

    A hodgepodge of memories built from various adventures, starting from the patriarch of invention and creativity, my Dad. In his mid to late thirties, he started several businesses, including one that began in our garage. “Would you like to make some money?” That was a question James, Jon, and I heard often. Sometimes, we would…

  • Moving Day

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    by

    Joe Class III
    in

    Empty. Empty and quiet. I hated it. Then again, I was just a kid who absolutely hated quiet! I loved being around people, all kinds of people. The older the people, the better. At eight, adults were way more interesting than kids my own age. But right now, it was just our family. Me. Dad.…