Delia scrunched her eye up to the peephole and watched Rodney’s tiny rounded figure rock and toddle its way up the sidewalk, growing larger step by step. She took note of the fact that his cardigan buttons weren’t aligned, leaving a triangle-like flap to dangle at the bottom. But by the time he was large enough to fill the circle of glass, she’d determined not to care about that. Men in this town were scarce, and she’d snagged one. Imperfections be damned.

My pleasant day began with Peter at the front desk, a delightful young man. Notes of turmeric and cardamon, and just the right balance of heat; chicken tikka masala and saag paneer, I believe. It’s a shame he struggled so much, those injuries were totally avoidable.

Hey Cody,

How cute! I’ve never heard of that before. Dr. Silverman wants you to bring your cat in for an exam.

-Sincerely,

Sierra

Twin Pines Animal Hospital

On a typical sleepy Sunday morning in Glendale, California, Kyle and his wife, Noelle, were setting up lawn chairs for their garage sale. A small playing card table was situated between them with a pitcher of ice tea and two cups. A sign on a makeshift sandwich board read: GARAGE SALE. ALL SALES ARE FINAL. This was the second attempt as the previous day a steady drizzle had kept only but a handful of the bargain hunters away.

Being the survivor of a happy union, ’til death do us part, would have been less painful than the daily combat of annulment crossfire. I flipped through my soon-to-be ex-husband’s proposed divorce settlement with a feeling of loss, disappointed that decades of a life together would end in acrimony. Why should I be expected to settle for less than I deserved? The deadline to sign was approaching.