David Himmel 10/15/26 David Himmel 10/15/26

On the Lamb

It looks so dramatic.
I lined it all up like I wanted to really enjoy it.
A hot bath.
Two fresh Miller Lites.
A pipe stuffed with weed.
A book for my short attention span.

Don Hall 10/12/26 Don Hall 10/12/26

I Like to Watch | Digger (2026)

Sometimes hypocrisy just shrugs.
Sometimes hypocrisy gets elected.
Sometimes hypocrisy buys the platform.
Sometimes hypocrisy becomes a fucking lifestyle brand.

David Himmel 10/8/26 David Himmel 10/8/26

The House of Warren

When Ali, Casey, and I were in college down in central Illinois, we lived in this great place just a block off campus. It was situated at the top of a hill overlooking the town smack dab in the middle of Greek Row, snuggled between the Beta and SAE houses—a modest, three-bedroom house with a front porch and back patio, and yard that made it ideal for barbecues and other themed or not themed parties.

Xylan Johnson 10/7/26 Xylan Johnson 10/7/26

Creation is Best Bound

Put me on the mantle; spread me open over tea …

Don Hall 10/5/26 Don Hall 10/5/26

The Last Offensive Man in America

Walter Briggs was arrested on a Tuesday morning for telling a joke.

David Himmel 10/1/26 David Himmel 10/1/26

We’re All Going to Die on the Toilet

So many substances.
The uppers
The downers
The in-betweeners.

An Elvis Cocktail of everyday kitchen cabinet junk.

Xylan Johnson 9/30/26 Xylan Johnson 9/30/26

The Proverbial Daughter

A system with no ventilation quickly dies— and you, my love, do not want to die. So speak.

Don Hall 9/28/26 Don Hall 9/28/26

OnlyHens

The concept, as described in the thirty-eight-page proposal Randy submitted to the city’s Planning Department, was “a disruptive digital entertainment property combining creator culture, competitive reality programming, food-based aspirational branding, and the democratization of female entrepreneurship.”

David Himmel 9/24/26 David Himmel 9/24/26

Familial Reflection on Suicide

I think my dad had a hard time with retirement. In the five months since stepping away he’d grown increasingly interested in me. I couldn’t tell if it was out of boredom or guilt for not having been more involved in my life up to that point. And though I never felt abandoned by him, it was nice—albeit strange—to get to spend some time with him.

Don Hall 9/21/26 Don Hall 9/21/26

Places Without an Audience

By morning, he had decided he needed somewhere nobody cared about theater, someplace where the name Chekhov was more likely to be mistaken for a rifle than a playwright.

David Himmel 9/17/26 David Himmel 9/17/26

Doom & Poon

She said, “You bring the poon, we’ll bring the doom.”
She was always down for trouble.
Always in some kind of it.

Xylan Johnson 9/16/26 Xylan Johnson 9/16/26

Wishful thinking

“Take me back to oblivious January[…] A time full of daydreams and restless nights”

Don Hall 9/14/26 Don Hall 9/14/26

The Last Trick

There was no thunder, no glowing doorway, no mysterious wind blowing through the apartment, and no choir of angels politely alerting me that physics had submitted its resignation.

The deck simply felt heavier.

David Himmel 9/10/26 David Himmel 9/10/26

The Adorable Little Antichrist

Her fury, her hurt, her fear and shame was pure focus. She dug deeper into her legs. The blood began to run down her thighs, soaking through her dress and forming a small puddle in the pew.

Xylan Johnson 9/9/26 Xylan Johnson 9/9/26

Letters on Love

Self begins exactly like that paragraph ended … with a question, an inevitably shifting question and outcome.

Don Hall 9/7/26 Don Hall 9/7/26

The Applause Machine: Part Three—NOW AVAILABLE IN THIRTY SECONDS

“We do not sell products. We sell relief from the injuries created by the culture selling the products. The customer arrives bleeding. We sell him a more attractive knife.”

David Himmel 9/3/26 David Himmel 9/3/26

The Fault in Our Party Supplies

I’m a piñata. Papier-mâché and crepe paper. My inner turmoil bred of my fate occupies the same space as fun-sized candy. Twizzlers, Nerds, Airheads, nougat and chocolate that melts and cools with the humidity in the back of a party store.

Xylan Johnson 9/2/26 Xylan Johnson 9/2/26

Sainted

I ain’t never been pure white. But I sure as hell ain’t bloodied and scared beyond the usual.

Don Hall 8/31/26 Don Hall 8/31/26

The Applause Machine: Part Two—THE MINISTRY OF CULTURAL HYGIENE

He sat across from Director Wallace at a white table. Between them was a bowl of individually wrapped mints. This offended him more than the hood. Torture should not involve mints. It suggested customer service.

David Himmel 8/27/26 David Himmel 8/27/26

A Beer, a Shot, a Mayoral Hopeful

The men rushed toward the open door. “Not so fast, fuck-os,” she said. Annie was a small woman, no more than five-foot-three with most of her weight in her disproportionate breasts, of which she often complained gave her backaches.