A.G.E's Joint

It's a writer's choice week and I'm going with a rant.  In the last several weeks the news has been filled with rioting and what not. Many of the aggrieved folks... Nah. We don't need to hear my blathering about statues being graven images and false idols. There's already way too much of that out there.  Instead ow about another story from my work past.  For several years in the 90s, I worked for the agency that provided mental health services for the state of Georgia as a payroll supervisor. It was a fast-paced, challenge with an employee base ranging from janitors to doctors. Among the places we serviced were full-time mental hospitals. One of the facilities I worked with was called The Georgia Mental Health Institute or GMHI, located a few miles from my office in Atlanta. You'll recognize the campus if you are a fan of the series " Stranger Things ". This is the set. At the time I was working, it was one of the smaller units in the system, with 600 ...

The clock ticked in the silence.   The white face and black numerals in stark contrast against the padded wall. Or were they navy?    It looked like any other wall clock.   But, it wasn’t. It mocked him, laughing at his weakness.   Did it have to be so precise, detailing every second of the fucking day?   Absently, he rubbed the bruise on his head.   Who cares? There is no tolerance of error in today’s world.    He wondered if he looked at it long enough it would melt into something Picasso or Dali would have painted. A laminated table with two chairs sat in the middle of the room.   His ankle is tethered, but his hands are free. A small bottle of water sits untouched on the table.   It could have just as well been a N ippitatum or Maderized wine .   It probably had some sedative to make him talk easier.   All there was to do was waiting.   A darkened window is set in the wall behind the empty chair. ...