My Cardboard Balcony

Tonight, I'm not going to belch out the usual ranting. I'm not going to go deep into thought or retrospect. I'm not even going to do a writer's quotation. I want to keep this simple, but I also want to make it potent. For two years, starting with a plate of sushi, there has been a romance. For the most part, it's been very matter-of-fact. The biggest hurdle has been distance, but the relationship's been strong despite that, mostly due to pretty tight-knit communication and a constant reminder of the future. Since the day we decided to try this out, it has been a carousel of colors, adventures, questions, anxieties, hopes, dreams, patience, and of course love. We dressed in tailcoat and gown together after our first year, enjoying a fancy Italian dinner with a full bottle of some of the best Riesling I ever had. We dropped by pubs to have pints and just talk. We ran rampant in San Francisco. Made cheesecake. Explored Cazadero. Cuddled by the Christmas tree. E

NOTE: This is going to be a slightly different presentation of "Whims of the Time Traveler" than usual. The initial draft was written back in the fall of 2006, as a high school project for an English class literally called "Myth and Fantasy." The assignment was to create a completely original creation story, for the universe, Earth, and humanity. Many people wrote small origin myths. I, however, took it to the extreme. The last modified version of this was January 8th, 2008. This is Part One. Earthe Maeliz by Belinda Roddie Part One: The Formation Silence, and the whole void was waiting. Emptiness, of all kings, reigned vastly amidst the landscape, hollow, unwelcoming, and cold. No twinkling of lights or luminous mist shrouded this vacuum, and nothing lived, breathed, or moved. Then came the aurora. As stars began to emerge from the nothingness that reigned the galaxies, two figures were found responsible for it, forging celestial beings that hung like st

We broke the stratosphere at an inconceivable level of speed per hour. I could not safely tell you how fast we were moving. The gravity was non-existent, and I was propelled forward only slightly in the cockpit before the shoulder harness resisted the lift. My co-pilot, Edgar, seemed comatose beside me. I realized, much later on, that he had been in a deep reverie. I was relieved not to break him from it.