The Oh, The sound came again like the trill of a beach whale drying up amongst the creasote and sagebrush.

What the hell is that? Well, it's no doubt some kind of flying

insect or other. Jimmy reassured his wife, Deborah, who was half covered by a quilt and

hair threaded through pink plastic curlers.

It's driving me up the wall. Can you make it shut up? Jimmy pivoted off the bed and he pulled his legs through a pair of Levi securing the buckle of the belt he left inside the loops.

Given the nature of the mountain lines and dope fiends, he opted to bring us 38 special.

If you don't come back in a half an hour,

Deborah joked, I'm sending search and rescue.

The clock read 1015 and apart from the occasional hoot of an owl or the chirp of a cricket

the night had fallen into a hush.

Deborah was starting to feel anxious about her husband going out into the darkness given his age and frail condition.

I better not find you rattlesnake bit, Deborah scoffed, as if a simple fall wasn't her husband's greatest threat.

Woman, I've made it 82 years with nary a broken bone and I go back to bed.

Feeling slightly patronized, Jimmy flashed her a crooked smile and slid his slippers on.

He was suddenly a boy again preparing to stalked's katas parked on the fence post.

After a period of pacing and finally parking himself on the aluminum lawn chair,

boredom began to set in.

In order to quell it, Jimmy started kicking over rocks in hopes of discovering

scorpions or lizards. However, there were only beetles and ants to be found,

and then he took the spotting constellations scattered against the

tablu of the desert sky. He was ready to call it a night and head back to bed when

someone walked into view.

...