Antran The picture you’re staring at was taken sometime in the 70’s. It’s the only remaining image I have left of my son, and the artificial being known as “ANTRAN”, whom we adopted into our family at the time. It was a warm summer back in the mid seventies. I was driving home from my logging company after a long shift, when I had to make a stop at the local garbage tip to drop off some old desks my mother had given us. Something caught the corner of my eye as I bent down, and, upon closer inspection was shocked to see what I originally thought was a doll. A plastic outer shell with metal limbs. And more shockingly…

In 1966 the United States government began experimenting with the possibility of creating super humans using controlled amounts of radiation. Volunteers for the experiment were all members of the United States military; soldiers and their wives. The experiment entailed both the men and the women to receive a small tattoo using special eradiated ink known as ‘Pigment – 227’. After showing no signs of negative side effects from the ink, the volunteers were urged to procreate. The scientists theorized that the radiation would affect the reproductive tissues and pass alone enhanced, superior genes to the fetus. The result were not what had been expected. After a few months 70% of the men were diagnosed with prostrate or testicular cancers and…

When most people think about their childhood, they have happy memories of their pets, or the trips they went on, or the books, films, shows or games they grew up with. They always think that their current life is dull or bland in comparison. We have a tendency to forget that our childhood was always riddled with negativity. No one seems to recall that pets die, trips weren’t worth the grueling hours in the car and those media forms of entertainment weren’t as spectacular as you remembered. If people simply stopped to think, then perhaps they would see how miserable their adolescence was. They don’t understand the avalanche of emotions they experience during this early period in their lives. You…

I’m sure we’ve all heard of Disney, right? That adorable Mouse and all the other lovable characters. Well, when I was a child my favorite was Pinocchio. He had always appealed to me. The simple fact of him wanting to be a boy was charming and yet strangely unsettling. I mean, what would he do to become a boy? I also found his growing nose amusing. Apologies, my name is Brian, and I used to live in a little town in Oklahoma that was know as, Vieille Ville, which is French for ‘Old Town’. I used to live near some people who loved Disney, and I mean they LOVED it. So much so that their car had Mickey ears. They…

Almost everyone who has lived, or once been a tourist, in Cleveland, Ohio, has probably visited the West Side Market, an old-fashioned marketplace of generations-old stands selling fresh produce, meat, and spices. Do you ever wonder how the West Side Market was founded, or how the original West Side Market still operates? Officially, the market opened in 1840. A long time ago, but nothing compared to when it truly started. I’ll preface this by saying that time travel is a very real thing, and a very old practice. It takes courage. You see, time travel helps one to understand things about the world, and themselves, that most people never experience. In short, learning when you will die is a harrowing…

April 23, 2000 Today was the first day of my new job working at some mirror store. ‘Linda’s Mirrors’ or something like that. I didn’t really like the job-mainly because all I do is dust shit, but it pays good. The old lady who owns the shop is one of those crazy old people and her last employee was sent to an insane asylum and died a week later. Well, that’s the story I heard from my friends. They said that the 16 yr. old girl claimed she was being haunted by twin girls she saw in a mirror. I didn’t believe my friends of course. They were most likely trying to scare me. Anyway, I walked to the shop-which…

There were too many doors in the upstairs hall. Sarah told her parents, but they couldn’t see it. They told her not to worry. They told her there was nothing there. But there was an extra door, at the end of the upstairs hall. An extra yellow door, and it didn’t belong. It was the color of disease, jaundiced and infected, with spidery black veins across its face. One perfect silver knob gleamed in its center above a shadowy keyhole, and it didn’t look right. The doorknob shone with a mirror’s finish, and caught the light from any angle, begging for Sarah to look its way. Sarah did her best to ignore it, but the door knew her name, and…

It was a dark, and stormy night when I write this journal, stating the horrific things I have experience just the other day.. It was a bright and sunny day here in Abnormalville, the birds were singing, there were cute little squirrels sitting outside my window staring me right in the eyes, unblinkingly. It was a beautiful day, all in all. I think to myself: “Today would be a great day for some ice cream.”, so I toss on some socks and shoes, grab some cash lying in a random pile on my desk and head out. The day is even more beautiful than I initially thought, I knew at this point, that something was not right. I arrived at…

Everyone in my family has one thing in common. We all love dogs. They’re just so enjoyable, loyal, and all around pleasant to be around. My five-year old son is no different. From the time he could talk, he’s been constantly asking for a puppy of his very own. I of course, being a fellow dog lover would have been happy to oblige, but there is one tiny problem. We live in a suburban apartment complex; it’s cozy, but unfortunately, as is often the case with rental property, we aren’t allowed to have any pets. Of course, this is not the reasoning that would be accepted, let alone understood by a toddler. They’re so innocent at this age. I remember…

On June 4th, 1983, my high school was one of many that took us to Disneyland for Grad Night. If you’ve ever been to Disneyland on Grad Night, you know how much fun – and how crazy – it can be. The park stays open extra late, the skippers who drive the Jungle Cruise boats let loose and tell dirty jokes, and there’s plenty of opportunities for people to sneak booze and weed in. Getting a bunch of amped high schoolers in Disneyland is one thing, but with a nightlife and party atmosphere behind it, things can get pretty nuts. My two friends and I, Anaheim locals, were particularly excited. We all loved Disneyland, and while we didn’t get to…