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The Birth of Her Caitness:
"I remember when my wife, Glucinda, an aquarium blacksmith (does miniature spiral staircases, anchors, octopi with pith helmets), told me that we were going to have our first child. Though the baby yet born was already real to her I had to go out to the pumpkin patch to see the future, and to wonder. I took a six pack. Though I searched my memory for the lessons learned in my 8th grade science class -- for the life of me -- I just couldn’t remember how to ascertain which pumpkin was carrying the child. "I tried nine pumpkins: 'Knock knock,' I’d say and thump a pumpkin with my knuckles but there was no reply. Well, maybe the kid wasn’t going to grow up to be a rocket scientist. I shrugged and downed a beer. What the hell, I had the full term of pregnancy to understand the mystery of childbirth, and if I remembered right that was about 14 months. "In the first months of the hymester things were uneventful. The pumpkins grew; one plumpster more than the others. Coincidentally, it was at this time that my wife inexplicably gained a lot of weight, too. Nearing the nine-month mark she seemed as if she was carrying Paul Bunyan’s bowling ball in her lower abdomen but I didn’t say anything rude and quite naturally I stayed away from using any kind of humongous ball like a beach ball, a basketball, or a medicine ball in a compound sentence. Glucinda got so big that she had to buy all kinds of new clothes which her sister told me were called: 'Maternity-clothes-you-moron.'” - from the Birth of Her Caitness, a short story by Kevin O'Kendley (in the short story section of this blog: Carbuncle Moon). Please give to UNICEF/ U.S. Fund, Children First: 125 Maiden Lane/ New York, New York 10038/ 800-367-5437
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Kevin O'Kendley is the owner of Carbuncle Moon, and the author of all original material -- cartoons, blogs, shorts, essays, articles -- on the website. All quoted sources are noted. I am responsible for all posts. The only blogs not time-dated are those advertising nonprofits. All nonprofits were vetted, investigated, though the summer of 2018. The vetting lapsed in some cases afterwards or until the last blog on May, 31, 2021.
Kevin O'Kendley: [email protected]. Technical help was provided by a computer genius, my son, Conor O'Kendley. Photography was provided by a visual artist, my daughter, Caitlin O'Kendley. If your nonprofit is advertised on this site and you wish to have it removed please contact me at the above listed email address or use the contact form on the website. If you download a blog, cartoon, a short story -- or for any other reason -- and wish to donate $ to this site, its author and technical support personnel, please send donations payable to Kevin O'Kendley, 499 Broadway #138, Bangor, Maine 04401. My family and I could use the dinero. All cartoons, blogs, and short stories are for sale. Categories |
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