Skip to main content

Emotion 365: The Land Depressed, the capitol Unmotivated

In the sludge Depressed it is ever night. The sun refuses to shine. Webbed and clawed footprints mar the flat mud surface. Something walked through here. The footprints trail off. Did it sink into the slick, sucked underground, or make it to the wide shore, the other side?

Tepid mud. Slippery. Sticky thick.

The dark sea leviathan makes her home in Depressed, her skin bruised and only her stench rising. The beings here wring their mud hands and woefully shake their dripping faces.

In the junkyard around Depressed abandoned vehicles ring the capitol Unmotivated. 

Stuck in the mud and dragged away they like in concentric circles around and around the mud pits.

Their tires deflate into the mud. Mud coats their glass and metals surfaces.

"What are the Depressed inhabitants muttering?" asks Miss Doe Friend.

"Once we were told to take inventory," says the Guide. "So they are counting again, picking up where they left off. But there are so many vehicles no one can finish."

"Especially not alone," says Miss Emeline Traveler. "It seems they've forgotten how to work together."

"A pointless task," says the Guide.

"I came because I thought it was a great place to get a deal," says one of the Depressed. "Something for nothing. And then I was told to count. So I do, sometimes, try to count."

"Oh, dear," says Miss Doe Friend after awhile. "How do we get out?"

"There are keys to every vehicle in the Unmotivated office," says the Guide. "But they are all unmarked so it can take some searching and many of the vehicles won't start."

"There is an elevator, too, Doe," says Miss Emeline. "We are done here. Let's take it up to elsewhere and go from there."

"Yes, yes," says Doe, and moves quite quickly in that direction.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Thoughts on "Depression Hates a Moving Target": What I Mean by Relatable

Relatable — I used this word in my reviews of Depression Hates a Moving Target   by Nita Sweeney on Goodreads and Amazon . It's a nice word, but overused of late. So, it feels lazy. What do I mean? I connected with this book. It made me reflect more on my own first marathon experience. It made me want to put on my running shoes and head out the door again. In fact, I did. Now, typically, my mental health doesn't hinder my ability to do the stuff I want to do and my body flies under the radar. Still, I also felt goofy stepping out in my running gear a lot of the time. I didn't see myself as a "runner" or an athlete. And, I had no idea if I could run 13 miles let alone 26.2 when I started. More to the point, could I stay moving for the 4+ hours straight it would take to complete the marathon? To do the training mileage, I knew I'd have to run through streets and trails on my own and that made me nervous, too. Waves of grief wash us to strange shores. Whe...

What is Solarpunk? Good question, great answers from our community

What is solarpunk? My fellow Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Summers authors Commando Jugendstil and Tales from The EV Studio put together this video for the Turin International Book Fair . It features editors and authors from the solarpunk community sharing their thoughts. Together we're imagining optimistic futures based on renewable energy. My soundbite was: "Solarpunk futures are — green spaces with clean water that are pedestrian, collective, feminist, creative communities. And they include non-human animals. " Mary "solarpunk" Shelley cat did a great job (at 6:15) helping from her rather ridiculous cat tree which she absolutely loves. And what better time to wear this solar-colored "Veganism is Feminism" tee from The Herbivore Clothing Company . Seriously. I'm holding a stack of solarpunk books: Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Summers  edited by Sarena Ulibarri which includes my story "Watch Out, Red Crusher!".  Wings of R...

Springy Story Review: "Gestella" by Susan Palwick

Why it springs to mind: A hauntingly beautiful horror story about what happens when a woman relinquishes her power. A unique werewolf story with commentary on aging. Where read: First in Sisters of the Revolution: A Feminist Speculative Fiction Anthology  ( 2015, PM Press edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer) and then in Palwick's collection The Fate of Mice ( 2007, Tachyon Publications ) — both outstanding! These presses won't steer you wrong. Summary: A young woman werewolf allows herself to be dominated by a lover who takes control of her fate. Memorable: The powerful ending! The word: sportfuck. A new take on lycanthropy. Written in second person — you. Quote:  "You know that your growing wisdom is the benefit of aging, the compensation for your wrinkles and your fading—although fading slowly as yet—beauty. You also know that Jonathan didn't marry you for wisdom."  Personal connection: Some of my favorite stories seem to be the ones that address t...