Horton Tarot Card

The Neighbour’s Clogs

Sabi had been away on business in the north. When she got to Raff’s place, he was out, so she phoned him on his mobile. “Where are you, amore?” “At the Poly. – Where are you?” “Sitting on your bed.” “With or without your undies?” “Porco[1], when are you coming home?” Sabi hung up. As …

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Horton Tarot Card

The Wall Flowers

A Little Bit of Chelsea in Essex One summer Laura went on a budget holiday to Spain with her girlfriend, June. As soon as they left Essex, they started drinking with some Chelsea boys in the airport bar and nearly missed the plane. The holiday was a real lark. June found a Chelsea shirt to …

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Horton Tarot Card

Dust and Drapery

Chevalier de Seingult[1] had a saying that an affair consisted of four acts. The first act was like the entrée or solicitation, the second act was like a further hors d’oeuvre in anticipation of the primo and the secondo. Of course, these culinary metaphors were not always appropriate. In the case of Signorina Teresa Imer, …

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Horton Tarot Card

A Liar and a Thief

Writers’ conferences always brought out the most bookish of folk, reflected Axel. Then he bumped into Lulu. They chatted genially about Gunter Grass and blogging, Georg Pabst and, funnily enough, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, when she dropped the unexpected. “Thing is, my father was a donor. I was brought up by two women.” A throw-away line, …

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Horton Tarot Card

Very Good

He saw her through the crowd. How unusually attractive, he thought, alone but confident, not quite part of the scene, but detached, perhaps amused by it all. They spoke briefly. She smiled at him and they wandered outside. “What do you do?” “I am a writer.” “That is absurd but romantic nonetheless. I don’t know …

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Bad Santa Bauble

Jesus Works For A Sunbeam

Jesus was a nervous boy. He also hated Christmas, because it meant birthday. And every year was one year closer. Jesus tapped at the door. He was late. When the door swung open, the party was clearly in full swing. “Come on in! Who are you anyway? Oh, Jesus. Great outfit by the way.” His …

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Bad Santa Bauble

Hats Over Christmas

As part of my Business Enterprise Allowance I was doing a day course in bookkeeping (not dependent upon obtaining the remittance, but I thought what could be more useful for a lady of enterprise). The lady who was conducting the course whose name was Nancy and possibly Williams was wearing a rather lovely pencil skirt, …

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The Joker

Lamb’s Wool

If Katarina and Amelia had always felt rather sorry for Guisi, they were in two minds about inviting her to their party. “What’s wrong with Guisi?” asked Patrick. “Nothing,” said Amelia. “She’s a little dull. That’s all.” “She’s not dull,” said Katarina, “she is spectacularly boring.” “You mean she’s a little dyed in the wool?” …

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The Joker

The Maître D’s Gaff

It is a well-known conceit of Italian life that both husband and wife are happy to take a lover or a mistress, but neither are willing to contemplate divorce, since neither wishes to upset the equilibrium in which the other lives. The case of the lawyer Pelligrini, esteemed colleague of Avvocato Cassa, who had arrived …

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The Joker

Rosa Marina

The beach at Rosa Marina had always been a good spot for Daniel. Cabin cruisers and yachts of the new euro millionaires would come and weigh anchor in the bay. All of society seemed to gather here along the shore in the afternoon sun: the good-looking teenagers of the alta borghese, the Russians, Germans and …

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