Midge Goldberg

“Do the kitchen? I’ll give you Swedish Fish!”I hear negotiations reach a peak,numbers flying, the clatter of each dish—the kids are home, visiting for the week. That gummy currency bought lots of things—a chore, “shotgun,” a TV show, a wish—less like cash and more like . . . . Continue Reading »

So-and-so slept here, a date, a listof battles fought—whatever they’re about,he reads them all, not just to get the gistbut top to bottom, loudly, calling outexcitedly, listen to this, you guys,to share with them this knowledge on display,this one cool fact. The kids all roll their . . . . Continue Reading »

“Sing it again,” I want to ask them bothas I sit here alone behind mesh drapeson paper drawn across a vinyl table—easier to clean but somehow sticky,not cold, instead uncomfortably warm,as though I feel the heat of the last patients(old man? sad woman?), as though they might be catching. . . . . Continue Reading »

My friend the carpenter (no, not that one) Told me about a trick some workmen use.They leave some tools around if they’re not done—Nothing that they can’t afford to lose—As if they’ve gone for coffee or a snack,Or an emergency—a roof with leaks.They want to keep us thinking, “They’ll . . . . Continue Reading »

The fictional town of Agloe, New York, was invented as acopyright trap by cartographers to help track infringement.People driving through look at the map,the empty road, the map. They clean their glasses.Not knowing anything about this trap, nearby townsfolk shrug, when asked. Time passes. . . . . Continue Reading »

The fictional town of Agloe, New York, was invented as a copyright trap by cartographers to help track infringement. People driving through look at the map, the empty road, the map. They clean their glasses. Not knowing anything about this trap, nearby townsfolk shrug, when asked. Time passes. . . . . Continue Reading »

Why is Satan not too hot in hell? He doesn’t seem to suffer like the rest Who languish there. You’d almost say he’s blessed, He’s acclimated to the place so well. Perhaps he has a fast metabolism? But he can’t be impervious to heat- That would be kind of silly and . . . . Continue Reading »