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Bob Merckel
Bob Merckel

1.7K Followers

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Published in

The Memoirist

·4 days ago

The Summer I Blew Up a Pig instead of Serving One

The roller coaster of taking a break from waiting tables. — It was 1981. The summer between my freshman and sophomore year of college was fast approaching. I was spending a weekend in Cincinnati, having come home (probably to do laundry) from Witt World, a quick 90-minute drive. …

Jobs

7 min read

The Summer I Blew Up a Pig instead of Serving One
The Summer I Blew Up a Pig instead of Serving One
Jobs

7 min read


Published in

Dead or Alive

·6 days ago

Have I Gone to Vacation Bird App School?

Some of y’all SMGs (Social Media Gurus) are reminding me of youth pastors — Back in the days of my youth, my well-meaning mother still had hope for my soul. Like the good Lutheran woman she occasionally tried to be, she would send my sister and I to Vacation Bible School. There, any number of bell-bottomed, suntanned youth pastors (this was in Orange County…

Satire

3 min read

Have I Gone to Vacation Bird App School?
Have I Gone to Vacation Bird App School?
Satire

3 min read


Published in

Plethora Of Pop

·May 30

Six Bubble Gum Bangers that Will Keep you Boppin’ through Your Heartbroken Codependence

We wanna just say no, but we can’t stop with the oh-oh-oh — I love me my divas. But sometimes you just want to give them a big hug and a shake, and reassure them, “Girl, you’re gonna be fine.” Here are six bangers that make me want to bang my head against the wall and tell these beautiful creatures they (and we…

Pop Music

3 min read

Six Bubble Gum Bangers that Will Keep you Boppin’ through Your Heartbroken Codependence
Six Bubble Gum Bangers that Will Keep you Boppin’ through Your Heartbroken Codependence
Pop Music

3 min read


Published in

Doctor Funny

·May 21

Seen in an Italian Restaurant

Working too hard for clever conversation. — Billy and Joel were in an Italian restaurant, trying not to cause a scene. “Have you heard about Brenda and Edie?” Billy asked. “Yeah, good for her,” Joel said, blowing on his steaming cup of hot cocoa. The owner called it Liquid Tiramisu and said it was his grandma’s recipe…

Humor

4 min read

Seen in an Italian Restaurant
Seen in an Italian Restaurant
Humor

4 min read


Published in

Dead or Alive

·May 7

And That’s a Wrap: My Final Ten in the 30-Word, 30-Day Community Challenge

Next time I say I never finish anything, whack me upside the head and send me this link. — As we say goodbye to April’s showers of prompts for 30-word stories, we look forward to a building bouquet of May flowers. As some of you might remember, I started this month committed to writing 30 pieces of micro-fiction, based on daily prompts delivered via the bird app. The premise…

Fiction

3 min read

And That’s a Wrap: My Final Ten in the 30-Word, 30-Day Community Challenge
And That’s a Wrap: My Final Ten in the 30-Word, 30-Day Community Challenge
Fiction

3 min read


Published in

Dead or Alive

·Apr 28

Building Community, 30 Words at a Time

The second third as we micro forth — And we’re back for Part Two of telling tiny tales. Regular Dead or Alive readers may recall the premise: Get a daily one-word prompt and write a 30-word micro-fiction around it. Without further ado, here’s the second batch of ten. 11. Sharing “… once I realized my baby wasn’t an alien and…

Creative Writing

3 min read

Building Community, 30 Words at a Time
Building Community, 30 Words at a Time
Creative Writing

3 min read


Published in

Dead or Alive

·Apr 19

Who Says There’s No Community Left on the Bird App?

Micro is the new atomic, here are my first ten forays into the fray. — Twitter, like life, can be pretty random. A couple weeks ago, the bird app dropped an intriguing little egg into my nest. The premise: Get a daily one-word prompt and write a 30-word micro-fiction around it. It’s turned out to be the most fun I’ve had in quite a while…

Microfiction

3 min read

Who Says There’s No Community Left on the Bird App?
Who Says There’s No Community Left on the Bird App?
Microfiction

3 min read


Published in

Microcosm

·Apr 8

Wait, You’re Not the Easter Bunny

№ 64 of 💯 — It’s never fun to work on the holiday. — “Wait! As a psychic empath …” Boom! Lydia’s brains decorated the wall behind her like a bone chip-laden Jackson Pollock. “She shoulda felt that one coming, eh?” Pinkie muttered as he side-stepped over her crumpled body, making sure not to step into the quickly pooling blood. He normally just does…

100 Story Challenge

2 min read

Wait, You’re Not the Easter Bunny
Wait, You’re Not the Easter Bunny
100 Story Challenge

2 min read


Published in

Redemption

·Mar 30

His Profile Was Hot, but He Turned out to Be a Real Snake

№ 63 of 💯: There I was, all coiled up and nowhere to go. — “No no no,” I said. “You go ahead, I’m not that hungry.” Was I just being polite? Well, to be fair it was our first date. I’ve really never liked French food, so when the waiter said tonight’s special was frog legs, I decided to skip the appetizer. “More for…

Transgressive Thursday

2 min read

His Profile Was Hot, but He Turned out to Be a Real Snake
His Profile Was Hot, but He Turned out to Be a Real Snake
Transgressive Thursday

2 min read


Published in

MuddyUm

·Mar 23

My Hairdresser Skipped Town (Again), but I’m Not Going to Curl Up and Dye

Maybe I’ll channel my inner Elsa and “Let it grow, let it grow” — My beautiful Marcio has left me. Mama was right—never have a relationship with a Brazilian, they will always break your heart. He’d been cutting my hair here in Barcelona for the past several years. I loved his work. Now he’s up and flitted off back to São Paulo. Gay hairdressers…

This Happened To Me

6 min read

My Hairdresser Skipped Town (Again), but I’m Not Going to Curl Up and Dye
My Hairdresser Skipped Town (Again), but I’m Not Going to Curl Up and Dye
This Happened To Me

6 min read

Bob Merckel

Bob Merckel

1.7K Followers

Editor: Age of Empathy, The Memoirist | English teacher/language consultant in Barcelona and Provincetown.

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