Virtute et Labore

(the seventh chapter of Shell Games)   The new vagabond’s mind rippled outward like a vast, quickly growing web of consciousness catching flies of transcendence, as she flitted in the direction of Albany.  Molly Connors was a living, breathing paradox, she realized: alone yet with all things.  Another earlier paradox had zapped into her brain…

Off on the New York Waltz

(the sixth chapter of Shell Games) No one noticed Molly Connors was gone for twelve hours.   Her mother came to the realization of her daughter’s disappearance only when the evening meal was taking longer than usual. “Is there twice as much food tonight, or just half as much me?”  had been her first thought, drawing…

The Lucky and the Sublime

(the fifth chapter of Shell Games)   The great town seal of Blandis depicts a man on his knees, his hands raised joyously toward a mountain with the sun’s rays shining from behind the tall peak.  The year this occurred, 1734, is emblazoned at the bottom.  All in all, it’s a very impressive work of…

A Great Mystery

(the fourth chapter of Shell Games)   The Rev. Walpole Albright had suggested the universe wished to snuff out dozens, hundreds, or even more of its own creations.  Most of the universe’s creations who heard this dire pronouncement met it with a shrug. Yet the promise of eminent destruction lingered with a few of the…

The Mystery of the First Peckham in America, c. 1637

    February 26, 2016 Friday With a whole morning to fill at Turning Point as the world is asleep, Will busies himself: Yes, this lines up with what I found; I am focusing on the first three sentences written in the brief bio.  I was aware of the birth date, (and possibly the ship…