Bancini’s Mantra Makes Perfect Sense

“I’m tired.” Bancini said it. Bancini from Kesey’s Cuckoo’s Nest. In the movie version, Bancini is played by Josip Elic, and he always said “I’m tired,” too. I’m tired. I’m saying it. I’m tired. I’m exhausted after writing three 20-page term papers. Worn out. I’m tired. But, nevertheless, here…is…this week’s recommended reading from online literary magazines…zzzzzzzzzzz…

– She sang love songs, some blues about hard times, popular covers, three or four of her originals. At the break people introduced themselves and bought her drinks. Her tip jar began to fill. She went back to the rest room and returned. Howard intercepted her with a smile. — David W. Landrum in Amarillo Bay

– Sometimes we didn’t work on school assignments, but sat in the narrow desks and talked about Life, with a capital L. Mr. Huffenpuffen understood me because he had been born with the same disability. He didn’t even learn how to read until he was 19, and then by luck he broke his ankle in a skiing accident. Crumpled in the snow with pain shooting up his leg, he had an epiphany. The pain showed him how to focus. As his ankle healed, so did his life. — Jackie Craven in Verdad

– You need to be forgiven. You think about the things you’ve ever done wrong: money swiped from mom’s car last month, the cherry bomb in the drinking fountain senior year. The Methylin you cribbed as grandpa died, that you take now to figure this shit out, before falling back to sleep. — Amanda Whiting in Metazen

– The man arrives at your door wearing some serious denim. You carry a folding chair and follow him down to the alley. He has assembled a crowd. He produces an awl and taps it thk-thk around the circumference of your neck. Checking out, he says. I’ve had my days and yours aren’t my business. — Amelia Gray in Everyday Genius

-She peeled the potatoes and let the skins fall to the floor to mingle with the remnants of previous meals. The laundry mountain teetered on the table top, poised to join the trash on the mud-smeared linoleum. –Karen Jones in Up the Staircase