Sara Marchant

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Contingency Plans

By | 2020-10-27T21:18:03-07:00 October 29th, 2020|Categories: Issue 121: 29 October 2020|Tags: , , , , , , |

By Sara Marchant   My husband recently retired. His anxiety had increased over the last four years (whose hasn’t, right?) and a few months ago he was having a bad day at work, when he abruptly stood up, announced, “I retire,” and walked out the door. It’s been an adjustment. At first, he didn’t know what [...]

The Rainbow Sign

By | 2020-01-06T07:46:57-08:00 January 9th, 2020|Categories: Issue 101: 09 January 2020|Tags: , |

By Sara Marchant   We went, my mother and I, to get haircuts. The previous appointment was still there, standing in front of the mirror, talking. This woman’s hair made her look like a pretty Afghan dog; her large green eyes did little to compensate for wearing clothes too dowdy for a woman in her forties. [...]

Wednesday’s Child

By | 2018-06-25T07:55:37-07:00 June 28th, 2018|Categories: Issue 65: 28 June 2018|Tags: , , , |

By Sara Marchant   On Wednesday, during peer review, a student waves me over to say something in a voice so low and hoarse I strain to catch the words. “ICE went into Cardenas Market and took people away.” “What?” I say. I must have misunderstood. The students are reviewing papers with topics like Foucault’s panopticism, [...]

Civil Discourse in the Trumpocalypse

By | 2017-12-12T14:04:20-08:00 December 14th, 2017|Categories: Issue 51: 14 Dec 2017|Tags: , |

By Sara Marchant   My brother Marvin is calling me, and, as usual, I debate whether to answer the phone. My mother claims she never had an affair with Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Larry David, but my brother is so similar to the self-centered, self-absorbed, neurotic nervous maniac David, that I’m not sure I believe her. I [...]

Women in Parking Lots

By | 2017-09-06T11:28:54-07:00 September 7th, 2017|Categories: Issue 39: 07 Sep 2017|Tags: , |

By Sara Marchant   My hands were full in the post office parking lot. I held out-going bills, my car and postal box keys, my purse, and a heavy manila envelope containing a manuscript destined for greatness (one can always hope, right?). When I heard a loud car horn and a male voice yelling “Votes for [...]

Blue Plate Special

By | 2017-02-23T11:29:15-08:00 February 16th, 2017|Categories: Issue 12: 16 Feb 2017|Tags: , , |

By Sara Marchant   The little girl in the booth behind me is bouncing on her vinyl seat in excitement, and I stop chewing my crunchy salad in order to better eavesdrop. My back is to her, and her back is towards me, so I can hear her breathy voice over the bouncing creak of the [...]

Was it foolish to think so?

By | 2017-02-23T21:55:32-08:00 December 1st, 2016|Categories: Issue 1: 1 Dec 2016|Tags: , , , , |

By Sara Marchant My husband’s birthday is November eighth. He takes the day off. We drive to Idyllwild for lunch. It is a windy day so we have the patio to ourselves until an elderly white lady with an elderly dog joins us. She greets the waiter by name and he greets the cranky old dog [...]