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Ralph Aldrich

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jul, 2021

Stories (117)
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62 Followers
18 Following

117 Stories

2680 karma pts

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As Time Goes By

Submitted to Contest #190

I must admit I’m so nervous that my stomach is all tied up in knots. So why did I answer her request on Facebook to meet her? It’s been, what, fifty-six years since we last saw each other. Oh man, we were just kids! We lived near each other in the lower Bronx, by the zoo. We grew up best friends, perhaps on my part a little more. I was seventeen, and she was sixteen, a five-foot-one beauty with brown eyes and blond hair. I was your typical Irishman with black hair, blue eyes, and a ruddy complexion. Ye...

13 likes 0 comments 0
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Yuki-Kitsune, the Snow Fox

Submitted to Contest #189

Minokichi is a young boy who lives on a hillside farm in Shirakawa-go.  Every day he leaves his slant-roofed house to tread over a mile to go to school in the village. All the farmhouse roofs are steep to help them withstand the copious amounts of snow Shirakawa-go receives every year.  However, because they live so high up in the mountains, snow storms can spring up unexpectedly, quickly dropping several inches of snow. Knowing this, Minckichi’s father ensures his son always has some essential survival tools in his ...

11 likes 4 comments 4
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More Than Shady

So, what's the catch? Let me say this right up front, I ain’t no saint. And my morals run in the grey area. But I’ve never killed anyone, and I’ve been off the police blotter since I was a teenager. I own a nice little bar in the East End and have no intentions of losing my license to operate.Sure, some pretty shady characters come in, but I serve them drinks, that’s all. I keep my nose out of their business and keep my ears shut. That way, if the cops ask, I can tell them nothing because I know nothing. I...

3 likes 1 comment 1
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Superstition

Submitted to Contest #187

“Why in the hell did I ever move to Chicago?” I mutter to myself as I cross the open-air parking lot. I’ve worked late, and it’s about five minutes before midnight. It’s Friday the thirteenth in February, and I can barely keep my eyes open because the wind is sandblasting snow into my face at about forty miles an hour! On top of that, I parked my car at the end of the lot. All the other cars are gone. Only shallow squares in the snow mark the spot where they were parked. Clutching my top coat tightly at my throa...

24 likes 1 comment 1
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The Explorer

Submitted to Contest #186

“Good evening, Lord Bellington. And how is my Lordship on this lovely night?”           “Good evening to you, Mr. Stanley. It is indeed quite a nice night for star gazing. But tell me, I am curious about what brings you here to my planetarium?”           “Well, to be truthful, I was hoping I might have a word with your Lordship.  I’m planning an expedition to Tibet this coming winter.”    ...

14 likes 2 comments 2
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For the Love of Barry

Submitted to Contest #185

Part of the coin collection was my grandfather’s, part was my father’s, and a decent amount of it was mine. It’s gone, all gone. How can you replace a collection like that? Some of those pieces were rare and valuable, like the 1909s Indian head penny in mint condition worth 2,250 dollars. And that is just one of the rare coins I had.  My father got me started collecting coins when I was about ten. It has been one of my greatest pleasures, and I’m very proud that the collection spanned three generations.  ...

13 likes 7 comments 7
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Ebenezer's Dilemma

Submitted to Contest #184

“If I had the power to remove all London’s wretched low lives and scum, I would. Either one at a time or all at once, it wouldn’t matter to me!” So says Ebenezer Crocket from an overstuffed chair at the gentlemen’s club. His voice echoes off the mahogany paneling and marble floors. “Oh, come now, Ebenezer,” pipes in Sir Wilfred Williams, III, a well-known assessor at one of London’s best clearing houses. “I believe you make a good deal of money from those poor, underprivileged souls.” IN 1837, and the division betwe...

11 likes 1 comment 1
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Like Two Ships

Submitted to Contest #183

The spring winds rush down the streets of New York City, blowing up dirt and sand everywhere. I hold my head down to keep the dust out of my eyes while trying not to walk into other people doing the same. I reach my favorite breakfast spot and pull hard against the door. I struggle inside as the owner laughs, “Windy enough for ya, Mr. McGee?”  I dust my shoulders and the front of my jacket as I sit at the counter. The rotating stool screeches in protest. The owner Benny removes a dirty plate and wipes the ...

12 likes 0 comments 0
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The Path to Glory

Submitted to Contest #181

“Thanks, Doc. I appreciate all you’ve done.” I say, shaking Dr. Sullivan’s hand.            “I only wish I could have done more,” he says. “But it’s gone too far, I’m afraid. I’m sorry.”            “Nay, don’t be. I’m the one who always puts things off. It’s my own fault.” I shake his hand one more time and leave. As I exit the building, I’m in a world of my own. Passing a couple engaged in convers...

13 likes 2 comments 2
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Out of Luck

Submitted to Contest #180

It’s nineteen-sixty-seven, and Larry Lungren is hot-footing it to the nearest bus stop. Behind him are two big burly looking guys in close pursuit. Larry makes it to the bus just as the doors start to close. He forces them open, jumps in, and stuffs a ten in the cashbox.   “Step on it, will ya!” he snaps.  Gears grind, and the engine lunges to life. In a cloud of smoke, the bus rolls into traffic.  Larry laughs as he watches his two pursuers give up the chase. Slapping the driver on the shoul...

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A Cup of Kindness

Submitted to Contest #179

“Happy New Year, my ass! I growl. I take another swig of M. D. 20/20. I’m little more than a shadow in the shadows watching the jubilant celebration in Time Square. People are singing and laughing everywhere. They hold their plastic cups up high, spilling beer and laughing, laughing, laughing!   “Go ahead and laugh, you bastards!” A young couple scowl as I take another hard pull on my bottle. I sink deeper into the shadows. I mutter, “Go ahead and laugh. Live your life as if there is no ...

10 likes 3 comments 3
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A Christmas Feast

Submitted to Contest #178

It’s the week before Christmas, and people rush to do their last-minute shopping. The plaza’s décor is bright with festive colors.  The parking lot lamps are decorated to look like giant jingle bells and candy canes.  Christmas carols blare from the speakers mingling with the constant chatter of the shoppers.  Eight-year-old Cody misses Massachusetts at Christmas.  There it would be snowing, and you would have to wear a heavy winter coat and snow boots.  The temperature would be slightly above freezing, causing ...

16 likes 1 comment 1
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"How Do You Say-I love You"

Submitted to Contest #177

My grandfather tells me the story of how he met my grandmother. He was a buyer for a perfume manufacturer in New York City. His job was to purchase bottles from various companies around the world. It had been ten years since World War II ended, and he was about to travel to Lohr am Main in Germany to purchase bottles for a new line of perfume.  But unfortunately, he does not speak German, and now his story begins…            After talking with my travel agent, I hun...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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The Christmas Gift

Submitted to Contest #173

Charlie is a simple man. He never really had what you might call wants. He is most contented living a quiet life. Charle never sought out a wife, though he did date in his younger days. It’s just that when he thought of their happiness and compared it to his lifestyle well, he didn’t feel he should hold them back. It seemed that everything was going fine until this Christmas. For some reason, Charlie regretted not having children of his own. Of not having ever seen the smile on a young child’s face as they open ...

15 likes 2 comments 2
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Superstition

Submitted to Contest #169

“Why in the hell did I ever move to Chicago?” I mutter to myself as I cross the open-air parking lot. I’ve worked late, and it’s about five minutes before midnight. It’s Friday the thirteenth in February, and I can barely keep my eyes open because the wind is sandblasting snow into my face at about forty miles an hour! On top of that, I parked my car at the end of the lot. All the other cars are gone. Only shallow squares in the snow mark the spot where they were parked. Clutching my top coat tightly at my throa...

9 likes 1 comment 1
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