Paul Teodo is 61. He was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, very close to where he currently serves as Chief Operating Office of Holy Cross Hospital. "The Cross" is an inner city hospital serving indigents run by a dedicated group of nuns from Lithuania. Paul's parents Pietro and Graziella owned an Italian Deli, and he has two great sons - Paul Jr. and Peter.
by Paul Teodo
A hitchhiker is picked up by an infamous driver.
A woman describes how her father’s risky entrepreneurial endeavors kept her close-knit Southern family in flux.
Elna Baker is a writer and comedian whose book The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance was published by Penguin in 2009. She currently resides in New York.
by Elna Baker
A woman raised as a Mormon is terrified that her parents will disown her when she confesses that she has left the faith.
Amy Rood is a librarian with a lot of hobbies. She likes improv, knitting, sewing, decorating, baking and cocktails... but her pole dancing days are over.
by Amy Rood
Amy Rood thinks she can learn to be seductive if she takes a pole dancing class.
Don Ray Smith, from Louisville, Kentucky, is a humorist, a journalist, storyteller. author of two very funny books and e-mailer of a weekly laugh column. He continues to pursue his lifelong dream of creating humor both for fun and virtually no money. To date, he has been wildly successful on both counts.
A man reflects on the segregated neighborhood of his childhood.
Judith Benezra is a writer, actress and comedian in Los Angeles. She's a brickhouse with a baby voice and a poised klutz. Heroes: David Sedaris, Mae West and Golda Meir. Villains: sport hunters, Ann Coulter and Baroness Paula Von Gunther.
A sardine sandwich teaches a girl an important lesson.
Jamaica Kincaid's short fiction has appeared in The Paris Review
A girl is sent to live with her aunt after the birth of her little brother.
Alisha Brophy currently lives in Los Angeles, but you wouldn't know it from her cowboy boots and New York accent. Brophy's anecdotes often come via her backstory, which includes carnival work, barrel racing, and trapeze. She aspires to become a television writer and a vegetarian, but neither have happened yet.
A woman is an unwitting witness to a prank show.
Gabe Bullard is a journalist and news director at Louisville Public Media and WFPL. He's always happy to share stories of personal embarrassment with strangers.
by Gabe Bullard
A man is treated differently after getting a bad burn.
An American tries to prove himself on an Australian adventure.
A construction worker discovers the upside of his girlfriend’s one-year prison sentence.
John Crotteau loves New York, lives in LA, and is on the production staff of Conan. His recorded jingles and podcast theme songs can be heard on his website.