Traveling Through Space

THE PROPOSALOne afternoon, she came to his door. I admire you, she said. I like your driving, your shoulders. You smile sparingly and only work for money. You cut wood and like animals. Listen, she said, marry me this afternoon. We'll have lunch in the best restaurant and honeymoon in an apartment with a garden. We'll have sex then and only then. You'll have all the money you want. Do what you please but when I call you must come. Take three minutes to decide. He said yes and they were happy for many yearsA young man wants to walk around the world and shake hands with everyone; a strange woman comes to a man's door and proposes marriage; a doctor buys a television, places it in his driveway, and lets it rot to pieces. These are some of the compelling scenarios in Traveling Through Space, a collection of stories that explore the peculiarities of life in contemporary America. People are like space travelers-locked in their inner worlds-yet seeking contact with other people navigating the same uncertain territory. As these unique characters bump into and off of one another, the results are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but oddly memorable.