Maybe I was having a dream, maybe I heard a noise in the driveway, maybe I heard any of the assorted dogs in the neighborhood barking, whatever it was that woke me up at 3 a.m. on a weekday morning, that line was zinging in my head.

As I lay there, trying to get back to sleep, I wondered where else that line might go. So, I let it lead me, take me wherever it might go.

I thought maybe I’d make a mental note, write it the next day, maybe take physical notes on the notebook next to my bed and finish it after work.

Then, by 4 a.m., with the story unwinding itself to me, I got out of bed. I took my notebook into the dining room, turned on the light and wrote.

By 5:30, I’d finished the majority of the first draft and started to get ready for work.

“Of Strays and Exes” was a departure for me – it’s snarky, ironic, almost funny.

So, don’t judge me too harshly, ladies and gentlemen, apart from the first line, the story is actually about the connection and disconnection we do throughout our lives in relationships and with the people (and critters) around us.

The story is available in New Beginnings by Pilcrow and Dagger.