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The Long and the Short of It: A
Collection of short stories and poems by Tom Davis
The Long and the Short of It is collection of short stories by Tom Davis. They vary in length and subject– Some sad, some funny, some thought provoking. All entertaining.
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Excerpts: When a Nobody Kills a Somebody I felt trouble in my bones, and my bones don’t lie. Should’a got up and left. But being too proud, I just sat there, watching him in the mirror behind the bar. He was a big un, bigger’n me even. Stump of a neck and hands like baseball mitts. It’s Time to Let Go Four months later he came home for Christmas, all spit and polish and wearing the finest looking green Army uniform you ever saw. He even wore a medal. Said it was for the National Defense. Of course, he had the expert marksmanship badge, too. Jay always held a steady aim. He hadn’t been home more than three weeks when, through a mouthful of mashed potatoes, he said he was leaving for the war. I felt both sick and proud. But his mama, shoot, I didn’t know a woman could hold that much water. I’m Kinda Funny About My Oil "Hello, Miss Mary Ann. What can we do for you?" Rocky pulled his sleeves down and squared his shoulders. Miss Mary Ann’s beginning to stoop. Lack of calcium, thought Rocky. She kept her salt and pepper hair cut short. Curls framed an owlish face. Behind thick glasses flashed eyes seemingly younger than his. Underneath her long herringbone coat she wore a gray plaid skirt and jacket. The high ruffled collar of a white blouse sleeved her neck. Christmas in Paradise For our honeymoon, Polly and I spent a "wonderful" weekend in Panama City, Florida. Money being the big factor. But we vowed to do better at some point in our future. Better would be our second Christmas together in Hawaii. I Claimed Passion They called it murder—premeditated. My lawyer claimed passion, but the court didn’t see it that way. I loved her then, and I love her still. Her eyes, green and wild as a jungle, drew me like a child to a dare. She did not know how good she looked. That caught me in the beginning and holds me now. Tomorrow I’ll Start Writing Tomorrow I’m going to start writing—seriously writing. For years now, I’ve always wanted to. My husband and I have talked about it. He swears I’ll be great. I’m an avid reader, articulate, and can turn a phrase better than most. I have important things to say, deep feelings to express, insightful opinions to state, and theories to expound. The Bloody Yawn The night’s heat and dampness hung like a shroud. Mosquitoes buzzed. One lit near the tip of his bushy red handlebar moustache. He felt an irritating sting as the vector punctured his camouflage-painted skin, but he could do nothing. He glared into the blackness at the faint movement. Pickaberry Pig’s First Day of School Hog Crawl Creek flowed through a big green valley. Smack-dab in the middle of that valley sat Hog Wallow Plantation. In a muddy pen beside the creek, at the end of a narrow winding dirt path, lived a pig named Pickaberry with her big brother, Peanut Pig, and her mama and papa. Papa Pig farmed Hog Wallow Plantation and grew Indian corn, sweet potatoes, iceberg lettuce, red cabbage, and rutabagas. Plus Seven Poems Summer in the Smokies
Thunder Rumbles Like an old man’s hungry stomach Through the green capped Smokies Soon Rain will come To cool a summer’s lazy afternoon
 About the Author Thomas (Tom) Hoyt Davis III, oldest son of T. Hoyt and Mary Ann Davis,
is a native of Vienna, Georgia. He holds a bachelor of arts degree from
the University of Georgia and a master’s degree from the University of
Southern California Tom entered the Army as a private and retired as a
full colonel. He spent 23 of this 30+ years serving with Special Forces
(Green Berets) on four continents and in ten foreign countries. He has
worn a Green Beret at every rank from 2LT to Colonel and commanded at
every level from A Team to a Joint Special Operations Task Force. He clams
to be unique: after all this he’s still married to the same woman,
Polly. His short stories, articles, and poetry have been published in Poets
Forum, The Carolina Runner, Triathlon Today, Georgia Athlete, The Saturday
Extra (magazine section of the Fayetteville Observer-Times), A
Loving Voice Vol. I and II (anthologies of read aloud stories), Special
Warfare (a professional military journal published by the Special
Warfare Center), and Winston-Salem Writers’ POETRY IN PLAIN SIGHT
program for May 2013. Many of the works found in this book have received
honors in writing contests sponsored by ByLine magazine. He is also
the author of an action adventure novel, The
R-complex. He has recently publish his memoir: The
Most Fun I Ever Had With My Clothes On: A March from Private to Colonel.
He is married to Polly Virginia (Brown) Davis and has two children,
Tee and Pollyanna. Tom is also the founder and publisher of the Old
Mountain Press. |