Barb Dukeman
Bio
I have three books published on Amazon if you want to read more. I have shorter pieces (less than 600 words at https://barbdukeman.substack.com/. Subscribe today if you like what you read here or just say Hi.
Achievements (13)
Stories (198)
Filter by community
Macaws and Marmosets
This was the first day on her new job as an intern for a conservation crew. Carrie first noticed something unusual when the poachers were arrested in their high-rise mansion in San Diego. They left behind horns, rugs, bad examples of taxidermy, and trophy heads mounted on the walls. Once the poachers were arrested, the contents of their trade went into evidence. Carrie wondered: what happens if something is still alive?
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Fiction
The Lake of the Innocents
Headmaster Percy Blackburn took his spectacles off and polished them with a cotton handkerchief. He repeated this habit often, which signaled to the girls of the Chiller’s School for Young Women he was agitated, upset over a perceived transgression from one of his charges. Euphemia Wood, his assistant, would immediately fetch him a glass of absinthe in response. It was a habit that repeated itself often.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Horror
It's Spooky Time Once Again
A spooky playlist for Halloween? Do you mean the one I listen to every other week just because I want to see the reaction of those willing to let me drive them places? The one I listen to in the car when I’m by myself, windows down, July? This challenge is right up my alley. Of the 60 or so stories and poems I’ve written and submitted to Vocal so far, I’ve touched on a cemetery setting twice, end-of-life scenarios four times, the underworld three times, a requiem, a conversation with a ghost, a review of a haunted amusement park, and my own eulogy. A prevailing theme permeates much of what I like to write. A playlist to go with the normal dark side of me as well as the Spooky Time decorations I put up weeks ago already? Yes. Very yes.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Beat
The Change that Happens Late in Life
Her hand in mine. Her hand was warm but she held on tight. The six of us continued looking at the machine with the numbers, watching, waiting. Top number was the heart rate; below that were other numbers: blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and respiration. The glowing digits in the darkened room changed every moment as the tendrils of tubes measured the last bits of my mother’s life. An hour earlier, I had jokingly bet which number would reach zero first – respiration. I would be right.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Families
The Nextian Universe of Jasper Fforde
If you could chat with any character you’ve ever read about, who would it be? Would you be having tea with Hermione to discuss which spell she finds the most difficult? Would you take a leisurely stroll with Samwise Gamgee and have him show you the highlights of Hobiton? Might the possibility of having an audience with Gandalf, Merlin, and Dumbledore together at the same time be of interest to you? How about hanging out with Luke Skywalker and finding out he’s always had a crush on Marianne Dashwood? This is the setting of Jasper Fforde’s series beginning with The Eyre Affair.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Fiction
The Story of Bo
It’s in his haunted eyes. When I drove to the city an hour away, the anticipation of meeting our new dog was filled with wavering trepidation. There were three sweet beagles available for adoption through the Beagle Rescue: all three cute as a button. They had their stories, their photos, their details pasted on the front page of the website like a dating site. Bo’s face was turned a little to the side, and I could just make out the speckles that identify him as a beagle. His backstory is what sealed the deal for me.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Petlife
Teaching is Not for the Faint of Heart. First Place in A Day in the Life Challenge.
I loved my job because I made a difference. First day back to school in 1989 Past tense is necessary because I recently retired after 32 years of teaching in Florida. Once you’ve past the 10-year mark, teaching is in your blood forever. I feel the intense need to correct spelling and apostrophes on signs, and I’ve dangerously Shhhhh’d people at the movies. Retirement doesn’t mean my job is over; it’s simply morphing into different endeavors. Educators in the United States are both respected and maligned, depending on the issue, state, or even day of the week.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Education
Forever Innocent
Headmaster Percy Blackburn took his spectacles off and polished them with a white cotton handkerchief he kept in his pocket. He repeated this habit often, which signaled to the girls of the Chiller’s School for Young Women that he was agitated, upset over some trivial action or some perceived transgression from one of his charges. Euphemia Wood, his assistant, would immediately fetch him a glass of gin or absinthe in response. It was a habit that repeated itself often.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Horror
The Fairies and the Money Tree
The Fairies and The Money Tree The stories begin as early as 12th century England when Gervase of Tilbury recorded one of the first mentions of enchanted places with animals possessing human characteristics along with spirits that were either good or evil. At that time, people feared these fairies and grouped them with witches who could cast curses and wreak havoc in a town. In Ireland, these creatures were called the Little People and were feared and treated with respect. Common among all stories, fairies had paths in the woods that were forbidden to be crossed and forests that were considered hallowed.
By Barb Dukeman4 years ago in Fiction
