Smooth Sailing

100-word microfiction

To celebrate turning forty-five, I learned to roll my own cigarettes. I’d been living healthy for four and a half decades due to childhood indoctrination, but I’d rarely been happy for more than forty-five minutes straight. Rolling smokes gave me something to do and was easier than learning to play an instrument. DIY cancer sticks led to meeting artist chicks—tattoos, heavy eye makeup, even heavier drama. Artsy babes, in turn, served as a gateway to better, stronger drugs. As long as I don’t burn through the inheritance and my new chemical friends keep working, it’ll be smooth sailing from here on out.

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Smooth Sailing was first published by Scribes*MICRO*Fiction on July 15, 2023.

Photo by Ander Burdain on Unsplash

If you liked this, you might like Lifelike. Honestly, Lifelike might be my best 100-word story to date.

Jim’s Taco Fund 

If you’ve ever tossed change to a subway saxophonist or a juggler at a stoplight, send a few bucks my way — $5 covers a day’s worth of tacos. Or, for $3, buy me a coffee! For those of you concerned about my health, I’m not going to buy tobacco with it. This is fiction.