“Listen, those cops are going to have to shoot me or let me stay in here until Christmas is over, and that’s all there is to it.”
January 22, 2011 5:45 PM Subscribe
The Super Secret International American Time Box by Miracle Jones
“Listen,” I said. “Why don’t you tell me what you want and then maybe ..."
"...And after calming me down
with some orange slices
and some fetal spooning,
E.T. revealed to me his singular purpose.
He said, "You are the Chosen One,
the One who will deliver the message.
A message of hope for those who choose to hear it
and a warning for those who do not."
Me. The Chosen One?
They chose me!!!
And I didn't even graduate from fuckin' high school."
Tool
posted by clavdivs at 6:02 PM on January 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
"...And after calming me down
with some orange slices
and some fetal spooning,
E.T. revealed to me his singular purpose.
He said, "You are the Chosen One,
the One who will deliver the message.
A message of hope for those who choose to hear it
and a warning for those who do not."
Me. The Chosen One?
They chose me!!!
And I didn't even graduate from fuckin' high school."
Tool
posted by clavdivs at 6:02 PM on January 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
Miracle Jones is also one of the impresarios behind the electronic publishing and performance-producing entity known as the Fiction Circus. One of his previous books was released in a rather unique format that got some attention here previously.
[Full disclosure: Miracle Jones is a pal of mine and a hell of a fellow.]
posted by slappy_pinchbottom at 6:03 PM on January 22, 2011
[Full disclosure: Miracle Jones is a pal of mine and a hell of a fellow.]
posted by slappy_pinchbottom at 6:03 PM on January 22, 2011
Loved it.
One flaw with the plot, though... Since she saw "herself" get out of the box at 40, shouldn't she have applied the same logic as at 20? Of course, that would leave no story, but...
posted by pla at 6:38 PM on January 22, 2011
One flaw with the plot, though... Since she saw "herself" get out of the box at 40, shouldn't she have applied the same logic as at 20? Of course, that would leave no story, but...
posted by pla at 6:38 PM on January 22, 2011
Man, that's an uncomfortable read. The Blood Qu'ran is real, by the way.
pla: One flaw with the plot, though... Since she saw "herself" get out of the box at 40, shouldn't she have applied the same logic as at 20? Of course, that would leave no story, but...
No time travel story survives being thought about too hard.
posted by Kattullus at 6:57 PM on January 22, 2011
pla: One flaw with the plot, though... Since she saw "herself" get out of the box at 40, shouldn't she have applied the same logic as at 20? Of course, that would leave no story, but...
No time travel story survives being thought about too hard.
posted by Kattullus at 6:57 PM on January 22, 2011
No time travel story survives being thought about too hard.
Except for Primer and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
posted by cthuljew at 7:08 PM on January 22, 2011 [9 favorites]
Except for Primer and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
posted by cthuljew at 7:08 PM on January 22, 2011 [9 favorites]
Hey yeah Miracle Jones! When I was a barista up in NYC a few years ago, these guys performed at our coffee shop. Pretty stellar stuff I would say --- definitely eye-catching at the least. Their Fiction Circus, linked above, is a fantastic show. Hooray literary performance art!
posted by phenylphenol at 7:13 PM on January 22, 2011
posted by phenylphenol at 7:13 PM on January 22, 2011
Except for Primer and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
You forgot John Titor.
posted by scalefree at 7:18 PM on January 22, 2011
You forgot John Titor.
posted by scalefree at 7:18 PM on January 22, 2011
No time travel story survives being thought about too hard.
Except for Primer and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
You forgot John Titor.
Hahahahaha...good one. *wipes tears away*
Seriously though, this was a great story, I found myself complete enrapt about halfway through. Thanks for posting.
posted by dubitable at 8:37 PM on January 22, 2011
Except for Primer and Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.
You forgot John Titor.
Hahahahaha...good one. *wipes tears away*
Seriously though, this was a great story, I found myself complete enrapt about halfway through. Thanks for posting.
posted by dubitable at 8:37 PM on January 22, 2011
That was an interesting story. Really only one way it could have ended, but the sideplot about the Blood Koran made it intriguing, like it had a disconnected thread that led off towards further speculation rather than just being unresolved.
posted by Scattercat at 8:45 PM on January 22, 2011
posted by Scattercat at 8:45 PM on January 22, 2011
The story was a good read, but I find the Blood Koran way more interesting. Can’t believe the guy did that.
posted by spitefulcrow at 9:32 PM on January 22, 2011
posted by spitefulcrow at 9:32 PM on January 22, 2011
The story was a good read, but I find the Blood Koran way more interesting. Can’t believe the guy did that.
Yeah, that is mindblowing, right? I mean, wtf. What dictators won't do amirite?
seriously though that is fucking crazy
posted by dubitable at 9:40 PM on January 22, 2011
Yeah, that is mindblowing, right? I mean, wtf. What dictators won't do amirite?
seriously though that is fucking crazy
posted by dubitable at 9:40 PM on January 22, 2011
Oh, that's the same link from Kattallus's post above, my bad.
posted by dubitable at 9:41 PM on January 22, 2011
posted by dubitable at 9:41 PM on January 22, 2011
Great story, I'll have to look into this a little further.
posted by From Bklyn at 3:19 AM on January 23, 2011
posted by From Bklyn at 3:19 AM on January 23, 2011
I read this while still in the middle of plowing (backwards) through last month's excellent post on the collected works of Ted Chiang, so the similarities with his work strike me, particularly with The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate.
Both are time travel stories set in a universe where both the past and future are immutable. Free will aside, in such a circumstance one need not be concerned with breaking a timeline, since one's interaction with it has always been. It's liberating for a character and an author to not be burdened by timeline issues. It's refreshing to read a good time travel story that's something more than a farce focusing on keeping one's grandfather alive.
posted by rlk at 6:40 AM on January 23, 2011
Both are time travel stories set in a universe where both the past and future are immutable. Free will aside, in such a circumstance one need not be concerned with breaking a timeline, since one's interaction with it has always been. It's liberating for a character and an author to not be burdened by timeline issues. It's refreshing to read a good time travel story that's something more than a farce focusing on keeping one's grandfather alive.
posted by rlk at 6:40 AM on January 23, 2011
Awesome post
posted by Philosopher's Beard at 7:05 AM on January 23, 2011
posted by Philosopher's Beard at 7:05 AM on January 23, 2011
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posted by Captain_Science at 5:48 PM on January 22, 2011