I was in line at the cafeteria this afternoon when I noticed...

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

A large preying mantis in line behind me.

"Looks like crap," he said, grooming his claw, looking blankly at the meatloaf.

"Ummm, yeah." I hadn't seen many preying mantises here before. I was expectedly curious.

He caught my glances and nudged me with one of his lower legs saying, "Got something against PM's?"

Trying to be cute, I said, "no, I've never been that close to one before." I moved closer to the Arab in the robe standing in front of me, accidentally bumping into his backside with my pelvis.

"Excuse me!" I said.

The Arab pulled a large curved Saracen blade out of the folds of his robes and gracefully swung a crescent arc, severing the head of the preying mantis in such a fashion that it flew over the sneeze guard and landed in the mashed potatoes.

She then ordered the potatoes.

"What in the hell-" I cried.

"I'm his wife." she said.

Knowing about this breed of insect, I knew of the custom, so I simply said, "I hope you two were happy."

"Thanks," she said (I wondered about the beard).

Cartoons are cartoons.

1. ha ha n/t

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

11. Thx!

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

2. Thanks for the rec... Whoever.

Salute to "warpedness."

[mdmc]

3. love your handle

:kick: /r for the catch 22

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

9. One of my favs...

Add to that Billy Pilgrim.

[iamjoy]

4. Who Is "She"?

No mention of this she until it is time for her to order the mashed potatoes.
Is the Arab the she? But in the previous paragraph you say you bumped into "him."

I find this confusing.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

5. There is only one entity left outside of the narrator.

The preying mantis is dead. "Him" was an early assumption.

In a "micro-story," part of the challenge is to give the reader just enough to figure it out. Not easily, but enough in which, with critical reading, that the story has all the answers within.

Peace!

[jody]

6. Today the Arab would have used an AK-47.

:hi:

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

7. Listen, you gun lover...

An AK would haven't had the literary effect...

No romance,

No head in the mashed taters.

(JK)

:hi:

[Kindigger]

8. I loaned her a razor

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

10. She looks so different without the beard.

:hi:

[Straight Shooter]

12. That's "praying mantis," darling.

;)

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

13. OMG...! Shit, and it's too late to edit.

LOL.

Oops.

[Straight Shooter]

14. It's okay. It works well both ways.

:)

[BlueEyedSon]

15. In this context "praying" is funnier, but I wouldn't swear to god on it.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

17. LOL... To be honest, I was really thinking it was "preying."

As in the mantis preys upon its prey...

Oh well.

Maybe preying was the best choice.

[BlueEyedSon]

20. It's the way they hold their forelimbs, as if in prayer (dialup warning)

[Straight Shooter]

22. Yikes!

They are so cool but they kind of give me the heebie-jeebies. :silly:

[BlueEyedSon]

23. (not to scale!)

[Straight Shooter]

24. Heh.

I knew that. :P

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

25. Yaargh! Nice photo!

[Jack Rabbit]

16. That reminds me a little of a novel I read recently

Perdido Street Station by China Mieville.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

18. I'll check it out.

[Jack Rabbit]

19. I just corrected a typo in the post

The author's name is Mieville. You might have an easier time finding if it's spelled that way.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

21. LOL... That 'splain's a lot.

[Dunvegan]

26. A truly charming examplary tale...

...thank you...I needed that just now.

[Katherine Brengle]

27. excellent! n/t

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

28. Thank you, Katherine.