27 Comments
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Dave Wise (Neoteric Wood Art)'s avatar

Pepto Bismal...! HAH! Bird In The Bush...!

Parker McCoy's avatar

Hehe. Ol’ Pepto Bismal nails. Bird-in-the-Bush apartments. Hehe. I can’t remember where that name came from but I love it. Hehe. Thank you so much for your support, Dave.

Dave Wise (Neoteric Wood Art)'s avatar

I have one for you;

Address?

Morningwood Arms.

Feel free to use it - if you dare.

Parker McCoy's avatar

LOL.

I like that.

And I may just use it. Haha.

Jay Allen Ford's avatar

The dialogue in this is exceptionally sharp. Lines like 'I’m not just a Herb. I’m the spiciest Herb' and 'Geese appeared to wake up every morning and consciously choose conflict' (from earlier style) show such a great grasp of comedic timing. You made me root for Herb, made me wince for him during the rejection, and left me with a quiet warmth for him by the end. Brilliant work!

Parker McCoy's avatar

Thank you so much, Jay. I’m glad you enjoyed it. Yeah, ol’ Herb is hard not to root for after a while. He’s just a big bear. Hehe. But he will return. Herb is far from finished here. Thank you so much for reading and commenting.

Nick Hills's avatar

It's not easy to guess how it ends. Sometimes we don't understand and sometimes we understand the wrong thing. Life is fun for that. Wonderful piece, man!

Steve Elliott's avatar

Poor old Herb! Hope he manages to get laid. Maybe he should steer clear of the muffins and lose a few pounds.

Parker McCoy's avatar

LOL. Well, losing weight definitely wouldn’t hurt. Haha. He definitely needs a jolt. Thank you for reading and commenting, Steve. I really appreciate it.

Christopher Sworen's avatar

All right, I think I know who we're dealing with here hehe Herb's an awkward, unintentionally creepy momma's boy. But hey, at least he's trying. He kinda reminds me of Sam from Ozark. I'm really looking forward to reading more about him! And that was some smooth writing, by the way. Great job, Parker!

Parker McCoy's avatar

Thank you so much, Chris. Yeah, ol’ Herb is trying and that’s the key word with him. He’s not where he needs to be but he has spirit. Thank you so much for reading and commenting and your awesome continued support.

Ricky Champagne's avatar

Started off a bit creepy with the nail scene, then kind of supportive/sweet, and right into awkward. Did a great job capturing all of it. Good for Herb at least putting himself out there. And appreciated her honesty. Nice one.

Parker McCoy's avatar

You know that is one thing about it- Jenn’s honesty. She could have led him on and maybe she could have put things more delicately, but honesty truly is best. Now, Herb has no confusion, even if it’s not the answer he wanted. Great observation, Ricky. Thank you so much for reading and commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed it.

K.C. Knouse's avatar

Another set of odd characters. How do you keep coming up with them, Parker? I'm not sure hitting on a ride is kosher for Uber drivers. I could see it coming and knew how it would end, but I didn't think Herb would have the nerve to ask. Loved the chit-chat.

Parker McCoy's avatar

Good point, KC. I think Herb was catching signals that were not there. Hehe. Well, I’ve been working on this saga a while. And I don’t know. I guess I have a knack for it at this point. I mean, normal is boring anyway. Right? Thank you so much for reading and commenting, KC.

JAK-LAUGHING's avatar

Hi PMC

I like my blueberry muffin hot...then cooled down with melting vanilla ice-cream...

Enjoyed the dialogue...after reading it all I had the impression that Herb the Uberman was a bit of a mystery...man I had some dark Nietzschean overtones here with the use of your Uber um um

Cheers

JAK

Parker McCoy's avatar

Hehe. Old Herb is trying but well, life is kicking a bit at this point. But Herb is no lightweight and being an Uber driver, he can bounce back from abuse. Thank you for reading and commenting. I really appreciate it.

JAK-LAUGHING's avatar

HI PMC

Autobiographical huh? lol... :)

Cheers

JAK

Sharron Bassano's avatar

I read this twice, Parker and it feels kind of creepy to me. Especially Herb polishing his mother's nails, and his weird puns. If there's to be a Part 2, I can see it heading off into a very weird place... where Wally Glew has to come to the rescue. Good one!

Parker McCoy's avatar

Hehe. Herb and his mother seem to have a mild Norman Bates thing going on and I think Jenn just wasn’t into him. He tried but he’s a little lost. It’s definitely different from the normal Fairfax and Glew tale and was a bit of a challenge to write but life’s about challenges. Right? Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Sharron. Always a pleasure.

Britt H. aka Mika's avatar

I was thinking that it's so weird that the mother made her adult son do her nails!

Sharron Bassano's avatar

Ick!

Parker McCoy's avatar

LOL. Yes, it’s definitely weird. They have a strange relationship, but Herb just needs a little direction and probably not from her. Hehe. Thank you so much for reading and commenting, Britt. I really appreciate it.

Jim J Wilsky's avatar

Good job on this one Parker. A snapshot of Herb's life. The inner sadness was real and awkward. For some reason the one word that screamed out at me after reading was companionship. That's what he needs and wants above everything else. Just my take. Well done. - Jim

Parker McCoy's avatar

Thank you so much, Jim. Yeah, Herb’s life is pretty much both jobs and then time with his mother and while mothers are awesome, he needs a companion like you say. But Herb is no quitter. He will keep going.

Jessica Newton's avatar

I love this!!!! Poor Herb. He just wasn’t her type. The pepto bismal pink nail polish hehe I can just see that color on her nails, I love how you make it soooo easy for the reader to visualize what you are writing about. It’s fantastic. Watching their baking show, ha! Makes me wanna make some muffins.

Aaaaamazing job as always.

Parker McCoy's avatar

Hehe. Yeah, ol’ Herb is stuck in a strange place in his life and he’s trying to make things happen but it’s not happening just yet. Herb has some grit, though. He won’t be giving up. Yeah, the pepto pink nails definitely paints a clear picture. And I’m sure Herb and his mom watching the baking show had some good moments. Hehe. Make them muffins. Thank you so much for your comments. You’re the best.