Seamen in Sweat Socks

By Hal Perry

Keep looking at me, and maybe over time,
I’ll turn into what you see.

What are we looking for when we want to be seen? What images appear through the haze? What are we doing here and who are we really? Sometimes after the dust has settled at coffee shops, in laundromats, and other places we often visit, our views of life and those around us can become distorted and confusing.

In a collection of varied writings, Hal Perry shares short stories, poems, and prose with the intent of fulfilling the connection we all yearn for while on this crazy voyage called life, and to make sense of a journey that came without proper instructions. His writings explore diverse topics like the vastness of the sky, dreaming while awake, a bourbon-drinking cat, rain’s beautiful symphony, a lonely beaver, and a woman with an extraordinary smile.

Seamen in Sweat Socks is a volume of short tales, poems, and prose that lyrically travel through the voids of life to find a togetherness in a lonely world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Nov 10, 2021
• ISBN: 9781665714693

Hal Perry

Hal Perry was born in Toronto, Ontario. He studied creative writing at Concordia University in Montreal, and recently completed short fiction workshops at George Brown College in Toronto. Hal used to enjoy long walks on the beach, but now can be found sitting in a lawn chair, staring toward the horizon with his dog, Frank, by his side. This is his first book of fiction.

Book preview

Seamen

in Sweat Socks

Stories

Hal Perry

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Copyright © 2021 Hal Perry.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Archway Publishing

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6657-1470-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-1469-3 (e)

Archway Publishing rev. date: 11/09/2021

Photography by: Lorraine Labunetz

Round 1

The Bomb

Bored Hippo

Vastness of the Sky

Cell

Future

Eyes

Never Made It to Winnipeg

Round 2

Cup

?———?

Bathtub Gin

Candy Apple

Black Cat

Ages

Crab Carriage

Round 3

Cold Lips

Corner Piece

Time Spent Alone

Heavy

Rain’s Symphony

Love Poem

Maybe

Round 4

Turkey Balls

Seamen in Sweat Socks

Beast vs. Man.

Distance

Forecast

My Friend

Gas Can

Sight

Lonely Beaver

Magic

Round 5

Mantra

Substance

Could

Views

Pasta

Perched

Vision

Pink Hand Cream

Round 6

Ponders

Promise

Provided You Care

Rattle

Recipe

Storage

Suds

Trisha

Discontent-lions

Round 7

Thumping

Question of Hulks?

Tongue

Rabbit through the Peephole.

Ted

Driftwood

The Juggler

Highway Lines

Pot Hole

Vantage

Morphing

System

For Mom:

Thanks for reading to me when I was young.

Hey Richard D:

I told you I would.

Round 1

The Bomb

Shortly after the bomb went off, there was a peaceful calm, and the people looked around for others.

When they found someone, they asked, So, what now?

They sat down, thought back to the time before the bomb, when everything seemed so fast and tomorrow was just a series of things written frantically on a to-do list, and there was a stink in the air of a barbecue gone bad.

Bored Hippo

On my deathbed, I have your picture folded in my arms and two tickets to that play you wanted to see about a guy and his room, and two and a half hours in-between.

My favorite day we ever had was the time we went to