Something Authentic | Part 1

Something Authentic is Season 1 of Kid8 Podcast. You can listen to Something Authentic on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Something Authentic Episode 1 is also available for purchase as an NFT on OpenSea. You can also support Kid8 Podcast by making a donation here.

The crumbling leather case smelled like unwashed dog. It coughed clouds of dust into my face when I moved with the line. Ahead, some codger with a gramophone. Behind, some old bird with a Singer sewing machine. Junk. I knew it. I came with something real, something with a story, something that meant something old and important. They had storage-locker scraps.

Four more to go.

He’s up there barking under the white TV lights. Sweating. I can see the pancake makeup balling up on his forehead. Doing what it’s supposed to do, I guess. He’s barking, but it’s a little dog’s bark. A little dog’s bark for a little man. He’s a dream killer, a real SOB. All about worth. It’s worth a lot, or it’s worthless. If it’s worth something, tell me something good about it. That’s how he plays.

I’m watching him dismantle some geezer in coveralls. He came riding up on an old McCormick tractor. Fire-engine red and puffing smoke. Made my heart stop when he started it, to think of the fields it knew, the bones it turned up. Dinosaur bones.

He whined his little wheeze laugh, the little barker.

Mass-produced, he says. Thousands of these! And in better condition! Did you check eBay before you came? I mean, it’s beautiful, I’ll give you that. But, I don’t know. $5,000? That’s about it, my friend. Love what you done with it, though!

The geezer rides away, waving his hand. Farewell, goodbye! There’s only room on the seat for one or I’d join.

Three more to go.

Thank you for reading Something Authentic, Part 1. If you enjoyed the story, you can support Kid8 Podcast by purchasing the NFT of Something Authentic Episode 1 on OpenSea, or by making a donation at venmo.com/kid8creative.

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Be sure to check out Episode 2 of Something Authentic, debuting June 8. You can learn more about Something Authentic here. You can also follow me on Instagram: @jhannan86 and @the_k1d_8

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