---

 

This writing was accepted for publication in the 108 page perfect-bound ISSN#/ ISBN# issue/book “Excavation” cc&d, v309 (the May 2021 issue) Order the 6"x9" paperback book:

Order this writing in the book What If the cc&d May-August 2021 magazine issues collection book		get the 426 page May-August 2021 cc&d magazine 6" x 9" ISBN# perfect-bound paperback book:

Excavation

Jennifer Dotson

Cleaning house can lead to excavations.
You begin a simple task then your
Inner perfectionist pounces and you
find you’ve fallen down a rabbit hole
with unexpected consequences.

It starts out small. You decide to pull
up the old carpet since no amount of
cleanser or steam cleaning will suck
out decades of previous inhabitants’
stains and smells.

Now you’re on your knees, slicing
through fibers, yanking up tacks
and rolling up carpet for the curb.
You’re an archeologist in search of
original hardwood flooring but

peel back one layer and find a new
one underneath. Crumbling carpet
padding and vintage floor tiles of
indeterminate origins and is that
asbestos dust you’ve released

into the room, the air, your lungs?
It’s too late now. You can’t go back.
As they say in the South, when you
are up to your ass in alligators, it’s
hard to remember why you wanted

to drain the swamp.

Copyright of written pieces remain with the author, who has allowed it to be shown through Scars Publications and Design.Web site © Scars Publications and Design. All rights reserved. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.

Problems with this page? Then deal with it...