This story is entitled “The Embarcadero” and it’s been published in a lovely little zine called The Bitchin’ Kitsch. It’s to be found in the May 2014 issue, on page 16. “The Embarcadero” isn’t exactly a break up story (though it’s enough of a break up story that an editor or two has informed me they prefer not to publish break up stories). Rather, in my mind, it’s more about a missed connection. I think most people have seen love thwarted by circumstances that would otherwise seem peripheral. We have experiences in which we just can’t seem to get the timing right. The story is also just a moment, and I will never stop being thrilled by the narrative potential of small and insignificant acts.
The Bitchin’ Kitch lives up to its name. The zine’s progenitors are two people, Chris and Dana Talbot-Heindl. These humans are of nebulous age and origin, but I like to imagine them with dual work stations set up in a basement apartment of some Midwest suburban triplex, living beneath a grandmother (possibly one of their own) and expelling a lot of creative energy. As you can see in their bios below, they cover a broad swath, from graphic design, to creative writing, to dub step, and even from afar their passion is infectious (I want them to be my friends). They also make a bitching calendar (which was, I admit, partly what prompted me to seek publication with them – I still haven’t submitted my photo for consideration, but I intend to.)
The Bitchin’ Kitsch is a zine for artists, poets, prose writers, or anyone else who has something to say. it exists for the purpose of open creativity.
If you have something you want to share, please email it to chris@talbot-heindl.com. Are you a video or music artist? Submit your YouTube link or original file to dana@talbot-heindl.com. All submissions are due on the 26th for the following month’s issue. Please review the submission guidelines on our Submissions page before submitting your work.
The Talbot-Heindl Experience is just that – an escapade of exposure to the sophisticated knowledge of a Talbot-Heindl.
The background of each Talbot-Heindl is expansive and ever-growing. Feel free to explore the links provided to see just some of what a Talbot-Heindl is capable of.
Contact with a Talbot-Heindl is a unique experience in that there are only two beings in the known universe of that name and when you work with one, you get the complete package – work, personality, and wit.
With each new episode of exploit with a Talbot-Heindl, you are guaranteed a good humored, creative, but also professional job well done.
Chris Talbot-Heindl: I was born in a relatively benign city to a relatively benign family and should have grown to become a relatively benign person. However, my penchant for reading novels about the downtrodden in America and political/social events in my life has shaped me into an indignant person and artist. As a person whose wool has been undeniably pulled from my eyes, I feel an unquenchable urge to run around pulling the wool from others’ – to help other people realize that the government and society of this nation does not give a rat’s ass about the individual, but as individuals, we cannot afford to conform. The only answer to America’s conformity is disobedience, and I intend to disobey wherever humanly possible.
Dana, aka McFishenburger, enjoys long walks on the beach, David Hasselhoff, and Beavis and Butthead, aheh-heh. He is big into video games, making electronic music, artistic endeavors, and one-upping MacGyver. In his spare time, he beta tests unreleased video games, dismantles and rebuilds computer equipment in a never-ending battle agains the BSOD, creates thumptastic wubwub, and makes sassy comments and art. He hopes to one day become a creative director for EA Games, travel overseas, and to live in a warmer climate on an art commune.
benleib 