Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Robot LifeGuard Electrocuted Everyone.


This is my first foray into composing science fiction. Wait, that's not entirely true. In high school, I took the legend of Frosty the Snowman down a distinctly sci-fi path which I might choose to share more broadly some day soon. In the glorious meantime, I give you my shortest story: The Robot lifeguard electrocuted everyone. Feel free to commit it to memory and share it with others. You can place it alongside Hemingway's attempt at shortness which I reprint here without permission: "For sale: baby shoes. Never worn." Mine, let the record show, is shorter (word-wise), and will also serve as the title of an upcoming work of fiction.
Friend, doppelgänger, and lead singer of Bulb, Todd Greene, was kind enough to give me the above illustration. Enjoy.
That is all.
UPDATE: The above illustration is available as a print (signed by the illustrator and the author), a t-shirt, AND (should the perceived need arise) a refrigerator magnet. For details, contact david dot dark at vanderbilt dot edu

21 comments:

Bradley J Moore said...

Very, very cool.

Paul Leclerc said...

Is this something you're in the process of writing or something that is available now? I don't see any links to anything!

Patsy said...

'Love it.

Josh Jackson said...

Can't wait to see where this takes you. I also love that the word verification Blogger gave me for this comment was "brefr."

stephy said...

I'm really curious about the Frosty the Snowman thing.

soupablog said...

@Paul L.: this *is* the work:

"The Robot LifeGuard Electrocuted Everyone."

soupablog said...

@Paul L., that *is* the finished work:

"The Robot Lifeguard Electrocuted Everyone."

Anonymous said...

Ummm. You have something else in mind, than the Robot jumping in the water to save someone? Hope I'm not unplugging the fun, but a robot would run off of batteries, and batteries can't electrocute people.

Unknown said...

Sure glad to see the literary juices are flowing full stream, David. Keep us posted about where this this going to be, when, etc...pt

Brooke & Kevin Maschmeier said...

very funny! love the artwork.

Anonymous said...

hooray for fiction!

Andy said...

How is TG doing these days?

MrSalamander said...

Kevin needs better robots.

Anonymous said...

I admit, sadly, that my Robots are not good enough to electrocute people.

mjaneb said...

David, I'm curious how this work formulated. I'm imagining that once others heard or found this idea circulating in your head, you were affirmed of the work's value. But what is the writing process for a five-word writ?

john swatz said...

thanks david!

Unknown said...

I totally need a robot lifeguard t-shirt. The guys I work with will so dig it. I will pick it up in January! x

Anonymous said...

The RL was very lonely, like Frankenstein. He only wanted to help.

Anonymous said...

It was as if he was born to be a life guard. It was all he had ever known. He could not fathom another undertaking...

heather said...

you probably weren't completely serious about the refrigerator magnets, were you. cuz that's when my heart skipped a beat. :o)

jdaviddark said...

All things are possible to she who has faith.
Would you really want one? If so, say so, and I'll look into it.