August 4, 2006

My skin pulled tight as the light blazed through my goggles.

A moment later and the light faded, leaving me in darkness once again. My skin stopped pulling, and rebounded into its normal configuration on my body. I felt the coolness of the chamber disappear as well, and the air around me became stiflingly hot.

Another moment, and I felt myself hit the ground. Hard. This is why I insisted on installing a reclining chair in the chamber. Not knowing where I would materialize, it made sense to travel in a position where I could distribute my weight and safely absorb the reentry impact.

I took off my goggles. A blue sky was above me, framed by two old red brick buildings. I felt something wet at my back.

I sat up and checked myself. Nothing broken. Nothing bleeding. I had landed in a puddle in an alley.

I got up and made my way to the street. I found a newspaper machine and checked the date on the cover of the newspaper in the front. About a year earlier than I had anticipated….