Extract from "Parabbbbnormal Tales"

One of the most famous (although not the most reputed) medium of Victorian England was Claudia Poshnik, who was said to have many well-paid spirits at her service. In a state of trance, Poshnik summoned her spirits by telephone (a recent invention) and they obeyed her without question. (One of them, a certain Josh Milgrawe, once dared to contradict her and she dismissed him ruthlessly, so the poor spirit ended in indigence). Poshnik mixed in the high society of Glasgow, very fond of séances and bridge games. In fact, she was often required at the famous bridge games of Huntington mansion. It was rumored that Mr. J. P. Huntington amassed a fortune at the expense of his bridge opponents, who watched with some suspicion a continuous transfer of flying cards. Because of this, some rich Glaswegians were ruined and ended in indigence. The medium herself ended in indigence when the magician and professional escapist Harry Houdini attended one of these sessions disguised as scarecrow and exposed the fraud.
PARABBBBNORMAL TALES

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Image
USER MANUAL In this blog you will find all the short stories that make up the books detailed below this presentation.  They can also be purchased on Amazon, either each book separately or all gathered in a single volume entitled "SILLY HUMOR FOR SMART PEOPLE". (The benefits also go to UNICEF.) For many years I've made a living on television taking advantage of my absurdist sense of humor. Like the books themselves, the intention of this blog is to continue making use of it with a philanthropic purpose. But it's free. Only at the end of each post I include a link to UNICEF just in case someone wants to contribute to help children in need in exchange for my stories.  Imagine that one of those children asks for a little help but he/she cannot offer anything in return. Well, I offer you these stories in his/her name.  At the end of each post there is a label with the title (in capital letters) of the book to which it belongs. Click on it and you will acc...
Read more

THE CRAZY TRIAL OF FRANZ KAFKA

Image
FIRST DAY JUDGE: Franz Kafka, you are accused of playing dead in order to steal all the gold watches from the city of Prague. How do you plead: guilty or innocent? KAFKA: Innocent, your Honor. JUDGE: Well, in that case, you can leave. PROSECUTOR: I object! JUDGE: It's okay. Stay. But tell me, how did you come up with that insane plan? KAFKA: I just wanted to know the time, your Honor. JUDGE: So you didn’t steal gold watches because of their economic value? KAFKA: Oh no, your Honor! Why would I want a watch if it wasn’t to know the time? JUDGE: But we are not talking about a single watch. We talk about all the watches in the city. Moreover, all the gold watches. KAFKA: I wanted to check the time of all the watches because I needed to know the exact time. And the most reliable watches are the gold ones. JUDGE: Why did you need to know the exact time? KAFKA: It was a matter of life or death. I can’t give more details. PROSECUTOR: I object! He's ...
Read more

Episode 8: "THOSE GLOOMY LONG-HAIRED BALL-BUSTERS"

Image
With his hands clasped behind his back, Karl August, Duke of Saxe-Weimar, in his elegant red double-breasted coat, contemplates the landscape from the wide window of his office. Then someone knocks on the door. -Come in. -Excellency, I've already reviewed the correspondence. -Something important? -The Archduchess Feodora regrets not being able to attend the dance this Saturday. The Count of Wettin reminds you of the invitation to a hunting party in the Black Forest next week. And then there are the reports of the war. Prussia has joined a Sixth Coalition against Napoleon... The Duke turns around with surprised expression. -”Sixth” have you said? They have skipped the Fifth! Can't they count beyond three, those louts?! -The Fifth Coalition is what your Excellency knew as the Fourth Coalition. Before, there was a Third one, but it was so brief that your Excellency missed it. You thought they were the final throes of the Second Coalition. Suddenly the Duke bang ...
Read more