3/24 - Surprise, Surprise

A couple days ago, I experienced a classic "recurrence," which is how I refer to your typical, run-of-the-mill incidence of synchronicity. However, I didn't pay much attention to this particular recurrence, because the time gap between the two recurring events was nearly a week, instead of hours or days (or seconds, or simultaneous, like so many are).

My log entry for the recurrence in question:

"3/22/14

A minor recurrence, quite possibly a coincidence. Sometime in the last week, I can't remember just when or where (it was in a book), I read a traveling tip on how you should tag your luggage with something distinctive so you can pick it out from a baggage carousel, etc. Then today, I got an unexpected package in the mail from a friend, in which was a bright, florid luggage tag, with a note saying that it helps to have distinctive tagging on your bags so you can pick them out, etc. Definitely a recurrence, but the time window is large enough that it isn't too notable."

An interesting event, certainly, considering the express exactness of the theme of "distinguish your luggage so it can be recognized," right down the same terms and wording. But it's not outside the realm of chance to encounter it twice within a week, because, for all the valid synchronicities out there, chance coincidence does, in fact, occur.

When I shared this recurrence with my friend, however, her response lent a new dimension to the incident:

"Since I wrote the letter and put the package together a week prior to mailing it, I would guess it was more of a synchronicity [than] you think."

I laughed.

2/3 - Book Synchronicity 2.0

The "book" synchronicity. It never fails at grabbing my attention. Read a new, obscure word for the first time in my life, in some random book I bought months ago, and then read the same word in my next sequential book, also bought and read randomly.

I've detailed several of these on this blog, and experienced many, many more. But yesterday, the phenomenon came with a twist.

V.S. Naipaul and Indira Gandhi, two Indian folks of a certain fame. Not knowing India and its figures, I'd never heard of these people until I read of them in a book, In Spite of the Gods: The Rise of Modern India, which introduced me to both of them within the course of a day's reading. Then, approximately 12 hours later, I encountered these names again, in a separate, unrelated book -- pretty unlikely. When all variables were taken into consideration (including the fact that the recurrence fit the distinct pattern I'd seen established over several years), the incident appeared to defy any reasonable chances of happening.

A classic book synchronicity, right? Wrong.

See, the second book that I encountered the names in came to me in the most remarkable of ways, different than even the accidental-on-purpose fashion which usually characterizes these incidents. Rather than the names recurring in a book I read, they arrived in a book I hadn't read.

The book, a paperback copy of Such a Long Journey by Rohinton Mistry, was given to me some years ago in a free box of books from a family member. For whatever reason, the book didn't interest me, and so it went on my shelf, where it would stay. I'd never opened this book, or so much as read its back cover. Maybe the cover image turned me off, I don't know; but the point is this: I had no idea what was in or on this copy of Such a Long Journey, nor did I have any plans to find out. The book was an ornamental fixture on one of my shelves, collecting dust.

So, when I needed a book to hide some money in, this one fit the bill.

Why was I hiding money in a book? I was putting together a "go bag," a backpack filled with clothes and other necessities, to be grabbed in the event of an emergency, whenever one might need to "go" in a hurry. One of the ingredients for a bag is some cash; another is a book, for something to do. So I put the two together, naturally. Went I went to choose a book from my bookshelf, my hand went, randomly, to Such a Long Journey. Recognizing it as one of those castoff books that I'd never read, I figured it was as good as any. So I put my emergency cash cleverly inside, then stuffed the book into my finished go bag.

Another ingredient of a good go bag: some food. This is what would instigate the synchronicity.

I regularly eat the food and water stored in my go bag, and immediately replace it, to keep it fresh. A couple weeks ago, I was overdue for this changing of the guard -- however, as it so happened, I didn't immediately eat the food. Either my menu wasn't friendly to the nuts and seeds in the go bag, or I was just too plain lazy to unpack the bag and dig out its food. Regardless, I didn't get around to it until yesterday -- the day after I read of V.S. Naipaul and Indira Gandhi for the first time in In Spite of the Gods.

When I unpacked my go bag, I had to take out my cash-filled copy of Such a Long Journey.

This time when I saw the book, it grabbed me. I don't know why: just as it had fallen flat and uninteresting on me years before, it struck me as interesting yesterday. So, as is natural when interested in a book, I turned it over and read its blurb -- which mentioned two Indian names, V.S. Naipaul and Indira Gandhi.

Had I read the book's blurb when I first got it, there would be no synchronicity. Had I read it two weeks ago, when the emergency food was overdue for replacement and before I read In Spite of the Gods, the synchronicity would be much less notable, since reading two new names, two weeks apart, could foreseeably be chance. But by "discovering" Such a Long Journey when I did, it recurred those two, specific, new names to me within a twelve-hour time frame, upgrading the unlikeliness to synchronicity levels.

Upon recognizing the names as those I'd been introduced to just a half-day before, I laughed out loud.

And that's not all: I got not only a new entry in my synchronicity log, but another book about India, to read when I finish In Spite of the Gods. I don't know enough about India to be familiar with two of its figures, but after reading these two books, perhaps that will change somewhat.

2/1 - Free anthology!

From 2/1 to 2/5, the anthology Paranormal Horror, which includes my short story, "The Clearing," will be free on Amazon. Hurry!

Link

1/23/14 - The Phenomenon's Return

For anyone unfamiliar with this blog, I have experienced a regular stream of rather unlikely coincidences -- unlikely enough to be considered "synchronicities," and coherent and numerable enough to be written about. Recently, however, the phenomenon took a breather.

Then it returned.

It was January 20th it happened, after approximately ten days of silence. Within this period, I had become accustomed to "normal," logical, non-synchronistic life -- not so much to forget the phenomenon entirely, but long enough for it to fade against the backdrop of new life experiences and demands. Certainly, this wasn't the first such drop-off of "activity," for in the years since my becoming aware of the phenomenon, I've experienced several of these weeks-long subsides. Yet, when the first new synchronicity arrived, my reaction was stronger than it would've been otherwise, the way absence makes the heart grow fonder.

The synchronicities came in rapid succession, three of them, almost identical.

The first occurred while I was driving. I pulled up to an intersection, saw that it was a red light, and thought, distinctly, of how I wanted the green light. Immediately after my thought, the song I was listening to in my truck's CD player said "green light," with less than a second between the two. The sheer coincidence factor was enough that the recurrence would've been noticed in any case, with such perfectly "synchronistic" timing that I couldn't have coordinated it had I tried. But, considering that the coinciding occurrences fit seamlessly the pattern that's been established in my past experiences (recurring thoughts, events, or themes in near instant succession), I took special notice.

After the wow had worn off, I was quick to make a note. Another one for the file.

Then, just minutes later, it happened again: just as I thought "fan," I overheard someone say "fan." Again, this happened with a crisply distinct spontaneity which, despite being nearly impossible to plan, again fit precisely that snap-bang format I've come to know for this particular type of synchronicity. An interesting note is that the thought which preceded "fan" pertained to my seeing something which I thought was an electric fan but, on closer examination, proved to be the mechanical top of a paper shredder -- that is to say, something which bears absolutely no semblance to a fan. Yet, I thought this, just before a nearby person, unconnected to me, said "fan" aloud (and yes, my thought was before the person said fan -- just before, less than a second, but definitely before, thus ruling out some sort of subconscious suggestion for me to see the paper shredder as a fan).

My first note was joined by an addendum reading "fan."

Then, approximately a half-hour later, the third such synchronicity arose: this time my reading "thank you" precisely as someone behind me said "thank you." What I read was the swipe terminal at a grocery checkout, which printed "Approved - Thank You" just after I swiped my credit card -- which, coincidentally, occurred precisely as the cashier behind me said "thank you." This one, unlike the other two, is not as distinct and complicated -- and, thus, not as unlikely from a statistical perspective. However, it is lent some notability by the fact that it fit so perfectly that pattern previously established -- not just over my years of past experiences, numbering in the hundreds, but of just over the last hour. Feel one rain drop, and you might shrug it off; feel a dozen, and you'll prepare for a rain shower.

So there I was, right back in the whirlwind of dreamlike unreality inspired by such incidents, as if I'd never left.

1/20/14 - Accidental Literature: Stories

Accidental Literature: Stories - a collection of A.A. Garrison's literary forays.

Blurb:

In this collection: 19 short stories of a literary bent.

Variety defines these stories. From dark to light, humorous to dead serious, experimental to traditional, flash-length to novelette, these 19 selections from author A.A. Garrison fulfill a mixed spectrum of tastes and styles. No two are alike, and surprises abound.

Included in Accidental Literature:

• A drug addict’s quirky pursuits (“Tomorrow”)
• A beautiful young murderer asks, “Is anyone innocent?” (“Innocent”)
• If a brutal dictator must have one thing, it’s the right anthem (“An Anthem for Chen”)
• A fatal traffic accident as seen from multiple points of view (“Mirrors”)
• A San Francisco quake brings gifts in strange and romantic wrappings (“Ketu Says Hi (Or, She Laughs at Earthquakes)”)
• The hellish trials of a sick man awaiting healing (“The Waiting”)
• A videotape containing a sinister crime against a child, and the question of what to do with it (“The Videotape”)
• The world as seen through the kaleidoscopic eyes of a chronic alcoholic (“Alcoholism and Bad Sex”)

Plus 11 more literary tales, all executed in A.A. Garrison’s quietly loud fashion.

Be taken by these words. Be seduced. Be offended. Be wowed.

Buy the eBook, read sample stories, and get reviews at these vendors:

Amazon  Barnes & Noble  Lulu  Kobo  Smashwords  Scribd

Buy the print version, via Print-on-Demand, here:

Lulu  Createspace

1/15/14: What Is and What Could Be: Tales of Imagination

A new short story collection from A.A. Garrison: What Is and What Could Be: Tales of Imagination

Blurb:

Sometimes the best fiction defies all labels. That’s why these stories are called, simply, “tales of the imagination.”

In this collection of 15 diverse selections from author A.A. Garrison, the reader is introduced to a broad expanse of literary territory, ranging from sci-fi to crime to post-apocalyptic ruminations, including some outright weirdness and a no-apologies zombie romp.

Included in this slideshow of imagination:

• One man’s disgusting, but lucrative, enterprise (“Bestseller”)
• A young woman’s government-sponsored birth and its sinister mystery (“Immaculate Conception”)
• When only a select few are saved from the end of the world, what about those left behind? (“Passed Over”)
• A man who discovers endless pleasure, only to lose it and learn from the experience (“The Discipline Ball”)
• A blind murder’s long, strange road to incarceration (“Windows to the Soul”)
• A big, spinning wheel in the sky could only be an alien-controlled UFO, right? (“Wheel in the Sky”)
• America’s downfall arriving not by fire or ice, but caffeine withdrawal (“Caffei-nation”)
• The saga of a guardian angel disguised as an evil cat (“Lucky”)

And more! Comprising a full, novel-length read, this collection is guaranteed to satisfy most literary appetites. After all, isn’t all fiction about imagining what is and what could be?

Read sample chapters, get reviews, and buy the eBook from these vendors:

Amazon  Barnes & Noble  Lulu  Kobo  Smashwords  Scribd

Buy the print version, via Print-on-Demand, here:

Lulu  Createspace

1/7/14: The Long Short Story: Novellas

A collection of speculative novellas from A.A. Garrison: The Long Short Story: Novellas

 Blurb:

Novella - [noh-vel-uh] - a fictional prose narrative that is longer and more complex than a short story

Some folks like short stories, others enjoy the deeper waters of a novel. But what about those times when a short story is too short and a proper novel too long?

Enter the novella, that literary stopgap.

Collected here are five such long-shorts, of a speculative bent:

• “Deadheading with Max,” a quietly fantastic travel story
• “Everything’s Connected,” an outrageous sci-fi slapstick romp
• “Intangible,” a paranormal drama depicting the strangest of theft
• “The Birth of Edenborough,” a post-apocalyptic romance
• “The Dead Man’s Phone,” a lighthearted horror thriller

The Long Short Story – guaranteed to occupy that lengthy commute or trip to the park, when other fiction just wouldn’t sit right.

 Buy the eBook, get reviews, and read a sample story at these vendors:

Amazon  Barnes & Noble  Lulu  Kobo  Smashwords  Scribd

Buy the print version, via Print-on-Demand, here:

Lulu  Createspace