Jennifer Black
Bio
Stories (13/0)
The Truest Peace of Fear
Can you imagine driving on a dark country road, swerving, and having to spend the exceedingly long seconds where you’re skidding around at 80 miles per hour contemplating death for the first time? It’s not great. It is, as you can imagine, very scary.
By Jennifer Black3 years ago in Humans
Pink Musings
I remember the first time I allowed myself to wear pink. It wasn’t the first time I’d worn pink; after all, I was assigned female at birth in the mid-90s. Between first breaths and the first time I heard that something was “for boys” or “for girls”, I bet I wore every colour of the rainbow. I have no memory of those simpler times.
By Jennifer Black3 years ago in Humans
Bella Black, Survivor
It’s three in the afternoon, and Bella doesn’t know where her humans are. She hasn’t been sure of much ever since she was adopted from a Romanian shelter and brought to the UK. Just now, her adoptive humans left with no more than an “Okay, bye Bella! No, puppies can’t come this time.” Are they dead now? They’re probably dead now.
By Jennifer Black4 years ago in Petlife
Piecing Together a Broken Society
Imagine you’re sitting on your couch, binge watching Netflix, and a tornado spawns on your area rug. You’d convince yourself you were seeing things, until the turbulent winds picked you up, couch and all, and tossed you skywards. You’d probably grip the couch for dear life, do your best to dodge the flying tchotchkes, and wait out this weird, unpredictable storm.
By Jennifer Black4 years ago in The Swamp
That which Could Be
Sometimes the familiar isn’t familiar enough. As I come home with my dog after an early morning walk, the same door that would normally welcome me back pushes me away with an ominous presence. Cold winds swirl before me, rustling fall leaves before my feet, but the chill I feel comes from within. I delay the inevitable by snapping some photos of white wooden door, its fire-like glow radiating into the blue of early morning. The warmth contrasts with the cold dread that burns like dry ice in my chest.
By Jennifer Black4 years ago in Horror
Virtual Life Gave Me Hope for My Real One
I’m not all that huge into video games. I have plenty of hobbies, and most of the time, I’d rather be creating content and media than consuming it. That’s just a personal preference, and extends in many directions (I’d rather write than read, for example). And honestly, I have my hang ups around video games. Growing up as a girl, I wasn’t allowed to enjoy “nerdy” things by schoolyard bullies, and most of my attempts at improving my gaming skills were thwarted by an older brother who always either did things for me or just took over the console for his own games.
By Jennifer Black4 years ago in Gamers
Food Eaten as it Should Be; With Love
Food and I have a complex history. I didn’t like most foods as a child. I mean sure, kids are picky, but I had unaddressed sensory issues making most food textures hell for me. While I learned as an adult how to cook for my own needs, I spent most of my youth struggling to eat home-cooked food. For those first 18 years, I feel like I lived largely off of premade meals and fast food that had their textures and flavours processed away to nothing. This made food contentious in my family, and gave me an altogether unhealthy attitude towards eating.
By Jennifer Black4 years ago in Feast
I'm Fat, and I Love 'Ring Fit Adventure'
Finally, there’s a way for this fat girl to enjoy fitness. It’s called Ring Fit Adventure. I like the idea of fitness. I don’t like the idea that it’s mutually exclusive with fatness, and I really don’t like the idea that you should be active with the only real goal being “look smaller,” but I like the idea of fitness. I like to watch people do parkour and free running, and I wish I could do it myself. Was I terrible at pole vault and high jump in my 7th grade girls’ athletics program? Oh, most definitely. But I loved them. I like the idea that my body is mine to control and use like a specialized machine, and while that’s hardly a realistic concept considering my genetically shoddy joints and iffy coordination, it’s still fun to fantasize.
By Jennifer Black5 years ago in Gamers