December 4, 2023

Tilt

“There are no Christmas-themed pinball machines, nor should there be. Pinball is pinball, and Christmas is Christmas. If there’s one thing I learned in the Army this is truly it.”

That was the last thing Colonel Gray Brandcoffee said to me before he climbed into the capsule and jettisoned into orbit.

I watched him soar into the lunar sky, zigzagging among the stars while blasting The Kinks’ holiday classic “Father Christmas” and giving me the finger accompanied by his wide, mocking grin.

Colonel Brandcoffee’s spaceship crashed in a burp of flames and, through the heat, he emerged, helmet in hand. Defeated, but not beaten.

Then I realized that his head was still in his helmet. I guess that’s why he was walking in circles. --TK