A collection of short stories and tales that dramatizes the realities of working men, women, families, and loners. Whether it’s the discovery of old secrets or the pressures of work and family, the characters in this collection aim to do what is right for themselves and for their loved ones. They try to live their lives with meaning, while a loud, indifferent world aims to reduce them to nothing but the means to an end. From the first story to the last, the characters go about their business only vaguely aware of the larger forces controlling their worlds, and yet determined to live on their own terms. Some characters fight and some go with the flow, while all face their options with as much courage and focus as they can muster in the circumstances. In the first story, Ralph quits his job to protect the reputation of an eccentric customer. In “The Screw,” Joe discovers that his brother has been lying to him, a lie that threatens to bring down his world. Caleb, highschool drop-out, wants to head west, but discovers a murder that he chooses to keep to himself.