Comments and gut reactions sincerely welcomed. Write down the first thing you feel! Anyone who wants to read the rest of it will receive red carpet treatment. Here goes. Please forgive me if I miss the 13 line limit- I'm measuring it as well as I can.

"The apartment was too small; it had been too small for Ellie by herself, even before Pete moved in. The walls and corners were awkward, turned tightly, as though you weren't supposed to want to get up and move freely from room to room. The walls themselves were made of fiberboard, covered with the kind of cheap paneling found in 1970s basement remodels. The bathroom was angular and depressing, with no bathtub.

"At first Ellie had considered renting the place a mistake, but it was so damned cheap, and she was there so rarely, that it hadn't really mattered. True, there were times when she had come home from work and up the three flights of stairs exhausted, feeling as though she was voluntarily closing herself into a shed instead of someone's normal living quarters. "

[This message has been edited by Luxie (edited November 08, 2005).]

There are mysteries cropping up I want answered immediately.

Is Pete a husband? Boyfriend? Something else?

Ellie is there rarely: why's she renting it? Maybe you meant she spent very little time at home.

I can't read right now, I'm totally swamped, but if you could wait a week or so, go ahead and send it my way.

Edited to say: The first 13 stop at "instead of someone's normal living quarters" You measure in 12pt Courier font with 1" margins.

The apartment was too small; it had been too small for Ellie by herself, even before Pete moved in. The walls and corners were awkward, turned tightly, as though you weren't supposed to want to get up and move freely from room to room. The walls themselves were made of fiberboard, covered with the kind of cheap paneling found in 1970s basement remodels. The bathroom was angular and depressing, with no bathtub.