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The Basement

Teenage parties, lost treasures, wartime bomb shelters

Missed calls, misheard lyrics, mistaken identities

Feeding the woodstove, siphoning gas with a hose, drinking endless cups of coffee

A teenage rite of passage, a prison barber, a husband’s unfamiliar face

For a job at Burger King, a prison in North Carolina, a girls’ school in Iran

Family recipes, mystery street foods, thrift-shop outfits

Hunting for bargains, letting go of possessions, emptying out a home

Calling a 1-900 number, moving to the tropics, writing fan fiction

A high-school play, a support group, a catechism class

Shining shoes, spreading gossip, growing plants in prison

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