{"product_id":"crisis","title":"Crisis","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe stories that never made the official report.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI worked crisis in Sagebrush City, a desert city in the Southwest where the bus doesn't come and the benefits office keeps moving farther from the bus line.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost days, the best I could do was keep a bad day from turning permanent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe names have been changed, and so have a lot of the details, to protect everyone, including me.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKorey was one of my clients. Just under 350 pounds, powered by snack food and stubbornness, with a brain that flickered between brilliance and static depending on the day. A late bus or the wrong letter in the mail could knock his whole week sideways. He also made me laugh harder than anybody else in Sagebrush.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne night the community center needed somebody to host the late-night call-in show. Korey was the only person in the room. He'd come for the air conditioning.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe callers said the things people don't say in daylight. Korey usually felt like a leftover. He turned out to be good at answering.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHe didn't get fixed. He went back to his game consoles and his bus theories and his nachos.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThen one day I showed up for a home visit, and the police were already there.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI also did private adoptions. When I got everything right, a newborn went straight from the hospital to a family with the nursery already built, instead of to an orphanage. People think America doesn't have orphanages. We have orphanages in every state.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBefore every handoff, I held the baby and said my name. No form ever asked for that part.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSun comes up. Nonsense clocks in. So do I.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCrisis\u003c\/strong\u003e is one of ten Sagebrush City books. Read them in any order.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEbook (epub), delivered right after purchase.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIncluded free:\u003c\/strong\u003e Jukebox, a short bonus Sagebrush City book.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Reality Services Office","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54152556249272,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0978\/4459\/2824\/files\/Crisis_1500x1200T.png?v=1790882450","url":"https:\/\/realityservicesoffice.com\/products\/crisis","provider":"Reality Services Office","version":"1.0","type":"link"}