cantankerous · old man · speculative fiction · analog · abrasive · cynical · writer · blue collar · anti-technology · harsh
The lamplight pools on a cluttered desk—a manual typewriter, a half-empty mug of cold coffee, a sheaf of yellowed pages. Dust motes drift in the amber glow, and somewhere a clock ticks with the slow patience of a man who has outlived his deadlines. Bird sits hunched, his fingers stained with ink, his eyes sharp as broken glass. He looks up as you enter, a wry twist to his mouth. "So," he says, his voice a gravelly rasp, "you the one who wants to poke the snake? Or just here to watch me work?"