Fiction
Death
In Florenceby Nick Kolakowski
Ask me the best way to bicycle around Florence.
Answer: unless you’re borderline suicidal, don’t even try.
Good thing I fall into that category.
Imagine pedaling down a narrow medieval street as a Fiat truck rumbles toward you like a piston in a cylinder. At first you mutter a polite “Mi dispiace,” forgetting the driver can’t hear you, which escalates into an all-American “Damn!” as the truck continues bearing down at top speed and you belatedly realize there’s maybe a thirty-inch gap between four tons of roaring metal and the ancient wall to your left. You veer in that direction and brace for impact and as the Fiat growls past with an inch to spare and a passing whiff of diesel and Italian manhood you belt out: “Damn it you almost killed m
