Let's Do

Title Page

let’s do B Y R E B E C C A M E A C H A M 2004 WINNER, KATHERINE ANNE PORTER PRIZE IN SHORT FICTION University of North Texas Press Denton, Texas © 2004 Rebecca Meacham All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Permissions: University of North Texas Press P.O. Box 311336 Denton, TX 76203-1336 The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, z39.48.1984. Binding materials have been chosen for durability. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Meacham, Rebecca, 1970Let 's do / by Rebecca Meacham. p. cm. “2004 Winner, Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Short Fiction.” ISBN 1-57441-185-3 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Middle West—Social life and customs—Fiction. I. Title. PS3613.E125L48 2004 813'.6—dc22 2004014252 Let’s Do is Number 3 in the Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Short Fiction Series This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or establishments or to persons living or dead is unintentional. Slightly different versions of these stories have appeared in the following publications: “Trim & Notions” and “Let’s Do” in Indiana Review; “Simple As That” in The Journal; “Good Fences” in Michigan Quarterly Review; “Worship for Shut-Ins” in West Branch; “Weights and Measures” in Chelsea; “Tom and Georgia Come Over to Swim” in Beloit Fiction Journal. Cover image: Sherry Karver, “Off Broadway: Faces in the Crowd III” (2001), photobased oil painting. Reproduced courtesy of Lisa Harris Gallery, Seattle, Washington. Text design by Carol Sawyer/Rose Design ...