"Carole" by Kim (Ghost@nym.alias.net). Why is Kim leaving the bar with her panties in her pocket, and what does this have to do with Christmas? Well, it's because she had been thinking about her present (meaning now, not a gift) and then somebody was kind enough to show her a possible future. In short, she has met Carole, who had put the scroo in Scrooge.

The sex in this story isn't actively sexy, but it's still an important part of a very good story. Kim weaves together several separate, vivid incidents into a good slice-of-life plot. Kim doesn't start this story with a claim that it is "true"; and I seriously doubt that these things really happened to her exactly as she describes them. Nevertheless, this story has a ring of authenticity to it that is often missing in stories on this newsgroup.

The only problem - and it's really a minor one - is that Kim should have consulted her proofreader before going to press with this story. Another 24 hours and one more set of revisions could have made this an even better story.