Chinese Luck of the Irish

Leonard Lim, Jay's coworker at the tire shop, referred him to a Chinese herbalist in Scottsdale.


Jay was impressed with his initial visit, walking away seventy dollars light and swearing the month's worth of Chinese gentleman's formulations had done wonders for his arthritis and aching muscles.


Entering the lobby from his second session with Dr. Wah, Jay thought he heard cricket chirps coming from the corner of the waiting area and, sure enough, a retail shelf held tiny bamboo cages each containing a single cricket, and a sticker that read, "'For Good Luck $8.99,"

'Can't hurt, the other stuff seems to be workin',' he muttered to the cashier.


Jay put the cricket on his kitchen counter, and plucked the smallest leaf from a celery stalk to wedge into the delicate cage.


Three mornings later, Jay discovered the cricket was dead and emptied the cage into his garbage disposer, pulling the cold water tap on to full force, and reaching for the disposer switch that electrocuted him an instant before an echoey chirp came from what sounded like the sink's drain.