Raw Egg

In Nancy Whiteley's story, "The True Face of Earth," she decides as a teenager that she would like to get pregnant and start her own life with some guy. In ninth grade health class, they have an assignment to take care of a raw egg for a week without breaking it. It's supposed to show how difficult it is to be a parent. Nancy's partner takes very good care of the egg for most of the week, but when he turns it over to Nancy, she throws the egg into her purse and forgets about it. When she tosses her purse onto the kitchen chair when she gets home from school, the forgotten egg breaks in her purse. They flunk the assignment.

Fiery Red Porsche 944

In "Orbiting Izzy," Nancy Whiteley describes a fiery red Porsche 944 that her boss's mother keeps in the garage. She bought the...