Angry Karen (short story)
The approximate wait time was 15 minutes and a staggered collection of humans were gathered beneath the angled overhang of the shaded front porch of the Cracker Barrel Country Restaurant. Families that had previously been cooped up inside their homes for several months were finally exercising their need to be set free. The sun was only 1/4 of the way up the sky and the outdoor thermometer already read 79 degrees. It was going to be another hot one down south. A young girl of about 11 tugged at her papa's trouser pocket. "I don't wanna wear it. It's hot and my lips are sweaty," she claimed while pulling the mask away from her face and making fanning motions. The elastic string on one side got twisted in her hair and she grumbled while trying to free it. "Stop messing with it and that won't happen," was papa's reply. "When we get inside we can take them off for breakfast, but for now, stop messing with it." A mother six feet