A SAMPLING.........These and 12 more in this Kaleidoscope of Shorts.

With Extreme Prejudice: Richard slipped the .38 Special from the pocket of his fatigues, stepped from behind Annie's rhododendrons, pointed it skyward and fired three shots as fast as he could pull the trigger. If the pair on the truck thought they were warning shots they were mistaken.... Those three shots were the first in a gun battle that had been planned for weeks. . .

First Love: "Yer not gonna' let that 'boy' go out alone in that boat, are you?" The old man watched as the 10 year old boy raised the dinghy's sail and headed downwind like a greyhound closing in on a rabbit. By this time the boy's mother and most others had gathered around watching him sail away; some cheered him on, others watched as if he were Columbus about to sail off the edge of the earth. . .

Family Spirit: "Her name was Mary Snodder," the real estate lady said. The name was Snyder, but with a heavy Florida drawl it came out Snodder. Mary Snyder had experienced severe chest pains after a prolonged illness. When finally put into an ambulance, it was a one-way trip to the hospital. Mary died that night, alone, unknown to most, her only living relative a brother in a nursing home in Ohio. After buying her home, a stilted cabin in the Florida woods, we were shocked as we delved into her belongings and her life. . .

Paradise Pier: The cockroach slowly crawled across the kitchen ceiling and came to a halt directly over the French fryers I was manning-not an easy task, even for a multi-legged creature, as the ceiling was freshly painted with a high-gloss enamel. He looked to be a palmetto bug, over two inches long, almost an inch wide and very flat for an insect of his girth. He hung there seemingly stalled out by the heat rising from the fryers. I named him Gluefoot. . .

The collector: The "music box" wasn't a music box like one would think-perhaps sitting on the vanity in a little girl's bedroom. This instrument was big, juke-box sized, glass-enclosed with mahogany trim, a variety of instruments within the enclosure. A filigreed box with a ten-cent coin slot sat centered low on the front of the enclosure. Doc handed him a dime. "Drop it in and prepare to be amazed," he said, as he leaned back against the fender of a Stanley Steamer.