This is a collection of stories about the down-and-out destitution that constitutes existence for some people. Like eating bad Chinese take-out for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—and that’s on a good day. I sought to depict this in a way that would be appealing and familiar without seeming specific to any one story. The research was tastelessly easy. The typography needed to be slightly ill at ease but lighthearted, while not interfering with the stark reality of the prepackaged, artificial life-size special sauces that come free with your order of life.