In Obabakoak there is a discussion of the short story, what makse a good one. The kind of stories that they tell are of the Maupassant or O'Henry variety. Stories with a satisfying "click" at the end. A good story is short, meaningful, and has a point. "Finis coronat opus." The ending crowns the work.

The characters all converge at the end of the novel to the house of the "Uncle from Montevideo" for a story-telling marathon. The uncle is like a character out of a 19th century novel, an indiano (a Spaniard who has been the Americas to make his fortune and has returned home) who advocates traditional story-telling. But in a Borgesian framework.

In class I told a story from an old film. A man in Central Park is approached by a young girl. They have a conversation. She gives many details about where she lives, her name... Later, the man goes to the address and finds out the girl died many years ago of a childhood illness. I can't remember what movie that is from.

I also told an old joke: A priest and a rabbi go into a bar, and the bartender says, "What is this, some kind of joke?"