Creative Writing Prompt

As I mentioned in my first post I plan to use my blog to share stories I write. The following is a story I created from a prompt site I enjoy visiting. The story is created with six random ideas or words chosen by the site. I gave myself 15-20 minutes to come up with the entire story. Enjoy.

Sarah and Flame

a talking cat, intelligent parrot, medieval village, to build a house, illness strikes, rosebush.

Once upon a time, long ago before the days of cars, phones or even paved roads, there was a cat named Sarah. Sarah was no ordinary cat. She belonged to a sorcerer who bestowed the gift of gab.

This sorcerer also owned a parrot. Now the parrot and Sarah did not get along. Flame, named so because his feathers looked like flames consuming his body, annoyed Sarah at every opportunity. He enjoyed thinking of new pranks to play on the cat.

One day Flame flew at top speed across the small cottage where they all lived. He flapped his wings and went right over Sarah's head yelling, "Fire, fire! Run, save yourself!" Sarah looked up and saw what looked like flames over her head. She streaked out the window straight into the rosebush out front.

"Ouch!" Sarah cried as she pulled away from a long, sharp thorn. Flame flew over and perched on a near by tree. He laughed at Sarah as she made her way out of the rosebush. He taunted the cat, "Silly, silly cat, you fell for that old one?"

Weeks and weeks followed and Sarah would not forgive the parrot. She turned her head when he flew into a room. When he talked to her, she would cover her ears with her paws. Then one day when spring was almost upon them a black illness entered the village. Most people became ill. The sorcerer and Flame were among the afflicted.

Sarah watched over the two night and day. When their blisters healed and their foreheads cool Sarah quickly burned the cottage and everything in it, for nothing that was touched by the black illness could never be used again.

Sarah went to work gathering stones and wood to build a new cottage. When Flame was strong enough to fly, he would take off and look for stones and wood from the air. When he spotted something they could use, he would call down to Sarah and the sorcerer. They would then go and fetch the materials. Together the three built the new cottage.

Flame still played tricks on Sarah but she didn't mind. The new cottage had an extra room just for her and she went there whenever Flame's foolishness got her back up.

You Tube video

The previous post is a video my husband found on-line. If you like Star Wars you will probably love this. Even if you've never seen a Star Wars movie I think you can enjoy this. It tells about good food in a fun, entertaining way. Enjoy

Grocery Store Wars (2005)

Books I'd Like to Write

They say everyone has a book in them. I have so many ideas and titles flowing through my brain I can hardly think strraight to re-write and edit them all. My mother-in-law had a book in her, Your Sure Are Going To Have A Nice Place When You Finish, about her adventures in refurbishing an old 19th Century farm house. She and her husband were proud when all the neighbors came over to veiw the new indoor bathroom. It was the first one on the street. This was in the 50's. She wrote on her manuscript for over 40 years and shamefully never finished. She's been gone 7 years now and what she wrote is still in boxes waiting for her son to put together and publish. I believe it would do well. She had a witty, wonderful sense of humor.

The book I was going to write after my first year as a bride was aptly titled, The Laundry Basket Is Always Full. I have since written a couple of children's picture book manuscripts that I keep editing and re-writing in hopes they will some day be picked up by someone willing to take a chance on me.

Thinking about my first book idea and my mother-in-law's memoir sprouted a gardenful of new book titles. See if you can figure out the subject of each by the title.
There's Dog Poop On My Shoe
Don't Give Your Dog Bubble Gum...
Pass The Pickles And Sourkrout
Wow, I Really Am The Center Of The Universe!!
Oops, Did I Do That?
Hey, There's A Cherry Stem In My Martini
Don't Use A Shovel To Dig Your Pool
I Owe My Life To My Guardian Angel
I Have A Wicked Sense Of Humor, And I'm Not Afraid To Use It

Until next time, look deep into your head, you may become cross-eyed, and caugh up your own book title.

Doodles

I was lounging across my Dad's lift chair blowing off some steam when I looked down on the notebook in my lap. My hand holding a pencil moved across the page like the like the pointer on a Quigi board. I'm a doodler. The boarders and all spaces in between on my high school and college notes are filled with flowers, eyes and geometric figures. To this day I can not have a sheet of paper in front of me without drawing something in the margins.

On this day I looked down and saw a square forming. I thought about the cartoon character, Sponge Bob Square Pants and how he must have been created. Every time I see that little squeeze I wonder how much his creator made and is still making. My fingers and inner creative genius kept on drawing. When I finished I had three creations staring at me.
'A figure of squares and rectangles, a cute little thing made of all triangles and an orb. I decided I needed names for my new found pals. The next to magically appear on the page were the words, "The Adventures of Cube Man, Star Struck and Globe Trotter." A series has to have episodes, so after the main title followed possible story ideas, "Globe Trotter Gets Ahead, Star Struck in the Lime Light, and Cube Man is called a Square."

I am headed to the shower so I can dress and head for home after lunch with my Mom. Maybe I should buy some of those bath crayons so I don't lose my train of thought and I can continue my creative impulses. Until next time think about this, What did the notes and margins of Da Vinci, Einstein and Shultz look like?

Going To The Dogs or Not!

As I may have mentioned earlier we added Gabriel, a Flat-coated-retriever, to our family. Gabriel being a pure bred has opened up a whole new world to us. We attended our first dog show this past fall. What an experience! There was every breed of dog imaginable and some breeds I had never seen or heard of in my life.

Owners came in as many shapes and sizes as their dogs. Boxers were showing in the ring next to us. Some owners/handlers didn't look anything like their dog, however, one owner stood out to me. She looked like her dog's twin. She wore a suit that matched her hair and her dogs coat, they were both stocky and moved around the ring with the same gait. There were other pairs that matched. A tall thin woman walking with a tall thin poodle. Short, small people holding
Tea-cup Chihuahuas. I remember in days past when it was said as couples grew old together, they began to look alike. I guess the same is true about some dogs and their owners. Personally, if I didn't think an Irish Setter's coat would be extremely time consuming, I'd have one to match my own red hair. I might even slim down to match the body build.


Flat coats are known for their friendly, out-going personalities. This friendliness is often demonstrated by licking everyone and everything in sight. Our Gabriel doesn't fit this general description. He's more subdued than the breed at large. Example, another Flat-coat owner who was also watching the show put out his hand for Gabriel to lick. Instead, Gabriel sat there and gave this stranger the stare. By the stare, I mean he looked blankly at the man with this, I'm not licking your hand, I don't know where it's been look.



This same gentleman had a bowl of water for his dog. This being our first dog show didn't realize water wouldn't be available for our pets. I asked if Gabriel could share. You would think I'd asked for a kidney by the look he gave me. I mean, they're dogs for heaven's sake, not newborn royalty. We ended up purchasing a portable water bowl that folds up. Gabriel happily drank the rest of the day. He never did warm up to the man who wanted him to lick his hand, I guess he held a grudge about the water bowl.



The trip over was loud and traumatic. Gabriel didn't want to stay put on the seat, he howled in protest, sounding more like a coon chasing hound than the pure bred Flat-coat he is. The trip home was the polar opposite, Gabriel was worn out and slept the whole way. He continued sleeping after we arrived home. He got out of the car, went by his food and water dish straight to his crate. Now I know what to do if I ever want to knock him out for the evening. Until next time, remember not to howl at a full moon unless it's attached to someone you like.