Writing Prompt: Worst Thanksgiving Dish You Ever Had.

     Here she comes, flying through my front door with her car coat flapping behind her.

     "What are you up to?" She smiles that gaped toothed, heavy on the lipstick smile at me. Do I tell her she has lipstick on her front tooth? Just as I'm about to say something about the lipstick, she takes a puff off her cigarette and says, "I forgot how you dislike my smoking." She purses her lips like she's going to whistle at me, but instead she struts across my kitchen floor and extinguishes her cigarette in an empty milk glass that needs to be washed. The lipstick on her front tooth has disappeared, no need to say anything.

     "You aren't going to be drinking out that glass again." She flops onto my kitchen couch and stares at me, with a look at disdain on her face, but yet she has a twinkle in her eye.

     Meet my friend Esmeralda. I wasn't expecting her today, but that's how she does life. She's my brazen friend, she says what she wants, does what she wants, dresses how she wants, takes the bull by the horns kind of woman. After she sheds her car coat, I'm amazed at how she can pull off a flirty little sundress....at her age. Those shoes, killer heels. I'm silently coveting her shoes. Her feet are so dainty compared to my stepsister feet. Her voice is raspy, like she has been out on tour singing in smokey bars chatting up the gentlemen looking for a free drink. She probably has.

     "Well, enthrall me with your wonderful tales. I've been gone so long and you know how I don't do social media. Look at me and tell me dear one, what have you on your plate this go around?"
 She swings her legs with those beauty shoes still attached to her feet and lounges on my couch, waiting for me to speak.The twinkle in her eye doesn't leave, but there is a spark in her tongue.

     "Oh Esmeralda." I begin. "I've been working on a writing prompt. The worst Thanksgiving dish I ever had."

     She looks at me in anticipation. "So? What is it? What is the worst thanksgiving dish you have ever eaten? Certainly it couldn't be worse than when I was in the South of France and we ran out of wine!" She shrieks with laughter! "Imagine! Me running out of wine! But that's a tale for another day!" She's off again, laughing so hard her eyes fill with tears.

     "It goes a number of years back." I say to Esmeralda. "A lot of years back. The worst thanksgiving dish I ever had was a turnip casserole with broiled marshmallows on the top. It was the worst. Who ever thought of that combination must of had had a surplus of turnip and marshmallows hanging about and thought what a great idea! Turnip and marshmallows on their own are boring, but together, a Thanksgiving treat! Blech!  It was when I was dating that guy and he invited me over for dinner at his parents' place. Do you remember that Esmeralda?"

     "Do I remember it? I remember it like it was yesterday. That was the guy I told you not to go out with,  but you wouldn't listen. Plenty of fish in the sea I said to you, no need to drop anchor and settle in on that small fry. Back then, you did as you pleased. You were a smitten kitten with that one. No changing your mind. So, I stopped badgering you and decided to sit back and enjoy the show. You and that gorilla made it one good show. If reality TV was a thing back then, you would have had topped ratings. The drama!" I watch as Esmeralda fans her face with her hands and pretends to faint.

     I laughed at her antics. "Esmeralda! You're one to talk! How about 'Andre' the biker? One minute you were this demure pixie in ballet slippers and the next minute you were buying out the Harley store!"

     "With Andre, a lot of crazy things happened, but never turnip and marshmallows. However, one night in Las Vegas, we may have been partaking in some 'magic turnips' if you get my drift." Esmeralda is off laughing again and wiping her eyes remembering her time with Andre.

     "We've come a long way baby." I swoon at her. I push her over so I can have some room on my couch and I hug my long time friend. "How about before you leave I whip you up some turnip and broiled marshmallows, just so you can say you tried them."

     She gives me that smirk I have come to love so much and says in her most raspy voice, "No thanks, but magic turnips....maybe."

     With that she flings herself off my couch, pulls on her car coat and is half out my door, when she turns to me and says, "You know I'll be back my dear one." And she blows me kiss.

From the 4th line,
Arlene

Truth or fiction....you be the judge. :)

Writing Prompt: What Can Happen In A Second

When technology throws you a curve ball you got to move to where the ball is being thrown. I wrote this blog last night, and some how it vanished. So, I get a second chance. 

"Give me a second."
"Just a second."
"Wait a second."
"Hold up a second."

I am guilty of saying these sentences. The one I use the most is "Just a second." I throw that phrase at my boys all the time. Here's prime example. Close your eyes and picture yourself at my house at about 5:45AM. What you see is a little boy lying on the couch in a nest of blankets. What you hear is a little boy bellowing,"Mom! Can you make me a hot chocolate!" That's when you see a bleary eyed mom stumbling down the stairs and mumbling to the bellowing boy on the couch, "Just a second. My eyes are not even open yet."
Time is measured in years, months, hours, minutes and seconds. A second counts. The second is used mainly in races. It used to be that a winner would win the race by a mere second. But somehow, somewhere, and by someone, a second was taken and chopped into 100th's of a second. Now a winner wins by seconds and teeny tiny chunks of a second. Those teeny tiny chucks of second decides who goes on to the Olympics and who gets to stay home and watch the Olympics on their TV. 
I can make a second last for minutes, much to the annoyance of my boys. I frequently use "just a second" so I can get another 5 minutes. That table gets turned on me too. When I'm hollering so we can get going, I get retorted back, "Just a second." 
There are things that can happen in a second. It just took a second for an egg to slip out of your grasp to fall to the floor to cause a 5 minute clean up. In a second, a china plate can slip out one hand's when emptying out the dishwasher, causing shards of china to explode and hide in every crevice. You can lose your finger if you're not paying attention, and that one second of looking away from the saw, has caused a lot of hours spent in the hospital. Clicking on your computer mouse, just takes a second, but if you click wrong it could cause a company to lose millions. Or a click of a mouse could lead you astray. Just taking that second to look down at your phone while driving, may lead to a lifetime of consequences. 
But on the other hand, lovely things can happen in a second. In just a second, I can receive a sticky kiss on my cheek from a chubby cheeked boy. It just takes a second, to give a hug. A knowing wink to a friend takes just a second. A smile to a stranger, takes just a second. Holding the door open, that's a second. Saying please takes a second and add on one more second for thank you. A click of your computer mouse sends a thoughtful email to a dear one in a second. 
We are told as we go bumbling about this life to make our days count, as time passes by so very fast. After pondering about what can happen in a second, I'm going to think about what I can do to make each second count. And I'll do that in just a second. 

From the 4th line,
Arlene

642 Things to Write About

Writings prompts....

     While foraging through Chapters one Tuesday morning, I stumbled across this book: 642 Things to Write About.

     A quick scan through the book peaked my interest. It gives you writing prompts. Creative exercises to get the mind thinking and writing juices flowing.  I bought the book and set it on my end table and stared at it, flipped through it, stared at it again and then thought about it. The book itself, when you flip it open looks much like a fancy notebook, it states the writing prompt and then gives you lines, like paper how which to write your response. I don't want to write in the book. That would cause a mess, and my penmanship has a lot to be desired. If the book got messy inside I would never pick it up again and it doesn't give you a lot of room to write. Plus...I may have a lot to say on one writing prompt where as I may only have a few sentences to throw at another writing prompt.  

     That left me with a dilemma. Thoughts swirled in my head about starting a new blog based solely on the 642 Things to Write About. As I checked out different blog sites, from SquareSpace, to Wordpress, and Weebly, it occurred to me that I already have a blog that has been lying dormant for quite some time. Dilemma solved.

     There will still be tales from the 4th line, but I'm going to take my cues from the writing prompts for the next little while and see where that takes me. Let's breathe, change is good!  I plan on incorporating some truth, and loads of embellishments in the storytelling.  Of course I'll change the names and places to protect the innocent. You may think at times that I'm writing about myself, or you, or you, or you.

Maybe.

Let's hope you get so lucky.

From the 4th line,
Arlene :)

Sunday Mornings that make you go...."Hmmmm."

Let me set the scene.

It's a Sunday morning and both my lazy dudes are still in their jammies watching kid shows. I've just popped out of the shower and I've walked to the living room clad in my bathrobe of course...we aren't that kinda of family...just saying.... to check on the guys. I had left 5 year old D in charge. I notice their is a little bowl of peanuts on the floor by D.

Me: D. Watch your peanuts, you are going to spill them all of the floor.

D: They're Peanuts! Not Penis!

Me: I said peanuts!

D: No you didn't you said penis!

Me: What! No I didn't! I said....oh nevermind!

End scene.

That's all she wrote!

From the 4th line,
Arlene

Checking off the list....

I managed to get a few things accomplished in my procrastination stage of the day. I did fold three massive loads of laundry and managed to put it all away. Pat on the back for me!! I did the dishes, but not right away, I waited till the boy and I had lunch, so another pat on the back for me...I conserved some water and did the dishes! I didn't vacuum, but I did sweep my kitchen floor, another pat on the back....conserved some hydro!

I did manage some time wasters in there as well. I spent a lot of time surfing the Internet learning about essential oils and where to buy the best ones. Placed an order for some lemon oil and PMS oil, because the skeptic in me needs to try new things out and see if they work, not because some random lady post a great review on a product. If anything, that absorbed a great chunk of my time, I haven't started picking up toys, and I did think about painting that lone stripe, but my head moved on to other places. 

Completely off topic, I notice on my stats dashboard, which by the way, I don't fully understand,  readers drop by my blog and have a poke around. Next time you are in my neck of the woods. so to speak, leave a hello comment! That would be very neighbourly of you! 

Time to get back at that list!

From the 4th line,

Arlene

Procrastination....is my middle name

No, not really. I have a biblical middle name, but today, procrastination is the name of the game.

What I should be doing....folding clothes that are brimming over in three laundry baskets.
                                          -finish painting that one lonely orange stripe in the boy's room and declaring that room officially painted and done!
                                           -vacuuming the floors, especially the kitchen floor, because at my house no one knows how to take their shoes off when they walk in. Not only do I have leaves on the floor, but sand, some mud, and a few stones.
                                           -dishes. I really loathe doing dishes.
                                            -putting away the crap that gets left everywhere on every surface. Stuff at my house have different homes, so you can never find things where you last put them.

What am I doing instead of this....sitting on my couch surfing the Internet.
                                                       -watching Wild Kratts with the other little guy.
                                                       -drinking coffee and thinking I might need another coffee.
                                                       -applying some lip gloss, I need to look good while I procrastinate.
                                                       -looking at what need to do from the view of my couch.
                                                       -looking for my get up and go. I'm not sure where I left it.
                                                     
Okay....no more sitting, just get up and go to it. The list has been made, the sooner I get up and start I can do what want this afternoon. Okay....here I go....maybe later.

See...it's like a toy bomb exploded in my house and the even the dog didn't survive.

From the 4th line,
Arlene

Please Hold....

"The number you are trying to reach is currently out of service. Please hang up and try this number again."

"The person you are trying to reach is currently unavailable. At the tone, leave a message or press pound for further options."

The current situation of my blog. Procrastination is my middle name.....

From the 4th line,
Arlene