321 Quote Me ~ Knowledge

1. A big thank you goes out to Rory (and Doodlepip), who selected me for this week’s quote game. 😀

2. My smart kitty Gatsby found a couple quotes for me while I was having dinner. I think they fit the theme just fine. 🐱

3. Now we paw tag three more bloggers to continue the quote game…

Ashley

Beckie

Carol Anne

“Thou art a worry to thy friends” [SOCS]

Linda told us to grab the closest book, open it, and put our finger on a page ~ this would be our Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Mine is the quote in the title, which is on page 64 of Tortilla Flat by John Steinbeck, a used paperback I picked up at an exchange a while back but haven’t read yet.

Honestly, I’m not really inclined to read the book now, given the annoying dialog on this page, and the names of the characters (Pilon and Pirate). I feel it well within my rights to make such an arbitrary and snap judgment because I have an enormous pile of books to read, and more come in all the time. I’ll never get through them all before I die, so why not cull them in any manner whatsoever?

May sucked as far as reading. I began a few books and lost interest, played games on my phone, read a lot of blogs and news, and was basically a scatterbrain. I need to get more focused now. Today I deleted my phone solitaire games that I play when I can’t sleep, and which probably keep me from sleeping too. Duh. I could spend that time reading. It’s less stimulating as far as keeping me awake like a game. But to be fair, I have dozed off in the middle of a card game, though not often. Maybe once.

I don’t think I’m a worry to my friends. I’m very sensible and predictable, at least that’s how I’m perceived. Reliable. Dependable. I can be counted on to do a thing if I say… which is also a curse, you know? Because unreliable people always get a break. Hey, no biggie if Joe didn’t show up… we know how he is. And oh there goes Janet again, such a wild and crazy gal! But me? If I mess up or don’t show, everyone is all but you said!!!

Eff that. Why can’t I be the wild one once in a while? But it’s not me, I know. I like plans. I schedule everything. I’m on time, or early. I reply. I’m considerate. Bla bla bla. Boring! I’ve even tried to plan my own funeral. I want one of those I Dream of Jeannie urns. I want to have coconut cupcakes and a song list. Hotel California, of course. New Kid in Town. Those Shoes. Tequila Sunrise. End of the Innocence. And a lot of Neil Diamond. Jimmy Buffett. Fleetwood Mac. Supremes. Sheryl Crow. Gordon Lightfoot. Johnny Cash and Rosanne Cash. But that’s a bit too planny.

Maybe.

The Mysterious Case of Twas Not Twas

Welcome to Rory’s…

Not Just My Verse, Your Two Two Too!

“I will choose a topic, write four lines of Rhyming Verse then I will tag one of my readers who will in turn add four lines of Rhyming Verse to my mine and Tag one of their own readers, and then it is a case of wash rinse repeat and let’s see how far our topic goes in so far as a Rhyme?

Once the poem [Verse] leaves my blog, the next blogger along can take it where ever they want with regards their own four line verse but always staying on topic.”

Rory starts us off with:

I am sure, well pretty sure NO, of course l am sure!
Twas not twas, twas not there before!
And yet, here l am looking upon it with widened eyes …
This thing that twasn’t, and yet now it twas a surprise!

Then Rory passes the poet’s pen to me, and I scribe thusly…

When I told my friends what had transpired,
They laughed and said I must be a liar,
For things like THAT surely are not real;
Then it came back and said let’s make a deal.

Now let’s see what Fandango has to say!

Sunny Side Up

The lovely Mrs. Wayfarer nominated me for the Sunshine Award. Thank you! 🙂💖

I’ll answer her great questions, but I don’t do nominations myself. Everyone who likes and comments here brings me a bit of sunshine and I’m grateful for your support. Thanks for reading my posts! 🌻🌻🌻

• Where do you find the inspiration to write your blogs? 

Lately my inspiration comes mainly from the prompts around Blogville.

• When was the last thing you’ve done something for the first time? 

I downloaded the coloring app last week. It’s been very relaxing.

• If you were a superhero, who would you be? 

Catwoman.

• What is one simple thing (or person, place, event) that never fails to brighten up your day? 

Seeing a cat.

• What tradition in your family or country do you always look forward to? 

Halloween costumes.

• What blog (and whose blog is it) inspired you to take action? 

The Haunted Wordsmith inspired me to begin hosting prompts too.

• What is your favorite TV show?

Of all time? Probably The Sopranos.

• What movie can you watch over and over again and make you feel the same way every single time? 

When Harry Met Sally.

• What is your favorite holiday destination? 

Northern California.

• When was the last time you laughed so hard you had tears in your eyes? 

Probably when talking to my daughter.

• If you had the power to change anything in the world right now, what would it be? 

Terrible instant virus takes down McConnell, POTUS, and VPOTUS, and then mysteriously disappears. Nancy Pelosi becomes POTUS.

The Weekly Smile

I’ve skipped a few of these, my bad. Last weekend was pretty smiley though. Three days off work is always welcome (though I did some side work). Received the good news that a story I submitted in March will be published in an anthology soon. Had a fun Saturday night playing games with friends. Spent a sweet Sunday afternoon with my daughter and granddaughter. And had a nice relaxing Monday doing nothing, my favorite thing. Mmm nothing!

J/k. I actually worked on that old novel I’ve been jabbering about, only to discover that it’s a colossal mess and I can’t deal with it. I fixed chapters 1-5, which were reasonably chaotic, but then the thing jumps off a cliff. I’m not jumping after it.

Back to short stories, poems, and stuff I can tackle in short bursts, until I retire or die, whichever comes first!

~*~

The Weekly Smile

Shall We Play A Game?

I love games. We played them all the time when I was growing up. My parents played checkers, chess, cards, and Scrabble with me. Mom and I played tons of Chinese Checkers especially. One summer, friends and I played Clue and Battleship daily.

Lately, I’ve gravitated to more social games. What I mean by that is I like games that are about the people playing the game (e.g., “The Newlywed Game”), and/or ones where you can talk and have fun during the game. I’m not so fond of playing aggressively or focusing intensely on winning.

Like blogging, games are supposed to be relaxing, so I can’t bear to obsess over stats. If I’m with a person/team who is agonizing over every point, that’s no fun. One of my favorite strategy games is the European version of Ticket to Ride, which I rarely win, but I don’t care. I simply enjoy playing it.

My favorite game at the moment is called ImaginIFF. You draw cards and make them about the players (“Imagine if Paula were a poem, which type of poem would she be? 1. Sonnet 2. Free verse 3. Limerick 4. Haiku 5. Acrostic 6. Elegy”); then everyone votes on what they think the other players will say. Whichever answer gets the most points wins that round, and those players move ahead on the board. If there aren’t enough players to fill out the names on the board, you can put in celebs or whomever you want. That’s the basic idea with a few other rules.

It’s super fun!

~*~

THW’s Non-Fiction Prompt

The Weekly Smile

There was a lot to smile about last weekend when I visited my daughter and son-in-law up in Northern California. It was great seeing them again! And of course I got to cuddle with pupper and kittay. 🐶🐱The kids treated me to a lovely post birthday dinner. We played some fun board games too. And I got to see their wonderful new house!

I’m a lucky mommy. 😍🍀❤️

Backstory

Alt title: Why Use One Word When 700 Are Available?

I wrote a prose poem about “who I am” that was really “where I’m from” a long time ago for a prompt, though I’m not sure if we called them prompts then. It might have been on Usenet, which we used to deride as a sewer, before every other form of social media became awful too. (I still think blogs are the best of the bunch.) The poem was short and not that deep, but then I pulled it up again and fleshed it out for another venue.

I’ve been thinking about Rory’s question (“who are you really?”). It’s a pretty easy question for most people to answer superficially. We generally give answers about who we are in relationship to other people. I’m a mom. I’m a wife, or not. I’m a good friend of so & so, a loyal employee of XYZ Company, yada. We’re plotting our position on axes of family and work, then friendships, maybe next our relationship to interests. I’m a fan of such and such sports team, rah! Or I love to garden, knit, read, write, pull the tails off little blind mice. Whatever.

We tell the world who we are in this multi-dimensional GPS system. Locate me here, in this spot: mom, ex-wife, legal secretary, poet, cat lover, Game of Thrones fan. This is me, right here. What if there are other humans occupying that position? I might have to refine it further. But does this actually even answer the question? Does this explain who I am? Do you know me from these factoids? Could you tell someone about the essence of me from my GPS position?

The other week I was playing a board game with some good friends I’ve known for a long time. It was called ImaginiFF. A question came up: “ImaginiFF Paula were a movie. Which movie would she be?” There were 5 random movies and then Doctor Zhivago, which was obviously correct in my mind for a variety of reasons. Everyone chose it, and this surprised me. I wouldn’t have expected them to know. But they did. And this made me unreasonably happy because most of the time I think people don’t even understand me at all, not even people to whom I’m closest. But I don’t think you would get the correct movie from a bunch of disparate facts about me; you’d have to spend years orbiting my weirdness.

Anyway, here is my GPS poem about who I am via where I’m from. I take the long way around.

Backstory

I am from the Big Apple, take a bite, glitter lights, lemon ice, museums, zoos, art and news, Coney Island hot dogs, Jones Beach sandy sweets, sharp shells stab soft carpet feet.

I am from the place where you pull the blinds, someone’s looking, where you smell your neighbor’s curry cooking, he makes you sweet tea with cardamom, next day Jamaican barbecue mon, the Filipinos have one record, sugar sugar aw honey honey, your father brings home Saturday pastries from the German bakery, “schwartzwalder kirschetorte,” it sounds funny, say it again, and the Japanese girl doesn’t know your words but can show you how to fold paper squares into gentle birds.

I am from the thorny Jersey berry bushes, blackpurple bursts against tanned sunfingers, slipping stones in backyard creek, crick, algae slick, willow fronds sweep redwood table pirate ship, hopscotch sidewalks toss a chip, Sunday French toast sausage brunch, leaves turning orangecrunch, rubber masks hiding smiles fake, the quickmelt of perfect crystal snowflakes.

I am from big city and small town, remain unclaimed, cheer for no team, believe in no crown, blood flows only down, I look out to starless airless zerodark, time past seems tissue-thin, walk back in, an afternoon of bubble toys, uncaring joy, turquoise dresses rhinestone sunlight, just once, golden flash, one more pass, because I am from a yard of girls with summerdrip popsicles, before the apple, before the crash.

I am from disconnect and strife, feudglue of life, mashed crookedly together, a puzzle I failed to see until I broke apart, alone, jagged on my own, and now I know why people stay, bicker low and graceless, get physical redangry splashwine in faces, because they can’t bear the abyss, yes, I missed, I get it all now, too late.

~*~

Weekly Prompts ~ Food Cravings

My tastes haven’t changed much since I was 14, not in food or anything else really. I guess that’s sad in some ways, if you’re the type of person who believes that life should be about growth and change. Or maybe I’m just true to who I am, a girl who’s partial to grilled cheese, word games, and men with British accents. 🇬🇧

(No, that doesn’t mean I want to play Guess the Blogger with scrambled letters and obscure clues to people I don’t follow! 🙄)

So, decades later, when I crave things, it’s still the same things. Cheesy noms like mac and cheese, pizza, nachos, quesadillas, etc.

Equally, I have yearnings for the sweet side of the buffet. Chocolate chip cookies, PB cookies, lemon bars, cupcakes, pumpkin or key lime pie with graham cracker crust…

I’m not a chocoholic though and don’t usually crave chocolate by itself, though I do love homemade chocolate chip cookies, which is why I put them first. If people ask me which kind of cake is my favorite, I’ll say coconut ~ my standard answer since I was a kid.

Around once or twice a year I crave a big juicy cheeseburger from 5 Guys or In-N-Out. I usually don’t have the patience for the In-N-Out line though. This is how you can tell I was born in New York: always in a hurry, even when there’s nowhere to go.

~*~

Weekly Prompts

Late Night Quick Draw

Late Night Quick Draw ~ sorry for the oopsy. Rory seems to have deleted or rescheduled his post. Maybe it will magically reappear later. Copy pasta the questions at your own risk!

Season 1

Describe yourself in 7 words?

Funny, serious, organized, reliable, introverted, poetic, neurotic.

What do you find funny?

Yer mom.

Favourite Food?

Cookies.

Favourite Tipple?

Constant Comment black & orange tea.

Favourite Ice Cream Flavour?

Cookie dough.

Currently Reading?

The Essex Serpent.

Last Film you saw [Cinema/DVD]?

While You Were Sleeping.

Favourite Comfort Food?

Cookies.

Ideal Breakfast?

Cookies.

Favourite Music Genre?

Classic rock.

Best Holiday you have had?

Portland with my daughter.

Holiday destination you would love to see?

New Mexico might be nice.

What’s your favourite animal?

Favourite Game?

Ticket to Ride.

Favourite sport [Take part in/watch]?

Meh.

Most Favourite Nursery Rhyme Growing Up?

Pop Goes the Weasel.

Favourite Colour?

Turquoise.

What would be your perfect day?

Assuming I can’t go back in time, just a pain-free, stress-free day would be nice.