heres the deal...

so, i have a week and a half to finish a present for my sisters birthday that i started a month ago. so that pretty much takes up the rest of the month... but as soon as i'm done with that, i am going to jump right back in the saddle and finish this month of writing. i swear. it may be a little while til you hear from me again, but i will be back.

love mandyjoe

Day 18: Favorite Place

Topic: Write about your favorite place to be in the town where you live.

Pressure around my back. Head on my shoulders. Body heat warming my soul. Every sadness, every confusion wiped away. Happiness flooding my heart. Blanket of love wrapped around us both. That's my favorite place.

Day 13: Pool of Love

Topic: Uh, it's Monday. Yay. Since we are almost at the halfway point, I wanted to give everyone a little bit of catch-up time, so today is a free day. You write about whatever the hell you want to write about and post it.

Also, tomorrow will be our first writing meet-up. Summermoon on South 1st at 8pm. Please comment here to let us know if you can make it.

This is actually something I wrote a long time ago in the hopes of making it a song. It has yet to get music behind it, but it still sits close to my heart.

Tall, fit and blonde
With arms of steel
Wrapped around me.

I didn't realize
How lucky I was.
Love had found me.

I broke our love
Too many times
For your gentle heart to bear.

But you came back
Every time
Cause you knew that love was there.

My heart was dangling by a single string over a pool of love trying not to fall in.

I ripped your heart out
One last time
For love I thought was true.

I said "My love,
Have a nice life"
And waved goodbye to you.

I was wrong.
I admit that now.
I loved you every day.

But you've moved on
In your new life
And left me here to pay.

And now my hearts dangling by a single string over a pool of love trying not to fall in.

I know in my heart
One day you'll love me again
But as for now, all I'm doing
Is trying not to fall in.

But my hearts dangling by a single string over a pool of love trying not to fall in.

Day 16: Lottery

Topic: To celebrate the day after tax day, write about something that we all fantasize about: what you would do if you won $8 million in the lottery. Don't forget to factor in taxes!

So, I've thought about this alot. Every time Bobby or I buy a lottery ticket, I pretend I've already won. Here's what I would do with it.

First off, I would quit my job.

I would pay off all my student loans. Pay my parents back for whatever they put into my tuition.

Sell my car. Buy a new red convertible bug and a vespa.

Buy myself a new condo. Furnish it.

Probably buy Bobby a new car.

Give a little to my brother and my sister.

Give enough of it to my parents that they could retire.

Keep a little off the top to go travel the world.

Then, because my dad is an accountant, I would responsibly put the rest in some sort of stock or something so that my children and my children's children could live off of it for years to come.

Once I have successfully traveled the world, and my stocks have gained some interest, I'll take some of that interest and buy myself a vacation home wherever my favorite place was from my travels.

Then, I would start my own business, probably a crafting type store where I could sew and make fun stuff all day.

Lastly, I would spend my days jet setting around visiting all my family and friends that I don't ever get to see. And invite and pay for some of them to visit me at my vacation homes.

I think I've covered it all. I'm sure once I get the money, I'll think of more things to do with it. But for now, thats my list.

Day 12: My Favorite Place in the World

Topic: For many of us, our bed is our sanctuary. Most of the time, we don't get to spend nearly as much time there as we would like. Describe your bed and what it is like when you either go to bed or wake up, or both.

Every night, usually around midnight (give or take an hour), I get sleepy. My lids get heavy and my mind starts to day(or night)dream about my cushy mattress, my feathery soft comforter, and my squishy, perfect, pillowy pillow. I start to imagine the dreams I will have, the fun adventures my subconscious will get into. My body gets pulled out of the slump it's been in for a few hours and dragged towards its safe place. I crawl into the fluffy white. My head slowly lowers to its resting place. The fan gets turned on to cool my face in the night. The feathery blanket is pulled up to my neck. Legs curl up into fetal position, resting around my body pillow. My eyes close. My mind drifts into its wonderful, odd scenarios.

Then, all of a sudden, I'm ripped from this beautiful place. Noises blaring. Horns honking. A few moments of awful confusion. Hit a few buttons. Eyes close. Back to the comfort of my dreams.

Noises blaring. Horns honking. Awful confusion once again. Hit buttons again. It's morning. The shower starts calling to me. Reality finds the edge of comfort and pulls me out of bed. Feet first. Drags me through the room.

Water. Finally, comfort again. Revitalizing comfort. I'm awake. And clean. I can do this. Just a few more hours, then I can be back in my safe place.

Day 11: Thai

Topic: April is National Thai heritage month. Write about a character with something of a Thai background or about Thai food. Or something Thai-related. Hell.

Ok. So my original plan was to google the word Thai. Then, take some random cool photo I found and write a story to go along with it. (and I may still do that later) But in searching for that picture I came across this one.



I decided to see what kind of weird Ronald McDonald photos I could come across. Well, theres many. So, instead I am just going to entertain you with some random photos of our favorite red headed stranger.

Day 10: Guilty Pleasures

Topic: What is your biggest guilty pleasure? Write a defensive/persuasive essay and try to convince us of its awesomeness. Oh, and Britney and Justin do not count. Everybody knows they’re already awesome. Even if they won’t admit it.



This. This is my pleasure. I don't really feel guilty about enjoying it. The only thing to feel bad about, I guess, is the fact that I know it will make me fat. But, how can you feel guilty about something you love SOOO much?

My favorite is when they are given to me. Bobby and I like to bring each other surprises. The nights he shows up with a bright orange package....
Oh the excitement that ensues. I get all giddy. Huge smile on my face. Weird excited noises.
Rip.
Oh, the smell... the choco-goodness.
Unwrapping it. Peeling the brown paper from the sides.
The taste of chocolate on my tongue.
Bite in.
OH MY GOD!!!!! The salt of the peanut butter mixed with the sweetness of the chocolate is ... OH MY GOD!!!!!

There are no words.... literally, no words.

Day 9: Mother Jacker!

Topic: The genre of Science Fiction is a rich and interesting one where the only rules that apply (typically) are the laws of physics. Galaxies can stretch as far as the imagination, motivations can be as vast and varied as black holes, and characters can come in the most extreme shapes, sizes, cultures, and tongues. One of the fantatic things about science fiction writing is the opportunity to create an entire society from scratch, including one of my favorite parts of culture: its forbidden words.

Here is a list from io9.com of the 10 best scifi curse words. #1 deserves its place because I have heard people using the word (correctly) who have never watched an episode of BSG in their lives.

1. Frak (v.), Battlestar Galactica
2. Frell (v.), Farscape
3. Gorram (adj.), Firefly
4. Shazbot (n.), Mork & Mindy
5. Poodoo (n.), Star Wars
6. Smeg (n.), Red Dwarf
7. Farathoom (n.), Don’t Bite The Sun
8. Shock (v.), Spiderman 2099
9. “I seem to be having tremendous difficulty with my lifestyle” (v.), The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
10. Smurf (v.), The Smurfs
from the site: Setting aside the vast lexicon of Klingon curse words (and my opinion of same), it’s a respectable list. Still the inclusion of smurf may be stretching the point–both as a swear word and as science fiction–though that’s hardly the strangest use of smurf I’ve come across. Did they miss any good ones?


So, have at it. Write a brief conversation between scifi characters with at least 2 curse words that you make up.

Ness
Brun? Has anyone seen Brun?

Grey
No. Sorry. Did you check in the hack room?

Ness
Yeah. He’s not there.

(Knock. Knock. Knock.)

Ness
Hey, Cha. Have you seen ….
What the jack? What the jack is going on here?

Brun
Look, Ness. It’s not what you think?

Ness
It’s not what I think? Gloob snobbet, Brun. What the jack else could it be? There’s not a whole lot of things that could be going on here.
Cha, do you have anything to say for yourself?

Cha
Uh, no. This is between you two.

Ness
Well, not anymore. It looks like you’ve done a jackin’ swell job getting yourself fully involved.

Cha
Ness, calm down. Let’s just talk about this.

Ness
Cha, you better back the jack up. I’m not in the mood for you.

Cha
Wait a minute! You’re the one that came barging into my bunk!

Ness
To see if you knew where my husband was. Not to find you jacking him!
Gloob snobbit, Brun! How could you do this to me? And with CHA???

Brun
Hey, now. Wait a minute.

Ness
Do not tell me you are defending her!

Brun
No. Baby, just listen.

Cha
BABY? You’re calling her BABY now? I though you were leaving her.

Brun
Cha stay out of it.

Cha
JACK YOU!

Ness
Looks like you’ve already done that!
!
Brun
Ness, let’s go back to our bunk and talk about this.

Ness
No jacking way. I want you to explain yourself right here in front of your new lover. We may as well air all our dirty laundry right jacking here. I mean if you’re going to leave me for her, she deserves to hear what she’s getting herself into. Right?

Brun
Ness, you’re overreacting.

Ness
OVERRACTING? You’re jacking around on me. How could I be overrating?

Cha
Really, Ness. Calm down.

Ness
You shut the jack up. I’ll let you know when it’s time for you to chime in.
(click, click)
Alright, Brun. Let’s here it! What have you got to say for yourself?

Brun
Whoa! Ness! Put the gun down. Put… the gun….down.

Ness
No, Brun. Let’s jacking here it. How long has this been going on?
HOW LONG?

Brun
Only a couple of months.

Ness
MONTHS? MONTHS? Are you kidding me?
You’ve been jacking her for months?

Brun
Well, not exactly. Not just her.

Ness
What?

Cha
WHAT? You’ve been jacking around on me, too?

Ness
Cha, sit the jack down and shut up!
How many others?

Brun
Twelve altogether. Well, not together.

Ness
TWELVE!?!?!
ARE YOU JACKING KIDDING ME?
TWELVE?!?!?

Brun
Ness, listen. We can work this out.

Ness
WORK THIS OUT, YOU MOTHER JACKER!!!

(BANG!)

Day 7: Animals

Topic: Today, the ASPCA kicks off its “Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month.” To celebrate, pay tribute in some way (a letter, a poem, whatever) to an animal from your past or present that was important to you.

I had a cat when I was little. Her name was Punkin. She walked up to my house during a family reunion and my mom's cousins convinced her that I should get to keep it. I didn't get to name it. One of my cousins did. But somehow it stuck. She was a calico cat. Really cute.

I used to dress her up in my cabbage patch kids clothes. Then, take pictures of her.

She used to like to hide under my bed. Why she chose there, I don't know. Because I hated it. So, I would grab her and throw her down the stairs. I wasn't the best with animals. I admit it.

Once she was laying next to my friend on the couch. My friend was petting her back, then out of nowhere, she jumped up and attacked my friends face.

She had a few litters while she was with us. In every litter, there would always be one at the end we couldn't get rid of. I didn't want to name any of the kittens because I knew they wouldn't be staying. So, my dad would always name that last one Dumas. That way he could call it dumbass.

Day 6: Senryu

Topic: Senryu is a Japanese form of poetry similar to Haiku that, rather than focus on nature, focuses on the darker, more sardonic side of humans. Read about this type of poetry here, and since it is a little difficult to grasp (well, at least for me), write 3 to 5 of these poems based on people in popular culture. I can think of more than one reality show star that is aching to be senryused.

awefull at poems
especially with limits
this is all I got.


maybe I'll try to do some more later.

Day 5: 4 Minutes to Save the World

Topic: So Justin Timberlake and Madonna managed to do it through song and dance. How would you save the world if you only had 4 minutes?

You know, as far as saving the world goes, dancing with Justin Timberlake in front of a huge digital clock sounds like a pretty fun way to do it. Mad props to Madonna. I choose that.

Day 4: Day in the life of the 1800's

Topic: You wake up today and you are in the late 1800s. Your life is completely devoid of all of the technological comforts that we hold dear. No cell phones, no laptops, no Facebook, no television. What is your day like? Do you actually make it through the day without committing suicide?

Well, when I think late 1800's i think of the Oklahoma land run of 1889. It took place in Guthrie, OK, where I am from. So, growing up in guthrie every April we have an 89er's day parade. It's ingrained in my mind by this point.

Which brings me to my day in the life.

I'm 28. I married a man 12 years my senior. Henry, my father selected him for me. We had our first child, Jasper, just after I turned 17. Oscar, our second child, came 3 years later. Emma, just 2 years after.

We are headed to stake our claim on some land. I'm thin. My clothes are always some shade of brown. My hair always in braids. I ride in a wagon or on a horse most days. I cook raw meat over an open fire every day for my family.

My freckles are getting darker and darker with age. I suppose it has something to do with how much I've been in the sun since the start of our journey.

My husband is nice. He treats me well. Never hurts me or the children. I don't love him. Never have. He owns my body, but Jesse, his brother, he owns my heart. I've always loved Jesse. Since as long as I can remember.

Some nights, Henry drinks himself to sleep. Those are the nights I cherish. Jesse comes to me. Occasionally, we hold each other tenderly, as he strokes my hair. Most times, we can't help but ravage and devour each other. Rip each others clothes off. Play out the most unbelievable of fantasies.

Then I wake up to another long day of traveling and taking care of my family.


Wiki: "Unlike Rome, the city of Guthrie was built in a day. To be strictly accurate in the matter, it might be said that it was built in an afternoon. At twelve o'clock on Monday, April 22d [sic], the resident population of Guthrie was nothing; before sundown it was at least ten thousand. In that time streets had been laid out, town lots staked off, and steps taken toward the formation of a municipal government."

Day 3: Dream Home

Topic: Setting is a critical element to most stories, sometimes to the point that the setting can be considered a character in the piece, taking on a life of its own and influencing the plot just as much as the other characters. The house in House of Leaves became the central antagonist in the family’s horrific journey and the city in Sex and the City, well it’s just as slutty and fashionable as the other characters. Start building your setting from the ground up. Describe your dream home in full detail.

My dream is to have two homes. The locations are yet to be determined.

Home 1.

A massive place. A place where my parents and Bobby's parents could stay with us at the same time and be in different wings of the house. There is a huge landscaped yard with yard guys constantly working to keep it in tip top shape. A big pool in the back with a waterfall and a slide. A back house that I use as my music/crafting studio. The furnishings are yet to be determined as well. Cross that bridge when I get there.

Home 2.

A large open warehouse studio. Where there are no walls inside. Just one big open room. There's a loft in the back section for the bedroom to be up above everything else. All the furniture is shabby chic restored flea market finds. Off in the corner is a single swing hanging from the very tall ceiling. In another corner is my music/crafting section. All old hardwood flooring. Bright colored furniture. And a huge chandelier hanging right down the middle, lighting the entire place.

I guess I've put a little more thought into house 2. Maybe I see that one as more of a possibility.

Day 2: Feel the Pain

Topic: Is it true that women have a higher threshold for pain than men do? We do have to give birth, after all…Write (very graphically) about a sensation of pain that you have had or that your character is having. And I’m not talking about emotional pain. Use your own blog for that crap.

"Come on, Zach! One more strike!" I hear from behind the the blue retaining wall.

"OK! Ready or not, here I come!"

With the bleachers knocked out by the tornado, the stadium is a little bare lately. The few parents that come just set lawn chairs and blankets down on the sidewalk. Leave the children to amuse themselves. My cousin and I were playing hide and seek with a neighbor kid, finding any corner we could in the bright blue retaining wall that could at least cover us in shadow.

Funny, how hide and seek most often turns into a game of tag. Conor is getting close and I got to get out of this corner before he can get to me. I stand up and survey my surroundings. I've got a clear path around the retaining wall, up to my mom's blanket. I'm safe there. Escpecially, while playing with cousins.

The plan is in action. I jump to the top of the wall. "Five feet or so to the end of the wall. Then jump," my brain explains to the rest of me. Simple enough. "And watch out for that bolt sticking out at the end. Don't trip." OK.

Right. Left. Right. --- "Oh, shit." A gust of wind blows around my face. I open my eyes. Grey. Grey is all I see. Thick grey. Not foggy. Not smokey. More gritty. Broken. Disheveled. It's falling toward me. It's going to get me. There's no way to avoid it. It's too large.

Suddenly the wind stops. In it's place is a grey thud. My arms buckle. The grey smashes into my knees. Then my chest. Another gust of wind, this time coming out of me. The world flips over a couple of times.

I push my face up off the gravel. Digging more tiny pebbles into the palms of my hands. I look down at my hands. Scrapes. Gravel. Blood. "This isn't bad," my brain explains again. "Just a few scratches." No big deal. "Let's do a quick inventory just to make sure." OK.

Hands: scrapes, gravel, blood, minimal pain, slight stinging. Check.
Legs: few scrapes on knees, minimal gravel, slight stinging. Check.
Feet: fine. Check.
Arms: minimal scrapes and gravel, slight stinging. Check.

Looking good. Getting less severe with each "Check."

Last, my head. I dust off some of the gravel from my hand, reach up to my head. Rocks. Gravel. Small jagged pebbles stuck to my head. I try to dust them off, but it stings. Worse than any of the other scrapes. I look down at my hand. Covered in red pebbles. Red?

I look down where my face had been to see where the red pebbles had come from. I hadn't remembered there being any red pebbles in this sidewalk. Just a small oval shaped section was red. And wet. That had come from me. I turned the rocks red.

Thats when it hit me! Throbbing! Pounding! Then... the blood curdling scream that was apparently coming from me.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

My cousin, my mom and the neighbor kid race to my side. I still haven't figured out what's happened. My mom reaches up to me and shoves her fingers into the rocks on my face. Every time her hand came down, a rock came with it. It felt like every time her hand came up, another got shoved in.

After what seemed like hours, my mom grabs me around the waist and carries me away. Into this dark, dingy, smelly building. The locker room. Finds the shower and stands me under it while she runs freezing water over me. The rocks tumble across my face, stinging with every bounce.

I look up to get a glance in the mirror. Perverse curiosity.

I can't see anything.

Day 1: Intentions

Topic: Before embarking on a new endeavor, it is always a good idea to set your intention for why you are doing something, what you hope to gain from it, and any obstacles that you might encounter along the way. Use today to set your intention for your writing this month.

My intentions this month are simple.

FINISH THE MONTH OUT!

To me, each day doesn't have to be award winning. Just write something.