I Think

I saw a contest for 1,500 words or less stories. So I wrote one, 530 words long. The contest is not quite ready to receive entries, so, I will sit on this one and maybe turn out a couple more, then decide which to send.

Tomorrow, I shed the job that was thrust upon me. I will walk with the new man and explain what needs explaining, and even assist him. But, I am back at my old schedule.

It was semi-luxurious to be home today. Could not really relax, could not get busy, other than to box a few Christmas decorations. I'm still geared to the daily grind. When I used to get vacations, it would take the entire time to unwind, and then I would put on the yoke again. I have several projects I want to accomplish during the cool/cold months and they are slipping away. But I did get back to writing. I completed that short story, the other day and have another almost midway through. Am still on the third chapter of the work I had tried in the NaMo - whatever - contest. I am satisfied with my progress.

Same here. I'm on vacation now, but I'm constantly trying to remember if I really have free time or if I just forgot something that I'm supposed to be doing.

I just now got up and aimlessly walked into the kitchen and ended coming back. It's tough at first.

Yup. That's me, too. I actually do have an appointment @ 3. It's not noon yet and I'm already dressed and ready to go.

Oh, yeah. It's nearing bed hour, here.

Got up this morning, saw my wife off to her job. Had breakfast. Visited with Ragman on another site. Then lay down and had a nap. In the nap, I went to work and installed a ceiling fan in one of the apartments. Before I got the electric connected, something happened that I ended on the porch, asleep, just outside the door. I must of had the door blocked, because it was not totally closed. Woke with a start and went into the apartment to finish the job. There was a woman in there, now, with a roomful of preschool age children. I apologized as I grabbed the cord end of the fan. Instead of wiring it to an outlet in the ceiling, I began searching for a plug. Found one, but could not plug it in, because the cord end was for a 220 outlet. Then I was in the shop, telling the guys of my experience, when it dawned on me that I was not even supposed to work this day. Fortunately, I woke up before I had to go before the office staff.

Both Petco and Petsmart say they will no longer sell Chinese pet treats. That's one small victory for pets over greed.

That's a relief to read that about those 2 pet store chains. so much of their treats were Chinese in origin. They have proven in the past that they don't care or desire to have any degree of quality control.

I've been cooking my dog's treats, because I was afraid to buy some. I will check to see if the Chinese stuff is off the shelves before buying any.

What a cold and wet dreary day. I still took Rocky out and cut brush along the fence line. There's not much left to it, now. I would have stayed inside all day, but Rocky don't give a **** how cold or wet it is, he wants us to go out. So, I picked times in between showers. Got two or three more wet days in front of us. I don't expect any freezes, but it may get pretty close to it.

With able2know down today, I concentrated more on other tasks. Finished the second in a series of short stories. Still casting about for the next theme.

It's been very cold the last few days in Maryland. Forecast said could possibly drop to single digits between 02:00-04:00 hours. We went to see a movie tonight, then stopped at a diner for a light meal around 10 PM. As we pulled into a parking space it was 24 degrees. At the same time another couple arrived and a very large man wearing shorts, flip flops, a tank top and baseball cap on his head hopped out of the car. I'm pretty tolerant of cold weather, but even I can't walk around like that in 24 degree weather. The woman he was with was wearing a regular winter type coat. For reasons I don't understand, I found that a tad disturbing.

Makes me think of my first wife. We could be driving our Ford Falcon in sub freezing weather and if I turned on the heater, she would fear the forced air was poisoning us. So, if I wanted the heater, I also had to roll the window all the way down. Exasperation would be the key word here.

I was curious as to why a certain song by Harry Belafonte has not been featured on youtube. After some searching, I found it on a site that allowed for comment for every song. This one had a single word to describe it: pedaphile. I didn't see it that way. In my view, it is about a teen who loves another teen, from age 15 through 18. Since it is told from the view of the boy, he was likely a year older than her. They wed when she was eighteen. I will post the lyrics as best I remember them.

Fifteen

The sweetest wine in the world
Is the fruit on the vine
The sweetest love in all truth
Is the love of your youth

At fifteen I saw her
And thought her
So beautiful I kissed her from a distance
For my young love was locked inside

The sweetest wine in the world
Is the fruit on the vine (?)
The sweetest love
?
At sixteen I met her
And yet her
Sweet loving lips were eager for another
And my young love was cast aside

The sweetest wine in the world
Is the fruit on the vine
The sweetest love I have learned
Is the love that's returned
At eighteen I wooed her
And pursued her
And I made her my darling bride
She's mine now forever
And ever
For the fruit on the vine is mine

Damn, that's nuts.

"At fifteen I saw her...At sixteen I met her..." Sounds like he's talking about his own age, not hers. How could anyone get paedophilia out of that?

"Francine" by ZZ Top and "Christine Sixteen" by KISS are both more obviously pervy.

I used to enoy lightboxes - but I remember dripping sweat from my brow onto the drawings in summertime.

(this a response to one of edgarb's quite a while ago now)

I had one at one time, but I drifted away from needing it. Now I want another. I have all the ingredients, just haven't put them together.