Odds and Ends

The last few weeks have been full of changes and continuing. The changes are still positive in nature however which makes me rather happy. Sit back with a cold one and I'll take you through the changes. I'll try to keep it family friendly and refrain from obscenities for the moment. Another Move I moved across a few states again, and enrolled the baby in a new school that is better equipped to deal with my child. The teacher sends home daily behavior logs and how she handled it. It's not specific for my child she does it for the entire class, and it allows me to see what is working to improve the way she acts in class. We are waiting for everything that we need to come back to move into an apartment. There is a single form that is still out and should be faxed today. That will help me a great deal. The deposit for the apartment and the lights will not be so much that they do harm to my budget for next month. Vehicle I purchased a vehicle last week,...

Supplies were piling up faster than the volunteers could sort them into the baskets. The soldiers would be elated to see that they would not be spending their tours without being thought about at home. The packages were overflowing and more donations were due to be delivered the following day. The basics would go first then individualized packages from the families. What are the supplies that are being gathered? Is it a volunteer group or an organization set up to aid soldiers? Where are the donations being sent? Where are the coming from? The word is soldiers and this post comes in at 61 of the 75 word limit set by the M3 blog.

The calculations were enough to make him cringe. His ex-wife had taken almost a third of his inheritance in the divorce cutting his lavish lifestyle to nothing. His accountant had shown him the figures but he had to go through them himself to believe it. He had never imagined that she would betray him. The audit was going to be a nightmare. Why is he being audited? How did he not notice a third of his inheritance going missing until the accountant pointed it out? The word is figures and this post comes in at 62 of the 75 word limit set by the M3 blog for “Boys and Their Toys” which is the theme of the next flash in the pan book.

Black and purple streaks ran down the sides of the car showcasing the names of those that had fallen. Irving called his superiors for instructions and directions to his next location. A beach sounded ideal but he knew that the luxury of spending time on a surfboard would not be his. Why are black and purple strips being used? Who is Irving and who does he work for? Why won't he be able to surf? The word is surfboard and this post comes in 51 of the 75 word limit set by M3 for this quarters flash in the pan series.

The days of miniskirts and high heels had been traded for aprons and bibs when the babies came along. It was enough to make her want to scream some days but the little moments when they looked at her like she was the center of the world made it worth it. She would forget the mess on the floor and focus on her latest project for them. The boys adored ships and she was almost finished with the models. The looks on their faces would bring her such joy. It was too bad they would not be able to see her when they got them. Is she there mother or grandmother? Why won't they see her when they get the models? Do they even know who she is? The word is models and this post comes in at 105 of the 150 word limit set by the flash in the pan challenge from the M3 blog.

Where did the time go? The week has flown by as if to say it was merely a result of my imagination. It seems the older that I get the faster the days, weeks, months and years go past as if I am only dreaming the days events. Six months ago I left my husband, now I don't actually remember what he looks like. I remember what the first two look like, our wedding dates and one of their birthdays. Those little details I cannot remember for this one; I supposed it could be because I never actually cared. Yes, I am aware that it is strange to spend so many years with someone that you do not love, care about or like. I am not sure what possessed me to stay with him; fear of the unknown perhaps? I am going to chalk it up to a mistake lived and learned from so that I can move on to the next phase of my life. We had moved twice in a six month time span. Part of it was isolation beginning to get to us. The other part was fear that he would find us. He is not a smart man but he i...

Confetti littered the street, banners announced the arrival of the new shopping center on wheels. Jobs were the citizens first thoughts when they heard about the new company that would be setting up mobile shop around town. Little did they realize that blocks would be taken over for the endeavors. It was easy to say that jobs would be created but the poverty that followed was not what they had envisioned at all. Has the celebration been cut short? Are the citizens worse off now than they were before the arrival of the new business? The word is blocks and this post comes in at 73 of the 150 word limit set by M3 for the next edition of the Flash in the Pan series. Are you flashing yet?

Radiation rose from the explosion making those around him gasp in horror. He did not make a sound as he slithered through the crowd awaiting his first victim to fall into his path. It had been years since he had felt the thrill of a fresh kill and longer since he had indulged in the rich flavors that the reactor would infuse. A plane flew overhead dropping a green slime that stopped him in his tracts and left his last thought merely a wish. Why is he slithering through the crowd? Is he human or beast? What are his victims? Why is he looking forward to the flavor of radiation? What is the slime being dropped from the plane? The word is plane and this post comes in at 84 of 150 word limit set by the M3 blog for this quarter's Flash in the Pan Challenge. Visit M3 for official rules and details to find out how to be included in “Boys and Their Toys.”

The last few months have been spent on a mountain top virtually isolated from everything. When I first arrived it was not under the best of circumstances, and I had to be picked up to get there. Leaving one of the biggest problems that I had behind was a refreshing change of pace, but it did not solve all of my problems. The snow was a new adventure when we got snowed in for a week with the school closed. It was far too cold to do anything but stay inside though that did not stop the baby from insisting on going outside to play.   cold and deep I stopped writing and began a new job that did not require deadlines to be met. I must admit that I enjoyed not having to sit at my computer all day or interrupt time with the baby to work. I enjoyed the regular paychecks too, but now that has come to an end. The school was to small to accommodate my child to my satisfaction. The result? Yet another move across a number of states. So far everything is going well. The baby ha...

Knowing who you are is one thing; being happy with who you are is another. It is something different to know that you are happy with your life. There have been many times that I was not but I was still happy with who I was. The principle was simple, live as you believe no matter what. That again is another story and we'd have to wander down the path of how living something you don't believe can do damage. So we'll move on. You are NOT your job There seems to be a disconnect at times when it comes to who someone is and what they do for a living. A person's skill set can be intimidating but once you look beneath the surface you may find that they are not intimidating at all. Are they really as knowledgeable as you thought or do they merely fake it? Do you know someone that appears to know everything about everything? There is a reason, you know less than they do about the subject matter. It is an illusion that is easily created by those that share their kno...

The workers were shocked at the amount of blood on the marble flooring as they entered the building to begin the clean up. They had been expecting scraps of metal, wood and sawdust to be what they were getting rid of, not a crime scene. Whoever had paid the boss must have given him enough to last the rest of his life. Why he had not given them the assignment in person was something they didn’t want to know. The idea that he could be involved with something illegal was not new to the crew. Why is the clean up crew not batting an eye at cleaning up a crime scene? Are they concerned at all that the boss did not inform them what the job was? Where is the boss? Is he known for illegal activities? What happened for there to be a crime scene? The word is marble and this post comes in at 95 of the 100 word limit set by the M3 blog for the current edition of the Flash in the Pan series. Click the link to be taken to the official rules for inclusion in the series.

The football stadium was at full capacity with three hours left until show time. Excited screams could be heard for blocks making her wonder what all the commotion was and why she seemed to be the only one left in town. It would be a great time to find a vantage point for hitting her target. The explosion left a gaping hole where the stadium once stood. She smirked thinking that this had been the easiest assignment of her career. She was sure that she had gotten her target and a few thousand others without lifting a finger. Why is the stadium packed? Does it matter that thousands of people were in the explosion? Why was she on a mission? Who is she? This post comes in at 98 of the 150 word limit set by M3 for “Boys and Their Toys” which is the latest addition to the Flash in the Pan series.

I have been on a quest recently to have my sanity return. There was a time when I was attempting to see how much I could live without in order to downsize . I have figured out that there is a limit to how much I can down size.  Leaving things behind is not a new venture; it's the size of the space that is completely new to me. There are days the space makes me feel like I am suffocating. I am not sure why because there is more storage space than most homes. The problem? I can't pull everything out and go through it then move it around a hundred times until it is in the right spot. Well, the right spot until I change my mind and the smaller space means that every time the baby puts something somewhere it inevitably ends up in the floor.  There is a small window each morning to clean something, and that window grows slimmer each day as I find I need an increasing amount of time to wake up and refresh for the day. I have isolation so working from home would be great except ...

The device was bulky, and cutting into his leg. Why couldn’t someone make an ankle bracelet that looked like delicate jewelry? He’d rather have a girly contraption than feel like he’d been caught in a hunter’s trap.The sudden pain told him that his captor had found the remote. Who is his captor? Why did they put an electrified ankle bracelet on him? The word is remote and this post comes in at 49 of the 50 word limit set by the flash fiction challenge for “Boys and Their Toys” from M3 . Click on the link to be taken to the official rules and find out how to be included in the next edition.

Bugs were using her as a snack and the clouds were getting darker. He would regret leaving her stranded out here without shelter if she ever made her way back to civilization. The tent was of no use to her with a gaping hole in it. Who left her stranded? How did the tent get a hole in it? Did she not take a cell phone with her? The word is tent and this post comes in at 46 of the 50 word limit set by M3 . Visit the Flash in the Pan page for official rules.

What is happiness? Well, it depends on who you ask, so I asked the dictionary. According to Websters it is the state of being happy. Now what does happy mean? According to Webster's there are a number of definitions. I'll give you the shortened version. hap·py (adjective) : feeling pleasure and enjoyment because of your life, situation, etc. : showing or causing feelings of pleasure and enjoyment : pleased or glad about a particular situation, event, etc. I  do not fit any of the give definitions. Why? Well, simply put I am myself. I have been happy, and there are things that make me happy but at the moment sustaining that happiness is impossible. Little Things Mean the Most There are a number of things that make me happy but at the moment the only constant is my little girl. She makes me happy, but I have far too little time with her during the hours that we are awake. The little things that make me happy are not an option right now and will not be for an...

Another day of being treated like a rabid dog was ending and all she could think of was making an escape. The crackling of the radio brought her back to reality. His voice was like magic, and she felt reassured that once the mission was over they would be together. The instructions were clear, but the will to continue working for the perverted old man was fading. Perhaps she could finish her assignment without enduring the torture of spending time with him. The word is radio and this post comes in at 82 of the 150 word limit set by M3 . Follow the link for official rules.

The last few months have been full of changes and adjustments. They have also been full of regressions for my little girl. The blank stare is not as noticeable from a distance but I lived with it for the first three years of her life. It is returning but I am the only one that seems to notice it. I would be the only one in my immediate circle that knows just how far she has come, how far she has slid back toward the days before her diagnosis. The only difference is now she talks, but there are days that dreaded echo is back far more than it should be. Patience is not the strong point of any seven year but hers has decreased back to where it was shortly after we began therapy. The last few months her only therapy sessions have been at school, and that is only occupational therapy (OT) and speech. There is no Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) offered in this school system either. I miss the daily outings to the clinic for her to see the therapist. OT is something that has been re...

The calendar was covered in big red X’s to count down the days until she could move her family from hell without guilt. The idea of staying another day was enough to make her want to slit her throat but she had to endure. The revving of an engine brought her out to reality and she slipped on her motorcycle helmet for an afternoon of freedom. Why is she counting the days? Is her reality really so bad she’d rather be dead than live in it? What is it about riding a motorcycle that makes you feel so free? The word is motorcycle and this post comes in at 66 of the 75 word limit set by the Flash in the Pan challenge from the M3 blog. Visit M3 for details and official rules.

She hit the brake just in time to hear the scratching of the guardrail down the side of her new paint job. What else could go wrong? She had just bought the car and now she had to get it painted or her husband was going to kill her. Is her husband really such an ass that he’d be that upset over a scratch instead of being thankful that she is alive? Why was going so fast she hit the guardrail when she hit the brake? The word is car and this post comes in at 49 of the 100 word limit set by the M3 Blog and the current flash fiction challenge.