Grandmas Goulash

My father died on Halloween, as the sky turned from dusk to dark. The lights inside continued to glow, illuminating his sallow countenance and catching the barely perceptible rise and fall of a chest drawing its last morphine-glazed breaths. If this were a ghost tale, I would linger on the symbolism of the day. I would illustrate my story with dark forms created by wind that swirled leaves around barren trees. I would recall ominous shadows outside the window, unexplained creaks in the walls or flickers of light drifting into the sky. These would be false.  He did not believe in spirits and none made their presence known that evening. The whir of machines, the soft footsteps of nurses and the muted conversation of family were the only backdrop for his exit from life. Like my father, I do not believe in ghosts. Yet, I hear his laughter as a breeze flows through his wind chimes. I see him in the work of leathery hands that preferred action over sentiment. I feel his presenc...

2525 Time traveler, R2D2, easily blended with 1980’s culture, but gifts from the natives caused a sticky situation in his innards. (125) 2012 “Look, Bella, Edward’s brought some trick-or-treaters.” “Have them wait in the library, while I find the blood substitute.” (122) 1721 His siblings suffered from too much book learnin’, but Wesley’s cannon volley skills secured his future as the next Dread Pirate Roberts. (137) I was going to feature a clip from The Princess Bride that included Dread Pirate Robert’s well known line: Good night, Wesley. Good work. Sleep well. I’ll most likely kill you in the morning. When I came across this parody, however, I couldn’t resist using it instead.

I find it surprising, but I seem to have lost my taste for music. Not all music, but I certainly don’t listen to it with the intensity that I did ten years ago. I don’t remember when I started to love music, but I do remember my intense desire to play the piano. Piano fostered my love of classical music and The Beatles were the first to lure me to rock. Jazz and blues were added in midlife.  There are a few genres that I have never been fond of, but I listen far less to the ones I do love. I realized the other day that I had eliminated most background music from my life. For years, I wore headphones almost constantly while I worked. Music played, whenever I drove the car. I played music when I read. I played music when I ate. Sometimes, I even let music lull me off to sleep. Now, I only enjoy music, if it has my total focus. Although I listen less, I enjoy it more. That’s true of many things in my life, I suppose. I no longer run until I drop and multitasking has been el...

Room to breathe and first choice of food. Who cares if it’s lonely at the top? A good job and a pool with a home. Howard loved everything about his life except the daily rush hour commute.  Bottom feeders never worry about keeping up with the Joneses. Plenty to eat too, if you don’t mind picking through refuse.  Did I forget to use the word of the week? Yes. I almost forgot to post this week’s SY, as some of you may have noticed. I chose this week’s word, as I didn’t dare wake Calico at 3am to ask for one! This week’s word was  forget . This song is a favorite. Calico and I sing it, whenever we talk about wanting something that is far beyond our means. Of course, we change the lyrics to “If I were a rich girl.” 

Calico and Miss Muffin returned home yesterday with smiles on their faces. Calico’s school and work keep her away from home for some fairly long hours. Miss Muffin doesn’t say much, but it’s obvious that she’s missing her mother.  Yesterday, Calico had a free afternoon and took Muffin to a corn maze. It wasn’t as sophisticated as the one near Memphis, but that didn’t stand in the way of their enjoyment. The visit was far less expensive than the city version and included more freebies, including animals to pet, a tractor-pulled ride, a pumpkin patch and a free pumpkin. The icing on the cake was meeting another homeschooling family. The kids had a great time together and phone numbers were exchanged.

I began my career as a computer operator for a large furniture manufacturer. One of the first surprises was the amount of physical labor involved in the job. From boxes of punched cards to boxes of printer paper, it seemed that I was always lugging something. The biggest surprise, however, was the emergency procedure. I knew what to do, when an alarm sounded. “Immediately walk to the nearest exit” had been the mantra chanted by my teachers in elementary school and it was upheld by the sadistic administrators who favored 3am drills at my college dorm. “First”, the lead operator explained, “you must shut down the computer.” What? Shutting down the mainframe involved more than flipping a switch. The process took about five minutes. I pictured myself surrounded by smoke and flames, waiting for the computer to shut down. If the computer was going to melt into a puddle of plastic and metal, did it really matter if the power was on or off? “While the computer is shutting down,...

Crowd’s Absur d Crisp air and loudly attired chairs or stuffy restaurant and loud-mouthed patrons? For Leona, it had been a no-brainer. One More Word Sue never left the café until her crossword was completed. Two days later, she would wonder when habit had become obsession.  Hadn’t Heard Obviously a tourist. Locals had stopped frequenting the café after discovering the black specks in the scones were not raisins. Succinctly Yours offers a weekly photo and word as inspiration for your microfiction. How low can you go? Choose the 140 character or 140 word option. This week’s word was  crisp .

Calico saw a group of Alabama students on campus yesterday. She didn’t know why they were visiting, but their crimson University of Alabama shirts were hard to miss in the sea of purple and gold attire worn by the Tennessee Tech crowd. It brought back memories of a bright red school jacket, the not-so-secret desire of my high school days. The jackets were primarily worn by athletes and cheerleaders, who had earned the school letter awarded for athletic achievement. The letter was out of reach for a budding geek girl, but the jackets could be purchased from the high school supply room for fifty dollars. My oldest brother, a basketball star, had been wearing his for two years. My other brother had been pestering my parents for one. “You can have one, when you earn a letter”, my parents had replied in unison. My heart sunk, but I continued to pursue my goal, squirreling away my babysitting earnings. I didn’t need to be mathematically gifted, however, to figure out that I would ...

She was the sole survivor. Youth, fresh and green, seemed detached; fleeting days of invincibility that had belonged to someone else. She had not relinquished them easily, employing the subterfuges of age. She had painted her face and donned bright colors. The world would see her beauty, not the lines that etched her countenance. Her friends were gone. A few, cut down in their prime, had been joined by more as time passed. Soon they had fallen in hoards until only a few remained. She had watched them cling with desperation until they could no longer remember why they held on. She had been so proud of her strength. Now the miserable chill of death permeated her being, but she had forgotten how to let go. A merciful god sent a brisk wind. A lone leaf floated away. Three Word Wednesday . is a meme that challenges writers to create something using three selected words. This week’s words are  brisk ,  detached  and  miserable . Click on the link to vi...

Shelley thought she was as sane as the next person. So why did everyone say she had rocks in her head?  Rocky’s passion for boxing was as plain as the misshapen nose on his face, not to mention his asymmetrical eyes and swollen lips.  Yes, he was a little green, but Joe was greedy for fame and certain he could make it as a rock star.

My mother was in her seventies, when she started thinking about joining the computer age. Both of her brothers owned computers and exchanged frequent emails. She didn’t want to be left out. My parents had planned a visit during the Christmas season, so I decided to buy her one. I opened an email account, arranged for an internet provider and installed Scrabble and Solitaire applications. Then I topped it with a big red bow and a Merry Christmas tag. My mother was delighted and I used the visit to teach her how to send email and play games. It was more difficult than I had anticipated. It’s easy to forget all the skills involved in using a computer. Using the mouse, opening applications and even turning the computer on and off were new to her. She was eager to learn, however, and by the time she left, I thought she would do well. She did do fairly well until something went wrong. Trying to coach her over the phone was difficult. She didn’t always understand my questions and I c...