Writing Excerpts – April 11, 2016

Welcome to Week #10 of my (almost) daily writings! This week has a little more fiction than usual. It just seemed like an escapism type of week. I used to think that I wanted to write fiction novels, but I’m actually finding it a little difficult to put myself into a world so completely different than my own regular old boring real life. That’s a bit of a surprise to me, and I’m not quite sure what it means yet.

 

Note: This series of Writing Excerpts was originally inspired by this post and Jeff Goins’ My 500 Words challenge.

For April, I found a new writing prompt list. You can check it out HERE. I don’t know if they were supposed to be done in order, but I’m doing them according to what sounds good for the day. You know, because I’m a rebel and I make my own rules like that.

 

4/4/2016 & 4/5/2016

Shallow

The shallow water was a turquoise she had never seen with her own eyes. This had to be paradise.

Or it would be, if she had any clue how to act in this place. The bone-chilling cold back home had finally become too brutal to bear, and she had impulsively booked a week’s vacation in the Caribbean. Before she came to her senses, she was already through the security (sitting in her seat on the plane?) at the airport.

Now here she was, completely unprepared for paradise. But the warmth of the sun! Oh, she could get used to that. And one thing she knew for certain – there was absolutely no chance she would see even a single snowflake in this tropical island.

She smiled. Okay, maybe going temporarily insane hadn’t been such a bad move after all.  First things first, what would she wear for the next week? She looked down at the worn jeans and nondescript t-shirt that covered her ample body. It was doubtful there were any local clothing establishments that catered to someone her size. Hesitantly, she called the front desk, figuring she might as well hear the bad news right away.

Nobody answered.

She laughed. Of course it would be this way. Oh, well, the jeans and t-shirt would do for now. At least she had remembered to bring some real books, knowing that it would be impossible to read on her tablet in the sun. Grabbing a book from her bag, she headed out to sit on the beach. She wasn’t going to waste another moment of her time sitting inside.

Once again her gaze was captured by the water. She would love to be out there, standing in that gorgeousness. But she knew it would not happen and tried to tamp down her disappointment. Her jeans were too tight in the calves to even roll up for walking along the edge of the surf. She took a deep breath, remembering that the warmth and sun would make up for not being able to swim.

But seriously, who went on a Caribbean vacation and didn’t even get to play in the water?

Maybe she could cut her jeans shorter? That could work. She laughed a little bit at herself. “Just sit and enjoy.” Before she knew it, she was reclining in the lounge chair, her face to the sun, book forgotten, a warm river of peace flowing through her.

 

4/7/2016

His fist flew into…

The air, a sign of his victorious exuberance at hiking to the top of the mountain. Just six months ago, he could never have dreamed of this moment. A confirmed couch potato,a  video game and netflix addict, the farthest (furthest?) he ever climbed was to the top of the stairs that led to his front door — all three of them. Although, admittedly, there were plenty of times he dove into the bottom of a giant buttered popcorn bucket and had to climb out.

He dropped to his knees, taking in the view, allowing the feelings of accomplishment to surge through his now-strong body. Where would he be right now if he hadn’t gone to the doctor on that particular day five months ago? He had been so sick, he just knew he was dying. He couldn’t breathe, he could barely move, and he hadn’t eaten in days. The doctor took one look at him and told him he would be living in a hospital within a year if he didn’t change his ways.

What?! Furious, he left the doctor’s office. He may have slammed the door on his way out of the exam room. What did that quack think he was saying? He was only 27 years old, didn’t drink alcohol very often, didn’t smoke, his family history was great. The idiot with the M.D. after his name obviously just wanted to make some money by sending him off to a bunch of specialists when all he really needed was an antibiotic or something to get him over this cold.

A week later, he was sitting in a different doctor’s office, hearing exactly the same thing as the last guy had told him. This time he didn’t slam any doors on the way out of the office. He was in shock, and suddenly very afraid.

 

4/8/2016

Drip, drip, drip

As she sat at the computer during the early-morning hour, she listened to each drop falling from the faucet, thinking about how they took water for granted at their home, while others were so careful with the precious resource. She wondered how much water they wasted? Since they lived in the country with a well, there really wasn’t a way to measure. Okay, to be completely honest, it wasn’t the water she was really concerned about. It was the fact that she was going to have to fix the stupid faucet. She was tired of fixing things, and it seemed like the list never got any shorter.

Often she wished she could be like the people who just called “the guy” to come fix things whenever they weren’t working properly. Why did she feel responsible for fixing everything herself? It was exhausting. With one last hope, she checked the faucet to see if perhaps it hadn’t been turned off completely. The handle was definitely off, but the faucet continued to drip. And the water was making an orange stain in the sink. She knew there was salt in the water softener, so THAT must not be working – again. She would have to take the softener apart in at least three different places to check for problems. Great.

Sighing, she typed “how to fix a dripping faucet” into the search bar on the computer.

 

4/9/2016

No entry

The sign on the door was more of a challenge than a warning. “No Entry.” Didn’t people understand a sign like that was the same as screaming, “Interesting stuff here!” A plain door with no signs or bars or huge locks would never be noticed. But now, looking at this door, she felt curiosity surge and adrenaline flow. She smiled. Not a happy smile, but something a little frightening. Quickly, she marked the spot with the GPS on her phone and took several photos to examine later. Right now she was supposed to be working a paid job, not thinking about personal fun.

 

4/10/2016

(ramblings, no prompt)

It’s snowing AGAIN. I’m pretty sure it’s snowed every day this month. The weather on my phone says the temps are supposed to be near 70° a week from now. And there is a sunshine icon. I don’t think I quite believe either prediction.

Winter, go home, you’re no longer welcome here!

I suppose one good thing about all of these snowy days is that I can sit around and read without feeling guilty about NOT doing anything outside. 🙂  Not that I’m a particularly outdoorsy person anyway. But if spring really does come to stay at some point, I have a huge (and expensive) to-do list.

(Wish I could just call “the guy” to come and take care of everything on my list! 😉 )

Okay, if it does get warm and sunny this week, I am promising to start ONE project. Hmmm… time to prioritize the list and check all of the ideas I’ve saved on my outdoor decor board on Pinterest.  

 

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