A big ole mug of hot steaming golden elixir will scratch an itch that is accompanied by the screaming klaxon, low caffeine warning horn in my head. The salvation is delivered quickly, and the first sip reminds me how dependency can rule your life. The second sip is accompanied by the Saturday disruption of the Westminster chimes at the front door. Pulling Twiggy and Tempeste off the ceiling and giving them an incentive to enter the soundproof room with a fresh knuckle bone tossed in. Slamming the door brings back the silence that should be the norm for the day.
A check of the security monitor shows a visit from none other than someone who looks like Bugs Bunny. After the usual back-and-forth, it was determined that a signature for the delivery was needed. With a sigh, the process of shutting down the security system begins.
The SWAT team needs to be put on standby. A quick text to the leader confirms that status. Also, the flight of A-10 Warthogs must be diverted. Another call to the commander puts that worry to rest. The SEAL team needs to be called off, and a call to the leader makes that possible. A call to the tow truck driver stops the deployment of an M1A1 Abrams Tank. The control panel simplifies the shutdown process of the security system. The boiling oil vats are put on standby, the turret mortars disengaged, the Trebuchet on safety, the concertina wire rolled, the Claymore mines reset, the tower Gatling guns on safety, the moat net dropped, the alligators fed, and the IEDs and shoulder-held rockets put away. The Proton torpedoes switched off. The gamma ray beams covered. The high-powered maser guns switched to standby, and the nanorobots were chained in the basement. The Klingons are called back, and the Targ is caged. Robbie’s Bot is sent to the basement. The locks on the door are thrown. And the door opened.
After signing on the spot indicated, the Bugs look-a-like hands me an envelope and holds his paw out for a tip. “Here’s my tip. When it is scary to jump, that’s when you jump.” With that, the door was closed with me behind it. The envelope is from Linda Hill, and inside is a message. It reads: Your prompt for #JusJoJan the 31st and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “scratch an itch.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
To see what others have done with the prompt, visit Linda’s post. Here is the link. https://lindaghill.com/2026/01/30/the-friday-reminder-for-socs-jusjojan-2026-daily-prompt-for-jan-31st/
Scratch an Itch By John W. Howell © 2026
“Pretty blunt with the bunny.”
“Well, he should know that when it’s time to jump, you have to jump, or you might be afraid to do so in the future.”
“Oh, I get it. Rabbit’s hop.”
“No, it’s a general statement. It’s easy to do stuff when there is no danger of failure. The hard stuff is when the risk of failure is high.”
“Did you go to a seminar this week?”
“No. Just a thought I had while the bunny was on the porch.”
“I see your ice is gone.”
“Yeah. When we moved to Texas, we gave away our snow shovel. So we have to wait for Mother Nature to take care of it.”
“Didn’t you move from California to Texas?”
“Yeah, but we hung on to that shovel for years after moving to California from the Midwest.”
“Who in California would want a snow shovel?”
“Our neighbor had a cabin in snow country.”
“Oh.”
“I need to scratch an itch.”
“What’s that?”
“I think it is VooDoo time.”
“Uber’s over there.”
Photo by Dan Antion
“That’s a 1941 Dodge pick-up.”
“It’s a beauty.”
“It can fit the three of us.”
“Yup.”
“What’s the catch?”
“It’s not bad.”
“Okay, then what is it?”
“We have to help milk the cows for the evening milking.”
“What? I’ve never milked a cow.”
“Don’t worry. It’s all done by machines. All we have to do is feed them.”
“How many?”
“Um. Four hundred.”
“You need smacked, you know that?”
“The ride is free.”
“Doesn’t sound free to me.”
“Come on. It will be fun.”
“They said.”
Fiction Favorites 
Great story, John! What wonderful cars you had in the USA. Best wishes, Michael
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Thank you, Michael
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[…] thanks. Curley, you never answered the question about royalties. Does John Howell get […]
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That’s a lot of hay to move, John. You guys are certainly going to earn those beers. I think you’re right about when to jump. I hope the ice melts soon.
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Well, spring isn’t too far off. 😳
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Brave man for messing with anyone who looks like Bugs Bunny. Hope the wabbit doesn’t come back. 😀
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Me too. I shoulda tipped him.
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Good tip for Bugs, John. Scratching an itch can be helpful. A cow-milking machine has to be attached. Even just feeding them should be payment for the ride.
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I agree. More than enough for the ride. Thanks, Tim.
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Yes, more than enough, John.
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😊
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With a cool ride like that, you knew something or udder was up. 😂🐮
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Ha ha ha. Good one, Lois
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Your snow shovel is memorabilia. And snow country California is some of the most beautiful land I’ve ever seen. Letting nature finish the job is always pretty cool too though. Happy Saturday, John!
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Thank you, Jill. I agree on the snow country. We were married in Lake Tahoe
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💝
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😊
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I love that Uber, and milking would be fun (although not 400 cows) if you did it by hand. We now have Voo doo Ranger in our fridge….
And we only have one shovel – a coal shovel that is good for cracking ice. Otherwise we use a leaf blower!
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Be careful with that VooDoo Ranger, Noelle. 😊
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Oh my! That may be the hardest chore yet. But what a sweet ride. 🙂
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I think it will all work out. Thanks, Jan
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It takes a lot of hay to feed 400 cows. I am glad I don’t have cows to feed or snow to shovel.
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Well it was worth the VooDoo Rangers
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Be like the frog and eat what bugs you.
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Uh Huh
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🐸🦟
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😊
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This bit was hilarious!
“No, it’s a general statement. It’s easy to do stuff when there is no danger of failure. The hard stuff is when the risk of failure is high.”
“Did you go to a seminar this week?”
“No. Just a thought I had while the bunny was on the porch.”
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Thank you, Liz. So glad you liked it.
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You’re welcome, John.
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😊
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Thank you, Liz.
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This post is making me itchy!
Hmm, has your defence battlements & personnel grown? Klingons and Bots, eh?
400 cows? No wonder I’m itchy. It’s all that hay.
🐂 🐮X 🐮X
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Sneezing too. Yes, it has grown. Folks offer suggestions, and I put them in. 🤧X 🤧X 🐂 😷X
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Aaaaaaaccchhhoooooo!!!!
Gee.. have you considered putting a Tasmanian Devil on the payroll?
😈X 😈X or an Ogre? 👹X
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In your honor, I’ll throw in a Tasmanian Devil. 😊X 👹X
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Ahh, that’ll keep them(?) away! Might keep the Klingons in order, as well!
😱X 😉X
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😀X
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It is certainly Voodoo time but today I had a Yellow Rose from Lone Pint and a Zythophile Metal Head also from Lone Pint. I have to say that 1941 Dodge pick-up looks good.
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Gotta look those up. 😊
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I saw your comments on Untappd. Looks like one to try. Getting it will be hard. HEB carries it but is mostly out of stock.
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Oh that is interesting. I hope you can find it.
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😊
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I see that truck and I can smell the dairy. For some reason I hear banjo music in my head, too.
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Ha ha ha. Better not hear anyone call the piggy’s.
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I was trying to explain to husby how you answer the door and couldn’t get past the SWAT team without breaking into howls
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I’m sure he thought you had lost it.
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I think he had a hard time understanding me through the giggles.
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I’ll bet.
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{Snicker…snort} Great story, John. Bugs is a wiley character, let’s hope he doesn’t hold grudges. Cheers with a second cuppa-always a welcome addition on a cold weekend.
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I think Bugs is good-natured enough to let my rudeness slide. Thanks, Monika.
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I hate shoveling. Anything. My experience with this instrument of torture runs the gamut. From working for a landscaper when I was younger to shoveling shit out of stables when I dated a girl who owned several horses to excavating my ex-wife’s garden very much by accident to snow . . dreaded snow, perhaps the least favorite of all these experiences, which is saying a lot when you consider well . . the shit I shoveled, literally.
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I worked for a landscaper, too. I shoveled shit but it was my daughter’s horse. I also tilled a ten acre farm that my first wife could not live without. So many similarities there Pilgrim.
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No surprise there Sheriff,
The only time I ever was okay with a shovel was at the beach. Those little plastic ones, yeah . . no issues with those 😉
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YUP
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Honestly, this Uber truck must be Lightning McQueen’s granddad. So cool!
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😀
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