Today I randomly opened My GRL to page 167. With eyes closed, I pointed to the page. The word closest to my finger is “drive.” This is our prompt.
Drive by John W. Howell © 2025
“So how far of a drive it it?”
“Not long.”
“How long is not long?”
“Well let’s just say we will need to sleep in the car.”
“That long?”
“Would you rather stay home.”
“Let’s not take it too far. I was just trying to figure out how long we would be cooped up.”
“Cooped up? You sound like a chicken.”
“You know how much I hate that back seat.”
“I’ll be with you.”
“That’s another thing. You always take more that yoyr share of the space.”
“I resemble that remark.”
“As you should.”
“Okay I’ll make a deal.”
“How much will this cost me?”
“Not that kind of deal.”
“What kind then?”
“I’ll make sure you have half of the back seat if you don’t whine about the trip.”
“I don’t whine.”
“Okay no complaining then.”
“You have a deal.”
“Can we sing that 99 bottles of beer on the wall song that Dad likes.”
“If we must. He will probably start it anyway.”
“Will Mom have treats?”
“She always has treats.”
“Okay then. I’m ready oh wait. One more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“We need to have a window down.”
“Why so you can hang your head out and bark at everything we pass?”
“Yeah. How did you know?”
“It’s the same with every trip.”
“Okay but this time I’ll try not to barf.”
“That would be sweet.”
Fiction Favorites 
I think I know who those two are. 🐶🐶
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😊
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Haha! I was trying to decide which critters you had installed in the back seat. You surprised me with a realistic couple 😉
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Ha ha ha. I try for the surprise factor. Sometimes it does work, and other times….🙄
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You did it rather well!
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You are the kindest. 🤗
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I try…. 🤗
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😊
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I wonder if barking out a car window is the dog version of extreme sports.
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I think that could well be. Thanks, Charles.
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I cannot recall the last time I had that kind of “return trip” digestive response, and that is a good thing indeed. Not a fan…but a fan of this prompt trip!
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The old motion sickness rears its ugly head sometimes..
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Gotta have that window down or the other cars can’t hear you bark.
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Ha ha ha. Good one, Craig.
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Hi girls! Tell dad to put the pedal to the metal. What a fun ride that will be! Then bark like crazy the faster he goes. That will entertain the pedestrians for sure!
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Not to mention Dad. 😀
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Great, John! I really like to see dogs sticking their heads out the window. If they bark at me, I wave.
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What a nice thing to do. I can see that in my head, Tim. 😀
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This time I knew it was dogs and surprisingly, know their names! When dogs stick their heads out the car window, they are sampling the air with their thousands upon thousands (so many more than us!) of smell receptors. It’s a smorgasbord for them!
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I can imagine all those receptors gathering information.
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This time, I guessed right that we’re talking two dogs going on a trip!
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Good for you. 😊
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😁
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I can just picture them, John. Fun story.
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Thanks, Esther.
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This one’s written from personal experience, huh, John?! Well done — and I refuse to point the finger of blame at the one who just might barf. Poor Monk shares that issue (though thankfully, he hasn’t done it in the car!)
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Always a challenge for sure. Thank you, Debbie.
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A barf-less trip is always appreciated. Nothing worse than having a sick pup hurling his toes up on a road trip.
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That is about the worst thing. Thank you, Monika.
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Dog gone. Fun post, John.
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Glad you liked it, Pat.
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🥰🐶
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😊
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I had to paws, but this time I was onto you! For once. 😉
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Excellent. 😀
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oh no, not the barfing dog.. 🐕
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Well, you know how that goes.
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Oh Twiggy and Tempeste are out on a long drive. Enjoy the ride Twiggy and Tempeste.
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Thank you, Mr. Thomas.
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Here’s a joke that your response reminded me of:
The inmate on death row was scheduled to be put to death by firing squad the follow morning. Throughout the day, the prison guards were being very nice to him. But when they asked him if he wanted something specific for his last meal, he said he didn’t want anything special. When they asked if there was something special he wanted to do, he said nothing. It went on like this all day.
Finally, when he was put before the firing squad, the guard asked if he wanted a cigarette and a blindfold.
“No,” the inmate said, “just get it over with.”
“Well, is there anything that I can do for you before you go?” said the guard. “You didn’t even want a special last meal!”
The inmate thought. “Actually,” he said, “Music is my life. One thing I would really like would be to sing my favorite song, one whole time through, with no interruptions.”
The guard nodded and told him to go ahead.
The inmate started, “One billion bottles of beer on the wall…”
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Love it. Thanks, Pete.
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Seems a reasonable compromise. 😅 Had me guessing until the reveal.
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Glad you enjoyed it. 😊
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Thank you 😊
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Yup, you caught me off guard again. I did expect them being dogs!
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😀
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I meant I did NOT expect them to be dogs.
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I got it. My brain read the sentence with an auto “not” put in. My emoji shows how pleased I was that I got away with the deception for a while..
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Funny how our brains do that.
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It is. Kind of amazing too.
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👍
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Lol! It’s always a goal to try not to barf. 😜 Good one!!!
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Yes indeed. Thanks, Jan
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I loved this! 😀
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😊
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This is a trip I’m familiar with. Good one, John.
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I can imagine
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