I have been working in business for over forty years and now have the time to work in special areas of interest. My passion has always been to create compelling stories of fiction. I have authored six novels and am working on my Seventh. The first novel is still in manuscript form and being utilized as a door stop in the laundry room. The second is a contemporary fiction novel of 89,000 words and is complete and I am currently seeking a publisher. I also write poetry but have not had the guts to share any with anyone. The one time I read a piece to a person their only comment was, “it doesn’t rhyme.” I will continue to write and hopefully my blog, Fiction Favorites at www.johnwhowell.com will provide some entertainment and an interesting thought or two.
I live in the Austin area with my wife Molly and an assortment of loving pets.
Today’s tour is in search of Thanksgiving decorations. It seems the thanksgiving holiday gets short shrift when it comes to decorations. Halloween and Christmas get the lion’s share, but Thanksgiving? Not so much. Today we are catered by Hoover’s Cooking of Austin, and our entertainment is Carrie Underwood although there is a technical problem pasting a YouTube video.
Menu
Chicken Fried Steak – The choice cut of beef, hand-breaded, topped with gravy, and made to order.
HOOVER SIZE: 2 Cutlets + 2 Large House Mates
Hoover’s Awesome Austin-Fried Chicken + 2 Large House Mates
Charbroiled Catfish – Basted with our lemon-wine sauce. You choose the seasoning: Cajun or lemon pepper. 1 Filet + 3 House Mates.
HOOVER SIZE: 2 filets + 2 Large House Mates
Meatloaf – The most comforting of comfort foods. 5 oz. + 3 House Mates.
HOOVER SIZE: ½ lb. + 2 Large House Mates
Chicken Fried Chicken Breast – Boneless fried chicken breast, topped with our fine cream gravy! ¼ lb. + 3 House Mates.
HOOVER SIZE: ½ lb. + 2 Large House Mates
Ham Steak with Jezebel Sauce – Glazed and charbroiled. 6 oz. + 3 House Mates.
HOOVER SIZE: ½ lb. + 2 Large House Mates
Southern Fried Pork Chops – Boneless choice cut chops. 1 Chop + 3 House Mates.
HOOVER SIZE: 2 Chops + 2 Large House Mates
Vegan delight – Never had eyes or walked around. Sauteed cauliflower, 3 peppers, onions, and spices served with a wine reduction over zucchini noodles.
So lets all hop on the bus.
Here we have a fall banner that reads ‘Hello Fall.'” Not quite Thanksgiving but a step in the right direction.
Not really sure about these wreaths. It could be Thanksgiving.
A wooden wreath and some pumpkins? Maybe
A crow, strawman, and fir tree with a fall bow? I’d say nice try.
I would call this the all-season approach.
A pile of gourds on the mailbox holder? Yeah sure.
A lit snowman and two pumpkins? Nope.
A turkey in the flower bed? Now you are talking.
A pilgrim on the mailbox? Yeah, let’s give it to ’em.
Now here is a Thanksgiving decoration with no questions asked.
I hope you enjoyed the tour and will have some food. Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving and a super week. If you would like to listen to Carrie Underwood’s Thanksgiving song click on the link. It seems I’m having trouble with a direct paste from YouTube.
Saturday morning is the time to collect thoughts, drink coffee, and enjoy the blessings of life. Saturday morning is not the time to sit and wait for some human-made machine to decide it knows better than its master when the aforementioned coffee should be delivered. Being powerless means spending time begging, cajoling, threatening, and bargaining with a hank of a stuck-up contraption that obviously thinks it has more privilege than a millennial.
Finally, the cough and sputter raise my will to live. Yes, the coffee is being proffered through two tiny spouts into my double-walled glass mug. The dark brew is topped off with a brown sugar color head that just begs to be sipped. Halfway to my lips, a rumble and shake cause the miracle elixir to slosh onto a bare foot. Not wanting to lose the rest, hopping around on one foot needs to be delayed. The extreme danger of caffeine withdrawal also delays the desire to rant and use curse words that would make ears bleed.
A huge sip of the soothing liquid steadies all systems so that the cause of the disruption can adequately be investigated. A look out of the newly installed rear window causes the eye to want to run into the yard for a closer look. But, showing restraint, it stays with me while the brain sorts out the details.
There, in the backyard, standing upright, is a gigantic rocket. Its color can only be described as slate blue. Near the top are the words ACME 9. It is apparent that this vehicle descended and made a perfect landing in my yard. What is not apparent is who the heck decided that this morning would be a perfect time to land this thing here. As if in answer to the question, a small parachute drifts to a soft touchdown next to the rocket.
Picking up the parachute yields an envelope attached. It is from Linda Hill, and the message inside reads. Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “morning.” Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!
Today’s good news comes from the Good News Network. Here it is in its entirety.
Jeff Bezos presents Dolly Parton with the Courage and Civility Award – Twitter
Jeff Bezos Just Gave $100 Million to Dolly Parton for Her Charity as the 3rd Winner of His ‘Courage & Civility Award’ Prize
By
Good News Network
At a recent event, Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos named Dolly Parton as the latest winner of his Courage and Civility Award.
The award recognizes leaders who “aim high, find solutions, and always do it with civility.” Each awardee receives 100 million dollars to invest in the charities of their choice.
In Dolly’s case, the mega-donation could be invested in her Imagination Library, which two months ago hit the milestone of 190 million free books gifted to children.
“(She) embodies these ideals so thoroughly,” said Bezos, who stepped down from CEO of his company last year to focus on philanthropy.
“She gives with her heart. What she’s done for kids and literacy, and so many other things, is just incredible.”
In her acceptance remarks, Dolly said, “When people are in the position to help, you should help.” She thanked Bezos and said she believes he gives from the heart too.
The 58-year-old tech billionaire is the world’s fourth richest person. He told CNN last week that he was setting up the foundations for the ability to give away the vast majority of his $124 billion fortune during his lifetime.
A year ago, Bezos pledged $10 billion over 10 years to the Bezos Earth Fund to expand and monitor protected areas and conservation. That was on top of the ten thousand million he’d already devoted towards combating climate change.
In 2021, he awarded the first two Courage and Civility Awards, accompanied by the same amount of money. The first winner was José Andrés, who feeds masses of people after humanitarian disasters with his nonprofit World Central Kitchen—with some of those millions going to help war-torn Ukrainians.
Van Jones, whose work in the nonprofit world, mainly in the sphere of criminal justice reform, received the second.
In 2018, Bezos topped the Philanthropy 50 list, ranking as the US’s biggest donor, compiled by the Chronicle of Philanthropy.
His former wife and partner of 23 years, MacKenzie Scott, has given away close to $4 billion, donating to 465 organizations in less than a year.
The good news here is the fourth richest man in the world feels a responsibility to pay his good fortune forward. Today’s JohnKu talks about responsibility. I hope you have a super week
“Using this photo (below) as inspiration, write a short story, flash fiction, scene, poem; anything, really; even just a caption for the photograph. Either put your offering (or a link to it) in a comment or email it to me at keithchanning@gmail.com before Sunday evening UK time. If you post it on your own blog or site, a link to this page would be appreciated, but please do also mention it in a comment here. Thank you for taking part.”
“Hi, and welcome to the firm. My name is Lew, and I’m the HR director.”
“Very pleased to meet you, Mr. Lew. I’m John Wayfair.”
“Yes, John. I have your application in front of me. By the way, Lew is my first name.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Can I call you Lew?”
“Of course. Now let’s get down to business. You applied for a position in the marketing department.”
“Yes, yes, I have.”
“I see here you have published several books.”
“Yes, I’m an author, and a big part of the job is doing marketing.”
“I see. So you think these skills will traslate to our business?”
“I’m sure of it. ‘Marketing be marketing’ as we say.”
“Yes, quite. Tell me about the first person you killed?”
“Oh, you mean in my book.”
“Yes, in your book.”
“Well, not much to tell. The character was a lowlife, and the hero took him out.”
“Just like that?”
“Yup, just like that.”
“How about the first rape?”
“This is a little uncomfortable for me.”
“I’m sure it is. Do tell.”
“A real bad guy did that.”
“But you wrote it, right?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, then there was that adulterous affair between your characters.”
“Well, not to brag, but there were several.”
“I noticed you use a lot of profanity in your stories.”
“I just construct realistic dialogue.”
“You also seem to call on God to damn people a lot.”
“Pretty tough characters.”
“Heavy drinking and drug use.”
“Where is this all going, Lew?”
“An excellent question, John. I don’t think the marketing department is right for you. I think you will do better in a starting position.”
“What if I don’t agree?”
“You have no choice. With your background in sin, I think you should start in the furnace department. It’s the hottest place we have. And you will no longer call me Lew. Instead, you will address me as Lucifer. You are dismissed. Miss Harpy, send in the next candidate.”
This post was initially run on January 2, 2017. However, since we are coming off a Veterans Day holiday, I thought it would be good to reread this Monday morning.
* * *
The inspiration for this list comes from the memory of having to return to the day job after a long weekend like we are having now. It seems the wounds are just beginning to heal, and it is time to go back to the battle, only to be reopened again. This list has been developed so that the temptation to stay home on Tuesday is successfully avoided.
Top Ten Excuses Not to Use For Skipping Work
10 If you want to skip work, do not tell the boss your dog ate your driver’s license. If you do, at best, your boss will wonder why you can’t take public transportation. At worst, your boss will send a car only to discover that you are still in your pajamas. (What made you think the boss would be working and allow you to stay home, huh, Bunky?)
9 If you want to skip work, do not call in holding your nose to support your sickness claim. If you do, at best, the boss will think you were overserved over the holiday. At worst, you will get a call from human resources with your appointment at the substance abuse treatment center. (That went well, didn’t it, Bosco?)
8 If you want to skip work, do not blame the weather for not getting to the office. If you do, at best, you will be the only one not at the office. At worst, the weather you thought would hit your town moved out of the area. (Here, you are looking at the sun trying to explain the absence of snow, sleet, and ice. Better luck next time, Buford.)
7 If you want to skip work, do not blame the mechanical failure of your auto. If you do, at best, some boss sycophant will volunteer to come to get you. At worst, you’ll be at the drive-through for lunch, and your boss will be in the car behind you. (At least you got the morning before you magically made the repair. Right, Bucky?)
6 If you want to skip work, do not pretend you are out of town and the planes are all grounded. If you do, at best, there will be some bad weather somewhere, and you picked it right. At worst, just after hanging up with the boss, a newscast will come on, extolling the fact that there were no flight delays for the first time ever. (Well, you will have an additional story to tell tomorrow. Right Bud. How about the fact that your plane was hijacked?)
5 If you want to skip work, do not use the excuse that your spouse is ill and needs care. If you do, at best, the sympathy calls will give you little rest. At worst, the knowledge of the collection at work and the bouquet of flowers that shows up in the afternoon convince you to quit. (This was not the outcome you wanted. Or was it. Roscoe?)
4 If you want to skip work, do not report that you are telecommuting to the boss. If you do, at best, you will get some additional assignments and be forced to work anyway. At worst, you will get a critical call that goes unanswered which triggers a massive shutdown of IT systems. (You forgot about the fail-safe hacking control. It is a shame since you set it up, Bubba)
3 If you want to skip work, do not report you to have an off-site meeting with a customer. If you do, at best, you can always say the client canceled the meeting. At worst, you get a call from the boss who decided to meet you at the customer’s office, letting you know the client is in Bangkok. (Now is the time to try to carry off the fact that you are in Bangkok. Good luck with that, Rube)
2 If you want to skip work, do not set up an elaborate scheme that includes throwing a punch at Tiny, the WWF Champion. If you do, at best, the detailed plan will fall through. At worst, your stay in the hospital will not compensate for the one day off. (Why you decided to throw a punch at Tiny is still debated in the company halls. You did pick up some street cred, though, Buddy.)
1 If you want to skip work, do not enlist fellow workers as co-conspirators in whatever excuse you choose. If you do, at best, you will owe the favor. At worst, the boss will get a confession from the weakest link, and you will be given up in a heartbeat. (I guess you could have predicted the result. Couldn’t you Sucker?)
Today we are going to attend the Safety Day exhibitions in Lakeway. This annual affair brings together Police, Fire, and Rescue teams from Travis county. The idea is to bring awareness to the community of the services available and educate safety practices. We are catered by Jew Boy Burgers in Austin. Our entertainment is Johnny Cash.
Menu
The Jewboy – 1/3 lb freshly ground beef smashed over sautéed onions on a wicked hot flat top grill. Flipped once, topped with two slices of cheese, then steamed to melty perfection. Finally, it’s placed on a fresh Martin’s Potato roll. Topped with chopped lettuce, pickles & mustard.
OY VAY GUEY (WAY) A JewBoy patty topped with roasted Hatch Green Chiles, then covered with steamed pepper jack cheese with a bit of mustard on the bottom bun.
SLOPPY JOSE A JewBoy patty with bacon and Homeboy Chile con Queso poured on.
GOYIM A JewBoy Patty with grilled pastrami, bacon, and melted swiss pickles. and mustard.
YENTA A JewBoy with a latke of your choice placed directly on the burger.
DETROIT ROCK CITY A JewBoy patty with melted cheddar, mustard, red onions, and our Detroit-style chili poured over the top. Over the top, indeed.
Not Burgers
THE MENSCH Two crispy latkes with roasted Hatch Green Chiles and grilled onions smothered in melted cheddar and pepper jack cheese on a soft potato roll.
CAN YOU GRILL IT? Yes, we can. A marinated chicken thigh covered with melted swiss and bacon. served with our schmutz sauce and lettuce on a soft potato roll.
CLASSIC CONEY An all-beef Hebrew National doggy covered in Detroit chili, shredded cheddar cheese, mustard, and chopped red onion on a fresh potato bun.
THE MUTT An all-beef Hebrew National doggy with one side of the bun with Detroit chili, the other side with our homeboy queso. The best of both worlds.
Let’s go.
So, here we are, welcomed by the Constable crew.
Check out that ladder.
Forest fighting equipment.
A way to learn how to survive a fire.
The state trooper mounted and k-9 group.
The Colorado River patrol.
Two large EMS vehicles for disaster use. The largest can handle twelve patients.
The Lakeway Police tent.
Drilling equipment for power line restoration.
The game warden organization was represented.
A workshop for the kids to build birdhouses. There is also music, games, and food trucks, but since we brought our own, we can now relax and enjoy the food and music. I hope you have a super week.
For whatever reason, the coffee machine decided to do its job with no delay. The steaming cup is in my hand before too much complaining time goes by. A sip brings a feeling of gratitude and a desire to celebrate the completion of the house’s restoration. Walking to the backyard confirms all is back to normal. A casual stroll to the spot of the impact of the safe of celestial origin makes the mind rest easy that one cannot tell there had ever been any damage.
Good feelings spread to every cell just as the front doorbell rings. Twiggy and Lucy are heard racing from the cellar to the front door, no doubt bursting the eardrums of the hapless fool who touched that button. The two are finally quelled with a toss of treats, and the security unlock procedure complete. The front door is thrown open.
Standing on the porch is someone who looks like a contestant on an episode of Celebrity Jeopardy. Yes, they are standing behind a podium and appear decked out as Bugs Bunny. The category is Big Question, and the answer is Linda Hill. Bugs takes a crack at the question. “Who has a prompt for John?” Alex says, “Yes. That is the correct question.” A big round of applause goes up, and Bugs hands me an envelope, and he and Alex disappear in a puff.
Being grateful that nothing is damaged, I open the envelope. Here is the message.
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “starts with or contains ‘cel.'” Find a word that begins with or contains “cel” and use it in your post any way you’d like. Have fun!
This day always brings to mind grandfathers, grandmothers, fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts, cousins, and siblings. All those in my family who served their country in the armed services and medical corps. Their service not only helped defeat America’s enemies but ensured that each of us had the freedom to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.
Today is the day to remember all who have served and those whose service also meant their ultimate gift to our freedom.
God bless our veterans. Today’s JohnKu is about just one.
