Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Figure”

March 7, 2020March 6, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 41 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday time again and this week’s prompt is explained by Linda Hill. “Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “figure.” Use the word “figure” any way you’d like. Have fun!”

If you would like to join in, go to Linda’s site and read how. It is effortless to let yourself go over the edge. Here is the link.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS March 7/2020

“Go figure.”

“What?”

“It just figures that this week’s prompt would be something that I could get my teeth into.”

“So get your teeth into it, already.”

“You don’t understand.”

“I guess not. Tell me.”

“The word figure can be used in several ways.”

“So use it.”

“Not so easy. I have to figure out a strategy.”

“Um-hum.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You, the panster’s pantster needs a strategy? I don’t think so.”

“How do you figure?”

“I don’t think you need to plan. I figure you can just let yourself go and that will be it.”

“You figure?”

“Yup.”

“I was going to describe our neighbor.”

“Which one?”

“The one across the street.”

“Ah. The one with the shapely figure. I could have guessed.”

“Wait a minute. I could write about the guy next door. He cuts a fine figure of a man.”

“That is actually my place to observe.”

“Men can comment on other men?”

“Sure, but when you talk to figure, it seems a little odd.”

“Don’t you ever admire the figure of another woman?”

“Well, sure. That’s different.”

“How?”

“Go figure.”

“What.”

“You stumped me for once.”

“Heh, heh, heh.”

“Shut up and finish your figure prompt before I figure out a way to get back at you.”

“You could throw a barley pop in my face.”

“I figure we will end up there eventually.”

“Smart woman.”

“Not an ending that’s tough to figure out.”

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

March 6, 2020March 5, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 54 Comments

Here we are another week in the history books. The week was marked with some unexpected results in the Democratic Super Tuesday primary. Also, the Federal Reserve cut the interest rate on Fed funds by half a point. This was the first such cut since 2008.

No matter the results of the primary and the low cost of borrowing the Coronavirus keeps on coming. As long as it remains a mystery of containment the financial markets are going to continue to be uncertain. An old sage once said to me, “Don’t worry about the value of a portfolio unless you are planning to sell.”

I take comfort in that advice since I have no plans to sell anything. Hopefully when I do have plans to sell things like Coronavirus will be long forgotten. In the meantime, keep calm and wash your hands.

Today’s JohnKu takes another look at fear with the idea of putting it into perspective. I hope you all have an enjoyable weekend.

The news is not good,

Markets falling, deaths rising . . .

Control your own space.

Avoid larger groups,

Continue to wash your hands . . .

Don’t look at your stocks.

You have no control,

Over markets and disease . . .

You can control panic.

Thursday – A Little Personal – Rainy Day

March 5, 2020March 4, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 78 Comments

Lucy and Twiggy

“Okay, Dad. it’s raining. What are we supposed to do?”

“I think you have enough to entertain yourselves Little One.”

“You gotta be kidding. Like how?”

“Follow me, and I’ll show you.”

“Okay, so what am I looking at?”

“A pile of toys, two Bennie Bones, and a chew thingy.”

“Alright, so I’ll choose Flamingo. Happy now?”

“The boss has given you the look, Little One.”

“The look? What’s the look?”

“It’s what his face does when he thinks you should take care of yourself.”

“I would be outside running in the yard if I took care of myself.”

“Yeah, but it’s raining, and you know how you hate the rain.”

“Yeah, I do hate it. Makes my paws all wet, and then I’m told to quit licking my paws.”

“Your life is a volume of tragedy, Little One.”

“Hey, I have an idea. How about a game of soccer or as the rest of the world says, football.”

“That could work. I suppose.”

“So here is Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona ready to take on Kevin De Bruyne of Manchester.”

“Where do you get this stuff?”

“Someone sent Dad a subscription to Sports Illustrated. Messi outmaneuvers the fatter De Bruyne and sends the ball downfield.”

“You crack me up, Twiggy. You really do. DeBruyne outruns the slower Messi returns the ball and SCORES.”

Wednesday Story Day – AKA – Hump Day

March 4, 2020March 3, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 52 Comments

“Ooooh, Lucy.”
“Yes, Little One.”
“Do I hear Friday coming?”
“Sorry, that’s just Wednesday sounding like Friday.”

It is Wednesday Story Day again, and last week, we were left with the lingering sound and the acrid cordite smell of a gunshot. Let’s get back there because there is no other background needed. Someone got shot. It’s that simple.

“Ow ow, ow.”

“Shut up, Wentworth. We got you and your gun. Whoever taught you to shoot didn’t do an outstanding job.”

“I think he hit his foot, Larry.”

“Wentworth, what the hell were you trying to do?”

“This really hurts detective. Call 911.”

“Not till you tell us what’s going on around here.”

“Come on. My foot is killing me.”

“Andrew, call 911. Okay, Wentworth get down on the floor and let me look at your foot for a minute.”

“Damnit Detective, that hurts like a sombitch. What are you doing.”

“I just took off your shoe is all. You have any towels around here?”

“Yeah, there are some in the bathroom.”

“Hang on. I’ll be right back. “

“EMS is on the way, Larry.”

“Thanks, Andrew. Sit with our boy for a minute. I’m going to get some towels and see if we can stop the bleeding.”

“Hurry, will you. I think I’m getting weaker.”

“Hey, Wentworth.”

“Yes, uh, uh. I forget your name.”

“It’s Andrew. It looks like you are going to be okay. I think the bullet just grazed your foot. Took a nice chunk, but don’t think any bones were involved.”

“Yeah, that’s comforting coming from a cop.”

“I’m also a physician.”

“No, shit. Why didn’t you say so?”

“Here are the towels.”

“Thanks, Larry. I’ll just put some pressure on this wound, and that should take care of it.”

“Wentworth. You want to tell us anything after we saved your life.”

“The doc here says it’s a flesh wound.”

“What would happen if you stopped the pressure, Andrew?”

“In my opinion, Mr. Wentworth here could bleed to death.”

“But, EMS is on the way.”

“So, he said Wentworth. So, he said. Tell the man why you don’t practice medicine, Andrew.”

“It seems I’m a pathological liar.”

“Yeah, Wentworth. He tells people what he thinks they want to hear.”

“You two are crazy, like I said.”

“Give us the information we want, and you’ll get help.”

“You can’t do this. It’s harassment.”

“Yup. That it is. Stop the pressure, Andrew.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Okay, I sent those guys to kill you.”

“Why?”

“I can’t tell you that. It’ll cost me my life.”

“So, the outcome will be the same if you don’t tell us. If you do, we can protect you.”

“You sure?”

“You have my word?”

“Go talk to Cortez, but don’t tell him I said anything.”

“Cortez told you to kill us?”

“I didn’t say that. Just go talk to him.”

“Just tell us who told you to have us killed.”

“You don’t know how things work here. Cortez has the answer, but it’s got to come from him. Are those sirens I hear?”

“I guess.”

“So, you did call 911.”

“Yeah darn it.”

Tuesday – Anything possible – Kreative Kue #252 by Keith Channing

March 3, 2020March 2, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 53 Comments

In Keith’s words.

“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 it (or a link to it) in a comment or email it to me at keithchanning@gmail.com before 6pm next Sunday (if you aren’t sure what the time is where I live, this link will tell you). 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.

Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries next Monday.”

The Photo

Kreative Kue #252

“Now, you have to be very careful with this.”

“I know, I know. You already explained that.”

“Yes, I did, but I want to make sure you know exactly how precious this is.”

“Please don’t lecture me on being careful. After all, you’re the one who dropped the last one.”

“Okay, that was an accident. I was jostled when we traded last time.”

“I’m just saying there is no reason to doubt that I won’t take care.”

“Okay, I get it. I didn’t realize you were so sensitive.”

“I’m not sensitive. You’re always giving me directions that don’t seem necessary is all.”

“Excuse me, but aren’t you the one who always gets nervous on new assignments?”

“You call it nervous I call it thorough because I want to do a good job, unlike some people I know.”

“You can’t be talking about me.”

“I am talking about you, Mr. Oops.”

“Where did that come from?”

“Oh, come on. Your little slip caused an entire system to implode.”

“Wait a minute. That system was tens of millions of years old. it was ready.”

“Says you. Okay, let’s forget it. I have the Orion arm solar system in my hand. You have a nice play day.”

“I will try now that I know you hate me.”

“Quit being a little child. You are a god for heaven’s sake. Act like it.”

“You are always so mean.”

“Cry baby.”

Top Ten Things Not to Do at the First Monopoly Game in 1933

March 2, 2020March 1, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 66 Comments

Top Ten Things Not to Do

This week marks the 87th anniversary of the invention of the board game Monopoly. The Game was developed based on a 1904 patent by Lizzy Magie for a game called The Landlord’s Game. This game was played one evening in 1932 Charles Todd, and his wife hosted Esther Jones and her husband Charles Darrow for dinner. After dinner, the couples played The Landlord’s Game. After that night, Darrow went on to distribute the game himself as Monopoly. Parker Brothers bought the copyrights from Darrow, and the game was distributed throughout the US and eventually the world.

It would be fun to go to that first game. Of course, itis imperative that we take a list of things not to do so that we don’t inadvertently cause a problem in the time continuum.

Top Ten Things Not to Do at the First Monopoly Game in 1933.

10 In the first game, do not try to convince everyone that Free Parking should have a payoff. If you do, at best, someone will remind you of the real rules. At worst, you will convince them to put all the fines in the middle to be collected by whoever lands on free parking. (Why is that so bad, Kirk? Since you have landed on free parking six times, you tell me. I think your fellow players want to see you outside.)

9 In the first game, do not ask Tiny the WWF champ if he wants to trade his Boardwalk for your Baltic Avenue. If you do, at best, Tiny will think you are joking. At worst, Tiny has not attended his “scammed victims” support group for two sessions. (You see, Keanu, Tiny was scammed out of some stock and lost his life savings. He is in no mood to have that feeling repeated in a game. Yes, you are feeling the pressure of Tiny’s hands on your head. I would say, “Just kidding,” as soon as you can speak. Maybe you need to find a pencil and paper to write it out.)

8 In the first game, if you are the banker, do not forget to pay $200 when a person passes “Go.” If you do, at best, the person will remind you. At worst, the person thinks you are trying to cheat them out of their pay. (Now we have a situation, Keenan. Of course, you didn’t try to trick them on purpose, but it is tough to explain that $200 up your sleeve. Maybe a real $5 bill will help soothe feelings.)

7 In the first game, do not try to figure out whether it is cheaper to pay the income tax of $200 or 10% of your holdings. If you do, at best, you are playing with folks who have the patience of Job. At worst, you are performing with a pack of impatient twenty-somethings. (By the time you figure out your move, Kipp, all the rest of the players have moved on to playing ragtime records and drinking bathtub gin.)

6 In the first game, do not buy everything you land on with no rhyme or reason. If you do, at best, you’ll go broke. At worst, you have prevented anyone else from getting a monopoly, and the game will grind on for weeks. (No, you can’t have food and water, Koby. This was your fault, and you are lucky your game participants let you visit the facilities. Oh, wait, they are discussing that subject again.)

5 In the first game, do not insist on using your favorite token. If you do, at best, no one will care. At worst, that big guy across from you is not interested in giving up the car. (I think I would go ahead and use the iron, Kane. After all, the better part of valor is letting go. The worst part of valor is getting punched in the face.)

4 In the first game, do not laugh fiendishly when an opponent lands on Boardwalk, which you own along with a hotel. If you do, at best, they have the money to pay up. At worst, they don’t have the money and no desire to negotiate. (See there, Kiran. Your fiendish laugh, along with you wringing your hands, has caused your opponent to quit. You could have taken payment in properties by nooooo. Now the game is over.)

3 In the first game, do not think rolling doubles three times won’t land you in jail. If you do, at best, your fellow players will call you on the rules. At worst, your opponents will think you are trying to get away with something and will watch your every move from here on out. (Trying to sneak that Get Out of Jail Free card from the deck will end in disaster, Killian. You may even land in a real jail.)

2 In the first game, do not try to miscount the dice roll, especially if you are going to land on “Go to Jail.” if you do, at best, everyone will be talking and missed the fact. At worst, the guy with the most amount of money has called you out. (What are you going to do now, Karim? You’ve been caught, and by the looks of the guy, he has a less than zero sense of humor.

1 In the first game, do not throw the dice before your opponent has finished their move. If you do, at best, your apology will be accepted. At worst, Earth Quake Muldoon (Your opponent) has decided that you were doing that to rattle him. (I hope you can finish the game from that position, Kellan. I know it will be difficult trying to roll the dice with your feet. That’s gotta hurt right?)

Views of the Neighborhood – Looking for Spring

March 1, 2020February 29, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 79 Comments

Since not too much s going on in Lakeway this week, I set out to see if I could find signs of spring. Well, I did find a few, but not many. I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Views of the Neighborhood

The first thing I found was something that is not too common here in our part of the neighborhood. This is a large Red Bud tree. The photo is unusual cause this Redbud is growing on a lot where the house is being renovated, and the port-a-potty is right below it. I needed to crop that out.

Views of the Neighborhood

Next is a Texas Mountain Laural growing in a shopping center parking area. The tree is in full bloom with lovely grape colored blossoms.

Here is another Mountain Laural in full bloom.

A shot of the Winter Jasmin in bloom (Usually blooms in January )

Views of the Neighborhood

A large Mountain Laural in full bloom.

Views of the Neighborhood

Here is a Mountain Laural in my backyard. Notice it has a whole bunch of buds but has not begun to bloom as yet. except for the one in the close up below.

You can see with this closeup that the blooms are just beginning much like most in the area. The full bloom Mountain Laurels are in the minority

Short tour today since I couldn’t find much else broadcasting the arrival of spring. I hope you have a great week.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt – “etc”

February 29, 2020February 29, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday time again, and this week’s prompt needs to be explained by Linda Hill. In her words.

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “ect.” Find a word with the letters “ect” in it, and base your post on that word. (Not to be confused with “et cetera,” which is “etc.”) Enjoy!”etc”

If you would like to join in the fun, go to Linda’s blog and read how. It is easy to go off the edge. Here is the link.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Feb. 29/2020

“Well, this certainly is farfetched.”

“You seem upset. What has caused you to express this farfetchedness?”

“I’m looking at the latest Stream of Conscious prompt, and it is wretched.”

“Let me see. Oh my, that is the sketchiest.”

“I know, right? Anything I can think of right now is a stretch.”

“So, you have no idea? Mind if I kvetch?”

“For once, I think I could use something from your mental sketchpad.”

“I’ll take that as a yes. So here is my latest mind stretchability.”

“My brains are outstretched to welcome any idea.”

“That is a visual that’s not very fetching. Here we go with my idea. What don’t you build a dialog around words that have “etc” in them?”

“Like maybe a story about streetcars?”

“Whatever. The important part will be to include an “etc” word in each line. This will etch a commonality in the reader’s mind, and you will have met the prompt.”

“That sounds great. Then in the backstretch, I could do something really super.”

“This is not a horserace, but what are you thinking? I wouldn’t overstretch the concept.”

“Pull out a word that few will know. Like baronetcies.”

“Are you tetched? Why would you do that?”

“To outdo the prompt in the homestretch.”

“Guess what, wretch?”

“What is it, kevetchier?”

“There is a pint with my name on it that will take me away from this wretchedness.”

“And a burger and fries with ketchup?”

“Let’s go fetch it.”

“I have been letching for it all morning.”

“Letch no more my man.”

“How do we stop this kvetching?”

“Grab your coat, etcetera, and walk out the door.”

“Etc no more.”

Friday – New Book Launch – Grinders – By C.S. Boyack

February 28, 2020February 27, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 76 Comments

Friday’s for JohnKu

Today’s a little different…

Craig’s in the house.

I usually have a John Ku and also some thoughts about the week on Friday. Today is a little different. I couldn’t help but do a JohnKu, but the musings will have to wait.

I am delighted to be joined by Craig Boyack, who is launching a new book. I always enjoy Craig’s books and am looking forward to this one. So without any delay, Here’s Craig.

Thanks for inviting me back, John. I’m here to talk about my newest book, Grinders. Grinders is a cyberpunk story, and many of you might be wondering what that is. Maybe my best way to start off is by telling you what it isn’t.

Science Fiction is a huge category. You can divide it up by thinking about space opera and anything with aliens, then everything else. Cyberpunk falls in the everything else category. In that section you can find everything from Godzilla, to Jurassic Park, to Frankenstein, so let’s narrow it a bit more.

Many science fiction stories in the remainder consist of either dystopia or utopia stories. Nope, not those either, but now that we’ve narrowed the field, I feel like I can get into the topic.

Cyberpunk involves a futuristic world where things are not perfect, but not horrible either. It usually focuses on high-tech and a bit of corruption. (That’s the punk part.) In these stories the environment is important and it’s almost like a character itself. I really tried to get this across in my story.

Grinders is set in a futuristic version of San Francisco. I tried to take current events and imagine where we might be in eighty to a hundred years. People solved the energy crisis, but made themselves beholden to the new system. Seas have risen dramatically, but the sea wall never got completed due to political bickering.

Many sections of the city are underwater and parts of the coast are trash piles because of the buildings being destroyed. They managed to clean up some portions of the mess and used the debris to raise the ground where the airport is. I tried to keep this just part of the environment and not make direct and blunt points about it all. You’ll see references to places like Telegraph Island in the story. Those who know SanFrancisco will know this area as Telegraph Hill and it is not an island – for now.

My main characters work for the police department on the Grinder Squad. The city receives grant money for having a dedicated department. When the money arrives, they divert it to more glamorous details. Grinder Squad is the worst of the worst, and all the new cars, supplies, and choice assignments go elsewhere. In other words, political corruption.

Technology is huge in this story, and I tried to take the concept of Alexa or Ring doorbells and project them into the future. Grinders has a futuristic version of personal digital assistants. Advertising is pervasive in this story, and the people living in it can’t avoid a constant stream of ways to separate them from their income.

In other words, I tried to make it futuristic while keeping it more realistic to life in general. Obviously, we’ve ignored science long enough to have a problem with global warming. What might this look like in the future? What would unregulated artificial intelligence look like 100 years from now?

There are good things, too. The grid is a new way of generating cheap power, and I have a whole post planned around this one somewhere down the line. The artificial intelligence is also helpful in the story at times.

At the end of the day, my main characters have to solve the big problems in humanistic ways, and that seems logical, too. I really enjoyed coming up with this expansive environment, and I hope some of your readers will give Grinders a chance.

Thanks for having me over again, John.

***

Blurb:

Jimi Cabot made one mistake as a starving college student. When she went to work for the San Francisco Police Department, it nearly cost her the job. The union stepped in and they had to reinstate her. They did so by assigning her to the duty nobody wants, Grinder Squad.

Grinders are people who use back room surgeries to enhance their bodies with computer chips, and various kinds of hardware. Jimi is sure that if she can just bust one grind shop, it will be her ticket back.

Paired with veteran cop, she soon learns that Grinder Squad is a cash-cow for the department. They are nothing more than glorified patrol cops, and generally get the worst assignments.

Matchless is the most wanted grinder of all time. He disappeared years ago, leaving only the evidence of those he enhanced during his career. With these pieces, Jimi picks up the cold trail to try working her way back to more respectable duty.

Grinders is a cyberpunk story set in a world where global warming has eroded coastlines, and society has solved many of our current problems by replacing them with new ones. There are cyber shut-ins, cyber-currency skimming schemes, and more in this futuristic tale.

This book also takes the opportunity to poke a stick at current issues that seem to have lasted into the future. Entitled people, helicopter moms, overzealous homeowner associations, and lack of decent jobs are all present. Never preachy, these issues make up the day to day work of a patrol officer.

I hope you enjoy Grinders as much as I enjoyed bringing it to you.

Purchase link: http://mybook.to/Grinders