Tuesday – Anything Possible Kreative Kue # 244 by Keith Channing

January 7, 2020January 6, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 39 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.”

The Photo

Kreative Kue

“I’m telling you, Pradeep. I’m sitting on a bench listening to the whole thing.”

“Can you talk?”

“They are right behind me. Maybe I should take you off speaker.”

“Good idea.”

“Okay, you are off. Like I said, you won’t believe it.”

“So you are at the Taj. Tell me again what the two said.”

“The guy came up to the meadow stairs with this girl. They were holding hands. He said to her, ‘Are you ready for your surprise.”‘

“Yeah, then what?”

“Here’s the funny part. He told her that he had bought the taj as a surprise.”

“Oh, Man. Who would believe that?”

“Not you and I, but she is still jumping up and down with delight.”

“How dumb can some of these people be. How old is she?”

“I’d say over twenty-one.”

“So, she should know better.”

“I think she looks like she went to university.”

“All the more reason. I hope the guy is happy with one not too bright.”

“Hold on, Pradeep. The couple is coming over here.”

“Excuse us, sir. I see you have a phone.”

“Yes, yes, I do.”

“Would you mind taking our photo and then sending it to my fiancee’s e-mail?”

“I would be happy to do that. Pradeep hold on a little more. This is getting better and better. Alright, you two. I have the Taj behind you, and you look delighted. There. Now, where should I send it?”

“Send it to hrh.palace.saudiaarabia.gov.sa.”

“Okay, miss it is sent.”

“Thank you so much. We won’t forget this. Goodbye.”

“Pradeep? Pradeep, you still there?”

“You would fall into a dung heap and come out smelling like saffron, you know that?”

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Ow.”

January 4, 2020January 3, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 48 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness time again and this week’s prompt is “ow.” Lrt’s let Linda explain. “Your prompt for #JusJoJan and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “ow.” Find a word that contains “ow” or use it as a word in your post. Have fun!”

There’s that “have fun” thing again. If you would like to have fun visit Linda’s blog and read how. Here is the link.

The Friday Reminder for #SoCS & #JusJoJan 2020 Daily Prompt – Jan. 4th

“Don’t say it.”

“What?”

“The prompt word.”

“How do you have the knowledge that I’m going to say it?”

“I just know you and your prowess when it comes to prompts.”

“Now you’ve thrown me. What do you mean by prowess.”

“I’ve shown you time and time again how you take the path of least resistance.”

“Allow me the dignity to understand your accusation.”

“You were going to say “ow,” weren’t you? Then start some kind of downhearted attempt at a story around an injury.”

“I resemble that. You could at least give me an allowance for creativity.”

“I did. You have a narrow band of creativity and I guessed where you were going to go.”

“Yeah okay. So I don’t have the creative horsepower that you have. At least I try hard.”

“I’m not sure it’s horsepower. Might just be brainpower.”

“You can use two powers in the same sentence.”

“They are different words, chowderhead.”

“Oh, I like the sounds of that. Let’s go to town for some clam chowder.”

“A downright capital idea.”

“Yeah. We can work on the prompt tomorrow.”

“Not sure about that. After a couple of growlers of beer, I might not be in any shape for word games.”

“We could try anyhow.”

“Let’s see where the wind blows.”

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Year.”

December 28, 2019December 27, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 47 Comments

Stream of Consciousness

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday, and this week’s prompt is “year.” Yup, that’s right, “year.” Here is what Linda Hill had to say on the subject.

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is ‘year.’ Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!”

If you would like to get in on this enjoyment, visit Linda’s blog. Here is the link.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Dec. 28/19

Year by John W. Howell © 2109

“Happy New Year.”

“Okay, not that I don’t like the sentiment, what caused that outburst?”

“I’m just filled with excitement looking forward to the new year.”

“Uh-huh. And I’m an elephant. Something else is going on.”

“Aren’t you looking forward to the new year?”

“Of course, I’m looking forward, but it is four days away.”

“You can never plan early enough for a new year.”

“Come on, tell me what is driving this ‘new year’ thing. Oh, wait. Hill right?

“Besides the fact.”

“Oh, sure it is. Let me guess. The prompt is ‘new.'”

“Ha. That’s how much you know.”

“‘Year’ then.”

“You finally stumbled on it. Yes, ‘year'”

“Okay, so you have something written up?”

“Look up there where I said Happy New Year.”

“Yeah, so?’

“What more needs to be written?”

“How about a sign to hang around your neck?”

“Which says?”

“Happy New Year from an idiot.”

“Aw. You say the nicest things.”

“I’m guessing dark sarcasm in the classroom.”

“How can you have any pudding if you don’t eat your meat?”

“Looks like we are off the rails again. Say goodnight Gracie.”

“Goodnight, Gracie.”

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Kreative Kue #242 by Keith Channing

December 24, 2019December 23, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 50 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 #242

“Hey, you.”

“W-who me?”

“Yes, you. What do you think you are doing?”

“Um. Just looking for something to munch on.”

“You know you’re not supposed to be running around.”

“Who says so?”

“Clement Clark Moore. That’s who.”

“Who the heck is Clement Clark Moore?”

“The author of the poem “A Visit from Saint Nicholas” Known more by the first line “Twas the Night Before Christmas.”

“Yeah, so what does that have to do with me?”

“The next lines have something to do with you.”

“So what are they?”

“And all through the house.”

“So, far, nothing.”

“Not a creature was stirring not even a mouse.”

“Still don’t get it.”

“What do you think you are?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are you a creature?”

“I never thought about it.”

“Well, I can tell you. You are a mouse.”

“That’s not what my mama told me.”

“I can’t wait to hear.”

“A beautiful boy.”

“That’s just mother talk. You are a mouse, and you shouldn’t be stirring.”

“I don’t even have a spoon.”

“Not that kind of stirring you dummkopf. Moving around, stirring.”

“Okay, I get it. Just let me find a bit of cheese, and I’ll quit.”

“If that’s all you need here, take some of mine.”

“Wow. That is so nice of you.”

“It is Christmas Eve, after all.”

“You look pretty big for a mouse.”

“That’s ’cause I’m not a mouse.”

“What are you then?”

“A cat.”

“Never heard of it.”

“Look it up and count your lucky stars.”

“Great cheese. Merry Christmas to us all.”

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Ingle”

December 21, 2019December 20, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 48 Comments

Stream of Consciousness

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday time again, and this week’s prompt requires a visit by Linda Hill. In her words, “Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “ingle.” Find a word that contains “ingle” and use it any way you’d like in your post. Have fun!” I love how she always throws in the “have fun” thingy.

If you would like to be part of the have fun thingy group, visit Linda’s blog and read how. You would be surprised how easy it is to have fun. Here is the link. https://lindaghill.com/2019/12/20/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-dec-21-19/

“Now, you really look pensive, my friend.”

“I’m writing a letter to Chris Kringle.”

“Santa Claus? Why are you saying Kris Kr— Oh, I’ll bet Linda Hill has you on a wild goose chase again.”

“It’s not a wild goose chase it’s words that have ‘ingle’ in them.”

“Hence ‘Kringle.”‘

“Yes. I had intended to put ingle words into my letter.”

“Oh, really? Is the letter done?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Will you read it to me?”

“Sure. Ahem

My Dear Mr. Kringle,

I have been very good this year. I can’t think of a single time where I was bad. Well, there was the time that I had too much Inglenook Chardonnay, but that was only a meaningless slip of judgment. You see, I was mingling with the wrong crowd, and the ringleader got me into a chardonnay chugging contest, and before I knew it, my toes began to tingle. By then, it was too late, and I was wingless, so to speak.

Besides that, I have tried my best to hang out a shingle of virtue. To that end, all I want for Christmas is a Bentley Turbo Convertable. I’m not fussy about the color, but a beautiful slate grey would be lovely. How does it sound?“

“If I were Kris I would leave you one jingle of a bell.”

“Aw come on. I deserve that car.”

“Sure you do. Like I deserve you or a case of the shingles.”

“Cold brother.”

“Speaking of?”

“Right behind you.”

Tuesday Anything Possible – Kreative Kue #241 by Keith Channing

December 17, 2019December 16, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 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 #241

“A song, a song
High above the trees
With a voice as big as the sea
With a voice as big as the sea.”

“Hey, Ma’ma.”

“Yes, Little One.”

“Could you hold down the carol for a second?”

“Sure. What’s the problem?”

“Do you see what I see?”

“Tell me more.”

“Don’t listen to her Mom. Go ahead and keep singing.”

“Let’s just wait, Trevor. What is it, you see?”

“On that cement post there. Is that a camera?”

“My goodness child. It does look like one. I wonder who put it there?”

“It wasn’t pop I can guarantee that. He’s like a bear in hibernation.”

“Now Trevor. Your dad is busy with his writing. So what should we think about the camera?”

“Beats me. Maybe the government wants to make sure we aren’t doing anything improper.”

“That’s a laugh. They should have cameras on themselves then.”

“Ma’ ma. Be careful what you say. These are the days of the conservatives you know.”

“I have an idea. Let’s all gather around the camera and sing a carol.”

“I can’t wait for the dispatched loonie wagon to reach us.”

“Oh hush, Trevor. I think it will be fun.”

“Okay, mom. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Ready? One Two Three.

Said the king to the people everywhere
Listen to what I say
Pray for peace people everywhere
Listen to what I say
The child, the child
Sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light
He will bring us goodness and light

He will bring us goodness and light.”

“Not half bad, mom.”

“Thanks. Let’s go home and have some tea.”

“And a biscuit?”

“Several.”

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt – “Loud”

December 14, 2019December 13, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 37 Comments

Stream of Consciousness

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday time again, and this week’s prompt is “loud.” It is a little more complicated than just using the word loud. Here read Linda Hill’s description of the prompt, and you will see what I mean. “Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “loud.” Find any word that means “loud,” and use it any way you’d like in your post. Enjoy!”

So it looks like we don’t use the word loud but a word that means loud. Hmmm. Maybe like ear-shattering. Of course, that is a hyphenated word and don’t know if it qualifies, and I have no time to call Linda to find out. So I guess I’ll have to find another word. I think deafening will work. Let’s go with that.

Loud by John W. Howell © 2109

“Who were you talking to there?”

“Where?”

“Just above the title, Loud and the byline.”

“Oh, that. I was just articulating an option for using a word that means loud.”

“Why not just use loud?”

“Because we have to use a word that means loud.”

“And you chose deafening?”

“That’s right.”

“Why not vociferous?”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“Loud.”

“Naw, I can’t think of a subject using the word vociferous.”

“What are you going to say about deafening?”

“The piano fell out of the fifth-story window and hit the ground with a deafening crash.”

“You are telling not showing.”

“Huh?”

“You just described the scene. You didn’t get us involved in the scene by showing us what happened.”

“So why don’t you give it a try.”

“Jack looked up in time to see the large grand piano begin its plummet from the fifth story window. The piano’s shadow surrounding Jack became ever wider as gravity pulled it closer to the Earth. Jack knew that as the instrument meets the street, the deafening sound of the implosion would be a lovely experience for any lucky bystanders. In an instant, he also realizes it is now too late for him to get out of the way. He will miss the symphony of destruction. ”

“Geez. You write dark stuff.”

“Yeah, but it has a little more depth.”

“I think I’ll find another word.”

“What other word?”

“Raucous.”

“That’s a good one. Let me hear your story.”

“Um. The party took on a raucous edge when little Janie secretly added three pints of grain alcohol to the champaign fountain.”

“Yeah, I like it. Then what happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“You got my interest up. What happen next?”

“Oh, I don’t know. The police came and threw everyone in jail I guess.”

“So, you don’t know what happened?”

“Why does something have to happen?”

“I thought you were supposed to write a story using the prompt.”

“Yeah, but now I’m out of time. I’m just going to go with what we have.”

“You can do that?”

“I guess we’ll find out.”

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Finger Point Prompt “Eat”

December 10, 2019December 9, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 41 Comments

Keith Channing is on a hiatus this week. I have arranged a finger point prompt using the best selling novel Circumstances of Childhood by that world-famous author John W, Howell. As luck would have it, the prompt for today is, “eat.”

“How much of that corn could you eat?”

“Depends on what time of day?”

“Time of day? What does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, you take your midnight, for example. Hard to eat when you’re lying down.”

“That makes sense. Of course, you don’t eat at midnight.”

“Huh?”

“Who does that?”

“Well. if I’m not lying down.”

“You are kidding me, right?”

“Okay, let’s get back to the original question. You asked how much of that corn could I eat?”

“Yeah, that was the question.”

“Again, it depends.”

“We already covered that.”

“No, it depends on when I last ate.”

“Okay, that seems reasonable. How much could you eat if you hadn’t eaten for a while.”

“All of it.”

“You’re kidding? How much if you just ate?”

“Again, that depends.”

“On what for heaven’s sake.”

“On whether or not I had an after-dinner mint.”

“OMG. I need this to end. Okay, I’ll bite. How much if you had a mint?”

“Almost all of it.”

“No mint.”

“All of it.”

“You are a pig, you know that?”

“Is this the first you noticed Mr. Smarty Pant’s horse?”

Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt – Dream

November 16, 2019November 15, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 50 Comments

It is Stream of Consciousness Saturday again and this week’s prompt is “dream.” Linda Hill says we can use it as a noun or a verb. She also means we can use it any way we like. Well, that brings up a host of possibilities. If you would like to participate in this madness, go to Linda’s blog and read how. Here is the link.

https://lindaghill.com/2019/11/15/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-nov-16-19/

“What are you eating?”

“It is called a Dreamsicle.”

“I’ve never seen one of those before.”

“Want a taste?”

“Thanks. That is dreamy, all right. Is that orange sherbert on top of vanilla ice cream?”

“Yup. Just a dream, a dream.”

“You’re singing.”

“Yup. All our plans and all our schemes.”

“What song is that?”

“Just a Dream by Jimmy Clanton.”

“I know one. Sing with me, sing for the years
Sing for the laughter, sing for the tears.”

“Dream on. Aerosmith, right?”

“Right.”

“Try this. All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey.”

“California Dreaming by the Mamas and Papas. Here’s one. This is my quest to follow that star. No matter how hopeless, no matter how far.”

“Impossible Dream by Richard Kiley. Now me. I need you so that I could die. I love you so and that is why.”

“All I have to do is Dream by the Everly Brothers. I’ll bet you won’t get this one. In the dark, and I’m right on the mark.”

“Hmmm. Let see.”

“I’ll give you a hint. Fire breathing.”

“Dragon?”

“Close.”

“Imagine Dragons. The song is Dream.”

“Bingo. You go ahead.”

“A candy-colored clown they call the sandman.Tiptoes to my room every night.”

“Easy. In Dreams by Roy Orbison. Have we done enough?”

“I think so. One more. Cheer up sleepy Jean. Oh, what can it mean to a Daydream believer and a Homecoming queen?”

“Monkees. Daydream Believer. I think we have run the course.”

“One more use of the word dream.”

“What?”

“Creamy head, amber color, bubbles.”

“BARLEY POP!”

“You got it. Let’s go.”

Tuesday – Anything Possible – Kreative Kue # 236 by Keith Channing

November 5, 2019November 4, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 36 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.

“Are you sure no one’s home?”

“At ease, matey. I watched them leave. This time of day, they won’t be back for hours. Now just look at the treasure, will ya?”

“This stuff makes the copper monkey look cheap.”

“That’s right. All we have to do is load this stuff up, and we have made hundreds.”

“Let me drop this drape over here.”

“Good idea.”

“OMG, look at all the nautical stuff on it.”

“This guy must have been a sea captain. Look that these fishing nets too.”

“How do you use em?”

“Well, this one is for hauling in a big fish that you have on the line. It pretty much makes sure the hook doesn’t come out with the weight of the fish.”

“What about this one.”

“I think it is a landing net as well but can be used to scoop fish out of the water.”

“Okay, enough net lessons, let’s get to the copper.”

“Whoa, this desk is heavy.”

“This globe and sailboat are light. I’ll take them out.”

“Wait a minute. Help me with the desk.”

“Take out the drawers, and it will be easier.”

“Well, what are we going to do then?”

“I guess the two of us need to lift it.”

“Not going to happen. I have a bad back.”

“Bad back. Since when?”

“Two minutes ago. Let’s leave it. I say these nets the globe, clock, and sailboat are more than enough.”