Live Novel Friday…

The Wharf

Episode IV

According to the note pinned to the hood of the baby’s coat, his name was Brugo. The name didn’t ring any bells for the young barmaid, but the name of his father stole her breath away.

The note claimed that the child belonged to Ollie, the tavern’s owner!

Maiyah was shocked, to say the least, as she’d rarely ever seen the grumpy orc with a lady friend. And, those he spent time with didn’t stay long, what with his terrible temperament.

Niceness can only go so far with a lady, if the rest of your time is spent drinking, and carousing with the rest of the drunken sailors visiting the wharf. The orc lived a very lonely life, though he be surrounded by others. Maiyah thought maybe that was the reason for his being so grumpy all the time.

Looking down at the baby orc, Maiyah faced a huge dilemma. What to do with the baby, and what to do about the letter she now held.

If she were to take the baby straight away to his father, Ollie would surely send him away. He might even become angry enough to put Maiyah out on the street, just for being the one who brought him the baby. She wasn’t only worried about his reaction to the baby, but the note that came pinned to his coat.

Maiyah felt that it was wrong to read someone else’s letter, so once she saw the baby’s name she stopped reading the letter, and placed it in the pocket of her apron.

For the time being, all that Maiyah could think about was how she was going to sneak the baby into her room. Maybe if she waited for the right moment to talk to him, when the orc was in high spirits, she might lessen the shock of revealing the note, and the baby that came with it.

The important question was, how would she be able to keep a baby hidden in a place one was not meant for small ones. The adorable little beast would stand out like a beacon, from the moment she set foot inside the tavern’s doorway.

She knew she could safely navigate getting the baby in, simply by stuffing him in the bottom of a laundry basket, and then covering him with the clothes. That wouldn’t be the issue. What she worried over, was how to keep him hidden and quiet. What was she to do with him while she did her work, within the tavern. Ollie would surely notice her absence, as she never missed a single shift.

Well, she would have to figure things out as she went. Maiyah had never done something so reckless before, but needs must when one encountered something unexpected. Dipping into the kitchen, Maiyah retrieved a laundry basket and returned to the fish barrel, where the baby sat waiting.

He seemed quite happy to climb into the pile of soft clothing. Quickly, she pulled the laundry around and over him, to hide the little beast from spying eyes. No sense in being undone by a nosy tattle tail.

Once she’d safely made it up the back stairway to her room, she deposited the baby onto her bed. He just sat silently watching her, making no move to climb off the bed. Not knowing what else could be done at the moment, she offered the baby a biscuit, propped some blankets about his shoulders, and left him there. If she didn’t get downstairs to begin serving customers soon, Ollie would become suspicious. All she could do was pray that the baby would fall asleep, or something.

How will Maiyah keep the baby hidden, and for how long?

What will happen when she gives Ollie the letter?

And, what will become of little Brugo?

(2024) I Chose To Live…

Daily writing prompt
Describe a risk you took that you do not regret.

First I chose to run…

Then I chose to stand…

From there I chose to walk on…

I chose God over suicide…

I chose to have my children…

I chose to heal…

I chose to live…

I’ve no regrets!

Here, have some cookies…

Since they’re virtual, you can take the risk, as there aren’t any calories to regret!

Thursday Thoughts…

Is it possible to overdose on too much exposure to adorable?

While I absolutely think it’s possible, I don’t think that the long lasting side effects are all that bad… feeling giddy and light headed, smiling til your cheeks hurt, and having a general desire to hug anyone within reach.

Can you believe Maisie’s over four months old now? Every time we see her, she just keeps getting cuter… and happier! I swear she is the happiest baby I’ve ever encountered. I can attest that her mother was NOT this happy all the time. In fact, my daughter was a very sick baby for the first several years of her young life.

But, as you can see from the above image, she got better. She had some hard knocks here and there, as a teenager, but my daughter is nothing, if not tenacious, when it comes to overcoming things.

I couldn’t be more proud of the woman she’s become, as well as being a fantastic mom!

So much will be changing for us, here in just about a month, as Maisie will be spending three days a week in our care. I’m thrilled, yet a little scared, also. It’s been over 30 years since I was caring for my baby girls. Things have changed dramatically since those days, when it comes to how babies are raised. Nearly all the baby stuff looks foreign to me, though I’m fairly certain I can still use a thermometer.

Thankfully, we have a small apartment, and there isn’t a lot of furniture and/or clutter, which I’m eternally grateful about. I’m never going to get any housework done, or anything else productive, for that matter. She is so cute, and I simply forget about everything else, the moment I pick her up.

How hard can it be, right?

We put a crib in our bedroom, and I’m decorating it to be as similar as possible to what she has at home. This way she’ll hopefully not be fearful of her surroundings, when she naps.

We still need to get a table and chairs for the kitchen area, so as to have a place for a little attachable high chair. She’s already trying foods, folks. Anytime a baby is born so big, I swear they start eating real food much earlier than normal. She loves bananas, squash, oatmeal, and her mamma is planning on offering her avocado next. We just make it with our little Ninja mixer. The plan is to make everything fresh, and with nothing added. I forgot how much work it takes being a mom. My daughter is going to be exhausted when she goes back to work.

Well, I’m just glad we can be helpful. My son-in-law’s mother will share childcare with us, so that our kids have a chance to be financially stable. Childcare these days is ridiculously overpriced. Honestly, I don’t know how anyone can actually afford to work, when they have to pay so much for babysitters, as well as all the other added costs of a growing family.

It’s about to become a whole different schedule for this Meemaw, but I don’t actually mind. Though I’ll not having as much free time available, once she arrives, it’s a fantastic trade-off. Maisie is far better than any video game, or Netflix series that I’ve already binge watched numerous times. I’ll have to adjust my writing schedule for when she’s napping, or playing with her Papa. If that doesn’t work then I’ll do it on the days she spends with her other Grandma. I might even switch to writing in the evenings, when it’s quiet.

In truth, I don’t think there’ll be anything productive going on when she arrives, which is as it should be…

(2024) Bad Kitty…

Daily writing prompt
Write about a time when you didn’t take action but wish you had. What would you do differently?

The first thing that popped into my mind, when I read this prompt question, was the time I ate a piece of chocolate cake that the cat had peed on! I wish I were joking, but alas, there is nothing made up about that event.

What would I have done differently? I would have made the cat live outdoors much sooner than I did. The peeing on things had begun about a month prior. I’d been attempting to correct the cats behavior, rather than evicting her from the house… until that day!

Why on earth would this be the first thing I came up with, as I read the daily prompt?

As a general rule of thumb, I do not look on past decisions as something I would change. I stay away from the whole woulda shoulda coulda mindset, not only because it’s done and gone, but because our past makes us who we are now. Mess with one eensie weensie past decision and who knows what might be affected, here in the present.

So, for the most part, there isn’t a great list of things I would venture to safely change… aside for the cat and the cake… that I could un-remember!

Here, have a piece of cake… I’m sure it’ll be fine! This cutie wouldn’t dream of being naughty…

Wednesday Words…

Eustace has taken it upon himself to collect all the new images needed for our springtime site maintenance.

Hey, hiring a professional photographer is ridiculously expensive, so when the camel volunteered… well, I didn’t have the heart, or the pocketbook, to argue with him. In all honesty, he’ll probably do far better than I could.

God speed, Eustace!

Oh, and watch out for tics and sand fleas… they can be real buggers (get it? Bug-errrs)

(2024) Nervous… Me?

Daily writing prompt
What makes you nervous?

There was a time when I could say that I was the poster child for Anxiety! My nervousness was my very own survival mechanism of choice!

Not much of my life went the way I’d wanted, leaving me traumatized and wounded for many, many years. All of the life interuptuses I’ve endured, some from my own making, have landed me with two nervous roommates that never leave… IBS and Fibromyalgia.

While you may be wondering why I’ve allowed them to stay, to me, they are more like helpless children, needing constant care and supervision. In good conscience, I could no sooner evict these two, than I could my own children. By loving and tending my roommates, or scars if you will, God allows me to manage my own nervous anxieties, with grace, compassion and understanding.

Assigning a specific culprit to hold responsibility for making us nervous, seems rather silly. As WordPress is not leading a support group or therapy session, by asking everyone what makes them nervous, the only thing this prompt will successfully do is make everyone nervous about answering what makes them nervous.

Did they even look up the definition of the word, before they thought to ask the question? I did!

According to Google, which the world seems to think knows everything, the definition of nervous is this:

easily agitated or alarmed; tending to be anxious; highly strung.

“a sensitive, nervous person”

It seems rather ludicrous to ask a nervous person what makes them nervous! It quickly became apparent to me that the idea of being nervous is a mannerism, or a trait that has long since been established. Once I read the definition, I began thinking about how hard it would be to just randomly come up with an easy answer, over a cup of coffee in the morning.

If it were that easy for all us nervous folk to discover what makes us nervous, there would be millions of spare dollars floating around, that no longer need to be paid to the professionals who spend years learning how to become a therapist!

Just sayin…

Here, have a cookie…

They were supposed to look like pins and needles, but as the AI art generator reflects, it was much easier said than done! The closest it could come to what I wanted, was cookies stabbed by a decorative paperclip… go figure!

(2016) Confidence!

**This was one of the first few entries, back in the day, when I began my online literary journey. It’s pretty small, as well as, unformatted. I added some images, and did a bit of editing. Otherwise, the content hasn’t been changed. **

“Now this is the confidence we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He will hear us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petition that we have asked of Him.”     1 John 5:14,15

Having faith in God means trusting Him even though I cannot see or understand His ways or His plan for me.  I have to believe He knows what He is doing and He wants only for my good. 

I do not have an understanding of why our situation doesn’t seem to have an end in sight, but I have to trust Him even if I cannot see what lies ahead.  What I do know is that I am responsible for my attitude and actions within my circumstances.  How I handle the situation is what He sees and what others see. 

When I say that I want to reflect Him, it means that even in the face of impossible situations I should not be filled with fear, anger, or frustration. 

It means that I need to walk in peace, in faith, and in power that comes not from myself but from Him. 

I need to continue to walk forward in confidence, knowing that if I  am being obedient in my walk, He has heard me and will provide what I need, in His timing not mine.  I need to really practice having patience and trust in Him. 

The word faith is a noun, I realize. But, personally, I think it should be verb, a word of action and effort.  Faith is not automatic, but rather, it is an active effort to go, to be, and to do everything in a manner that displays my trust in Him and my belief that He will do what His word promises He will do.

I am finding the confidence spoken about in scripture, and that confidence arrives in the form of faith.

What we ask for by faith, may not arrive immediately. In fact, it may take time, and might not even look like the answer we were expecting… but let’s hold confidently in faith, none the less.

 

(2024) I like to Merge it, Merge it…

Daily writing prompt
How do you unwind after a demanding day?

For myself, I get a great amount of pleasure, as well as a sense of unwinding, when I climb into my bed and play those silly phone app games. I absolutely love puzzles, merge games, and/or the farming ones.

I realize that these games are rather simple and/or childish… but I don’t give a hoot! I have a very busy brain, which can often stress me to my limits just trying to not think! Something about these meaningless little games can feel cathartic or relaxing, if you will.

In truth, I think it’s because they’re meaningless or no-brainer games, as I call them. If I play any of my mmo rpg games, I get caught up in the adventure, often staying up into the wee hours slaying orcs or zombies, so this isn’t where I’ll go to unwind… it’s where I’ll go to vent!

I’ve actually used my phone merge games and puzzles to combat anxiety, by giving me a simple focus point. I know it sounds absurd to think that these games would help, but oddly, they do!

Here, have a cookie…

Who’s a Gorganizer?

Daily writing prompt
How do you use social media?

Ok, so I was bored this morning. If I’m to be honest with you, there was nothing in my think box that would be fitting for our normal literary investigations. It just wasn’t happening.

Out of desperation for a topic, I reached out to good ole Mr. McGoogle, in the hopes that I might find something useful to discuss.

But, what to ask? How does one come to find a useful topic, without the right query to pose, right?! That was an Interrobang, by the way. You’ll never guess how I know that?

I went out on the web and typed,

Words not often used in the English language

This was my result,

AI Overview

Rare and underused words in the English language often serve to describe specific feelings, sounds, or actions with intense precision. Many are antiquated, regional, or highly niche in their application, leading them to be replaced by simpler, more general terms in modern conversation.

Forgotten and Archaic Words

  • Twirlblast (n.): A 1700s term for a tornado.
  • Groaning-cheese (n.): A medieval term for a celebratory cheese marking the birth of a child.
  • Pilgarlik (n.): Someone who is bald, once thought to resemble peeled garlic.
  • Snowbrowth (n.): Freshly melted snow, a term from the 1590s.
  • Sooterkin (n.): Originally a deformed fetus, later used as a term of endearment.
  • Overmorrow (n.): The day after tomorrow.
  • Agelast (n.): A person who never laughs. 

Highly Specific Descriptive Words

  • Crapulence (n.): Sickness caused by excessive eating or drinking; a hangover.
  • Callipygian (adj.): Having well-shaped or beautiful buttocks.
  • Swullocking (adj.): Humid, hot weather.
  • Chasmophile (n.): A person who loves nooks and crannies.
  • Scurryfunge (n.): The act of hastily cleaning before a guest arrives.
  • Groak (v.): To watch someone silently while they eat, hoping they will invite you to join.
  • Elflock (n.): Tangled, knotted hair.
  • Acnestis (n.): The part of the back that cannot be reached to be scratched.
  • Gorgonize (v.): To have a paralyzing or mesmerizing effect on someone. 

Words That Deserve Wider Use

  • Ultracrepidarian (n.): Someone who gives opinions on subjects they know nothing about.
  • Snollygoster (n.): An unprincipled but shrewd politician.
  • Nibling (n.): A non-gender specific term for a niece or nephew.
  • Apricity (n.): The warmth of the sun in winter.
  • Petrichor (n.): The pleasant, earthy smell that accompanies the first rain after a long dry spell.
  • Anemoia (n.): Nostalgia for a time or place one has never known.
  • Anecdoche (n.): A conversation in which everyone is talking, but no one is listening. 

Obscure Adjectives

  • Catawampus (adj.): Askew, awry, or diagonally positioned.
  • Jentacular (adj.): Pertaining to breakfast.
  • Crapulous (adj.): Ill from excessive indulgence in food or drink.
  • Sybaritic (adj.): Accustomed to great luxury and pleasure-seeking.
  • Agathokakological (adj.): Composed of both good and evil. 

Whimsical and Odd Words

  • Interrobang (n.): A punctuation mark that combines a question mark and exclamation point (‽).
  • Bumbershoot (n.): An umbrella.
  • Flibbertigibbet (n.): A flighty, excessively talkative person.
  • Taradiddle (n.): Pretentious nonsense or a petty lie.
  • Skedaddle (v.): To run away quickly. 

Words for Specific Situations

  • Lypophrenia (n.): A vague sadness without a known cause.
  • Limerence (n.): An intense, almost obsessive romantic infatuation.
  • Treppenwitz (n.): The perfect witty comeback that occurs to you too late (literally: “staircase wit”).
  • Zugzwang (n.): A situation where a person is forced to make a move, but every option is bad (often used in chess).
  • Resistentialism (n.): The belief that inanimate objects display spiteful behavior.
  • Librocubicularist (n.): A person who reads in bed.

If nothing else, this was an incredibly entertaining bit of research. I had no idea that I was a Librocubicularist. I think my autocorrect just had a seizure!

Which one is your favorite? I’m torn between Skurryfunge and Treppenwitz, probably because I’ve found myself doing both, often enough.

If society readily continued with the use of most of these, I think it would really spice up many of our conversations, don’t you?! See how easy it is to do. You too can become a successful Interrobanger!

Like a garden…

Daily writing prompt
How do you use social media?

Social media is like the fertile soil of a garden, just waiting to be planted.

Some may plant selfies, hoping to be viewed and shared. Others plant silly videos that bring laughter and likes. Still more plant how-to, self-help, and/or how-it’s-made videos for our viewing pleasure, with the hope of DIYing it, all the way to the bank.

While I’m not sure what I thought I wanted to do with my site ,when all this began, here on WordPress… I’m quite certain as to how I feel about it now.

I wish to plant things on social media, treating it like a garden. If the planting is fertile, then the harvest will be fruitful! By planting love, joy, peace, and goodness, then my hope is that there will be a bounty of fruit produced, come harvest time.

If one plants the right seeds, nourishes them with healing waters, well, who knows what kind of fruit will grow…