This meme was started by Delores a long time ago. Words for Wednesday is now provided by a number of people and has become a movable feast.
Essentially the aim is to encourage us to write. Each week we are given a choice of prompts: which can be words, phrases, music or an image. What we do with those prompts is up to us: a short story, prose, a song, a poem, or treating them with ignore... We can use some or all of the prompts.
Some of us put our creation in comments on the post, and others post on their own blog. I would really like it if as many people as possible joined into this fun meme, which includes cheering on the other participants. If you are posting on your own blog - let me know so that I, and other participants, can come along and applaud.
The prompts will be here this month but are again being provided by Mark Koopmans.
This week's prompts are:
- Granulate
- Trial
- Serenade
- Billiards
- Cuss
- Avuncular
And/Or
- Vindicate
- Hotelier
- Junkie
- Metronome
- Questionnaire
- Exemplify
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Have fun.
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The metronome in Linda's mind ticked: Yes/No, Yes/No...
ReplyDeleteIf the townsfolk had to complete a questionnaire she knew how they would MUCH rather believe Rollo Brett the avuncular hotelier than a dirty junkie.
He was sweeter than granulated sugar and made her teeth ache. He had spent years serenading the ladies with his no cussing rule, and his generous welcome to their children. Years and years.
Linda was fifteen when she first noticed him playing pocket billiards as he watched over/eyed off the young boys in the unofficial creche in the back room of his hotel. A room he had set up so the mothers could take a break and enjoy the facilities his hotel offered.
She told her mother, who told her she was imagining things, and that 'Mr Rollo to you, exemplified what a man should be'. She told her teacher who said she had a dirty mind and put her on detention for lying.
The more she watched, the more she saw. And no-one believed her. Very young boys became his 'special friends' and were never the same again. Her brother had been one of those boys, but he killed himself before telling anyone but Linda. Her own life spiralled out of control.
She finally had incontrovertible evidence against him. Photographs and videos which proved all her accusations. If it went to trial she would be vindicated. She would be vindicated and the trauma of too many young lives would be laid open for lawyers and the media to pore over.
The metronome continued to tick. She had just two choices; take her evidence to the police or kill him. Only the second guaranteed that he would never reoffend again.
Wow you went darker than I did. Well done!
DeleteTerrific, EC. Powerful!
DeleteWhat a choice, i can see her being afraid of him getting off or getting out of prison, so throwing away her own life and killing him and going to prison herself to keep other boys from becoming victims. How often in the world has this happened?
DeleteThat was sooooo NOT expected... Wow. Loving that story line, if not the subject matter, but well told, missus!
DeleteWhat a great story! You have a dark side! Who could know?
DeleteDavid M. Gascoigne: I have a very dark side.
DeleteExcellent story on a very dark subject. I think she should take her chances with telling the police, it's fairly well known what happens to such men in prisons, let him get a taste of what he put those boys through.
DeleteA dark story indeed, but well written. I wonder why Mark's word almost always lead to murder?
DeleteLoving your story Sue!
Deletethe juicy choice is always best in a story! love it!
DeleteWell done! Not the yes/no decision I was expecting...
DeleteNo, not the ending I was expecting but also, unfortunately a true picture. We have swung the other way and believe every accusation levelled.
DeleteVery powerful and moving!!!
DeleteWow, he went with some big words this week!
ReplyDeleteAlex J. Cavanaugh: He did, but the combination is still very Markesque.
DeleteOne tries...
Delete...said the rugby player.
I am not a junkie, let's just get that straight right off the bat. Down on my luck? A series of bad decisions? Maybe. Or perhaps I just exemplify someone who has been through a major trial. A veritable walk through fire so to say. Or maybe just compilation of all the above.
ReplyDeleteI recently had a visit from the gal from Social Services. She told me she"found" me living behind the billiards hall. I had not idea I was lost and had to be "found". I stay here because, believe it or not, it is a pretty safe place, and I should know because some places I have stayed are anything but safe.
Of course the talked in this sing song voice, which was supposed to enlighten me to her somewhat fake avuncular nature.
Surprised I know a word like avuncular? I know a lot of Scrabble words__ like mayonnaise and granulate. I live on the streets now, but that does not mean I always did. At one time I was a relatively successful hotelier. See__ another scrabble word! But a few bouts of depression followed by some seriously high highs set me on a different path. I left the job in the Catskills, OK, I may have been asked to leave, wandered around for a while and ended up here. The west coast is not necessarily an easy place to live but the weather is decent and this alley is a decent home.
But I digress. Oh My God__another big word!
The social service lady's opening was very typical . I have answered a ton of questions over the years that mimic her questionnaire. The first twenty five or so questions are all yes or no answers. Question1. Yes__Question2. No__
Question3. No. The whole thing becomes as repetitive as the clicking of the metronome that my piano teacher used back when I was a young girl. Anyway we finished the q and a period and she asked me if this is how I wanted to live the rest of my life.
How do you tell someone that some people imagine the rest of their lives in living color with a blue bird serenade in the background. My imagery is more like an old black and white flick but instead of a song I have someone who starts to yell and cuss at me as background noise. I feel no need to vindicate my existence, whether it was the path I chose or the path that chose me. I mainly just want to be left alone right now.
BTW Mark is sadistic!
DeleteAnne in the kitchen: I love your story. It makes my heart ache, but I really, really appreciate your skilled use of Mark's prompts.
DeleteHe is a sadist, but my masochistic self has (mostly) enjoyed having my brain stretched.
It made me very sad to write it, but after I looked at the words I just knew who lived in them and felt her hopelessness.
DeleteVery good, Anne. :) Well done!
DeleteIt's not so much that people need to be rescued, just loved right where they are.
DeleteAnne, I SMILED the whole time I read your piece (and comments:) Loved what you did, and that *voice.* Oh, my... :) There's a kick-ass, heroine there in the making, if you're looking for one!
DeleteWell done, Anne.
DeleteWow. And I understand just wanting to be left alone.
DeleteSad story, and yet, I feel a careful optimism.
Deleteexcellent voice!
DeleteBuona serata e un sereno mercoledi per te.
ReplyDeleteGiancarlo: Thank you. Our Wednesday is far from clear. It has been raining since the early hours and I LOVE it. The cat does not.
DeleteOh my goodness, I really enjoyed the visions that you took me with set of mighty words! Interesting how ones thoughts can take a few words and spell out such stories that otherwise never would have. Thank you.
ReplyDelete21 Wits: Each and every week I am amazed at the very different directions the same words take people.
DeleteA great list. Once i write my story, i'll come back and read those already posted, and my words will be over here.
ReplyDeletemessymimi: I am really looking forward to your take - as I do every week.
DeleteLike a metronome, the junkie swayed down the laneway. Lost in a world of his own cuss words fell from his mouth reminiscent of an uncouth, crass serenade.
ReplyDeleteHe had been playing...or attempting to play...billiards at a nearby pub, but the hotelier, when he noticed the fellow rubbing the white ball with an abrasive, trying to granulate the surface of the ball, kicked him to the kerb.
It was neither the time, nor the place to treat him in an avuncular manner. His kind weren’t welcome in the establishment. .
The unkempt patron’s behaviour, and others of his kind served to exemplify the growing number of members of the public’s lack of respect, not only for themselves, but for others, the disgruntled hotelier muttered to himself as he walked back inside.
He’d set up a trial period, which had included an in-depth questionnaire, in the hope of receiving positive feedback from his patrons on the best way forward; hoping their thoughts and suggestion would vindicate the stance he intended to take.
Lots to think about here, do we throw out those who don't look like us just because of that, or only those who do what is wrong, not just who look wrong.
DeleteLee, I promise I didn't read yours before I posted mine and I love we both were couth with some of our words :)
DeletePS: Having worked in several hotels and restaurants, your hotelier seems to be in a deliciously rotten spot and I wonder if he'll make it to the other side. Loved the possibilities and the subtle intrigue :)
I, too, for many years worked in a few hotels, restaurants and resort, Mark. :)
DeleteLee: I really liked this, but found myself feeling for the junkie. Most (if we are talking heroin) present much more danger to themselves than to anyone else.
DeleteAnyone, junkie or otherwise caught destroying property deserves kicking to the kerb.
DeleteHey! Our cricketers were for ball-tampering...the cricket ball that is...by rubbing sandpaper on it.
A proprietor has the right to protect his property...and kick out those who destroy or cause havoc...in my opinion...whether junkies, drunks...or just clowns who know no better. :)
Love this. I have known several people in my life who need validation from others to support their less than honorable positions on many things.
Deletevery deep introspective - nice job!
DeleteFirst of all... for the love of the Eurovision Song Contest, who came up with these bloody words...(I had to Google 2 of them!!!)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, here's me entry:
###
I’ve always wanted to be a standup comic, I mean, it’s been my dream and I’m 34 minutes from going on stage for the first time.
The nerves kick in now and while Sandy sits in the green room with me, she knows I’m in the zone and gives me the space I need, because my mind is Granulate.
I'm nervous, like a new attorney going to Trial instead of wanting to make some jokes in front of a couple dozen people. I look in the mirror and dry scream for several moments. Better than dry heaving anyway.
I straighten the front of my T-shirt and nod from the neck as if standing in front of Olivia Colman as the Queen.
(Is it “Colman,” or “Coleman?” She’s such a great actor. I really need to find out.)
Maybe, I’ll ask the crowd and build to some sort of mustard or miner’s strike joke? That wasn’t much of a joke though, was it... What would Maggie Thatcher think of me, the saucy minx? But I can’t use that line. Hugh Grant said it first in ‘Love Actually.’
I try to calm the mind and think of my people. Well, they’re not mine. I didn’t pay for them, but if I do my job right, they’ll stay and order another few drinks and I’ll get an order to come back next week, won't I?
Here’s hoping, but some will be so drunk they’ll want me to Serenade them with 80’s karaoke and be bored by my charming wit, but hey now. I’m a rock star (in the making) and I’ve fought for tonight. There’s no going back. Not now.
I nod again and think, well at least if the Queen heard my routine, she would be amused.
Thirty-three minutes later, the dusty Corona-sponsored curtain spreads with a mechanical wheeze. The only thing I hear is some ones playing Billiards beyond the lights, and the Cuss from a missed shot.
Those I can see in front of me stare like I’m the new attraction at the zoo—minus the protective screen. I take a deep breath, and off we go…
For the first few minutes, nothing much happens, but the story of why couples should date more and marry later went down well, and my pitch for keeping plastic Christmas trees up all year caught a few guffaws on the fly.
Feeling Avuncular with those below me, I half-roll up the sleeves and share how I need to Vindicate myself as a former Hotelier who simply had *no* choice but to put up with the most uncouth amongst us.
At first, I didn’t hear the beat of the Junkie from the back. I’d expected some heckling, of course; the spectators weren’t in the mood earlier, or perhaps never expected to be entertained in the first place. So, a little bit of drunken “yo Mama…” stuff I could deal with.
However, his comments washed and waved at me like a Metronome and no one stood to help, although Sandy tried, but I nodded her off. She was so sweet, and I loved her like no other, but I had to overcome jerks and junkies both, as well as this current un-loud crowd.
I hit back with questions and comments that pop outta me like a Questionnaire. It was mean, I know, as he slunk away with the double-finger exit, but I had to Exemplify myself to my people. I had to be real.
This was no joking matter.
Wow! This is great, Mark! You have excelled yourself! Well done, indeed! :)
DeleteMark Koopmans: Smiling broadly here. And admiring that brave erstwhile hotelier. I would certainly be heaving back stage - before slinking off into the night.
DeleteIndeed, being a stand up isn't a joking matter, as my brother does this on an amateur basis and will confirm what you say. Great use of the words.
DeleteYes who indeed vame up with these words? You had to google only two :) I top that with seven. But a fine tale you spun there.
Deletefull frontal! good story, man!
DeleteI do agree, who came up with all these bloody words!! Good one again Mark.
DeleteNice article. Great words & Creative
ReplyDeleteVicky Cahyagi: Thank you. This meme is a heap of fun.
DeleteI'm staring at the words as if they were in a foreign language. I'm really going to have to work this week if I want a story by Friday.
ReplyDeleteRiver: I have confidence in you. Perhaps more confidence than you have.
DeleteHi EC - here's mine ... cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteThe hotelier had to fill in the ridiculous questionnaire exemplifying all that was good … he might work for the owner, but he didn’t think much of him – however he really did need to vindicate his position at the hotel.
Now where had that junkie gone … and who on earth was he … what a rag bag … the foyer was stultifying in the heat of the day … the zizz of the fan and that wretched metronome broke the silence … he felt he couldn’t stand the place any more … couldn’t cope with it.
Oh dear – there was the junkie … it was the junkie wasn’t it – all shaved and ship-shape … in a crisp linen shirt, smart chinois pants, cool sandals – who was he …
… who was he? And why did we have to have that regular click machine on all the time … now what on earth was happening … the jazzy tones of the piano being played … what a joy – but oh oh … it was the junkie – the owner was a musician … now he realised.
Oh, rather confusing. I hope he gets sorted out and answers his questionnaire in time.
DeleteHilary Melton-Butcher: I am joining with MotherOwl. Just reading about what he is facing is doing my brain in. Excellent job.
DeleteHilary! I’m so honored (or should i say honoured) to read your story! a melodious tale from a cacophony of word choices! (had to throw in my own clunker!) I never get to hear your prose and I enjoyed every delectable phrase of it!
DeleteThanks EC and Charlotte ... I should have used a 'she' as the employee/manager ... to make it clearer.
DeleteThanks Tara - it was rattled out in a few minutes - hence the difficulties of following the 'story-line' ... I'm honoured you enjoyed it - thanks!!
Cheers to all - Hilary
Could be a problem for the hotelier I think.
DeleteI have looked up Mark's tricky words and written a small in-between scene starring Susan and family here; Words for Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteCharlotte (MotherOwl): I really, really liked your use of Mark's prompts and am awed at the way you can take them and run with them despite the language difficulties.
DeleteAnother interesting list of words. The words "cuss" and "billiard" go particularly well together for this pool-shooting nut. :)
ReplyDeleteSusan: Sadly cuss goes quite well with a lot of my life.
DeleteOh this sounds really fun! I look forward to participating in things like this when I retire in a couple of years.
ReplyDeleteGwen Gardner: It is fun. I do hope we can keep the meme running long enough for you to join us. Mind you I am finding retirement very busy.
DeleteOh, it's been a while since I've seen this challenge. Taking note so I can participate sometime. :)
ReplyDeleteDavid Powers King: Welcome. The prompts will be here this month and next and I do hope you join us.
DeleteUna buona serata serata e un felice giovedi per te.
ReplyDeleteGiancarlo: Thank you. It is a wet Thursday and a busy one, but will hopefully be lovely. I hope your day is too.
DeleteSounds like a fun challenge.
ReplyDeleteNew Release Books: It is a heap of fun - I hope you join us some time.
DeleteThe Hotelier Mr Ravenmaster vindicated the junkie using a metronome. To exemplify employee propriety and fitness to work at Ravenmasters Hotel, questionnaire vetting became mandatory.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed thinking this one up! haha
Spacer Guy: Vindication with a metronome sounds painful. Thank you for joining us this week.
DeleteSo fun to read all, well done!☺
ReplyDeletenatalia20041989: Thank you. I really enjoy reading them too.
DeleteI had such fun reading these...so many brilliant inventive stories.😊😊
ReplyDeleteThank you so much everyone!!
Ygraine: I am always so very impressed at the cleverness on display and am very glad you enjoyed them too.
DeleteYou had to know my smarmy, holier-than-thou erstwhile associate, Carl, with his AVUNCULAR attitude to all and sundry, to recognize that what you see on the surface does not always indicate what is underneath. Many is the time I have CUSSED under my breath as he plied his superficial charm to get what he wanted.
ReplyDeleteAs the HOTELIER of an establishment often favoured by visiting musicians there seemed always to be groupies around, may of whom were JUNKIES, often nubile young girls, whose normal defences were dulled by the GRANULATED substances they were cramming up their noses. As regularly as the
beat of a METRONOME Carl would ingratiate himself with them, often by uttering false promises of a personal meeting with their favourite rock stars. That seemed to be the ticket to the successful execution of his plans. That prospect, combined with their impaired sense of reality, was like the SERENADE of the Gods for these girls obsessed with stardom.
His usual procedure was to challenge a girl or two to a game of BILLIARDS where he would press up against them from behind, in order to show them how to hold the cue, of course. I was quite certain he wasn't always speaking of the billiard cue. Strangely, the girls rarely seemed to resist these approaches and few recoiled at his advances. It was though they had filled out a QUESTIONNAIRE ahead of time pledging compliance. There was a change room off to the side, to which only Carl had a key, and it never seemed to take him long to ease one of the girls into it, sometimes two or three over the course of a day. He EXEMPLIFIED to a tee the very nature of a manipulative person able to wield power over susceptible others.
I had not seen him for a few years, when I heard that he had been charged with sex with a minor, but there was no VINDICATION to be had. Before the TRIAL date, his accuser withdrew, fearing the grilling she would face in court. It simply wasn't worth it. Better to try to put it all in the past and move on.
The sad truth is that our legal system transforms the perpetrator into a victim, and the accuser is virtually assumed to be guilty, and is placed in the strange position of proving her innocence. Defence lawyers are pit bulls going for the kill. And without a doubt, Carl, just keeps on doing what he has always done. The abandonment of the trial has no doubt emboldened him even more.
David M. Gascoigne: Sadly true. I really, really wish justice was served rather more often than she is. Despite the sadness and anger that your story triggered in me, it was beautifully done. Thank you.
DeleteBoy is this ever true David. A horrid story, but nevertheless a good one.
DeleteGreat ideia!
ReplyDeleteBjxxx
Ontem é só Memória | Facebook | Instagram | Youtube
Teresa Isabel Silva: There are some wonderful stories aren't there?
DeleteHere's mine :)
ReplyDeleteHer little boy had to have his medicine but could not swallow the pills. It had been a trial but then she started to granulate them, which was much easier and less traumatic for her young son. She would not leave him tonight and had already told her sister there was no need for her to come over, that they would get together for lunch sometime soon. Her boyfriend liked to play billiards but she did not like to hear his companions cuss when he won the game, and to make up for their lack of good manners, he would serenade her on the way home, promising her he would take her somewhere nice next time. She would cook a delicious dinner for him tonight. He would understand as his relationship with her son sided on the avuncular. She had no doubt he would be kind as he was always patient and understanding, and her son liked him very much.
DeniseinVA: I am so glad that you were able to join us again this week. I really enjoyed this story and hope that this relationship gives her lasting joy.
Deletea true mother’s tale of struggle, the relationship with a son! great story!
DeleteI'm content having left this to the experts like Mark Koopmans. This was an impressive round.
ReplyDeleteTake care, EC.
Rawknrobyn: Thank you.
DeleteI will try and come back to read what others have written. Here I have some musings for you.
ReplyDeleteGranulate always makes me think of sugar which is so very different in North America than in England, at least when I lived there. It was something of a trial to get used to and I would often cuss at the differences when cooking. They really should give you a completed questionnaire which would exemplify the differences. Oh well, that was a long time ago, that was also in the days when using cannabis was considered addictive and that you would become a junkie. Since then things have changed. I took cannabis for a couple of years and it didn’t do much for me – in fact it didn’t vindicate the excessive amount of money I spent on what I thought was pain management. Basically I found I was serenading my dollars goodbye. As for Billiards, the one time I tried playing I shot the ball right off the table. They didn’t allow me to play again. We had friends in the States who built a house round a billiard table. I never played on it but my hubby did. That too was quite a long time ago. I am becoming quite avuncular telling stories of the past.
Jo: I feel for you. I have also spent more than a little on failed pain management. Not cannabis though. It is still illegal here and the mere smell of the stuff makes me retch.
Deletelook at you, Jo! love how you wove your own spin on the prompts =)
DeleteThe billiards playing
ReplyDeleteBearded, avuncular,cussing
Tinder date
Decided to serenade
Carmen at her trial
She was being tried
For attemtpting to granulate
Honey.
A useless and unnecessary
Experiment.
Sorry about the spelling error - it should be 'attempting'
DeleteKalpana: I love your use of the prompts. I am glad that it was honey rather than the tinder date that was the subject of the experiment. Mark's prompts often trigger dark stories (like mine).
DeleteI suffer from dyslexic fingers myself - typos are always forgiven here.
now that’s how you tackle a tough prompt - poetic justice!!
DeleteHey babe, I'm pretty new to this game so, guess I should read the rules if I think I'll participate. Don't think it's a great idea though, lol! :)
ReplyDeleteHot guys: Give it a go...
DeleteJenny refilled the saltshakers with chunks of granulated salt, the one with a cutie girl with an umbrella. What the hell, she thought, as she spit in each one. Working a Billiard and Biker Bar at been a true trial. Thinking that she knew every cuss word, Jenny had learned a few more. When the local avuncular old man hobbled in, she sighed. Good old Uncle Joe was known to every biker between Billiard and Bar to Sacramento. He shouted out a bawdy serenade to all drunks. They joined him, while Jenny picked his pocket. She would get a good tip that way.
ReplyDeleteJenny, move on, girl. Move on.
Susan Kane: Poor Jenny. I suspect her numbers are legion.
DeleteSogna in silenzio, ma vivi ad alta voce!
ReplyDeleteBuon Weekend.
Giancarlo: Thank you. I suspect that many think I should be quieter...
DeleteA wonderful weekend to you and yours.
Love this feature! Such fantastic stories!
ReplyDeleteI so enjoy writing prompts, especially quirky ones. Here’s my spur of the moment drabble...
The avarice ant, on trial for squandering a sugar granulate at his avuncular billiards tournament, serenaded the jury with a dramatic tale of innocence while his aunt who brought the suit cursed under her breath, “Deviant little cuss!”
that was fun!
and wanted to thank you for visiting my Beast World campaign!
Tara Tyler Talks
Tara Tyler: Welcome and thank you. I suspect aunts the world (and species over) refer to their neices and nephews as deviant little cusses. Loved your quick take - and your Beast World fascinates me.
DeleteLoved it Tara, ants unite!!
Deletebetter late than never: questioning
ReplyDeleteCindi Summerlin: I saw it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Many thanks for joining us again.
DeleteWell done everyone! Thanks EC!
ReplyDelete