This
meme was started by Delores a long time ago. Computer issues led her
to bow out for a while. The meme was too much fun to let go, and now
Words for Wednesday is 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, and mixing and matching is encouraged.
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.
This week's prompts are:
- thread
- Firebird
- insane
- wallpaper
- wilderness
- Atlantic
And/or
- earthy
- sonorous
- corn
- paste
- twig
- Madeira
Good luck everybody have fun!!
ReplyDeleteCloudia: Thank you. I hope that people DO have fun, writing and/or reading...
DeleteSometimes the twig doesn’t fall far from the tree. Margo’s mother was insane and some days she had doubts about herself.
ReplyDeleteIt was crowded in her head, and sometimes difficult to sort out fact from fancy. Dreams of a beautiful firebird sat close beside thoughts of wallpaper for the spare bedroom (and did she have the paste to put it up?) peaceful wildnerness areas, rich, earthy and unpolluted by humanity, and the sonorous sounds of the sea. Cheek by jowl with those thoughts were musings about what to make for dinner with the over abundance of corn from the garden. In a corner of her mind a dapper gentleman in a top hat winked at her and raised a glass of fruity Madeira in her direction. Which made her think of Madeira (the island) in the Atlantic. Not somewhere she had been or was likely to go, but it still claimed territory in her mind
Perhaps she was not entirely sane, but so far neither she nor anyone else had pulled the thread that would bring it all crashing down. She counted that as a win.
Well done, EC, I have many such thoughts as these in the past few days.
DeleteXO
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Excellent EC ... loved the connectedness ... I went insane too - nothing like the wandering brain.
DeleteThankfully the cold is coming in ... been way to hot for this Brit!!! I'll be back ... cheers Hilary
hmmm...intriguing.
DeleteLove it. And I can definitely relate to Margo. The inside of her brain looks a lot like the inside of mine. Hmmm... should I be worried? ;-)
DeleteSometimes that fine line holds.
DeleteDiane Henders: Nah - you are not alone.
DeleteI bow to your ability to juggle words into a lovely picture
DeleteNicely done EC. Perhaps I could lend Margo some of the emptiness that occupies my head?
DeleteMay the day come that Margo and "her" dapper gentleman will have a Madeira on the very island; or two like Anne's protagonist.
DeleteGreat job on this story. I sometimes feel like Margo with too much clutter in my head.
DeleteHugs,
Julia
Here's mine, all prompts used.
ReplyDelete---------------------------------------------------------------------------
They all thought her insane of course. She never had wanted a traditional wedding. And fought about it with her parents, her siblings and assorted relatives and friends.
She found the perfect firebird on an old wallpaper pattern and immediately graphed it. This would be embroidered, enlarged, on the back of her cloak with the beautiful threads she had assembled.
The earthy wilderness of the old hunting grounds bordering her beloved Atlantic would rim the edge of the cape, greens, browns, gold and reds for the berries edging the many ocean blue and silver threads she had collected.
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XO
WWW
Sounds beautiful!
DeleteFollowing convention for the sake of convention is not some people's cup of tea, and i hope she ends up with the beautiful cloak she wants.
DeleteI hope she put as much thoughts in choosing her husband as she did in in choosing the design on her cape. Good job.
DeleteJulia
Sorry second half of story - for some reason I thought I had copied all of the original but not so.....
ReplyDelete-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A delicate light brown thread would resemble the twigs of the teepee.
In her mind, she could hear the sonorous sounds of the preacher Bert had chosen, a boring old uncle of his. A few good sized glasses of Madeira might paste a smile on his face at the reception.
She really wasn’t going to tolerate any of their corny observations on her beautiful cloak. She threw it over her creamy dress and gasped at how gorgeous it was as she viewed the back of it in her mirror.
She bowed her head in a quick prayer to her ancestors.
“Firebird clan! I will never forget. Ever.”
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Wisewebwoman: LOUD applause.
DeleteExcellent ending!
DeleteWonderful story. I can see the cloak and the wedding in my mind!
DeleteWWW; very nice. I thoroughly approve of her choices.
DeleteHi WWW - this was quite delightful ... I loved your sentence: "A few good sized glasses of Madeira might paste a smile on his face at the reception" ... fantastic read ... cheers Hilary
DeleteIf conformists knew how much more enjoyable their lives could be ...
DeleteYes indeed, a few good sized glasses of Madeira might paste a smile... lol. I love it.
DeleteJulia
HI EC and all participants ... the last sentence of my entry features life now as the heat of the day is dissipating ... as usual I'll be back ... First lot:
ReplyDeleteA day in the life of …
She was always talking nonsense … but it made mother laugh – so who could criticise her … this was another of those extraordinary tales …
She reminded Mum of the Atlantic wilderness and the drive they'd made along the beach in the Pontiac Firebird – a treat she'd been promising her mother for years … just that they'd never made it across the pond.
But the wallpaper had firebirds – those phoenixes of Greek mythology … amongst the pattern … the thread of the curtains had become tasselled … so now she could use the occasional one to mend odds and ends in the house.
Her daughter sat opposite her mother … making sure she'd laugh at the total gibberish she was able to convey …
Sleep came … and her daughter was able to relax and enjoy the freshness of the gathering storm.
Cheers Hilary
Hilary Melton-Butcher: This is unsettling, but excellent.
DeleteI hope that your coming storm cools the air.
I like the way you used firebird as in Pontiac Firebird.
DeleteIf gibberish keeps her mother entertained, i am glad she uses it.
DeleteCaring for a person can be exhausting. Often you only feel afterwards that you have done something good for yourself.
DeleteVery evocative, Hils.
DeleteAnd my second set ...
ReplyDeleteOh that petrichor aroma of much needed rain falling on the dry soil … it came pouring down sending tingling sonorous waves through the earth …
She must concentrate on the corn paste – much needed for sticking her daughter's treasured pictures into her scrap book.
Now it was time for relaxation … time to sketch the twig, while she sipped Madeira … her downtime, as the rains poured down … and yes that earthy scent seeped into the room … matching her feelings for the Madeira ….
Tomorrow could be a wash out … or a great success, when her daughter took her prized scrap book into school for prize giving … the result, whichever way – ensured she could have another Madeira, mi-dear …
We have some rain - I'll be back tomorrow ... cheers Hilary
Hilary Melton-Butcher: Petrichor is one of my favourite scents. I do hope it brings cooling relief for you. I really like this character of yours - and suspect I would like to know her.
DeleteGood luck to her daughter with the scrap book, and i do hope the rains keep you cooler.
DeleteLove both of your stories, Hilary, well done!
DeleteXO
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I also love pertichor and wish I could smell it more often. I love your story too.
DeleteWe did have petrichor ... BUT we had a sprinkling of rain ... they must, I hope, have had a lot more inland ... now warm again ... but not as hot, most definitely not as hot!! Thank you - Hilary
DeleteWhile at Farol da Ponta de São Lourenço, a twig of Madeira, I ate some corn paste and it gave my voice an earthy sonorous sound.
ReplyDeleteMike: I am fascinated by the places that Captain succinct takes you - and us.
DeleteWonderfully done.
DeleteEC's comment so appropriate ... clever take Mike - thank you ... cheers Hilary
DeleteI would like to have some of this paste.
DeleteGetting with it, will be back to read later.
ReplyDeletemessymimi: I am looking forward to it.
DeleteMy story will be over here.
Delete
ReplyDeleteWilderness wallpaper.
Firebird is insane
I lost the thread
Somewhere over the Atlantic
Cloudia: Love it. Thank you for joining us again.
DeleteGreat Cloudia - thank you ... Hilary
DeleteCloudia, 😃
DeleteThat sounds exotic.
DeleteGood words...nice stories.
ReplyDeleteMargaret D: Blogger has taken a particular dislike to you, and I have rescued you from the spam folder again. Thank you.
DeleteLila pulled the loose thread from her sleeve as she sat behind the wheel of her Firebird convertible. The traffic was insane and all 4 lanes of the freeway had become a parking lot. Nothing was moving so she pulled out her cell phone to check her traffic app just to see how long this clog was going to last. When she opened her phone the first thing she saw was the picture she had set as the wallpaper. Oh, what she would give to be in the wilderness near the Atlantic coast again. How nice it would be to breathe in the aroma of the pines or the earthy scents from the soil as she hiked through the woods, instead of the noxious odors of idling combustion engines all around her.
ReplyDeleteShe was deep in thought when she was startled by the sonorous sound from the semi driver behind her. She had not driven the four feet that had cleared in front of her and he must have felt she was going to hold up his progress, and blasted her with his horn.
"What a corn!" she thought as she inched up to the space in front of her as slowly as possible so he would also have to creep. If he revved his truck he could easily paste the backside of her car and her bumper would snap like a twig.
It was not something she wanted to deal with. All she wanted was to get home, take off her shoes, and pour a glass of Madeira__or two.
Anne in the kitchen: I can just picture this (and sadly smell it too). Well done. And here's to the cup that cheers.
DeleteYes ,,, Anne in the kitchen - I can quite see why you wanted to get home to your kitchen and that glass or two of Madeira ... being stuck in traffic is the pits! Cheers Hilary
DeleteGreat story. Pour a glass for me too. I'll be right over.
DeleteReminiscent of my life before I moved to the ocean. Trucks and fumes and noise, very well captured, Anne. Well done!
DeleteXO
WWW
We get that parking lot on the freeway daily, and i wish i could find a way out.
DeleteAh, a penny for what happens after the second glass of Madeira. ;-)
DeleteEven more seriously: Excellent.
another good selection of words which I will do my best with.
ReplyDeleteRiver: I look forward to seeing where the words take you.
DeleteJack had never been obsessed with cars, but when his uncle died and left him his Pontiac FIREBIRD in his will, he had to admit that was pretty nice, and it hadn’t hurt when it came to getting a date. It was rumored to be capable of INSANE speeds, but Jack had never pushed the car to its limit, nor had the inclination to do so. At heart, Jack was a down to earth guy for whom CORN on the cob in season qualified as gourmet food, as perhaps that wonderful EARTHY taste should. Last evening he even tried it with a glass of MADEIRA, but the pairing did little for either the wine or the food. It was wonderful, however, that the distinctive flavour and aroma of the Portuguese nectar from heaven could be enjoyed on both sides of the ATLANTIC. He remembered fondly a vacation in Madeira several years ago when he was able to escape the tourist crowds and immerse himself in the WILDERNESS areas of the island. The SONOROUS notes of a Melodious Warbler perched on a TWIG still evoked pleasant memories. Jack had stuffed a few strands of THREAD in his backpack and was delighted to see the warbler gather them up as nesting material. It doesn’t take much to keep a naturalist happy. Jack was interrupted in his reverie by the jangling of his cell phone. Life as a WALLPAPER salesman is not the most glamorous job in the world, and now he had to take part in a virtual meeting to discuss a new PASTE. At least nobody else would drive off in a FIREBIRD. There are consolations in life.
ReplyDeleteDavid M. Gascoigne: Love it. And Jack sounds to have his priorities exactly right.
DeleteMaybe he can find work in his chosen field someday. He can hope. Meanwhile, the Firebird is a very nice thing to have.
DeleteSometimes birds do have four wheels,eh?
DeleteNicely done David, gathering all the elements together.
ReplyDeleteXO
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Hi David - oh I Iove the idea of Jack being a wallpaper salesman - poor lad!. Excellent the Melodious Warbler was heard as he immersed himself in the Madeiran Wilderness. Definitely not - corn on the cob with a glass of Madeira ... wonderful story - thank you ... Virtual Meetings discussing wallpaper paste - what a thought ... cheers and as you say he had the Firebird to drive off with ... fun take - all the best Hilary
ReplyDeleteHe léido algunas participaciones. Hay buenos relatos.
ReplyDeleteVENTANA DE FOTO: Thank you. You are right - there are some excellent stories.
DeleteWhile digging into the ground with my heel, releasing an earthy scent of loam, my boot snapped a twig. Unlike Illinois where corn and tall stalks were considered scenic, Madeira was breathtaking.
ReplyDeleteI inhaled deeply, soaking in the beauty.
"Come, come, Miss Smith," came the sonorous voice of my guide. "We have a long way to go before we reach the top of the mountain."
With a nod, I acknowledged him and trudged on.
Sandra Cox: I really, really hope the trudge to the top is worth it - and suspect it is. Great use of the prompts.
DeleteSounds like an excellent trip.
DeleteThe second sentence is a gem.
DeleteHi Sandra - a lovely change from a drink to a country ... thank - that view will be wonderful once the trudge is over. Cheers Hilary
DeleteExcellent. Good luck, Miss Smith.
DeleteThanks all:)
DeleteThe wallpaper showing a firebird, circling above the Atlantic's wilderness, with a twig in its beak and a bottle of Madeira in its talons.
ReplyDeleteHere the advertising artist without any emotional blocking begins to let a mixture of earthy gypsum and corn paste with sonorous splashes slip straight from the tube onto the wallpaper, enthusiastic about himself shouting "Now that's insane. If that's not insane!"
Oh, Ariadne, where is thou thread?
Sean Jeating: Some days I think it would take chains rather than Ariadne's thread to show the way out of the descent into madness. I really like this multi-layered piece.
DeleteSean Jeating, you've crafted a story to keep us guessing.
DeleteHi Sean - oh dear ... my mind is following the firebird with its twig and that bottle, as it slips through and around the wall paper of my mind ... fun take on the words - thank you ... cheers Hilary
DeleteI love the imagery of the firebird.
DeleteSue: Thanks for your fine compliment.
DeleteMimi: I take that as a compliment, too. Thank you.
Hilary: And now it's up to me for a compliment: Your prompts are a lovely challenge for this maltreator of the English language. ;-) Thank you.
Sandra: Lovely thought my words painted a picture in your mind that you enjoyed.
Thanks for your comment on my post. You are right.
ReplyDeletee: Thank you for letting me know. Similar struggles with memories of my mother didn't come quickly or easily either. And still sometimes surface.
DeleteAs you know, I am not a writer; but a few of these words popped out. Stepping on a twig while walking out in the wilderness caused me to feel earthy; but once back at the condo with a good glass of Madeira I decided, I am really not earthy; unless you count looking out the window to admire nature. Madeira always makes me think of Thomas Jefferson.
ReplyDeleteSandy: Lovely to have you join us. Now you have me wondering about the connection between Thomas Jefferson and Madeira. I will have to explore.
DeleteFun stories, a very enjoyable read tying all these words put together.
ReplyDeleteDeniseinVA: I am blown away each and every week by the very different directions the prompts take people.
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