W3 Prompt #127

Lesley’s prompt guidelines

• Create a poetic scene, based on this imagery:
  • It is early morning. You get out of bed and go to the window.
• Consider these questions:
  • How do you get out of bed? Do you crawl, climb, jump, etc.?
  • What do you see from the window?
  • How do you feel?
  • How do you begin this day?
  • What lies ahead?
• You may write your poem in 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd person.

You can join in W3 here: https://skepticskaddish.com/2024/10/02/w3-prompt-127-weave-written-weekly/

Lesley’s winning poem: https://lesleyscoble.com/2024/09/29/on-the-tip-of-my-tongue-a-free-verse-poem/

Just an Ordinary Day

Shrill phone alarm jerks me awake

Jumping up, I try enthusiasm to fake

Paddle next door on cold, bare feet

Waking sloth child an impossible feat

Open the window, let in fresh air

A few twitches from hibernating bear

***

Into the bathroom, turn on the taps

Shout at Sloth to prevent sleep relapse

Race through ablutions as fast as I can

Think about priorities, try day to plan

Switch off house alarm, race down the hall

Mustn’t go to fast or I might trip and fall

***

Switch on the kettle, set out mugs for tea

Prepare medications, this is quite key

Run back to Sloth’s room, shout in his ear

He won’t get up unless I instill some fear

Grabbing his phone, I make a quick deal

Get up and I’ll consider a return appeal

***
Make breakfast then turn on the washing machine

Thank goodness its easy to get dirty clothes clean

Rush round the house and pick up used cups

Spill cold, coffee dregs on the carpet – Aw shucks!

Dishwasher switched on and rumbling away

Glance at emails, the quantum causes dismay

***

Chase Sloth to put scattered books into bag

His look tells me I’m an irritating toe-rag

Leaving keys in the door, I get out the car

Thank goodness we don’t have to drive that far

The traffic is heavy, the drivers all deranged

A taxi shoots the lights after they’ve changed

***

Sloth fills in the late form at the gate

I drive away feeling annoyed and irate

Sure all of the teachers think I’m to blame

They’ve no idea every morning’s the same

Arrive at work feeling like chewed up string

Why on earth did I want this wedding ring?

In case you didn’t recognise the base song, this is it:

Thursday Doors

A few more pictures of the Rijksmuseum, front and back entrances, and some gorgeous paintings. You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2024/10/03/big-e-doors/

Sunflower Tanka Journal

Colleen Chesebro and I are editorial partners for a new Sunflower Tanka Journal. You can find the details here:

Sunflower Tanka

The theme is Into the Light. I offer you the three paintings above as inspiration for this theme.

My Story Empire post today is all about ending your book and my

Book endings – planning your ending and my five worst book endings

Thank you to Barbara from Masticadores USA for sharing my poem, How I See.

“How I see” by Robbie Cheadle

Punam is hosting Tuesday’s Fall (in) love d’Verse poetry prompt. We are tasked with writing an a poem about the fall. In South Africa fall is called autumn and we are now in spring. I am a seasonal writer so this is a poem I wrote in April when it was fall here.

You can join in the prompt here: https://dversepoets.com/2024/09/24/poetics-fall-in-love/

You can read Punam’s gorgeous poem here: https://paeansunpluggedblog.wordpress.com/2024/09/25/in-the-autumn-of-life/

Autumn Stage

Autumn cosmos

Transforms the local park

Into a richly decorated stage

The floor artfully draped

With a Persian carpet

In shades of yellow and green

Interwoven with pink and white

The backdrop, an intricate design

Of season worn trees

Still attired in summertime greenery

They dance gently against the azure sky

The main prop – a slowly decomposing tree

Over which the cosmos tumble

In cascades of delicate colours

Heralding the last days

Of aged summer’s mellow light

This poem was first published in Poetry Treasures 4: In Touch With Nature anthology.

Sunday Stills – Autumn

You can join in Sunday Stills here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2024/09/22/sunday-stills-is-it-autumn-yet-or-spring/

I had the splendid good fortune to see a rare brown hyena during our recent trip to Madikwe. Seeing a brown hyena has been on my bucket list for years so I was beyond excited. I got some good shots, although they were at a distance because brown hyenas are very shy and solitary. I am sharing about them today so you can share my joy.

In Touch With Nature: The rare and beautiful brown hyena #brownhyena #Intouchwithnature

I am very excited to be hosting my good blogging friend, Craig Boyack, today with a peep into his new book, Tracks of Infinity. I have read several of Craig’s supernatural fantasy books and love them.

Take it away, Craig!

Guest post: Tracks of Infinity by C.S. Boyack

Thanks for the invitation, Robbie. I don’t get out much these days, but have a new story to tell everyone about.

If you know anything about me (Or even if you don’t), I always require something weird in my stories. I write science fiction, fantasy, and supernatural tales. This one is no different, but is a bit harder to pigeonhole. If I have to call it something, I suppose science fiction is the closest.

Years ago a dear friend named Staci Troilo taught me about mystery boxes. I tucked this into a far corner of my brain and always wanted to try it as a story method. I never wound up with the right plot until this one showed up.

This style requires a question to be asked, and the answer reveals an even bigger question. Readers can follow this trail of mystery boxes to a fairly exciting story. That is what I did with this plot.

In that regard this is also a mystery. We make covers and blurbs for a reason so let’s drop those here.

Blurb

Jenny’s life is in upheaval. Her only child, Cody, is getting on with his young adult life, and has a girlfriend Jenny is unsure of. Her career at the news station is in jeopardy in a push to get more diverse and younger at the same time.

She wants to be an investigative reporter, but it seems they’ve been relegated to the Stone Age. Gossip, celebrities, and local interest is the order of the day.

In desperation, she accepts an off-camera job to retain her paycheck at all. This is when she discovers that mergers and acquisitions over the decades have left the station with a long history of old news tales in the basement. Could a cold case be something she could focus on in her spare time?

She and her son glean through ancient manila envelopes to find something of interest. Cody needs to make a drive in the country to pass college geology, and decides they might as well go to the location in one of the old stories. Mother and son make a day of it.

What they discover isn’t something either of them expected. Who can she turn to for help and guidance in the dying art of investigative journalism? Will Jenny be able to market a story like this at all? Who are the strange thugs that seem to be tracking their every move, and what are they up to?

The answers to these questions and more are revealed in Tracks of Infinity.

Tracks of Infinity is at all your favorite booksellers.

***

The weirdness in this one comes from the question of whether there are aliens out there, and whether they have been on our planet. What is actually out there when we look up at the stars at night?

Aside from that, Jenny has to figure out how to market a story like this one. The deck is stacked against her.

I hope your fans will give this one a chance. I also hope we get some fun comments today. I’ll be checking them sporadically for the next few days.

About C.S. Boyack

Find C.S. Boyack

Blog: https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/stores/C.-S.-Boyack/author/B00ILXBXUY

X: https://x.com/Virgilante

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9841203.C_S_Boyack

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ColdhandBoyack

Pinterest: https://za.pinterest.com/entertainin0737/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/c-s-boyack

My thanks to talented author, Stephen Geez, for host me with this post about The Abbot’s Kitchen, Glastonbury Abbey. One of the short stories in my short story collection, And the Grave Awaits, starts in this kitchen.

And the Grave Awaits by Roberta Eaton Cheadle

Thank you to talented poet, Dawn Pisturino, for this wonderful review of And the Grave Awaits.

Book Review: “And the Grave Awaits”

This poem is for Dan’s Thursday Doors Challenge and for Esther Chilton’s Surprise challenge.

Opening new doors, and a surprise

There is change. There is change. Change there is.

You don’t like change. You don’t like change. Change you dislike.

***

Do you see change as opening new doors?

***

No, you do not like change.

You do not see change as an opportunity.

***

Could you see change as being good?

***

You do not see change as being good.

You do not see any good in change.

You do not like change in any way.

Change you dislike, although change there is.

***

Could change you ever grow to love?

If it didn’t hit you over the head like a club?

***

Change you will never grow to love.

Even if it comes lightly and not as a club.

You do not like change in any way.

Change you dislike, although change there is.

You do not see change as an opportunity.

No, you do not like change.

***

Could you ever change embrace?

Is it possible you could do an about face?

***

Never will you change embrace.

Never will you do an about face.

Never could you change love.

Never see it as ought but a club.

You will not like change in any way.

You do not see change as an opportunity.

Change you dislike, although there is change.

***

Would you? Could you learn to understand?

Could change ever your mind expand?

***

You would not, could not understand.

***

I say give it a chance, it may be good.

Give it a try, you know you should.

***

You would not, could not try something new.

Not even a simple change, like a new hairdo.

Or a bigger room with a better view.

***

Could you, would you give change a go?

***

You could not, would not give change a go.

***

Would you? Could you learn to understand?

***

You could not, would not learn to understand.

You will not, will not, give change a go.

You will not try to make new friends

You won’t give it a try, ‘though you know you should.

You won’t understand, won’t give it a chance.

You don’t want change to embrace.

You don’t want to do an about face.

Never could you change love.

Never see it as ought but a club.

You will not like change in any way.

You do not see change as an opportunity.

Change you dislike, although there is change.

You do not like change. So you declare.

With your old ways, change does not compare.

***

Try the change, you may get a pleasant surprise.

What! You’ll give it a chance. Say it may be good.

You’ll give it a chance as you know you should.

(… And she tries change…)

You do like change. I can see your smile.

You do like change, as I knew you would.

You’re going to try out a new hairdo.

You’ll have a go at the room with the view.

You’ll try to make a new set of friends.

You’ll give away your unnecessary odds and ends.

You’ll see change as an opportunity.

Change is good. Change is good. Now you see.

Change you have learned to embrace.

Now you’ve done an abrupt about face.

Change you’ve learned to understand.

Your finally letting change your mind expand.

You’ve learned to give change a go.

Although your path to acceptance was slow.

The change has done you so much good.

The change has given you a pleasant surprise.

Hooray! Hooray! Change is very good.

You can join in Esther Chilton’s writing challenge here: https://estherchilton.co.uk/2024/09/18/writing-prompts-32/

You can join in Dan’s Thursday Doors challenge here: https://nofacilities.com/2024/09/19/old-economy-village/

Amsterdam canal boat trip

These are some photographs and videos from our Amsterdam canal boat trip. There are lots of doors.

Picture caption: my acrylic painting of the Amsterdam canals. Lots of doors. Painting buildings is a lot of effort as I am pedantic about the sizing and had to measure everything with a ruler. That is why I’m painfully aware of just how many doors and windows are in the picture.

If you are interested in seeing some close up detail of this painting, you can view this YT short:

Picture caption: shots of the Amsterdam canals

Picture caption: The seven bridges of Amsterdam. Picture by Robbie Cheadle

Picture caption: a variety of houseboats on the Amsterdam canal.

A few videos of the Amsterdam canal:

Dora has given the prompt Undead to the world. The poetry form is a 44-word quadrille which must include the word vampire. You can join in the prompt here: https://dversepoets.com/2024/09/16/quadrille-208-undead-to-the-world/

You can read Dora’s poem here: https://pilgrimdreams.com/2024/09/16/quadrille-trifecta/

Some of you know I make cake and other creations as well as fondant figurines. My poem incorporates some of my fondant characters from my children’s book, Haunted Halloween Holiday.

Collapsed confectionary

Count Sugular starred with great delight

At the meringue tower, fluffy and light

Smacking his lips, he took a vampire bite

Looking up, he got a terrible fright

The confectionary had lost half its height

He knew with Witch Honey there’d be a fight

This is a fun video I made last Halloween called Haunted Halloween Safari:

What Amazon says

“Yeah, though I walk through the valley…”

Special Investigator Teri Altro is a hard-driving member of the Drug Interdiction Task Force. She is cold and aloof, with no room in her life for personal entanglements. No one is allowed to call her by her first name. No one is allowed to get close to her. Any form of physical contact is unacceptable to her, except when her body demands it. People who work with Altro respect her, but have learned to stay out her way. She carries a gun in her shoulder bag.

When Altro first notices the man staring at her, he doesn’t seem like anything special… just some guy in the drugstore. But when three men walk in the door to assassinate her, he kills them all with fluid ease, and so quickly that she doesn’t even have time to pull her own gun. The confrontation is so eerily violent that it leaves Altro wondering just who… or what… the man is.

Over the next four days she learns the man is John Walker Michaels, a man known to the Hmong of Laos as the Valley Walker, a man the army has classified as a deserter. He is an openly emotional man who draws her out of her shell and into the world of Hmong mysticism. At the end of this time… even after talking to him, learning his history and meeting his family… Altro can only shake her head when asked what he is like.

She had touched him and felt his warmth. She knew he was real. Or was he?

My review

The Valley Walker is the first novel I read by this author and it was an excellent read. The opening scene pulls you right into both the drama and the supernatural element of the story with a young soldier who is badly injured and who is being nurtured and cared for by an elderly woman. Her care is unorthodox and indicates the possession of the young man’s body by another power in the form of a Great Dragon.

From this highly exciting and evocative start, the story progresses to a setting in a pharmacy in the USA where a man is watching a woman he knows is named Teri Altro. He also knows that three men are coming to the pharmacy to kill her and he is there to intervene. The prospective killers are the soldiers of General Khun Pao, a drug lord who rules a heroine empire in Laos. From this point, the story plunges into a turbulent and fast paced battle between the man, called the Valley Walker who controls the Great Dragon in terms of Laos lore, and the drug lord and his soldiers.

Teri Altro is part of a team that has been appointed to try to track down and shut down the drug dealers. The entire team of interesting and specialised people become involved in Teri’s attempted murder and the aftermath. I particularly enjoyed Jessica Harmon, a young and beautiful woman who is part of the team. She is very clever, competent and hardworking and is also feminine and dresses beautifully. I enjoyed that presentation of female achievers as opposed to Teri who was the typical power dressing, ball-breaking woman who feels a need to present herself to the world in a masculine and unfeminine way. Hooray for Jessica as a great example of feminine and pretty females in high powered positions.

For the men, there is the mysterious Bill Mallory who appears to be a good man but does some strange and possibly questionable things throughout the book. There are also the two young men, Sam Lu and Doolee, who are both clever, innovative, loyal and good fun.

This book is imaginative, fast moving and packed with interesting characters who evolve and make surprising decisions. The Valley Walker has an influence over everyone he comes into contact with, both evil and working for justice. It is a fascinating storyline and, although complex, the story is well written and easy to follow.

Purchase The Valley Walker from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007Z3U62C