THE POLITICAL DUNNY

 

THE POLITICAL DUNNY

‘Why did they build it like that, Mum? There’s plenty of space to put them next to each other.’

‘It’s a joke, darling.’

‘I don’t think it’s funny.’

‘Well, no, it’s not supposed to be funny – it’s a political statement.’

‘What’s that?’

‘Well, the idea that politicians...er...do their business on the voters.’

‘What are politicians and voters?’

‘You’re too young to understand.’

‘Well I think it’s silly. And I need a wee. I’m going to use the top one – it looks like fun.’

‘You’ll be Prime Minister one day!’

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This week's photo prompt is a very strange one from Lisa Fox, posted on Rochelle's blog at  https://rochellewisoff.com/  Someone went to a lot of trouble to air their political views!

Are you in the throes of Christmas shopping, wrapping, & planning? Are your decorations up yet, or do you wait till the last minute? I have got almost all the presents I need to buy - those to my younger son's family in Canada are on their way, and my grandchildren here are going to get what they've asked for, so they'll be happy. Cards are all posted, local ones are waiting to be walked round the houses. Choir practices are all Christmassy now, the village Fair with street closure, mulled wine and mince pies will be this Sunday. In other words, like it or not, it's coming!

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AND please allow me to remind you that I have several books on Amazon. All Christmas stockings should contain a book, so why not try one of mine? These are the four books in my LIVING ROCK series, plus Helter-Skelter, a pre-war romance, the sequel to which, Carousel, you can find by following the link above.

YET ANOTHER HOTEL ROOM

 

YET ANOTHER HOTEL ROOM

Another street in a city

where life has no pity.

From my window there’s not a soul in sight -

I can’t even remember arriving here last night.

No kids running to school

yelling and playing the fool -

no birds nesting in that concrete-imprisoned tree.

I should be sitting in my garden with a cup of tea -

I want to be at home,

not stuck in yet another hotel room.

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What can you say about another street scene? It could be anywhere, China or Chinatown, and I don't like cities, as you may have gathered!

Roger Bultot took the photo, Rochelle used it on her blog https://rochellewisoff.com/ as a prompt for our 100 word stories.

I am still struggling to regain my mojo after the loss of my husband. We had 30 years together - second marriages for both of us - and he died unexpectedly. My writing has been merely ticking along with this weekly piece of flash fiction and regular Twitter posts prompted by a word. If you'd like to read those, my tag is @young_liz .

Perhaps I'll learn more about marketing and get my sales figures out of the doldrums next year! To buy any of my books - a fantasy series and two historical novels - in time for Christmas, follow the link above to my most recent publication.

NOT SUCH A BARGAIN

 

NOT SUCH A BARGAIN

 We were thrilled finally to find a house we could afford and moved in to start renovating.

 Months passed in a flurry of buying and doing up second-hand furniture. The house was permanently full of the smell of paint so we spent most of that summer outside.

 Come autumn, though, the evenings grew chilly, and we lit our first fire. We only found the window when the log-pile diminished.

 We tracked down the basement door inside the hall cupboard. When we opened it we discovered why the house had been such a bargain.

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A really quick story this week, as it's my mother's 97th birthday and I'm collecting her in an hour to take her for lunch at my brother's house. Happy birthday, Mum XX

Thanks to Dale, photographer extraordinaire, for the picture of her log-pile, which I am sure hides no dark secrets apart from the occasional spider.

ON MOUNT TEIDE

ON MOUNT TEIDE 

Twenty-five years ago my daughter and her husband moved to Tenerife, so we flew out to visit them. As we circled to land we could see Mount Teide glowing brilliant white in the sunshine.

Our hosts had been working, too busy to explore, so we were tourists together when drove up the winding mountain road.

It was February - beach weather at the coast - but as we climbed, the temperature dropped. When we reached a mile above sea level we stopped and got out, shivering in tee-shirts and shorts.

Our first photographs taken on that sunshine island were of four mad Brits throwing snowballs!

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Eventually we moved out there too, and spent fifteen years living on Tenerife. We made friends of many different nationalities - Canarians, Spaniards, Italians, Venezuelans and, of course, English among them - and I learned enough Spanish to hold a conversation, especially after a glass of vino tinto!

Six years ago we returned to England. I still miss the friends we made there, but my daughter now lives in Ireland, the rest of my family are here, and as one gets older, home is best.

Also the eruption on the neighbouring island of La Palma is a reminder of the risks one takes by living on a volcanic island. My heart goes out to all those Palmarians who have lost their homes and livelihoods.

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Thanks to Ted Strutz for the photograph that revived happy memories, and to Rochelle for hosting Friday Fictioneers on her blog.  https://rochellewisoff.com/

HARD TO EXPLAIN

 

HARD TO EXPLAIN

“He just appeared out of nowhere, Officer. One minute I was driving along, and suddenly there he was, as if he’d dropped out of the sky.”

“So how did he get here? There’s no engine in this vehicle.”

“They must have run off – they can’t have got far. Several grey animals with antlers.”

“That bang on your head must be worse than it looks – or you’ve been drinking. And whose are all these sacks of toys?”

“Nothing to do with me, Officer - they’re all his.”

“Obviously overloaded, which might explain his erratic driving. He’ll have some questions to answer when he wakes up.”

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Rochelle chose a really odd image this week, and it was tempting to write about my family, who are all Lego enthusiasts, but I resisted the urge. Instead you have a seasonal story, far too early for that season, but the shops are already full of Christmas stuff, so what can one do?

Talking of Christmas, every stocking should contain a tangerine, a chocolate bar, a sugar mouse, and a book. I have several you can choose from, all available on Amazon. My Living Rock series of books is for teens to adults, Helter-Skelter and Carousel are novels set in the middle of the 1900s, and Stripey Cat is a book of poems for children of all ages. Come on, make my Christmas a happy one! Amazon.co.uk : stripey cat  

ROCKET MAN

 ROCKET MAN

It felt like I’d been running for hours, though it was only ten minutes. Long enough for me to be completely spent, but I had an ace up my sleeve.

I moved slightly to the left – he did the same.

I slid to the right – he mirrored my movement, a derisory smirk on his face, but now I knew I had the upper hand.

Step by step, inch by inch, I manoeuvred him into position, and as he raised his gun to fire I hit the red button.

A thousand tons of rocket hit him – they never did find all the pieces. 

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Yes, I know it's really a telescope but hey! this is imaginary, right? I would never actually press that button, honest, officer! Anyhow, if you like my murderous story, do please leave a comment. And also consider buying one of my novels - the link to CAROUSEL, my latest book, is at the top of this page, disguised as a book cover.

Thanks to Douglas MacIlroy for the photograph, and congratulations to Rochelle Wisoff-Fields for holding the fort as manager of Friday Fictioneers for nine whole years!

BEER FOR BREAKFAST

 

BEER FOR BREAKFAST

 ‘Beer for breakfast?’

‘I don’t like coffee,’ Andy said. ‘Anyway, it’s only one.’

Penny put the milk away, noting the emptiness of the fridge. “On top of the six you guzzled last night.’

‘What are you – my mother?’

‘Your mother let you do whatever you liked – that’s half the trouble.’

‘You leave my mother out of this!’

‘You brought her in.’

Andy slammed his glass down so hard that it cracked. ‘I’m going to work. I’ll be late home.’

Penny looked at baby Henry in his high chair and said calmly, ‘Be as late as you like – we won’t be here.’

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The amount of harm it does to children to grow up in the presence of addiction is incalculable, and I think Penny made the right decision - do you?

This week's image was painted by Rochelle, who also hosts Friday Fictioneers on her blog - is there no end to her talents?   https://rochellewisoff.com/