My trunk stretches into the salty water,
but this will not quench my thirst.
These stone monuments
carved by the mother of everything
will be all that remains of the
great herds that once roamed here.
As we go extinct, so does your kind, waiting for
our fossils to be discovered in the next great epoch.
It is time for another of Rory’s Morning Dawdler (#RMD). Three times a week Rory, The Autistic Composter at Earthly Comforts posts several questions for the blogosphere to ponder. This set was posted yesterday but life and the ever expanding universe didn’t put me here to answer until this morning.
1. What is the weirdest fact you know?
Dark energy permeates the universe. Although science doesn’t know what this energy is the mathematics show it exists similar to dark matter.
No this is not some plot of the next Iron Man movie or the evil forces we see at work in our everyday lives. Dark energy exists in the space between matter in the universe and it could bring about the end of everything.
Dark energy is driving universe to expand at an accelerating rate. That expansion will eventually outstripping the gravitation forces holding everything together. When the “Big Rip” occurs gravity will not be able to hold matter together. All matter from black holes, to star and planets, to living creatures. The atoms we are made of will rip apart into their subatomic parts leaving only a universe of single disconnect particles. The mathematical modelss show the “Big Rip” happening in about 22 billion years.
Of course this is just one of three theories explaining the universe’s demise. The first of the other two theorizes that gravity wins the battle with dark energy and the universe collapses back in on inself creating what is know as the “Big Crunch”. All matter would be pulled back to a single dense point at the center of the universe. This one seem the most unlikely as the universe continues to expand at an accelerated rate. The other theory is based on the principles of thermodynamics in which entrophy will increase until it reaches maximum value. Essentially the universe will die in a “Big Freeze” where the gases of the universe disperse so thin that stars can’t form and time becomes but an endless void.
2. Which meal is your favorite: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Who am I kidding, I am partial to food at anytime but if I had to choose I’d say breakfast.
3. What do you enjoy most about your blog?
I enjoy the creative outlet it provides. I take pride in putting together a site that I hope people find visually pleasing and find fun to visit. I do wish I had more time but life does have its way of keeping us from the things we enjoy.
4. What are you passionate about outside of writing?
My family, my home and my vegetable garden.
Every week Fandango over at This, That and the Other posts a provocative question. This week’s question has a musical theme…
“What is your favourite music genre? Why is it your favourite? If you have more than one genre that you prefer, what are they?“
I listen to just about any genre of music.
My playlists are mostly filled with alternative sounds dating from the 80s to the present. They say someone’s musical path is determined by the beats they listen to from the onset of their teenage years and into their early twenties. For me, that was the sounds of the 80s although there was influence from older cousins and friends who were rooted in the classic rock sounds of the 70s. Depeche Mode, The Smiths, New Order, The Cure, U2 and early REM are some of the seminal bands of my generation that found a place on my turntable, along with other influences like Love and Rockets, Roxy Music, Brian Johnson era AC/DC, and the Madchester sounds of the Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses.
As I left college and embark on adult life SoundScan began to change the music scene. Where recorded sales of music were somewhat of a murky business the introduction of the point-of-sale inventory/sales system made it impossible for promoters and music labels to pay off retail outlets to fudge sales for whatever artists they were pushing. In the olden days, the music business could give Hollywood and possibly the mob a run for its money when it comes to being shady.
SoundScan levelled the playing field for Artists. Music sales that had been suppressed began to gain acceptance. Sales numbers could no longer be skewed as accurate barcodes and point-of-sale data collection took over the industry. Artists who were being ripped off now had data to prove it. Backwater sounds like Country and Western benefitted from the change. For years the industry had cannibalized sales from the genre to prop up other acts across other genres. Actual numbers showed that sales were stronger than anyone imagined and where there is money there is investment and marketing and new artists ready to cash in.
As such I found my taste expand through the 90s and artists like Garth Brooks, George Strait and Brooks & Dunn found their way into my 6-disc Pioneer CD player. I even donned cowboy boots and hats and headed out to the local bars to boot scoot and boogie. It wasn’t hard to go there considering the Grunge and Britpop sounds of the early and mid-90s, had run their course and the airways were filled with Top 40 shite from acts like the Spice Girls, Brittney Spears, Mariah Carey and the like. Most of that was an autotune assault on my good senses.
I have always enjoyed Jazz and the Blues and even R&B and early hip/hop. Even today I can listen to acts like Grandmaster Flash, Run DMC, The Beastie Boys and K-os. But Gangsta Rap is an assault on one’s ears. How in a society where we are so willing to cancel someone for an inappropriate comment or a differing opinion, we find it okay for racially charged, misogynistic and downright anti-social music to permeate our airwaves is mind-boggling. My oldest son would disagree with me as he spins the likes of Eminem, Snoop, Post Malone, Dre and other giants of the genre 24/7. I know “spin” is an antiquated term when it comes to music in the streaming era.
Today my alternative tastes have mellowed to a more folksy feel. Vance Joy, Of Monsters and Men, and Mumford and Sons fill my playlists but I still often find myself back at my musical roots. The stomping beats of Personal Jesus (Depeche Mode), the gyrating riff of How Soon Is Now? (The Smiths) or the dark overtones of Lullaby (The Cure) will always have a place in my soul.
Isn’t that the beauty of music though? There is something for everyone, a myriad of sounds to tickle the senses. Even my likes and dislikes are not absolute. Ihave dabbled in Big Bands, Rockabilly, Bluegrass, Industrial, Classical, Opera, Metal, Thrash, Punk, Disco, Trance, Ambient, and even thoughtfully written Hip/Hop. On the other side there are Alternative sounds that aren’t worth my ear. I guess the old adage of “good music is good music” rings true. Happy Listening!
Welcome to Four Line Fiction, a pix-to-prose challenge. Each Thursday, at 9:00am Eastern Time (Canada/United States) I will post an image I have captured myself, featured from another blog or plucked from one of the Interweb’s many royalty-free image sites. You as the writer are to use that image as a point of inspiration to craft a masterpiece of fiction in four lines.
The image for February 9th, 2023 is the black and white portrait of a woman in profile (looking left), taken from the shoulders up. The image has been digitally enhanced to create a bird’s nest-like pencil stroke effect.
Be creative and have fun. I look forward to reading the tales you spin. Don’t forget to show your fellow bloggers some love -❤️- take some time to read, like, and comment on their masterpieces.
Click here for full rules and guidelines
Do you ever just need a moment to yourself. Of course I found a way to make it backfire on me. I’ve been back in the office for a couple of months now but working in my own office in isolation. The workload isn’t much different from when I was at home so I’m not sure why I was needed back so desperately. That decision was out of my hands but we make do as necessary.
Anyway, last Sunday I left a couple of hours early and stopped for some food at a local restaurant to take in the Leafs/Capital (hockey) and Chiefs/Bengals (football) games, simultaneously. I sat in the corner alone with my mask on except when eating. The bill was surprisingly reasonable, certainly on par with some fast food joints I may have stopped at and eaten while driving and the quality was way better. The problem is I may have forgotten to mention it to my partner who believed I was still at work. Of course, me being oblivious left the receipt in my work pants. Needless to say, she found it and rightly so, I’ve been relegated to the doghouse. Nothing foul was afoot and it seemed so insignificant at the time, but it was still a breach of her trust.
Truth is I just needed a moment to myself. If I’d told her, I’d have had to pick her and the kid up and bring them along or I’d have been asked to bring home an expensive takeout order, not that the cost was a concern, I just didn’t want to be saddled with a chore and expectations. I just needed a moment, lost in the noise and in my thoughts. I was wrong not to tell her but a part of me thinks it’s time we’d have been apart anyway.
It was nice to have a little more normal week on the blog, here are some of the highlights…
Five Word Weekly Challenge
Lots of great responses this week…
Linger With Me is a beautifully romantic poem written by ladysighs.
The Monster in the Back Room is a cheeky monster tale written by Joanne the Geek.
Life’s Real Purpose and Adulthood is a harrowing tale of monotony, life’s grind and taxes by Chel Owens.
Dishes a tale of newly realized freedom by Paula at Light Motifs II
Gossip Girls is a poem about not liking gossip unless of course, it’s about someone else by Sadje at Keep It Alive.
Four Line Fiction Challenge
They said if you build it they will come. Not so much for the inaugural Four Line Fiction challenge but if I’m anything it’s not a quitter. Perseverance is said to be the trait of champions. I provided the only entry this week…
Out Of The Cold, was my contribution to this new weekly challenge. Hopefully its more than me next week.
The Nightbird | Written for Shay’s Word Garden.
My First Computer | Written for WordPress Daily Prompt
In Between | Written for Denise’s Six Sentence Stories.
Another Person’s Trash | Written for Carrot Ranch’s Story in 99 Words.
11. Revenge: The Bonding | The eleventh installment of the Revenge Series written for Sammi Scribbles Weekend Writing Prompt.
Here are some other great clicks this week…
Follow 9 | Liz H. at Valley of the Trolls | Another installment in the Follow series. Liz always has compelling serials to follow.
Inside the Tree | Bridgette Tales | A story that draws you in and won’t let go until the very end.
Hollow Man | Fandango at This, That and the Other| A poignant piece about chasing material success at the cost of everything else.
Her Crime Murder | Diana Coombes aka Writer Ravenclaw | A tale of murder and daring escape!
Homo sapiens | Hobbo | Someone mentioned the late great Hobbo this week and I went back and read a bunch of his work. It seemed appropriate to add one here. If you haven’t read Hobbo’s works I highly recommend you have a gander.
Just keep clickin! There was so much other great stuff out there this week but not enough time or room to fit it all in here.
One week until the Super Bowl for all you football fans. For me its just an excuse to eat chili and chicken wings! Chiefs and Eagles fans will be going crazy.
Look for another Five Word Weekly on Monday and the second installment of the newly minted Four Line Fiction on Thursday. Hopefully this weeks image gets the creative juices flowing. At some point during the week the next installment for the Revenge series will drop using the prompt word key.
Have a great week,
A pattern is beginning to emerge. Afternoon has become the new morning when replying to Rory’s Morning Dawdler. I mean I’m 3 for 3 so far! I do still have at London Fog and a slice of lemon loaf next to me though!
Have you learned anything new about your personality that you didn’t know beforehand whilst on your blogging journey?
I always believed my creative side was better served in hands-on pursuits like woodworking or pottery. Even when I began writing the concept for the blog was as a social commentary site. Mostly rants and opinions but as one can see from eight years of almost nothing that was a colossal failure.
I didn’t see this venture as a creative outlet until I responded to a prompt that I happened upon. From there it has become more creative, less opinionated and a whole lot of fun! The jury is still out on success or failure though!
Check out Forgotten, the first creative endeavour posted at Greg’s Blog and a turning point in the evolution of the site.
What are your last thoughts of the night before you turn your lights off, ready to sleep?
Usually, as I’m pulling on my Darth Vader breathing apparatus, I’m just hoping I wake up in the morning. So far I’m sporting a perfect record!
What is the most ridiculous thing you have ever heard anyone say, write, or blog about?
Where to begin…
As we become more polarized politically people on the fringes say the dumbest things. I am not a fan of our current Prime Minister. I prefer a more fiscally responsible government and my politics lie somewhere between the ideologies of the two major parties. That said we held and election and when the dust settled his party was able to broker coalition using the rules of governing we have agreed to since the forming of this great country in 1867. Just because the horse I backed didn’t win the race doesn’t mean I can demand my initial wager back. That’s not how it works. Maybe if we weren’t all so wrapped up in our own lives and took a moment to do our civic duty things would be different.
That said I find it ridiculous to hear people compare the young Trudeau to Putin, Kim, or Jinping. Yes, he cracked down on a bunch of foolish protesters paralyzing the Canadian capital over COVID-19 restrictions. It was not the government or Ottawa police’s finest moment but the protest had run its course and it was time to move on.
Still, The nutters would have you believe the restrictions were a grab at totalitarian power and the end of democracy as we know it. Truth is, as our understanding of the virus has expanded and as we move beyond the initial threat that the anti-vaxxers/anti-maskers movements refuse to acknowledge even existed the restrictions have been lifted and daily life has returned to a semblance of normalcy. Sometimes the greater good has to come before individual rights.
His record has not come close to the atrocities of the monsters these fringe fools group him with. He hasn’t invaded another country to restore some former illusion of glory while butchering men, women and children along the way. He hasn’t rolled tanks over protesting dissidents or jailed them indefinitely for opposing real government brutality and civil liberty violations. He hasn’t committed human rights atrocities against any number of ethnic minorities or anyone who may be a threat to his power. I would love to have seen how Moscow, Pyongyang, or Beijing would have responded to the trucker convoy protests. I can assure you it would have ended much quicker and more brutally than it did here.
What can you do today that you were not capable of a year ago?
More than one and a half pushups, longer than ten painful seconds planking, and certain death after 3 minutes on the Airdyne torture stationary bike. That may have been a bit of an exaggeration but as I continue exercising to counteract my sloth I can feel the changes that are beginning to take effect.
Welcome to the inaugural Four Line Fiction, a pix-to-prose challenge. Each Thursday, at 9:00am Eastern Time (Canada/United States) I will post an image I have captured myself, featured from another blog or plucked from one of the Interweb’s many royalty-free image sites. You as the writer are to use that image as a point of inspiration to craft a masterpiece of fiction in four lines.
The image for February 2nd, 2023 is the word “Welcome” made of rainbow-coloured slats of plywood set against a multicoloured wall. Fitting for the first-ever Four Line Fiction challenge.
Be creative and have fun. I look forward to reading the tales you spin. Don’t forget to show your fellow bloggers some love -❤️- take some time to read, like, and comment on their masterpieces.
Click here for full rules and guidelines
“Every Wednesday Mom insists I take her to the Sally Ann after morning Bingo,” I said with a deliberate eye roll.
“You say ‘Thrift Store’ with a pejorative connotation.”
“It’s all junk and every time we go, she stops at the tables filled with odds and ends left by the dead. How many quasi-fine China teapots and cups does an 82-year-old woman need.”
“Come on Sis, you know she collects that shit. Don’t you recall summer weekends being dragged from yard to yard? All those treasures she plucked from unsuspecting sellers put us through college.”
“Hmmm… Whatcha doing Saturday?”
Remember when I was whole,
In tune with time, a vibrant soul.
With every lie and new excuse,
My moral compass coming loose.
Wave on wave erodes my soul,
Until I’m but a gaping hole.
All my riches, hints of fame,
Cannot erase my guilt and shame.
So hellbent on winning the race,
I forgot to leave this world –
a better place.
Every week Fandango over at This, That and the Other posts a provocative question. This week’s question follows on the heels of his unfortunate fall from a ladder. I think the accident probably had a huge influence on this week’s question…
“Have you ever fractured a bone (or bones) that was serious enough to require inpatient hospitalization and a post-operative stay in a rehab facility? What bone(s) did you break? How long did it take in rehab (inpatient or at home) before you were back to “normal”? And did you actually achieve the same level of functionality you had prior to the fracture(s)?“
While I cannot claim to have required hospitalization or a stay in a rehab facility I wanted to participate so this is as close as I’ve come.
The worst bone break I ever suffered was a fracture of the scaphoid bone. Certainly nothing like Fandango’s ladder/hip mishap. There was no hospital stay outside of the lost hours spent waiting in Emergency but there was lots of physiotherapy after to get back to a full range of motion.
It all started on the first day of school. No, I wasn’t going to school. Those days were long behind on this fateful September 3rd. I was out for my morning ride. I’d just purchased a new road/gravel bike a couple of weeks earlier. Before this bike, I’d been a mountain bike guy. I’d taken many a spill on rocky tree-lined trails with nothing more than bruises and scratches to show. These bones were tough as nails!
But as a guy in my early 50’s it was time for something less dangerous…
Now, back to the first day of school. It was 7:30am and I was out for my 15km morning ride along my usual route. On this morning I was cruising along at about 25km/h, and gaining fast on a group of 15 to 20 high school students walking in the dedicated bike path like a herd of cattle who’ve broken through a barbed wire barrier to obliviously congregate on the road.
As I approached the group they remained oblivious and did not move out of the way. Instead of slowing or stopping, I veered to my right across the grass boulevard towards the empty sideWALK that was ten feet to the right. Notice how I highlighted WALK because that is where they should have been! Anyway, my front wheel caught a rut along the edge of the cement and dug in sending me and the bike ass over tea kettle. My head (thank God for helmets) hit first with my 6’1″ frame crashing down close behind.
The kids, no longer oblivious, looked over as I skidded across the concrete and popped up seeming unscathed. Yeah, I was bleeding from various scraps and scratches but when some of them asked me if I was okay, I insisted I was alright. After all, my head and frame were still attached to each other! In fairness, the adrenaline of the moment had me believing I was none the worse for wear. Although, I am certain my bruised ego would have told them I was fine even if there had been a bone sticking out somewhere.
An inspection of the bike revealed some damage to the handlebar tape and a couple of superficial scratches elsewhere but no major damage. Hell, that was a minimum right of passage for the mountain bike. If it wasn’t banged up you weren’t doing it right.
Inspection complete, I jumped back on the bike with every intention of finishing the nine or so klicks remaining on my ride but the moment I tried to grab the handlebar with my left hand that notion quickly dissipated, replaced with searing pain shooting up my arm. I couldn’t have gripped the bar if my life had depended on it. Instead, it was a slow shameful ride home with my left arm tucked against my midsection while my weakened legs powered a bike that was being guided by a lone and shaky right arm.
I don’t know if any bones were broken. The ER doctor showed me the x-rays but they did not show a break. Apparently, fractures to the scaphoid bone don’t reveal themselves on x-rays until 48 hours after injury. Based on his experience the doc believed the bone was broken and because the small bones of the carpals, and in particular the scaphoid, don’t receive a lot of blood flow should be treated as such. A lack of blood flow restricts healing and if not immobilized and allowed to heal the bone could die. That was enough for me to accept my fate and follow his instructions.
For six weeks I wore a removable cast without knowing if it was broken. X-rays were never taken again later, I just ran with the emergency room diagnosis. When the cast came off I began three months of physiotherapy to get close to a full range of motion. It would be another nine months before I can say the hand and wrist were back to normal.
Even now if the moon and stars and sun align just right, hidden behind a bank of dark grey clouds that are dumping a cold damp rain down on Mother Earth I can still feel it click and groan. Sometimes, I think that if I’d just plowed through them they’d have moved or at the very least it would have been a softer landing!
Oh, and did I mention all the years of reckless mountain biking where I never once broke a bone?
Greg's Blog 