I’ll Remember It – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

Jen sat at the table in the little coffee shop, her laptop sitting open in front of her, the colorful ribbons of its screensaver dancing across the monitor. She sipped her cappuccino as she watched the people sitting around her for a minute. Then she sat the mug down and tapped a key on the laptop to wake it up.

She opened a Word document and sat staring at it, her fingers poised to write something. But her fingers never moved. She just stared at the blank document and the blinking cursor patiently waiting for her.

She sat like that for a few minutes until she finally released a groan, slid her hands from the laptop and slumped back in her chair.

Her friend Riley came into the coffee shop at just that moment and spotted her. She called out to Jen and joined her at table.

“What’s up?” Riley asked. “You sounded so chipper on the phone the morning. Now you look…defeated.”

“I could just kick myself,” Jen muttered.

Riley raised a questioning eyebrow.

Jen sat up and grabbed her cappuccino. “I told you woke up with a great story idea, right?” Riley nodded and Jen took a sip before continuing. “Well, I was rushing around this morning, and I didn’t bother to make a note of the idea. I thought it was such a great idea that I’d be sure to remember it.”

Jen paused and Riley picked up the tale. “And when you got here and tried to start writing, you couldn’t remember the idea.”

Jen nodded.

Riley gave her head a small shake. “That’s why I keep telling you to make a note when you have a good idea, Jen. We’re just lying to ourselves if we think we don’t need to write it down.” Jen heaved a sigh and Riley continued. “But don’t feel so bad, Jen. It happens to us all. Even me. That’s why I keep reminding you.”

Jen gave her a small smile. “Thanks, Riley. Keep on reminding me, will you?” She raised her hand to signal to a waitress as she asked Riley, “Can I get you a cappuccino?”

(This meme is from Pinterest)

This relatable post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “make a note”:

https://lindaghill.com/2022/07/08/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-july-9-2022/

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Yummy Yum Yum – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

I suppose you could consider me a “foodie”. I enjoy yummy, delicious foods and am usually willing to try new dishes (as long as they’re not too spicy, since spicy doesn’t agree with me much anymore). And I do enjoy cooking and baking and trying out new recipes. When I started using a crock pot and an air fryer (both of which I really enjoy using) I went looking for recipes and came across the website and app Yummly, and I really like it. I have found so many recipes on there that I have saved, and many that I have used frequently, like a crock pot lasagna, air fryer pork chops, air fryer chicken breasts, easy Korean ground beef, chicken parmesan, ….. I don’t know if I will be able to get through and try all the recipes I have saved, though. And there are so many other recipes on the site to look through and being added every day, that I’m sure the number of saved recipes I have will keep growing. And since I don’t have a big family to cook for, I’m always looking for simple, easy recipes, and Yummly hasn’t disappointed me yet.

Because I do have a sweet tooth, I like to bake, and frequently make brownies, cakes, pies, and cookies (but not from scratch – I’m not that good!) And because I’m a chocoholic, often the cakes, cookies, and pies are chocolate. For Christmas, I made sugar cookies and snickerdoodles, which of course were yummy. I would have made more things, but I didn’t have the time.

I fixed my first glazed spiral sliced ham yesterday for Christmas. I’ve fixed hams before, but had never glazed one before. Thankfully it turned out well and the brown sugar glaze was quite yummy.

I hope everyone enjoyed a yummy Christmas dinner and yummy Christmas desserts yesterday, too.

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This post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “yum”:

https://lindaghill.com/2021/12/24/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socss-dec-25-26-2021

Distress – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

He was walking home when he heard the faint cries of a cat in distress coming from a nearby park. Curious and worried, he followed the sound to a tree. Looking around, he spotted a scared kitten stuck on a low branch. He hadn’t climbed a tree in a long time, but the kitten’s plaintive cries spurred him into action. He climbed up and grabbed the kitten, then carefully made his way back down. As he reached the ground, he gave thanks that he was able to rescue the kitten and that he hadn’t had to climb very far. Otherwise, there might have been two creatures stuck up the tree in distress.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “distress”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2021/11/30/tuesdayuseitinasentence-distress/

Zealous – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

She hadn’t been in a festive mood and hadn’t done any decorating all season, causing her neighbors to start calling her Scrooge. But when her soldier husband called the day before Christmas Eve and said he would be able to come home for Christmas after all, she was zealous in her efforts to get all the decorating done.

This day-late post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “zealous”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2021/11/24/tuesdayuseitinasentence-zealous/

Object – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

His heart raced as he knelt and gazed up at the object of his affection, at the woman who had won his heart, and as he pulled out the small object she’d noticed hidden in his pocket, he hoped she would not object to the question he was about to ask.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “object”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2021/01/12/tuesdayuseitinasentence-object/#like-5890

Fable – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

She thought the adventurous stories her grandmother used to tell about her youth had been nothing but one fable after another, but while going through her things after she passed, Julia found a hidden journal and photos squirreled away in a hidden compartment of a desk that proved they had been true after all.

This post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “fable”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2020/10/13/tuesdayuseitinasentence-fable/

The Medium – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

 

Jack and Jen stood in the living room of their new home and heaved a sigh. It had taken a few weeks but they had finally finished unpacking everything. Jen took a look around the room, making sure everything was where it should be – photos on the walls, books on the bookcase, knickknacks on the shelves and in the curio cabinet, Fluffy’s dog bed in the corner, … With a nod of approval, she collapsed on the couch. Jack joined her a moment later.

“Finally,” Jack said. “I though we’d never finish.”

“I know. But we did. And now, this place can finally start to feel like home.”

“Yeah.”

It was getting late, so the couple decided to retire for the night. As they left the living the room and were heading to bed, a small figurine in the curio cabinet turned slightly toward them.

In the middle of the night, Jen woke up, thinking she’d heard footsteps outside the bedroom door. Heart pounding, afraid someone had broken in, she roughly shook Jack’s arm to wake him, then told him what she’d heard. He shook his head, sure she’d just dreamed it, and was about to tell her that when Fluffy jumped down from the bed and ran to the door. Then he heard the footsteps outside the door, too, clear as day. 

Jack hurried to the door and yanked it open. Fluffy ran out into the hall and towards the living room while Jack peered up and down the hall for who was walking around. To his surprise, no one was there. Confused, he checked each room along the hall, but found no one. He then made his way towards the front of the house to check there. When he got to the living room, he found Fluffy sitting in front of the curio cabinet, staring intently at it. Some of the figurines had be turned around inside it. One of the photos was hanging cockeyed on the wall, as well.

Stunned, Jack called out for Jen to come see it. When she arrived, she gasped in shock. “What’s going on, Jack?” she asked fearfully.

“I don’t know, Jen. I know what it looks like, but it can’t be. Can it?”

“Surely not,” she replied, but finding it hard to discount her eyes.

The couple returned to bed but found it hard to sleep. The next few days found more strange happenings. More things moved around. The sound of footsteps continued, along with the occasional whispered voice. Even an odd shadowy figure began to be seen.

When Jen awoke one night to see the indistinct figure of a older woman standing beside her, she screamed. The figure vanished as Jack awoke with a start and Fluffy sat up at the foot of the bed, instantly alert.

Jen tearfully recounted what she’d seen, and Jack decided they had no other choice but to do something about the problem.

The next day, Jack did some online research and made a few phone calls. The following day, a middle-aged woman arrived at the house. Jack let her in and introduced her to Jen as Linda, a local psychic medium he’d asked to come take a look at the house and possibly tell them what was going on. Jen started to tell her what they’d experienced but Linda held up a hand and walked purposefully to the living room. Jack and Jen followed.

“This room is where the majority of the experiences have been, correct?” Linda asked as she placed a hand on the curio cabinet.

Jen nodded but explained that things had happened throughout the house. She and Jack then led her around the house to let her get a feel for the whole place. Then they returned to the living room.

Linda took a seat on the couch, closed her eyes, let her breathing slow and her senses reach out around her. She began softly asking questions of whatever might be there.

After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and looked at Jack and Jen. She gave them a small smile. “You have nothing to fear,” she told them. “I have sensed no evil here, only the presence of one spirit. She tells me her name is Martha, and she used to live in this house. She didn’t mean to scare you. She was only trying to let you know she was here. She asked me to tell you that she’s happy to have you living here with her, as she’s been lonely and she likes you, and she hopes you will stay.”

Jack and Jen released breaths they didn’t realize they’d been holding. Relieved to know there was nothing bad in the house, they agreed to try living with Martha as long as she kept activity to a minimum, believing they could handle a little minor spiritual activity once in a while.

As the medium took her leave, Jack and Jen thanked her for her help, and Linda told them to call her if they ever needed her help again. Jack didn’t think they would, but he said they would if they did. Linda gave them a smile that seemed genuine but for some reason also made Jack feel a little uneasy, then drove off.

As Jack watched Linda drive off, he shrugged, thinking he’d imagined things, and he and Jen headed back inside the house.

Things in the house were peaceful for Jack and Jen from then on, with only a little ghostly activity from Martha now and again.

At least, for a while…

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This post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “medium”:

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Oct. 10/2020

Capture – Tuesday Use It In A Sentence #tuesdayuseitinasentence

He sat at the library table and watched her from across the room as he always did, wanting so much to go talk to her but afraid to; she’d captured his heart from the moment he saw her weeks ago but he had no idea what to do to capture her heart in return.

 

This late post is part of the Tuesday Use It In A Sentence prompt, “capture”:

https://stephaniecolpron.wordpress.com/2020/09/24/tuesdayuseitinasentence-capture/

The E-Collar – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

Lucy set the cat carrier down and shut the front door. Then she took the carrier into the living room and set it on the couch. A little black cat mewed from inside the carrier as she rummaged in her large purse.

A tortoiseshell cat wandered into the living room and over to the couch. She looked up at the carrier and asked the black cat, “How did it go at the vet, Salem?”

“It wasn’t too bad, Patches,” Salem replied. “I don’t remember some of it, for some reason, but Mom says my big boy surgery went well. So I guess now I’m a big boy.” He purred a little at the thought.

Patches seemed to smirk as she said, “Oh, yeah, you’re a big boy now, Salem. Do you even know what happened during that surgery?”

Salem stopped purring abruptly, not liking Patches’ tone. “No. What?”

“Don’t you feel pain in a certain location?”

“Yes, a little. They gave me some drugs, I think, to dull the pain.”

“Think, Salem. What’s in the area where you’re feeling the pain?”

Salem focused his attention on the location where the pain was. After a couple of moments, he realized what Patches was referring to and understood finally what had happened at the vet.

Salem began yowling from the carrier, upset at what he’d been put through, and Patches watched in amusement.

Lucy then found what she was looking for in her purse and pulled it out. It was a clear, plastic E-collar that the vet had given her to put on Salem to keep him from messing up the stitches from his surgery. Patches saw it and her amusement grew.

Lucy opened the carrier and took out Salem, who squirmed in her hand and yowled more. She put him in her lap as he continued to struggle, and with minor difficulty managed to fit the E-collar around the black cat’s neck. Then she set him on the couch and took the carrier away.

Salem sat on the couch, miffed at his situation and biting at the collar as he tried to figure out a way to get it off. Patches laughed at him.

“What’s so funny?” Salem asked grumpily.

“You look like a satellite dish, Salem. Or a lamp.”

“Ha ha. Very funny, Patches. How about you do something a little more comforting, huh? I mean, I did just have you-know-what done.”

Patches jumped up on the couch, went over to Salem, and leaned against him. “I love you, lamp,” she quipped.

Salem rolled his eyes. “Shut up, Patches,” he replied.

Photo is from my Pinterest

This post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “collar”:

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Sept. 12/2020

It’s A Library – Stream of Consciousness Saturday #SoCS

 

He stepped into the living room and stared in surprise. The walls were covered with bookcases filled with to overflowing with books. Books that wouldn’t fit on the bookcases had been stacked on the floor. He shook his head in amazement, then noticed that even the coffee table and end tables were covered with books, as well.

“Uh, Suzie?” he called.

“Yes, Robert?” she called from the kitchen.

“Don’t you think you have too many books?”

“Nonsense! There’s no such thing as too many books!”

“Are you sure? I’m getting a bit of a Hoarders vibe from all these books in here.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Robert. You know it’s not hoarding when it comes to books. I’ve just created my own library. Now be a dear and bring me the cookbook for Italian dinners, would you? The third bookcase on the left, fifth shelf.”

Robert’s eyebrows rose briefly, then he shook his head slightly and made his way over to the bookcase for the cookbook. She was quirky, but he couldn’t help wanting to find out more about her.

 

From my Pinterest

Sheska’s home, from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Image found on Google Search. My apartment could easily look like this if I’m not careful 🙂

 

This post is part of the Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt, “more than a hundred” – write your post inspired by something you have more than a hundred of in your home right now (in my case, I chose books, which I do have more than a hundred of, I’m sure):

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS Aug. 29/2020