Through the Eyes of a Child - WEP Challenge for 26 March 2014 - Write Edit Publish

Welcome to WEP's Blogfest for March [=Write-Edit-Publish, formerly 'Romantic Friday Writers'] Challenge for 26 March 2014 - 'Through the eyes of a child':

Through the Eyes of a Child

Ida and Karla were both nine years old. Ida lived on a farm with horses. Karla lived in a city, an hour's drive away. But Karla's father owned the nearest farm and that was where they spent holidays and weekends. 

Ida and Karla were very modern children, and kept in touch through their i-phones. Karla sat in her room with make-up on a small table with the image of Ida on her i-phone propped up against a bottle of nail-polish remover.

'What do you think of this colour, Ida?' showing off her lip glans*.

'Did you get real earrings?' asked Ida.

'No, they are glue-on earrings from the children's department at Ahlén's department store.'

'Really? They look like real earrings. Everyone here has pierced ears. My older sister and my second cousin and everyone at school. I got my first pair of earrings last year.

'Almost everyone at my school wears earrings now.'

'Do you want to get your ears pierced?'

'Yes. But Mum won't allow it. I'll do it when I'm eighteen and can do what I want.'

'That's nine years from now. Why won't she let you do it now?'

'Because of the risk of infection. She says my heart leaks.'

'Your heart leaks?'

'Yes. I have a huge scar on my chest from the heart-operation I had when I was only one week old.' 

'Well, maybe she's right. You have to be careful in the beginning before it heals. I had to wash my ear lobes with alchohol every morning and night for six weeks.' 

'Do you like my nail polish?' asked Karla holding her hand to the phone camera, changing the subject.' Karla then brushed her eye lashes with mascara. 'Can you see that I have mascara on my eye lashes?'

'Just a little. Are you coming to the farm on Friday?'

'Yes. I'll be there.'

'Good. I want to show you my new pony. And then we can play with my Barbie dolls.'

'I'll let you know when we are on our way.'

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Word count according to WordCalc: 357

P.S.

I bet you all were expecting something horrble to happen here. Am I right?  Originally, I was going to do just that. 

This everyday scene is very much like a conversation, that I happened to overhear, between my daughter and her friend. 

My babies are growing up. Little girls start early wanting to be little women. They also want to be exactly alike. It is hard for a little girl to be different; to be the one who does not do what everyone else is doing.

I know. This is just a sketch. It's not really a story yet. But it will be. Karla arrives at the farm, and the two friends take a walk through the woods where, in the moonlight, a spaceship hovers and Karla is beamed up and abducted by aliens! 

 

Best wishes,
Anna











*P.S.
'Lip glans' is meant to be 'lip gloss'. I was thinking in Swedish, temporarily.





 
First Commenter:
Niljanjana Bose
of
Madly-in-Verse

 

IWSG-Insecure Writer's Support Group for March 2014

Anna Nordeman

 

Thanks to Alex J Cavanaugh for starting Insecure Writer's Support Group.

This is my twelfth post for IWSG. I've been participating in this bloghop a whole YEAR!!!

Elsa, the cat, and my daughter, Elisabet

 







For my March edition of IWSG I would like to say a few words about my work in progress (WIP) and then leave an update on how I am solving my practical problems  living with six cats in a small apartment.

Reading Roz Morris' practical handbook Nail Your Novel as helped me tackle the structure of my novel. Using post-it and index cards I have outlined almost my entire story. 

Unfortunately, the holidays are over, the spring term has begun, and I have to write a paper for the university. So the novel will have to wait a few months. But using the skills that I have learned from reading so many 'how-to-write-a-novel-books', I think I will even be able to 'nail' my academic paper too!

This is my report on life with six cats:

On Tuesday February 11th, my daughter, Elisabet, was diagnosed as being allergic to cat-fur. This means that she cannot live in my apartment together with six cats. If I don't improve the air in the apartment she could develop astma. Elisabet has temporarily (we hope) moved to my former husband's, her father's cat-less townhouse, built in 1916, with high ceilings and hugh windows.

In the mean time I am looking for new homes for the kitties. I put an ad in the local newspaper and have succeeded in finding three new homes! As of yestersday, February 28th, I have sold four cats to good, animal-loving people! 

Elisabet holding Lars or Sigge

The first to go was Lars. He left on Wednesday February 26th. He moved to a kindly widower who lives in the country. Lars will be able to run, climb, hunt mice and loose some of that excess flab. I am happy for him, but I miss him already. He's like a cuddly tebbybear to hug.

Erik with either Lars or Sigge

Then on Thursday February 27 Sigge and Kalle found a new home with a couple who have a garden. Kalle was my son Erik's special cat. 

Kalle, Elsa, my son Erik, & Rosetta

Yesterday, February 28th, our wild-child, Elsa, found a new home on a horse farm!

Elsa and Elisabet

Parting with our cats has been hard on my son, Erik, who refuses to take an allergy-test. I have agreed to keep one cat, Rosetta, to see if we can make the apartment liveable for Elisabet using air-cleaners. It may not work, but I am willing to try. Otherwise, the family who has adopted Elsa, has promised to take care of Rosetta too.

Not having to have to change six litter boxes and provide fresh water and food several times every day for six cats, will allow me to do other things. Which will help my everyday life (even though I will miss my furry friends terribly - I miss them already).

Yours faithfully,
Anna

P.S.
For those who would like to see my list of how-to-write-books, please go here. 
[If you would like to read my other earlier posts for IWSG, go back to my first post in March 2013 here, in April 2013 here, in May 2013 here, in June here, in July 2013 here, in August 2013  here,  in September 2013  here,  in October 2013 here, in November 2013 here, in December 2013 here, and for January 2014 here, and February 2014 here.]

First Commenter:

Alex J. Cavanaugh

 


 

What's in a face? --WEP Challenge for FEBRUARY 2014

Welcome to WEP's Blogfest for February [=Write-Edit-Publish, formerly 'Romantic Friday Writers'] Challenge for Wednesday 22nd February 2014 - 'What's in a face?':

I think I came up with at least seven different ideas for stories from this prompt. This is one of them. It is a stand alone piece of flash fiction, although it feels to me as if it could be a part of a larger work. But I doubt that I will do more with it than what you see here:

What's in a face? 

Early one morning, the recently employed receptionist at the Farmer & Melker Clinic, Marcy Kramer, sat behind the reception counter, applying blood-red nail polish on her long, well-manicured, fingernails. She turned to her co-worker, surgical nurse, Julie Neumacher, and asked, "Hey, when's the first appointment  today?" Marcy looked at her wet nails. "I hope this will dry in time."

"Hm, let's see," replied Julie Neumacher, as she scrolled down a list on her computer screen, "Ten o'clock, for Doctor Melker. And it’s only ten to nine now." Julie looked at her upside down watch, pinned to her shirt breast pocket.

“I must tell you about my date with Chuck the other night," said Marcy continuing to apply polish on the other hand and finding it awkward, as it meant holding the brush with the hand she did not write with.

"Chuck who?" mumbled Julie and wrote something quickly in a notebook.

"Chuck? You know, Chuck Norton, that cute guy who's just starting out as a junior lawyer at that law firm… I can’t remember the name…” said Marcy admiring her outstretched fingers with painted nails. 

"I need coffee," said Julie, as she went to the office kitchenette, "I hope we have time for this, before Caligula and Nero arrive."

“Caligula and Nero? Weren’t they Roman emperors?”

“Yes, who fed the early Christians to the lions, and helped bring about the fall of the Roman Empire. Cream and sugar? 

“Oh, just a drop of milk, please. Why do you call them Caligula and Nero? It sounds like names you'd give a pair of naughty tomcats."

“Bingo!”

“What do you mean, Julie? Is there something about these doctors that I should know? You’ve been working here, for er... how long?”

“Two years.”

“I guess we don’t have time to talk about my date with Chuck?”

“No.” said Julie returning from the kitchenette with two mugs of coffee and putting them on the writing desk behind the reception counter. “I’m just saying that if any of the doctors shows up early, we have to look like we're doing serious work, or we're dog-meat.”

“You don’t mean that literally, do you?”

“No, of course not. Metaphorically. It’s just an expression.”

The reception telephone rings. 

“The phone's ringing, Julie. What should I do?”

“It’s your job is to answer the phone and take messages. You know what to say. We went through this yesterday.”

Marcy answers the phone: “Good morning. The Farmer and Melker Clinic, doctors J.P. Farmer and C.T. Melker, Plastic Surgery. How may I help you?”

“This is A.P. Morgonstern from Hamiton, Pritchard and Morgonstern, attorneys at law. We represent Miss Zelda Dimstar. Has Doctor Melker received our letter?"

“This is the reception. I would not know about that, sir. You'll have to speak to Doctor Melker."

“Could I speak with him now?”

“No, I'm sorry, sir. Doctor Melker is not available at this time, but if you would like to leave a message, I'll see that he gets it."

“You do that, Schweetheart," said Morgonstern, “You tell him that he's made a mess of Miss Dimstar's face and career, and that he's going to have to pay for it.”

“I'll tell him, Mr. Morgonstern.”

“Yeah. Tell him we’ve got a date in court on the 15th. He'd better show up."

“Yes, sir. I'll tell him. Was there anything else?” 

Click.

“Good-bye,” said Marcy softly, “He hung up.”

“What was all that about?” asked Julie.

“Someone seems to want to sue Doctor Melker,” explained Marcy waving her hands in the air to speed the drying of her nails, “Has this happened before? Do we often get calls from the lawyers of unhappy patients?”

“You wait and see. This is why I am looking for a new job.”

“What? Did he really operate and make a mistake? Or are these people just ambulance-chasers?”

“I don't know, Marcy. What’s in a face, anyway? What can a perfect face be worth? I mean, to a movie star?”

“A film career and several million dollars, maybe?” said Marcy sagely, waving her hand and knocking over her coffee mug, spilling coffee over the computer keyboard, a pile of letters and bills, as well as splashing coffee on her skirt and blouse. “Oh no, and I've ruined my nails, too.”

At that moment, the office door opened and in walked Doctor Melker.

---------

Word count according to WordCalc: 523

This text is fiction. Any resemblance to events or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidencial.

Best wishes,
Anna










First Commenter:
Yolanda Renee
of
Defending the Pen