A Nyte's Tale

The Robin Hood of Art - Banksy

2017-07-13T07:22:00.029-05:00

Girl with Balloon by Banksy

Banksy…what? Banksy the internationally known artist…uh…unknown artist, graffiti master, activist, painter, filmmaker and all-purpose rabble-rouser that has a magnificent talent for sizzling the senses. His amazing works of art randomly appear upon buildings, walls and other things, cleverly created and exceptionally thought provoking. His stealthy work is quickly deposited with one eye on the canvas and one eye over his shoulder taking a cautious watch for authorities. Some say Banksy is a vandal, defacing public property with his graffiti, but I say he’s a brilliant purveyor of visual stimuli. I admire his thoughts on advertising and feel this speaks volumes about today's talented artists being sucked into commercialism which cheapens their god given gift of creativity.

The thing I hate most about advertising is that it attracts all the bright, creative and ambitious young people, leaving us mainly with the slow and self-obsessed to become our artists. Modern art is a disaster area. Never in the field of human history has so much been used by so many to say so little. - Banksy

If you would like to look at more fascinating works of art by Banksy, I have provided a few links to help you. I encourage you to check out his many works of art around the world and I hope you read more about this fascinating artist.

https://www.banksy.co.uk/

Banksy Instagram

Smithsonian

Banksy in Wikipedia

Beer Can on the Van

2015-03-17T14:44:00.001-05:00

OOPS!! Notice the beer can on this guys bumper. It was a company work vehicle no less, and the driver was not driving very well. If a police officer happened to see this do you think he would get an open container?

Picture Book Submissions

2015-01-19T15:35:00.001-06:00

Exciting times are here again! I always get both excited and nervous when I submit my stories. I had to take a hiatus for a few years to help my husband start our new business, but now that the business is on its feet and running, my writing is taking center stage again. So everyone cross your fingers, hold your tongue just right and pray a lot for me to get my picture book published. It is very dear to my heart and reminds me of the fond memories I have of when my babies were babies.

Writing Again!!!

2014-09-05T17:29:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone, I'm back to my first love again...writing!!! Yay!!! I have officially sent out my first submission today on my favorite book I have written so far for middle grade/young adults. I have high hopes for this fun book so keep your fingers crossed. In addition I have a cute little picture book for toddlers that I will be submitting to agents as well.

So along with my book writing I plan to start full force on my blogging again. It's so weird to read my traffic reports on my blog and see that it is visited from viewers all over the world. Thank you to all that visit and take the time to read my short stories, life updates and the fan favorite "Web Gems". I promise to start updating my blog often for my faithful readers (cuz you guys rock).

Come back soon! :)

Web Gems!

2013-09-06T14:38:00.013-05:00

I love finding great things on the internet that I call “Web Gems”. It’s been a while since I posted any web gems for you (heck, it’s been a while since I posted anything…bad bad me), I figured it was time to treat my readers to a fun site. Sorry, but there is only one web gem today and as you can tell - it’s because I am sitting at my desk hungry and trying to think of something cool to make for dinner tonight.

My friends and family know that I LOVE to cook, and I have a large collection of recipes. For all of you who also like to cook and like the challenge of figuring out how to make your favorite restaurant dishes, here is a website I found that has some great recipes from restaurants like Popeyes, Pei Wei, Olive Garden, etc. I enjoy P.F. Changs Lettuce Wraps minus the water chestnuts – ick; the recipe for this appetizer is on the website. I have yet to try the recipe, but as soon as I do, I will post if it’s just like the restaurant version or not. So stay tuned and I will let you know how it turns out. Here is a link to the website: https://topsecretrecipes.com/Top-Secret-Recipes//

I also have a request for anyone/everyone…one of my favorite restaurant dishes is Hawaiian Chicken (or some restaurants list this dish as Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken). IF ANYONE has a “fantastic” recipe for this I will forever love you. And anyone who just wants to share recipes with me, please feel free to post or send me one privately. I enjoy getting great recipes and if I get enough maybe I will start a cookbook and publish it. I, of course, will print the author's name who sent me the recipe in the cookbook.

That is all for today. I hope to start blogging more often again. I have lots of new stuff to share with you, so check back soon. Ciao!

SOLD!

2012-03-14T14:16:00.003-05:00

Now this is downsizing your home! Sorry for the unsophisticated
language, but I wonder who bought this “turd”.

Rewind: Savior

2010-08-21T10:46:00.002-05:00

Was it the blacktop road that made the night seem so dark or was it just her mood? Maybe it was the fact that she had been driving for hours and she was getting tired. Christine didn’t know which, but she did know that the further she drove away from her hometown, the darker her mood became. She didn’t want to move, but her employer hadn’t given her a choice…or maybe he actually did. The choices were to transfer or find another job, but quitting was not an option Christine could afford, so she boxed up her life and left her family and friends behind.

Christine looked at the clock on her dash for the thousandth time and sighed impatiently. “Three hours to go,” she mumbled to herself. Tired of listening to the same CD for the last few hours she switched the CD player to radio, but static was all she heard coming out of the speakers. Her favorite radio station was gone. She knew it wouldn’t reach this far out. It was just another reminder of all that was familiar to her was being left behind, and she couldn’t help the resentment that festered inside her heart. Christine told herself that it could have been worse because most of her coworkers had been laid off when the company closed the branch in her hometown. No…she was one of the lucky ones to still have her job.

She pushed the seek button on her car radio so she could find some music to help sooth her sour mood. Half watching the road and half watching the numbers scrolling through their search for a new radio station, Christine did not see the large carcass of mangled deer flesh that lay in the middle of the deserted highway. She glanced up to see the bloody mass to late, as she held her breath and slammed on the breaks. A split decision to jerk the wheel came from the sudden awareness that she was not going to stop before hitting the poor dead creature. The car veered to the right and slammed into a broken guard rail that sent it flipping in the air. For a brief second, Christine knew what was happening, but when her head shattered the side window, she knew no more. Her car came to rest on its top with all four wheels still spinning.

A rolling accumulation of odorless smoke billowed all around her as she sat up realizing she was on the ground. Her first reaction was to check herself for injury and she was amazed when she didn’t find a scratch or even a drop of blood. Christine stood up without any trouble and dusted herself off. “Wow! Amazing that nothing happened to me.” She said.

The area was blanketed with the darkness of night and as she looked around she couldn’t see anything in the black surroundings, not even her car. Christine was scared of being stranded in the middle of nowhere. She was determined to get back to her car or at least the road so she could get help. Wandering through the darkness, she began to think back to when she last saw a car on the road. It must have been almost an hour ago, but she was still unwavering in her pursuit to find her way out of this mess. She wasn’t even sure if she was walking in the right direction, but what else could she do?

Off in the distance she saw a small white glow. Not sure if it was a street light or possibly the headlights from her car, she began to walk towards the far-off brightness. In the opaque darkness, the light was like a symbol of hope…her way home. As Christine became closer to the light, she realized that it looked like a flashlight held by someone walking towards her. Relief flooded over her as she thought someone must have seen her crash and they were now here to help her.

Christine called out to the unknown person, “Hello! Can you please help me?”

A faint female voice answer back, “Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine! Thank you for stopping to help me!” She happily called out to the voice. Christine also prayed silently to God, thanking him for keeping her from injury and for sending her a savior to help her.

Closer to the light, Christine could see the faint outline of the woman. Her long blond hair hung past her waist and was almost white. The flashlight made it to shimmer in the darkness faintly reflecting the light all around as if she wore a halo. The lovely woman was very slender and so tall that she towered over Christine, and to her this woman was the most beautiful sight in the world. The space between the two young women closed in, and Christine could see the relief in the woman’s eyes as she assessed Christine’s physical wellbeing. They stopped, face to face, and the woman smiled.

“I am glad to see you are okay. My name is Angela. Come on, the road is this way.” Her voice was soft and high pitched like a soft flute. Obediently, Christine walked next to Angela. They walked without speaking for a few seconds, and the silence between felt as heavy as the darkness.

“I don’t think your car is drivable.” Angela’s songlike voice broke through the quietness.
Christine was disappointed to hear that news. Considering she was fine and walking, she considered herself very lucky. “It’s replaceable,” was all Christine said.

Angela seemed determined to carry on their conversation as they walked. Maybe she was just trying to assess Christine’s mental awareness, to make sure there was no unseen head injury. “Your moving to a new place.”

Christine looked at her without answering, wondering how she knew.

Angela quickly explained, “Your boxes are scattered about with stuff that seemed like your personal belongings.”

“Yes, your right. My work transferred me, unfortunately.” Christine sadly responded.

“Really? Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. I think you will like the move. You’re going to a nice place to live with nice people too. You did the right thing, moving and all.” Angela sounded so sure of her statement, but Christine felt sure she was just trying to cheer her up. Suddenly, Angela stopped & looked at Christine. “Change is often scary, but it’s necessary if you are to grow as a person. Christine, you will be fine and someday you will look back and wonder why you didn’t go sooner.”

Christine stood looking at Angela through the heavy tears that filled her eyes. She wiped the tears away before they rolled down her cheeks, then turned and started walking again. Christine’s voice was low and harsh, “Well, I’m glad someone thinks so.”

Angela put her hand on Christine’s back, trying to comfort her, as they began walking again. This time Angela allowed Christine her silence as they quietly walked together for several minutes. Christine concentrated on the darkness ahead, trying to discern how far up ahead the road was. The only thing she could see was never ending blanket of night and she was beginning to doubt they were going in the right direction.

Suddenly Angela stopped. Christine turned back to her, “Why are you stopping? Are we lost?”

“No Christine, you are not lost, but you must go on without me now.” Angela said in a calm voice as she tenderly touched Christine’s cheek.

“Why?” Christine asked. Angela just smiled at her. Then something dawned on Christine, “How did you know my name?”

“Christine, please don’t worry about anything, you are doing just fine. You worry about moving away, but it will be okay. You made the right decision…you are on the right path. Please know that I am here keeping you safe, always.” Her soft tone sounded like music, as if she were singing the words to soothe Christine’s racing heart.

Christine opened her mouth to say something when suddenly she began to hear sirens off in the distance. They were a faint sound at first, but quickly they became louder and intrusive into the silent night. Christine looked around and it confused her to hear but not see what was making the noise. Her fear was mounting into almost a panic. She thought, ‘What is going on?’ Her head whipped around scanning the darkness still looking for the road. She turned back to Angela with fear in her eyes.

Angela stood there still smiling peacefully at her as she again put her hand on Christine’s cheek. “I need you to wake up now, help is here. Wake up, Christine. It will be alright…you’ll see.” Her voice faded away into just a tinkling sound of crystals. She dropped her hand from Christine’s cheek and stepped back. Christine watched Angela fade into a white hazy cloud and she swore she saw a pair of white feathery wings open as if to take flight just before she disappeared in the mist.

Christine stood alone in the darkness again. This time however she was acutely aware of the loud sounds all around her. She tried to put her hands over her ears to block out the offending noise of sirens and people shouting, but she suddenly realized that her arms were pinned to her side and pain shot through her body when she tried to move. Along with the intrusive sounds also came the pungent odor of gasoline and blood. She shut her eyes tightly, to block out the chaos, then began to cry. The fear rose inside her as she began to sob uncontrollably. She silently prayed to God to make it all go away.

Christine heard another voice, male this time, “You are going to be okay. You’ve been in an accident and you are injured, so please don’t try to move.”

Christine’s eyes shot open. Through her blurry vision she saw bright lights and several people standing over her. Sitting next to her, on the ground, was a handsome man holding her still. Through the excruciating pain of her injuries, Christine could feel his warmth keeping her safe from the cold that threatened to take over her. She was lying on the ground; something soft under her head, while next to her was her overturned car. Scattered around her were her belongings, her stuff she had brought with her in the move. Her world seemed to be strewn about, but she was still alive.

She tried to sit up but the man sitting next to her put his hand on her shoulder, “Please don’t move. The paramedics are almost here. They will help you.” He smiled down at her, trying to comfort her.

“Is it bad?” Christine said in a weak voice.

“It will be alright…you’ll see.” He replied softly.

Christine swore she heard the tinkling sound of crystal in his gentle voice; her guardian angel was still there.

Drew Dawson Davis Fan

2010-07-10T15:24:00.004-05:00

Hello everyone,

I know I've told you all that I'm taking a break from Twitter, Facebook and blogging to put focus on finishing book #2 and #3, but I have to share with you another web gem. I stumbled upon a talented singer on YouTube one evening and his voice just blew me away. His name is Drew Dawson Davis. I was searching for music to help me feel one of the characters in my book, so I was looking for a particular song which just happened to be Garth Brook's Shameless. I know, I know, ew! It's country music. Whatever. :P Intrigued, I began checking out each of his videos and now I have listened to each of his posted videos repeatedly. They have become a musical muse for working on. If you get a chance, check him out (and no, not all of his music is country). Here is a link to Drew Dawson Davis "Shameless" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUdIbdb_hA0

Ciao for now!

Blog

2010-02-25T10:47:00.004-06:00

Hello readers! I am sharing a wonderful site I found today. The author of this blog is Melissa Johnson (pen name, Melissa Bryant). Melissa also has a book called The Duke's Angel which is available through Amazon or Lulu.com. She is a very sharp writer and I look forward to reading more of her work. I invite you to visit her blog as well and become enlightened. Here is the link: http://everythingofinteresttoaromancewriter.blogspot.com/

Quotes

2010-01-17T14:01:00.003-06:00

Motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly. - Stephen R. Covey

I am patient with stupidity but not with those who are proud of it. - Edith Sitwell

Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely. - Buddha

The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra. - Unknown

Holiday Web Gems

2009-12-12T13:38:00.003-06:00

I would like to wish a Merry Christmas to all my readers. I hope everyone is having a safe and warm holiday. You all have a special place in my heart and I appreciate your continued visits to my blog. I try to entertain you in a variety of ways by writing short stories, passing along news and (my personal favorite blog posts) Web Gems. I hope you've enjoyed my writing throughout the past year. Please feel free to leave me a comment or send me an email to let me know your thoughts, ideas for stories, and/or websites you want me to check out. (You can even leave a complaint, if you feel the need to do so, but I won’t guarantee that I will listen to it.) ;) Today’s blog are more Web Gems, so gather the kids around the computer for this first link.

How about we start with something cute? Here is a video of a precious puppy trying to whistle. http://video.yahoo.com/watch/6544400/16989568 I think this dog may have a shot at Hollywood. What do you think?

This next website is aimed at some holiday humor. During this time of year beautiful Christmas lights adorn the roofs, trees and front yards of homes and businesses. My family likes to load up in the car and drive around to look at the lighted displays in our area. While most holiday displays are charmingly entertaining, there are those few exhibits that leave you pondering the question ”Why did they even bother?”. Here is a website that showcases these less than enjoyable front yards: http://www.uglychristmaslights.com/ . This website also accepts pictures, so this year as you go around looking at the splendor of glowing colors and yard ornaments, take your camera. Snap some shots of those pitiful displays and give them their 15 minutes of fame by posting them to the Ugly Christmas Lights website.

Here is a warning to pass along to your loved ones. Throughout the year, scammers are hard at work coming up with new ideas to take money and property from innocent people.During the holidays their efforts are even more diligent. Sadly the elderly are scammer’s favorite target and this is another scam aimed at them: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Banking/FinancialPrivacy/beware-fake-grandkids-calling-for-cash.aspx . (I hope there’s a special place in hell for these dirt bag scammers.) I’ve always said that some people work harder just to get out of having to work at all. Imagine how productive these creative people would be if they actually went out and got a job and made money the honest way.

As we all know, this year was a bad year for the economy and I would like to end this blog with a request. I know we all have had to tighten our belts just to make ends meet, but I want to encourage you to make at least one small donation to a charity this Christmas. This year many charities have suffered a sharp drop in donations. If at all possible please make a small donation, any donation, that you can spare. It could even be a non monetary donation like giving blood, taking a box of clothes to the Salvation Army or just volunteering your time. Another idea is when someone asks you what you would like for Christmas; tell them to make a donation in your name to your/their favorite charity. One that we try to help out each year is Toys for Tots, because children should always have something to look forward to on Christmas morning. *<:)

Web Gems

2009-11-21T20:25:00.002-06:00

I love to find fun websites on the internet. Here are two sites I found this week. This first one is hilarious and someone could spend hours just reading through the funny, interesting, weird, disgusting, and sometimes “down right wtf were they thinking” text. This website is Txts Frm Lst Nght (Text From Last Night). Now I know we all have sent a text to someone that once we hit the “send” button we wished there was a “retrieve” button. This website showcases text messages sent that I am sure the sender wished they would not have sent. Lucky for us, the gracious recipient of the text message thought that the world would be a better place if they shared it with everyone. Not only does it exhibit the uncomfortable display of bad spelling, compromising situations and/or embarrassing circumstances, but you the reader also get a chance to reply and grade the text message. Talk about adding insult to injury, but it’s all in fun and (I hope) no one gets hurt. If you feel venturous here is the link: http://www.textsfromlastnight.com/ . If you feel really venturous…add some of your friend’s text messages for everyone to see.

This next website is a helpful one for those cooking this holiday. I love to cook and one of my favorite things to do is peruse recipes. So for all of you who are the cooks of your family get together, here is a helpful website for you! http://www.allrecipes.com/ There are many, many recipes on this website. Each recipe has a great picture of the finished product, a star rating, personal comments from people that have tried the recipe and a wine suggestion. It also has a printable shopping list which is a great feature. I found it to be a very helpful website and I’m sure you will too!

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving. Also…if anyone has a suggestion they would like for me to check out on the internet or a short story idea for me, please feel free to contribute. I am open to any comments or suggestions. Have a great one!!! }i{

Web Gems

2009-11-07T12:47:00.006-06:00

I like finding interesting things on the internet. I have always admitted that I am a Google junkie; my friends lovingly call me the Google queen. Anytime anyone needs to find information about something, anything, they always come to me and within a few minutes they have what they were looking for. (Google should put me on their payroll. *cough cough* *hint hint*) Here are some cool things I found this week…

*There is a new search engine on the web now called “Leapfish” ( http://www.leapfish.com/ ). I checked it out and it seems pretty interesting. The page is real easy to read and the main page has news, celebrity news, videos, etc.; basically everything that Yahoo or MSN has to offer. When you use the search engine it is actually powered by not only Google, but also Yahoo and Bing. It’s like all the search engines in one convenient place and I like that. It also includes Flickr, Twitter and any other internet sites that pertain to what you are searching for. As for me, I will probably stick with my trusty ol’ Google, but Leapfish will definitely be added to my list of websites I like to use.

*Another site I found this week is Demand Media (http://www.demandmedia.com/ ). If you have a talent for writing and are looking for an excellent opportunity for work, you may want to check out Demand Media. I copied this directly from their website:

Demand Media™ is the leader in distributed social media powering 3 billion conversations every month.

Founded in 2006, Demand Media is led by executives with strong backgrounds in social media and technology. Our management team has extensive experience at globally recognized companies from MySpace to Yahoo!

Through Demand Studios, qualified writers, editors and filmmakers create valuable content and make money. On our media sites, millions of users engage through relevant content and passionate communities. Our products make it possible for thousands of businesses to grow by providing social media solutions that consumers really want.

Demand Media is well-capitalized and strategically positioned for both near and long term success. The company has raised more than $355 million dollars from tier-one investors, including Oak Investment Partners, Spectrum Equity Investors and Goldman Sachs.

For Passionate, Knowledgeable Individuals Demand Studios pays talented writers, filmmakers, editors and topical experts for creating and curating high-quality content for publication on one of the world’s largest and fastest growing online media networks. In joining our community, content contributors can generate income from their passions, from wherever and whenever they want.

Demand Studios makes it possible for qualified writers, editors and filmmakers to create valuable content, reach an audience of millions, and make money.

Sound interesting? Here is a link to the application form on their website:

https://www.demandstudios.com/application.html?role=Writer

*Twitter has become a huge powerhouse of networking, socializing, advertising and latest breaking news (even before the news channels report it). Now Amazon has gone and enlisted the help of their “Amazon associates” to help promote products from Amazon. They sent out an email to their associate members telling them about the latest company program called “Share with Twitter”. Participants are to use Twitter to tweet about products available and provide a link to the Amazon product. Then when someone on clicks the link (and also makes a purchase) the associate will earn referral fees payable through the Associates program. Neat promotional idea for Amazon but I wonder if this will prompt people to promote products, without any regard to whether the product is even worth purchasing, just to make money. I also wonder if, when people start promoting Amazon products, they will be perceived as “spam” on Twitter. Hmm…we will see.

Spam is beginning to be a problem on Twitter. Seasoned Twitterers are becoming suspicious of posts that sound spamish, which usually gets the poster deleted from a follow list and blocked. Sad thing is “spam” will probably be the downfall of Twitter. More and more people are getting tired of the cutsy crap (which is underlying spam) on Facebook. This has caused users to migrate from Facebook to Twitter. I hate to say that unless Twitter takes hold of these spammers, people will find another place to socialize. Then again it is only a matter of time until some new “social networking” site starts up and becomes the new must use website. Until that happens, Twitter on people! (Follow me on Twitter: @ajnyte )

*Now here is a guy with a simple idea at making good money. Jason Sadler came up with a genius idea to make companies pay him to wear their t-shirts. Okay so it’s not quite that simple, but almost. Here is what he told Reuters:

"I walk around, take photos, wear the shirt all day ... I blog about those photos, I put 'em up on Twitter, I change my Facebook profile ... and then I do a Youtube video. I made about $83,000 this year."

What the hell? $83,000! I must be doing something wrong because I wear t-shirts with logos all the time and don’t get paid for it. I also blog, use Twitter and Facebook every day, but yet…still don’t get paid for it. Well, good for you Jason. You found a niche, went with it and even found a way to make good money. If you are interested in Jason’s services or are just curious about how he started this business, here is his website: http://www.iwearyourshirt.com/

Here is a question I would like to ask these companies though…Why didn’t you just have one of your own employees wear the t-shirt and have your IT or advertising people blog, Twitter and Facebook about it instead of hiring an outside source to do so? Seems like promoting from within to me.

Unfamiliar Cont.

2009-11-03T19:49:00.001-06:00

The thunderstorm still rumbled outside but now was far off into the distance from Nicole’s house. Restless dreams troubled her as she tossed and turned. Suddenly there was another loud noise that jerked her awake. Sitting straight up, she stared wide eyed around the dark room with an unsettling feeling that she was being watched. Her lungs began to pain as she realized she had been holding her breath the whole time. She inhaled deeply and chided herself for being scared. Nicole reached over to pick up her phone to see what time it was; 2:18 a.m. Out loud she said, “This is going to be a long night.”

The radio was still on and softly playing music. She began to set her phone back down when she glanced at the window. There, for a whisper of a second, she saw a dark misty shape that resembled a shadowy face staring back at her. A loud scream escaped her throat as she jumped up and ran towards the hall, still clutching her phone in her hand. She dialed 911 as she slammed the bathroom door shut and locked it. Nicole tried to keep a calm quiet voice as she spoke to the operator. She begged the person to send help as soon as possible. The 911 operator immediately complied with her request and said that a patrol car would be there within minutes; then she asked her to stay on the line until they arrived. Nicole was all too happy to comply with the operator’s request feeling that she did not want to be left alone if there was a prowler outside. Several minutes passed by and Nicole was beginning to feel even more anxious and frightened. Her imagination was running wild with the thought that some trespasser was lurking around her house and possibly inside. To her it seemed forever for the police to show up, but eventually the operator informed her that the police were there and already looking around the property outside. Nicole heaved a sigh of relief to hear that she no longer was alone. The operator then instructed her to let the police officer inside. As soon as she saw the welcoming face of the police officer she allowed herself to relax. Once he checked on her well being, the policeman then searched the inside of the house. Nicole thanked the operator and turned the phone off. She turned the lights on inside the house while she waited anxiously for the officers to find the creep that had been staring into her window.

The officer came back to the living room, “Miss, we checked the property and it doesn’t look like anyone was out there. With all this rain the ground is muddy outside the window. If there was a prowler outside then there should have been obvious shoe prints in the mud around the windows. Which window did you see the person?”

“The back window in the living room.” Nicole pointed to the window where she saw the face.

Speaking into his police radio, “Sam, check the south window by the back door for footprints again.”

“Will do, Dan.” The other officer responded. A minute later, the other officer’s voice came over the radio, “Negative for foot prints. I think this one was a false alarm.”

Nicole could feel the heat rise in her cheeks as she looked down at the ground. She felt silly about being so scared and also guilty to have wasted the officer’s time. “I am sorry. I would have sworn there was someone outside the window tonight.”

“Don’t be sorry. You did the right thing by calling us. Don’t ever hesitate to call for help. You know the saying – better to be safe than sorry; especially when it comes to your safety and your life. If there really was a bad guy and you didn’t call, then what would have happened?” The officer put his hand on Nicole’s shoulder. “We would rather respond to a false alarm than to respond to a terrible crime or death because someone didn’t call for help.”

His words helped ease her guilt. When she looked up into his kind eyes and smiled; Nicole knew that he meant every word of what he said. Officer Dan also promised to stay in the area just in case there really was a perpetrator and she needed them to come back over. She thanked them for coming out and then watched as the patrol car pulled out of the driveway. With the door locked again, she made her way back to the couch. As she looked back at the window, she realized that the place where she set the couch put her directly in front of the window. When she sat back on the couch, her own reflection was there staring back at her. The lightening off in the distance must have casted just enough light to play tricks on her eyes, making her think that there was a person standing outside her window. Nicole shook her head and chuckled, blaming herself for scaring so easily tonight. Then, just to prove to herself that there was nothing to fear, she stood up and walked over to the window to look outside. Now that she got a closer look, she realized that if someone was outside the window earlier, there would have been obvious footprints left in the mud directly in front of the window. She did see some footprints, but she knew them to belong to the officer because they stepped off to the side of the window.

Nicole turned to go back to the couch when something else caught her eye. A small drip of water slid slowly down the window pane falling directly below a faint hand print. She stopped cold with the hair standing up on the back of her neck. She looked close at it, reaching out to touch the handprint then realized that the print wasn’t on the outside of the window; it was on the inside. Her mind raced for a justifiable explanation, but found nothing to explain how this handprint could have ended up on the inside of her window. As spooky as this was, she did not want to call the police back. Nicole forced herself to not dwell on the window anymore. Making her way back to the couch, she shut off the lights again. Determined not to let her imagination run wild, she climbed back under the covers and tried to go back to sleep.

Hours later, the glow on the horizon signaled that morning had finally come. Tired from her long sleepless night, Nicole pulled the covers over her head to block out the morning light. Now that she was no longer afraid of the dark, within minutes she had fallen into a deep asleep. Locked away in her dreams the morning passed by and turned into afternoon.

She wandered through a shadowy forest of dreams when a loud rapid knock at the door jolted her awake again. Nicole shot up off the couch, disoriented by her surroundings. It took several seconds for her to remember where she was when another quick knock sounded at the front door. She threw her blanket over the couch and ran to the door. Taking a peek outside, she saw a young handsome man, whom she didn’t recognize, waiting outside for her to answer.

“Who is it?” Nicole asked through the door.

“Hi Nicole my name is James Wheeler…Jimmy. My family owns this house. I am a relative of Thomas Wheeler, your landlord. I have just come by to check and make sure you made it through the storm without any problems.” The man answered.

“Oh! Hang on just a sec!” Embarrassed that she had been caught still sleeping in the afternoon, Nicole ran to the bathroom to fix her hair and rub some toothpaste on her teeth. The she ran back to the front door and opened it to find that the man, Jimmy, was gone.

Stepping out onto the porch she looked around for the guy. “Hello?!” She shouted.

“Back here!” He answered from the back yard.

Nicole closed the front door and made her way through the obstacle course of boxes. She opened the back door and stood just inside. “Sorry to have kept you waiting. I appreciate your checking on me. The storm was pretty bad last night, but I think I managed to survive.” She watched the young man as he looked over the back yard for any signs of storm damage. Nicole couldn’t help but notice how striking the man’s features were, as well has his strong build. His must have been about the same age as Nicole, but he seemed to have more of a boyish demeanor about him.

“Good! Glad to see you’re still in one piece. The house seems undamaged too. Is there anything I need to look at inside? All appliances seem to be okay, no leaks in the roof?” Jimmy asked while checking around the windows and under the eaves of the roof.

“No, everything is fine so far. If there is anything that needs fixing, I can see to it. I promised Mr. Wheeler… I mean, Thomas that I would fix what needs fixing for a break on the rent. Thanks for the offer though.” Nicole was confused to why a relative was offering to help with the house when she was the one responsible for any and all repairs. She still stood in the back doorway as Jimmy walked towards her. Satisfied with state of the house, he looked back at Nicole and smiled a dazzling boyish grin that added charm to his good looks. He climbed up the stairs and onto the back porch, and then stood directly in front of her as if he were waiting to be invited inside.

“I see. Well, if you ever need anything just let me know. I hate to intrude, but would you mind if I got a glass of water?” Jimmy stood over her and still smiling.

Nicole stammered, “Uh, sure. Come in.” She stepped back into the kitchen as Jimmy followed her inside. She reached into the cabinet and pulled out a glass. Once filled with water, she set the glass on the cabinet in front of him.

“Thank you! So, do you think you will stay long?” Jimmy asked.

“I will stay as long as Thomas will let me. I find that most landlords push me out the door once the repairs and fix ups are finished.” She answered honestly.

“Some say this place is haunted. Are you afraid of ghosts?” He chuckled as he asked the question.

“Haunted? I am not sure I believe in ghosts, although there were a few strange things last night.” She smiled back trying to make light of her eventful night. “I guess as long as the ghost is nice, then I don’t mind sharing the house,” She joked back.

“Oh I think he’s nice. Glad to hear you’re such a good sport.” He reached out and touched her shoulder. Nicole noticed that his touch was light as a feather but cold as ice. It sent chills up her neck and down her spine. The feel of it was so unexpected she stepped back out of reach. Jimmy had noticed her retreat and his smile turned into a frown.

“Well, it was nice meeting you. Hope you enjoy staying here. Tell Thomas I said ‘hi’.” Then he turned to walk back out the back door.

“It was nice meeting you too. Come back by in a few months and see the progress on the house. I think you will be surprised.” Nicole felt guilty for her reaction to his touch.

He turned back to her as he walked out the door. “What will you do to the house?” He asked with a tilt of his head.

“I think I will decorate it in a retro style, maybe something out of the 40’s or 50’s. I am not sure about the details yet though. I think I would like to bring it back to almost its original state but with a modern twist. What do you think?” She smiled at his curiosity and hoped that he liked her idea for the house.

“I love it. Ask Thomas for some pictures. That may help your planning and design.” Then with a wave he walked off and around the side of the house. Nicole ran to the front window to watch him leave, but oddly he never reappeared in the front yard.

Hours later, after a shower some lunch and more unpacking, Nicole heard another knock at the front door. Oddly, she hoped it was Jim again. He had been on her mind ever since he left. Stopping with her task, she quickly made her way to the front door again. Her shoulders dropped when she saw Thomas standing on the front porch.

She put her sweetest smile on her face as she swung the door open, “Hi Thomas!”

“Hello miss. Weather the storm last night okay?” His wrinkled leathery hand held out to greet her as she returned his hand shake. His skin felt almost as cold as Jimmy’s but Thomas’ had a heavy grip. Nicole stepped aside allowing Thomas to come inside. His eyes glanced around the box cluttered room. “Looks like you have your work cut out for you. Anything I can do to help?”

“No thank you Thomas. It will take a few days, but I will manage. What brings you by this evening?”

“I came to check on you after the storm last night.” He answered.

“Like I told Jimmy earlier, the house and I are fine. We made it through the storm without any problems. Thank you for your concern.” She was beginning to feel smothered by all the worried attention after last night’s storm.

“Who?” Thomas’ face fell, drained of what little color it normally had.

“Jimmy came by earlier to make sure everything was okay too. I’m sorry; he said he was a relative, so I thought it was okay to have him look around.” Nicole began to feel uneasy about the possibly Jimmy had mislead her into thinking it was okay for him to be there looking around the house. “He didn’t seem like he was any threat. He only looked around the back yard for any signs of damage. Oh, and I guess I did let him in to get a drink of water.” The thought of last night’s possible prowler came instantly to mind and she began to experience a strong sense of insecurity. The more she tried to explain the sicklier Thomas looked. “I’m sorry Thomas! I promise not to let anyone else in if it distresses you. I just thought…”

Thomas pulled his wallet out of his pocket and opened it to a set of pictures. “Did he look like this?” His trembling fingers fished out a cracked black and white photo. The picture was terribly faded but the face was unmistakably Jimmy’s.

“Yes, that’s him. So he is a relative? Was it okay to have him looking around?” She was confused by Thomas’ sudden reaction. Tears filled his eyes as he reached out, holding onto the door handle steadying himself. For a moment Nicole thought that Thomas may faint as she watched the emotions play across his face; his eyes overflowing with sadness while a smile hinted at the corner of his mouth. “Thomas, are you okay?” She quietly asked.

“Yes. That was my older brother who died during the first world war when I was still in school.” The old man then laughed at her reaction.

Short Story: Unfamiliar

2009-10-10T19:49:00.006-05:00

Thunder growled angrily overhead followed by flashes of lightening that illuminated the outside landscape for a brief second. The weather was brewing quickly making the air thick with moisture. Another rumble sounded as Nicole paused and glanced out a nearby window. Mentally she began to count, “one one-thousand, two one-thousand, three”. A bolt raced across the sky and through the ominous low clouds. The storm was closer. What a night for the weather to be tempestuous, she thought. Nicole knew this night was going to be a long sleepless one, which was fine with her since she had a lot to keep her busy.

Moving was always such a tedious chore. Nicole hated leaving her previous home, but the landlord raised the rent…again. The owner knew she couldn’t pay the higher amount; and when a tenant can’t pay rent what do they do? The only thing Nicole could do…move. This new place wasn’t so bad though. It actually had great potential, and with a little hard work, this place could become as nice as her last place and maybe even better.

Nicole had a knack for fixing things. She had a creative talent that could change an ugly trash heap into a stylish and elegant home. That was usually how she acquired cheap rent; with the promise to fix up a run down house and turn it into a classy dwelling. She sighed, maybe this time I won’t put as much effort into fixing it up though. She knew that was the reason why the landlord raised the rent on the last place, and why all her other landlords had raised the rent in the past. Her ability to turn the most decrepit homes into very elegant and livable places seemed to be a double edge sword. The owners saw the improvements that were made on the rent houses and realized they could make more money by renting the renovated place to another tenant. Next thing she knew, Nicole was boxing up her life again and moving out. But before she started packing to move, she would go through each room and take pictures for her portfolio. Adding along with the pictures were the cloth swatches and paint samples she used for each redecorated room. Every house had its own book. This last house made book number five.

While preparing to leave, Nicole would go out and find another house; one that was a real fixer upper. After finding her gem in the rough, she would make a deal with the landlord that she would fix the place up for a large break on the rent. It wasn’t hard to convince them of her ability after looking through the portfolio books that showcased her previous remodels. The landlord, of course, agreed to supply the material but Nicole would provide all of the labor. Although in Nicole’s eyes, it really didn’t feel like work because she loved fixing up the houses. It was sort of a hobby that formed out of necessity. She was surprised how many landlords were willing to take half off of the rent in exchange for house repairs and some sprucing up. Nicole’s main problem was she couldn’t just stop at fixing the broken plaster, repainting a room or stopping a leaky faucet. Once all the necessary repairs were made, she would continue to paint, then landscape, change lighting fixtures, put in new flooring, etc. After the fix ups were completed the houses, inside and out, looked like something you would see in Southern Living or Martha Stewart magazine. It wasn’t long before the landlords realized they were not getting enough rent and next thing Nicole knew…she was looking for a new place to live.

Nicole would pay the higher rent if she could, but the salary for a secretary wasn’t very much these days. She knew she worked harder than the other office personnel, but without a college degree, she just didn’t make the big bucks. Nicole’s family could not afford to send her to college. Instead she went straight into the workforce as an office assistant, and after a few years of doing nothing but filing and data entry, Nicole finally worked her way to secretary thanks to her boss, Elizabeth, who was a kind person and she was the one who originally hired Nicole straight out of high school. Elizabeth started her own interior design business after she finished college with a master’s degree in interior design. Not only was Elizabeth very business smart, she also has an eye for new talent. She encouraged Nicole to enroll in college so she could get a degree in design. She would say all the time, “Nicole, you have as much opportunity as talent, just as long as you are willing to work for it.” Elizabeth felt a common bond with Nicole because she too came from poor beginnings, which meant she also put herself through college. Nicole could not have asked for a better role model and she admired Elizabeth both as a mentor and a friend. After a few years of working with Elizabeth, and the other designers, Nicole started picking up a few tricks of the trade that helped her in fixing up the houses that she rented. Along with going to college for her degree, Nicole was also getting great hands on experience. Her talent and skill at transforming plain ugly places into works of beauty had become very impressive. The only downside to all of this was the fact that Nicole felt she was constantly moving from place to place. It seemed like a never ending vicious cycle.

Nicole was still deep in thought as she unpacked a box of kitchen dishes. One by one, she took out each dish, wiped them off and put them into the cupboard. A sharp clap of thunder startled her and she almost dropped the dish she had just taken out of the box. Again she mentally counted, “one one-thousand, two one-thousand”. It was getting closer. Now she wished she would have brought the television in, but Nicole left it out in the garage surrounded by other boxes. It probably wouldn’t pick up any news anyway because the cable service was not going to be installed until tomorrow or the next day, which was why she wasn’t too concerned about getting it hooked up earlier. The radio was turned on but the DJ only mentioned the weather every thirty minutes and when he did talk about the weather, he don’t give many details about the storm.

The window next to Nicole was opened to let the breeze cool the room. Today had been a breezy spring day. The wind whipped around in different directions all day, which told her that a storm was possibly going to blow in sometime this evening. The thick humid air even smelled like rain but she was too busy unloading boxes to care. Besides she loved spring storms, especially at night. As a kid, Nicole would sit by her window all night to watch the lightening as it lit up the night and feel the heavy rumble of thunder roll through the countryside. She would open her window to let the cooled stormy air and clean smell of the rain engulf my room. Many times she would wake up in the morning and find herself sitting by the window with her head resting on the window seal and her back aching from sleeping in such an awkward position all night. Most young children were frightened of the angry sound of clouds crashing into each other displaying their violence with flashes of light streaking through the sky. Nicole reveled in the awesome display of Mother Nature, as her majestic power rolled through cleansing the earth with her showers and waking up the spring flowers with her loud growling storms. It was like an awakening of the earth.

The box that had been full of dishes was now empty. Nicole threw it on the floor behind her then picked up the next one and set it on the counter. This one was full of pots and pans. Another thing she had become a pro at was moving. She told herself that if the interior decorating didn’t work out, she could always fall back on being a repair person or a mover, but both jobs seemed like too much work for being an everyday job. Nicole loathed packing boxes and unpacking boxes, so the idea of being a mover was almost sickening to her. That job option would be a last resort and only if she was actually about to become homeless. A repair person was also most likely out of the question because she felt certain a person needed some kind of certificate or degree to show they actually knew what they were doing before someone would allow them to do work around their house. Nicole’s experience in repair work came from watching her dad fix things. He was a repair guy who could fix just about anything, from a leak in the plumbing to a broken down refrigerator. When it came to fixing up her rent houses, if Nicole didn’t know how to fix something, she would call her dad and he tackled the job for her. He was proud of the work that she did on the houses and was willing to help her whenever she needed. He knew that even though he fixed the problem, Nicole was right there learning how to fix it for the next time that need of repair came up again in the future.

This house seemed to be in fairly good shape, but sometimes problems don’t come about until after new tenants have already moved in. Nicole knew the door going into the hall bath had a broken door handle and all of the rooms need a new coat of paint. The flooring was always bad in rent houses so she would put that first on her list of things to do. Previous tenants usually left the carpets so dirty it was useless to try and clean them, especially if they had indoor pets.

Outside the flashes of lightening mingled with the thunder now and rain began pouring down in heavy sheets. Nicole walked through the house to see if she could spot any leaks in the roof. Going through her mental checklist of each room, the house had three bedrooms, two baths, and a kitchen with a breakfast nook. There was also a formal dining room with French doors, a den and living room; then off towards the garage was a utility room. As she walked into each room, she examined the ceiling for tell tale water spots of a leaky roof. To her relief, there were no leaks in the roof. She had to admit she was surprised because older houses were notorious for leaky roofs. This aging house had been built back in the 1940’s. It was a cute cottage style house, which when it was built would have been for the upper class of society. Now days it was a more modest house for someone of lower income, like Nicole. She really liked the house and looked forward to seeing what she could do with the place. Most of the rent houses she lived in before were not so old, but they were in far worse shape than this one.

Nicole made her way back to the kitchen to continue unpacking. She grabbed the box that had her candles inside, just in case the electricity went out. She hoped she would not need the candles because the first night in a new house was creepy enough without having to stay in the dark. She opened the box and pulled out a few large candles then lit them. Nicole could did not set the on the windowsill because it was too windy, so instead she set them to the side of the window away from anything that could ignite. A flashlight was found in the same box so she pulled it out and checked the batteries. The flashlight worked so she set it on the counter beside where she was working.

Going back to unpacking the rest of the pots and pans, Nicole reached for the towel that she had used to wipe the pans. A crash of thunder sounded in timing with a bright flash of lightening. They both rattled the windows and lit up the yard outside. Nicole thought to herself, maybe I should get a pet. That way I wouldn’t feel so alone in a new place.

Seconds later another loud boom of thunder and bright light filled the room and the lights in the house went out. Nicole stood frozen and prayed that they would come back on, but after several seconds, she gave in to the notion that they may be off for a while. She was glad she lit the candles when she did. She wasn’t completely in the dark, but it was close enough. The flicker of light cast off by the candles threw eerie shadows that dance around the kitchen. Wide eyed she looked around the kitchen and watched them. Then she remembered the flashlight was nearby and she reached over to turn it on. Nicole held onto the flashlight like it was her only lifeline. She wondered if the power outage was just her house or if it was the whole block was affected. Gathering up her courage she walked towards the front of the house to look out the window. Weaving her way around boxes and dodging unseen obstacles on the floor that tried to trip her, she made it to the front of the house unscathed. As she peered out the window, she knew it wasn’t just her house that was in the dark but also the row of houses across the street had no lights on.

Just wonderful! Nicole thought sarcastically. Putting her packing on hold, she turned around and went to the couch. She sat there and thought in silence about her options in unpacking when it dawned on me…the radio was off. She had forgotten to put batteries in the radio, and so when the power went off so did the radio. She looked around the dark room and tried to read the markings on the boxes hoping to remember which one had the batteries packed in it. To her disappointment Nicole couldn’t remember which box they were in, so she sat there trying to decide if she wanted to call it a night and go to bed or wait it out and keep packing. The dark would make it difficult to unpack, but not impossible. Besides, what else was she going to do? Nicole knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep, so she might as well get back to work.

She stood up and meandered her way back to the kitchen. She had just rounded the corner when a door somewhere in the house slammed shut. The loud bang startled Nicole, who just about jumped out of her skin. She swung around with the flashlight in hand pointing it in the direction of the earsplitting sound. She shined it around the room trying to determine which door had caused the loud noise, but all the doors in the area were still opened. Scared, Nicole knew she needed to investigate and make sure everything was okay in the rest of the house, but she was too frightened to look around. Chiding herself for being such a chicken, she decided that she didn’t want to know which door it was until after the lights came back on. The dark house was too spooky to go inspect at the moment. She knew she was being silly. The only reason she felt scared was because of the houses unfamiliarity. Usually Nicole wasn’t easily scared but this house, being so old, it added to the daunting feeling of the unknown. The thunderstorm outside didn’t help the situation either. She turned around and ignored the slammed door for the time being and went back to unpacking the box.

The box was empty about five minutes later and she tossed it in the corner with the other empty ones, then picked up the next box that had the cookbooks she inherited from her grandmother. Her Grandmother Gracie (GeeGee for short) was a great cook and Nicole could spend hours looking through them. GeeGee had made notes about each recipe on just about every page, either adding a little something or taking out an ingredient and sometimes just marking out the whole thing with a big X.

As Nicole stood trying to decide which cupboard would be best to put them in, she heard another loud noise. She jerked her head towards the deep thud sound and shined the flashlight towards it to light the area. The noise sounded like it came from the living room. She moved the light beam around the room trying to determine what could have made the noise but just like before, she didn’t see anything that could have been the culprit. This noise wasn’t as loud as the slammed door but it was just as disturbing to her frazzled nerves. She decided that this time she wouldn’t ignore the noise. This time she went into the living room to investigate. Nicole walked over to the couch that sat in the middle of the mess of boxes. She spotted a box in the far corner that appeared to have fallen over onto its side. “Oh man!” Nicole cringed hoping that it did not have anything breakable in it. To justify why the box fell over, she told herself that apparently she was careless and had not set it securely on top of the box below. She climbed over the arm of the couch and then stepped over another small box on the floor to get to the box that had fallen. She shined the light on the words written on the side of the box. “Pictures”
Disappointed, Nicole said out loud, “Dang! I hope nothing broke!”

She turned the box back over and opened the lid. It was loaded with the pictures she hung on the wall, and every single one had glass that covered each pictures. Nicole pulled out each picture one by one while holding the flashlight under her chin. With relief, she let out a huge sigh. It seemed that all the pictures survived the fall without even a scratch. She gently laid them all back into the box and left the box on the floor this time, then turned and made her way back to the kitchen again. On her way there she shined the light on a box here and there to see if she could remember which one had the batteries inside. The storm still raged on outside and Nicole jumped at another loud clap of thunder followed by a streak of lightening. Almost to the kitchen she spotted a box that said “miscellaneous”. That’s it! Nicole stepped widely over a large box and bent down to open the miscellaneous one. She shuffled through the contents and found four large D batteries for the radio. Thank you Lord!

With the batteries in one hand and the flashlight in the other, Nicole stepped awkwardly over boxes and went to the radio. She pulled the cord out of the wall and turned the radio upside down. The battery cover came off easily and Nicole inserted the batteries. With the cover back on, she turned the radio upright again. She flipped the switch and the lights that illuminated the radio dial came on but the station she had listened to earlier now was nothing but static. Still happy that she had the radio was working again; Nicole turned the knob to tune in a radio station. She moved the tuner as slow as she could, she hoped to find some news or weather playing on one of the channels. There were static and screeches as the needle moved across the numbers painted on the face of the radio, then a faint voice came out of the speakers and she stopped to turn up the volume. An announcer was talking about the storms moving over the area and that “we should be out of the woods in about thirty to forty-five minutes depending on where you lived”. Nicole didn’t catch what area he was talking about, but she assumed that it had to be somewhere around her area since the storm were still overhead. She set the radio back down on the counter next to where she was working in the kitchen and turned back to the box of cookbooks. The announcer finished his up selling of the best furniture store in town and said “now back to the music”. Nicole wasn’t sure what station she had set the dial to, but she quickly figured out it was an oldies station when Elvis began to sing about his Blue Suede Shoes. Oldies were not her favorite choice of music, but for some reason in this old house it seemed like an appropriate station to have on the radio. Nicole hummed to the song since she didn’t know all the words, as she started stacking the books on the counter top. The song seemed to lighten the mood and helped her relax from her frightful mood.

While tossing the now empty box onto the others, a sudden inspiration came over her. Why not fix this house up in the retro style that was starting to take hold in the interior design world? Nicole had not tried to do anything retro and this house was perfect for something like that. A new challenge and a real learning experience too, plus another fabulous style to add to her portfolio. She was excited and wished she could get started right then, but she knew she needed to unpack everything first. Besides, her fabric swatches and design books were still packed out in the garage and there was no room to spread out to work either, but as soon as I had everything unpacked and put away she would get started on her idea. For now, Nicole would just jot down notes onto a scratch piece of paper, if any ideas came to mind.

The next song on the radio was obviously another song from the 1950’s, but she had never heard it before. She tried to listen to it for a minute but then decided that she had enough of going back into the past for now and turned the knob again. Nicole found the next radio station was soft rock and she decided that it would do for the time being. The song playing was one she remembered from when she was a teenager, but she couldn’t remember the name of the song. It was enough that she knew the song and could tolerate the genre of music on this channel. She liked fifties music, but at the moment she needed something familiar to help her feel more at home.
Nicole started on the next box that was full of cooking utensils. Picking a drawer, she unceremoniously dumped the entire contents in the drawer that she had lined earlier with contact paper. As she began to open the next box all the lights suddenly came back on. She sighed with relief and stopped unpacking for the moment. She still wanted to see which door had slammed shut and hopefully find out why it did so. Nicole figured that maybe since she had some of the windows opened that it was probably just a gust of wind that had blew the door shut. She walked around all the boxes and towards the hallway that led to the spare bedrooms and the hall bathroom. Around the corner and saw that the door to the room at the end of the hall was the one that slammed shut. She told herself she should have known that was the door because that was one of the windows she cracked opened to allow the breeze to travel all through the house. Nicole walked over and turned the handle on the shut door. The knob wouldn’t turn either way. She stepped back and looked at the handle again. There was no lock on the door because the only interior doors with locks were the bathrooms and the master bedroom. The only explanation for the knob not turning is that it was broken. I will have to add that to my list of fixes, she thought to herself. Standing there contemplating about how to get the door opened, she wasn’t sure what to do next. The hinges are on the inside, hmmm, she scratched her head trying to think of another way inside the room. Nicole reached out to jiggle the handle, but it was still stuck. Maybe the door was just jammed. She decided to try and use force to open the door, so she took a step back while still holding the door handle. With a strong shove forward at the same time she twisted the handle and the door flew open without any resistance. Nicole fell forward and onto the floor. Surprised that she ended up on the floor, she looked back at the door that stood there wide opened almost like it was mocking her. Unfazed Nicole stood up and walked up to the doorframe. As she looked it over she couldn’t see the signs of wood scrapping against wood, like what you’d see from a door rubbing against the doorframe. She tested the door by shutting it to see if it dragged anywhere on the frame, but to her amazement the door closed easily and opened easily without any sticking at all. Now Nicole was really stumped by why it was stuck when she first tried the door.

Not wanting to spend too much time contemplating about the door that was no longer having trouble, she looked around the room. The window was closed. Huh? I could have sworn I opened the window. If it was shut then why did the door slam shut? Nicole pondered. She walked over to the window and saw that the latch was locked. Now she was beginning to feel a little spooked. Knowing that psyching herself out on the first night in a new place was not a good thing, she forced herself to not dwell on the door and window anymore. So with a shrug of her shoulders, Nicole went back to the kitchen to unpack some more and get her mind off of what just happened.

She walked back into the kitchen and picked up the box that lay on the floor, then set the box on the counter and opened it. This box had glasses and mugs in it. She picked the cupboard next to the dish cupboard and began to wipe the glasses with a towel as she put each one on the shelf. Thunder sounded overhead again, but this one was a little quieter. Nicole hadn’t thought about the storm for a few minutes so she looked out the window and noticed that the rain had reduced to just a steady light rain. After the small rumble of thunder she did not see the lightening that usually followed. It looked like the area was on the backside of the storm now, and the weather had begun to calm down again. As Nicole grabbed the next glass out of the box, she stopped suddenly and turned towards the radio. The music that played loudly on the radio was ‘Rock Around the Clock’ by Bill Haley and His Comets. She looked at the dial and realized that it had moved back to the oldies radio station again.
Slowly Nicole set the glass back down and leaned over to the radio to make sure her eyes were not playing tricks on her. Sure enough, the dial marker had moved back to the previous station. Dang, am I imagining things? Maybe I was just getting tired or something. She turned the dial again to the soft rock station again, and stood there staring at the radio. She watched and waited for a few minutes to see if it moved back again. It did not budge at all. Nicole thought to herself, I must be going crazy or something. Maybe I should call it a night.

Nicole looked at her watch and realized that it was midnight. It had been a long day and she felt exhausted from the day of moving boxes and unpacking. She decided to call it a night and start fresh in the morning. She turned over the radio and took the batteries out so they wouldn’t wear out then carried the radio to the living room and set it on a box near the couch. She found an outlet on the wall nearby and plugged in the radio. The music playing on the radio was still the soft rock music station. Nicole hadn’t set her bed up yet, so tonight the couch would be her bed. No big deal, she was used to sleeping on the couch the first night anyway. She didn’t know why but it seemed like she was just more comfortable being in the living room on her first night in a different house. Maybe she was waiting for something to happen and by being on the couch she would be ready for it, or maybe in some unconscious way she needed to feel comfortable with the house before she actually settled in all the way. If she didn’t set up all the furniture or put my bed up, it would be easier to move again in the morning if she ended up not liking the house during the first night. Nicole knew this sounded strange, but it had sort of become a habit for her since she seemed to be moving so often.

A folded a blanket sat on the arm of the couch along with her pillow. Nicole knew where her pajamas were, but decided against changing into them. She was already wearing a pair of sweats and a large t-shirt, which was comfortable enough to sleep in. She spread the blanket out and stationed her pillow at the end of the couch. Nicole also set her cell phone next to the radio that was playing another song she recognized but couldn’t remember the name of from her teenage years. Once again she felt a little more at home and was settling in nicely to her new surroundings. The lights were still on throughout the house, so before lying down Nicole went around and turned them off one by one. As she walked back to the couch she made a path through a few boxes just in case she needed to find her way to the bathroom during the night. She went to the couch and snuggled under the covers then reached up and turned out the lamp that was next to the couch. As she lay back on her pillow she didn’t close her eyes right away. Looking around the dark room, that was still somewhat visible from the one streetlight outside, Nicole lay there thinking. She really did like this house, but the more time she spent here the more it felt…odd. She looked forward to getting started on decorating and fixing up the place. The elderly gentleman who rented her the house was the son of the original owner. He didn’t give her too much history on the place yet, but he promised to tell her more about the house once she was settled in. She looked forward to talking with him. Maybe she could ask if he had a few pictures of what it looked like back then. They could give her ideas to work with when she started remodeling. While deep in thought, Nicole didn’t realize that her eyes had begun to close...she never realized when she drifted off to sleep.

To be continued…

Loren's Song: Mom

2009-10-03T15:59:00.003-05:00

Here is another song from my friend Loren: http://twiturm.com/z2gn#

(I think this one is so pretty.)

Quote

2009-09-24T09:07:00.002-05:00

"Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there." - Will Rogers

More Web Gems

2009-09-12T10:03:00.005-05:00

I was surfing the net this morning and found another amazing web gem. This kid has great imagination and talent! It's a wonderful tribute to MJ. Even if your not a fan of MJ, it is still enjoyable to watch. I hope you love it as much as I did. (Click "More Web Gems" at the beginning of this post to go directly to the video or you can copy and paste this link to your browser.)
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/5854827/15317037

Want another one? Then take a look at this web gem:
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/5771163/15113200 (You will have to copy and paste this link to your browser.)

:) Enjoy!!!

Website Gem

2009-09-01T18:13:00.002-05:00

Those of you (who know me well) know that I avoid Walmart as much as possible. Nothing against the store itself, but I have an aversion to crowded places, and the Walmart in my home town is a perfect example of a crowded place where people are normally rude and downright strange sometimes. I found a website today that sums all this up for your enjoyment. Trust me…I believe you will spend many hours laughing as you look through this website and probably be able to contribute a few pictures of things you have seen at Walmart too. So sit back and take a moment to have a good laugh by visiting: http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/?paged=2 . (You may have to copy and paste the link to your browser.) :D

Finally a new post!

2009-08-21T19:08:00.007-05:00

I must appologize to all my readers, for not posting anything new lately. I know it is dreadfully boring to see the same postings over and over. I do want to say 'thank you' to all my faithful readers for continuing to check back each week. To my newest blog follower in Houston: Welcome! AND to my wonderful long time blog followers in Austin, Michigan, California, Georgia, North Carolina, etc.: You guys rock!

As you all know, my favorite composer is Loren DiGiorgi. His music is beautiful and he loves to share it with everyone (as do I). Loren has made a YouTube video of his song "Stage 4". The song itself is very touching and the video suits the song quite well. I am sure you will enjoy it, so please take a moment to watch. Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bX1clj659F8

Now for another story:

A few weeks ago I (and my son) had the opportunity to attend a writers workshop that was hosted by Wizard Academy. I took vacaction from work, drove the family many hours down to Austin Texas, and checked into our room at the academy. We were thrilled about the young writers class. The evening before the class was to start, my son and I met Peter Nevland (who was leading this class) along with a few of the other attendees. Not sure how to take the comment, but Peter had already pointed me out as "the troublemaker" of the group (by which I hope he meant in a "lovably fun" sort of way). Peter is a funny, engergetic and full of life kind of guy. By the time my son and I retired to our room, needless to say, we were both even more excited about taking his class.

Later that night, I woke with a horrid illness (to put it mildly); then spent the next few hours in complete misery. I will not go into details for fear that I would probably lose a few readers, but whatever bug I had was worse than the flu. Sadly we missed the class. My son was a great sport about it all and he said there would be other classes we could take together. (He's such an optimist.)

If somehow by chance Peter Nevland ever reads this blog, I wanted to say that my son and I were really looking forward to his teachings. Hopefully we will be able to take one of his classes in the near future. Also, I wanted to say thanks to my Uncle Roy and Aunt Pennie for giving us the opportunity to attend the Wizard Academy.

If any of you have never visited the Wizard Academy website (shame on you) here is a link. https://wizardacademy.org/scripts/default.asp I encourage you to soak up the ambiance. If you are curious about Peter Nevland, here is a link to his website (which will take you to his other websites). He's a fascinating individual. http://www.peternevland.com/ ENJOY!!! :)

Music and Writing

2009-07-20T19:45:00.001-05:00

My twitter friend Loren has been very busy lately. His music is always wonderful and inspirational. He has a CD coming out this August. If you have never heard his music here is a link to his website. Here is the link: http://www.lorendigiorgi.com/home.html Please visit and listen to some of his music. I guarantee you will just as inspired by his talent as I am. One of my favorite quotes reminds me of Loren’s music: "Music is well said to be the speech of angels." ~T.Carlyle.

Also, I want to tell you about a great guy named, Christopher Laney, who critiqued the first chapter of my book. Not only did he show me where my writing could be “tweaked and tightened” to make it better, he even spent over an hour with me on the phone Saturday giving me advice. I will forever be in his debt for the time he spent to help me better understand areas of my writing that I need to work on. Here is a link to his website: www.lessonsfromthecockpit.com Go there…learn…be inspired. Chris also mentors new writers, which is just another example of a nice guy who “pays it forward”.

Now, readers, you have two awesome websites to check out; I hope you will pay them a visit this week.
Ciao!

Another Gem of a Quote

2009-07-07T20:37:00.002-05:00

"Many people hear voices when no one is there. Some of them are called mad and are shut up in rooms where they stare at the walls all day. Others are called writers and they do pretty much the same thing." - Meg Chittenden

That is pretty much true for this writer. Although I divide my time between staring at walls while my fingers rest on the keyboard and staring at the computer monitor with fingers tap dancing on the keys.

Changing Winter

2009-07-02T21:12:00.002-05:00

Claire sat on the threadbare chair, next to the fire, with her feet tucked underneath her to keep them warm. A book was opened on her lap, but her focus was on the heavy snow beginning to fall outside. Thick frost formed on the edges of each window pane, almost completely obscuring the view outside. It was early evening, not yet dark but soon it would be.

Claire shivered unconsciously as she felt the outside chill creeping into her small two room house. She hated the winter because of its damp and drabness. Summer was her favorite time of the year, with its warmth and happiness. Summertime was filled with flowers, sunshine, visiting friends in the afternoon and plenty of food. During winter there were hardships to deal with and this winter was no exception. Her cupboards were already beginning to show signs of bareness.

She forced her attention back to the page she had been reading, but she was unable to concentrate on the words. The impending storm had her worried because James was still out there somewhere. Earlier he told her he had a feeling this storm was going to be a bad one. Glancing back at the frosted window, she began to believe he was right. Hours ago he had gone to check on the livestock, to make sure they had enough straw for warmth and to make sure the doors and gates were locked down tight. Several minutes after walking out the door, James ran back inside and said that the corral gate had come opened and some of the cows were missing. He grabbed his gun and headed out again without another word to her. Claire remembered standing at the kitchen sink, too stunned to say anything. She knew that the cows were all they had left to survive the winter. They had planned to sell half of the herd for food and supplies. The few cows they had to sell wouldn’t have amounted to much, but at least it would help them make it until next spring when hopefully they could plant the crop and buy more cattle before next winter. If James couldn’t track down the missing ones, they were going to struggle even harder just to survive this winter.

A charred log in the fireplace broke in half and fell into the embers underneath it. The noise startled her, bringing her out of her deep thoughts. Claire gingerly put her feet on the ice cold floor, then stood up and walked over to the dying fire. After heaving another log onto the fire, she stood there rubbing her scratched palms on her skirts while staring at the flames licking at the fresh wood. After a moment, she picked up the poker and pushed the new log towards the back of the fireplace. ‘James will be cold and wet when he returns. He will probably want some coffee.’ She thought as she put a kettle on the fire hook to heat some water. Standing next to the fire felt warm. She stood there letting what little heat it brought forth wash over her. Outside the howling wind blew through thin cracks in the walls of the house, adding more chill to the air inside.

Returning to her chair, she picked up her book and sat back down to wait for her husband. Her eyes looked at the page, never reading a word, as her mind drifted into reflection of her past. Not long after marrying, James was called off to fight the North, leaving her to fend for herself. She felt certain she would die without him, but years of struggling alone taught her tough lessons about survival. The first several months she tried to keep the farm out of disrepair on her own, but failed miserably at the task. Then with help from generous neighbors nearby, Claire managed to produce a small amount of crop and maintain a few head of cattle before the end of summer. Unfortunately there was only enough money that year to pay her account at the mercantile store and meagerly feed herself during that first winter.

By next spring the bank was threatening her with foreclosure. Reluctantly she sold her grandmothers piano for a fraction of what it was worth just so she could pay the mortgage that she didn’t have and wouldn’t have for a few more months. Claire cried as she watched the bank owner, who had purchased it as a gift for his daughter, load it on his wagon. It was the only family heirloom she had and now it was gone, but at least she still had a roof over her head and a farm for James to come home to.
Again, with help from the neighbors, she managed to make enough to get by before the next winter, and Claire knew she would never be able to pay back the kindness of Mr. and Mrs. Patterson. The Patterson’s had also been affected by the civil war. Their eldest son, William, was called off to fight as well. Mrs. Patterson expressed her worry over her eldest son, who they had not heard from in almost a year, and prayed that the war would be over before their other two sons came of age to fight. Claire said that prayer as well because it was their two sons that helped her out around the farm.

By third spring, Claire was beginning to understand the working of the farm and feeling very proud of her accomplishments. Then the day came when a dirty rough looking man came limping through the field towards her home. It was a hot humid day and she had been out in the field all morning working, with the youngest Patterson boy’s help, harvesting the beginnings of her small crop. They were both dirty from head to toe and had just stopped for lunch. While washing up at the horse trough, Claire looked up and noticed the scarecrow thin man approaching the house. Having dealt with both unscrupulous strangers and unfortunate victims of the war; this unknown man immediately brought up her guard. The Patterson boy ran inside and grabbed the shot gun, which was kept just inside the front door, then came back out with it cocked and ready.

Claire stood ready as the scruffy man came closer. Suddenly tears flooded her eyes when she realized that this poor soul was her husband, James. Her towel dropped to the dirt as she ran towards him. So happy and relieved to see him home, she threw her arms around his neck and held him tight, afraid to let go out of the fear that he would vanish if she did. But James had not come back home the same person as when he left. Through her tears she had not noticed the gnarled stub at the end of his left wrist or the large bandage around his waist. When Claire stepped back her smile quickly turned to shock. He was terribly thin, weary…different. ‘Different’, she thought with a sarcastic snort and her face grimaced. James had come back changed both physically and emotionally from the war, a hollowed shell of what he once was, but she still loved him.

Claire missed the happy flirtatious young man she fell in love with; the man who went to any lengths to impress her; the man who used to bring her wild flowers just to see her smile. She missed the James she married. Now he was quiet and withdrawn…older somehow. There were times she could see in his eyes the terror of war, regret for lives taken or sorrow for friends lost. As much as she wanted to help him get past it all, James shut her out to protect her from the horror he had lived through. She was beginning to fear he would never be the sweet gentle man again. A sad tear rolled down her cheek, but she refused to feel sorry for herself. Angrily she wiped it away.

Tired of remembering the last few years of her hellish life, Claire forced herself to turn the page of her book and begin to read. By the time she finished the third paged, she heard the scraping of boots outside the front door. James opened the door and quickly shut it behind him to keep out the snow. For the first time in a long time she saw him smile widely, from ear to ear, the old boyish smile that she hadn’t seen in ages.

“I got em all! They are safe and back home in their pen.” James exclaimed as he limped over to Claire. He took her warm hand in his freezing wet hand and brought it up to his blue lips and kissed her knuckle gently. “No worries now, we will be all right.”

I Miss You!

2009-06-24T22:42:00.005-05:00

Just a short post today because I am a little sad. *sigh* My precious kiddos are staying with my wonderful parents for a few weeks. (Thanks mom and dad.) I miss my parents all the time since they live so far away, but now I also miss my kids.

To E & J: I hope you guys are having a great time. We miss you both so much. We will see you soon. Love you!

Short Story: Time

2009-06-09T18:46:00.005-05:00

Storms were beginning to roll through the countryside as Anne solemnly sat by the window. Sorrow filled her soul with such a morose emotion. It enveloped her whole being as she quietly looked out the window. The feeling of the cool damp windowpane against her forehead was comforting. Anne’s thoughts had a resolve all their own, much as she tried to keep him from her mind, her traitorous thoughts kept bringing him back to where she would rather feel the numbness. 'Why?' She wondered. ‘A person should have control over such things like their own mind, but to think about him caused so much unbearable pain. I longed for him to be here beside me, home again. But alas, the new world called to him, and he answered her.’

Nights were the hardest for her. Anne could go through the tedious times of the day with a perfect front of being in control of the servants, the large manor she lived in and business affairs that needed to be dealt with. It was the dreaded night that she helplessly yielded to her sad solitude; for there were no distractions, no blessed problems to solve, no obstacle to occupy her thoughts. The silent torture was much worse in the quiet of the night.

Anne waited, unable to drown herself in sleep and the sweet dreams she used to have about him. The pain was almost unbearable as she waited for his return. Waiting was the worst of all human afflictions. She would whole heartily have taken on a difficult task as opposed to the waiting game. Anne wondered if he felt the same.

When would he return to her? Ever? ‘If this were reversed, would he also wait for me? Am I the only one who felt this helpless without the other? Maybe he would feel different in my place? I would hope not, but how do you find out that information? It was unfair for me to even think thoughts like that. I couldn’t know his mind any more than he could know mine. Maybe this was my own hell that God had decided to thrust upon me for the sake of learning patience. What horrible sin had I done in the past to cause such a lesson to be brought onto myself? Surely God had not looked down on me with such discontent to decide such fate for us.’

Anne would wait for him, because that was all she could do. ‘Someday’, she told herself, ‘I will feel him near me again. To feel his warmth, his touch, his love again he was my heart and my soul.’ She could still see his face in her memory and the sadness in his eyes as he said “Good bye” that last time. ‘I only pray that it was not for the last time. Fate could not be so cruel to take him from my side so soon, why would fate be so unfair? A few moments together were not enough and surely this was not the end of our story.’ Her heart felt so beaten and so battered and all she had was the memories to comfort her.

‘Please’, she prayed, 'if one of us was to die…please, let it be I. I cannot go on if he was not somewhere in this world. Please God, would you be merciful and take me first. He was my life and without him, I am nothing.’ Anne hoped that somehow her pleading would ensure his safe passage back to her side.

Emptiness enveloped her again as she looked out the cold window into the dark clouds and watched the faint flashing lights as they rolled through each grey cloud. Hearing the soft deep rumble of thunder, Anne shut her mind to any more thought and reveled in the soft vibrations that could be felt from the storm as it invaded the quietness of the night. She loved it when storms rolled through the countryside. When it stormed she could concentrate on something other than her empty life.

There were times when she would wonder to herself, ‘was it all just a figment of my imagination? Did he really exist? Maybe I was delirious and he never was a part of my life before. Maybe he was a dream that I couldn’t get out of my head?’

Anne chuckled inwardly at the thought of him being a dream. He was real; she had proof of that growing inside her. With every little flutter and kick, there was the blessed reminder that he was real. She knew her conscience was just trying to make excuses or justify this lonely state that she now found herself in. Anne needed him though. She needed him here with her just as much as she needed the air to breath. ‘Why? Why did he have to leave?’ She already knew the answer to that question though. It was his duty to go. But now it was her loneliness that didn’t see the reason so clearly. Her mind knew he did what must be done, but her heart cried out in sadness.

The tenants on their land depended upon them, and they were all struggling with the war going on just around the bend and the crops that failed this year. People talked of the new world and its opportunities. The temptation of this promising place was too much for him to fight. “I must go” he said, “I must see this new land for myself”. The new world was like a mistress beckoning him with her promise of riches, seducing him in a way that Anne could not compete. To Anne, this new world seemed more like a tempting demon weaving her spell over unsuspecting people with her promise of fortune. But Anne knew not of one single person that had lain in her bed and come back better from the transgression of going to her.

‘How could I just let him walk away? As soon as he was barely gone from sight, I was wishing him back to my side.’ Why did everyone else’s needs come before hers? Wasn’t she the most important person in his life? Anne knew their lot was not one to have the luxury of being able to put their personal lives ahead of the people who depended on them. ‘Why did being born into an affluent family automatically mean that you must put those less fortunate…NO, I couldn’t think that way. They could not help their situation, and not every person in the world could be born wealthy.’

Duty was a constant reminder of how fortunate they were. 'Duty…I could go a thousand years and never miss the word.' It was an ugly word to Anne now. It was the reason why her beloved left; it is the curse that haunted her. She seemed to be filled with the lonely resentment that resembled this cold angry storm. The tempestuous light flashes and deep growl of dark shadowy clouds that invaded the once peaceful countryside, almost as if they were summoned by her broken soul. With every minute that passed the wild turbulence increased, just as her forlorn grief increased. Flashing of lights broke through the darkness and sliced a wound in sky. Anne felt the pain of each slash as if it was her heart that rested in the heavens.

She closed her eyes and welcomed the rain as it started to sprinkle on the window that her forehead rested against. The soft tapping sound soothed her thoughts and began to lull her into sleep. She fought the urge to close her eyes and drift off, knowing that once there he would be waiting for her, but she was fighting a losing battle. Her dreams only added to the knowledge that he was not here. They teased her with moment’s shared and possible futures yet to be shared. Anne knew when she woke in the morning, the ache in her heart would be more painful, the loneliness and the sadness more unbearable.

Anne’s only happiness was the little treasure that she knew would soon be here. Her only ray of light that enabled her to carry on, and it forced her to not give in to the longing to end her pain. 'If only the little one were here now to fill this void in my life and make this ceaseless waiting bearable.’ Anne reminded herself everyday that soon their small gift would be here, warm and comforting in her arms.

Clouds tumbled into her thoughts; they were grey clouds of thunder. ‘How did they get there?’ Storms brewed outside, but also in Anne’s thoughts tonight. With each drop that gently drummed on the window, her will to stay awake was defeated as she unknowingly drifted off to sleep. The clouds in her dream dissipated and she saw him standing by a lake. The water trickled from a nearby stream feeding the hungry lake. His smile shined in his eyes as he held out his hand for her. Anne walked in the mist that hovered over the ground covering the blades of grass. She walked towards him, but she never reached him. Anne tried to call his name, but no sound was heard. ‘Why did he not come to me?’ Anne stopped and stood there looking at him. Confusion set in as she watched him turn and walk into the lake. ‘NO! Don’t go! Come back to me, please!’

Clouds swarmed around again and enveloped her with their thick mist. Anne wandered endlessly in the cold grayness trying to find her way to him. She did not know where she was going, but she knew he was out there somewhere. As she searched, she could feel the moisture of the fog as it dampened her skin. She felt the cool wetness that surrounded her, as it tried to soothe the pain from within. The pain that was in her heart now seemed to try and take over her whole body. Scorching hot pain clawed at her from somewhere deep. ‘Screams? I can hear screams. Someone must be hurt, but who?’ Anne searched through the haze and tried to find the person. She could hear the screams getting louder with every step. She hoped she would soon find this poor person and help stop whatever was troubling them. ‘I must be almost there.’ Anne called out to them, but still no sound would come from her and so she started to cry from the frustration and the searing pain. She looked down at her hands and realized that she was bleeding. ‘Was I injured? I had to keep going.’ The screams were louder now and her pain was almost suffocating. ‘What was wrong? Why was this torturing me?’

Suddenly the fog lifted and began to dissolve before her eyes. Anne could now see a shadow nearby. The screams were coming from its direction. She turned to walk towards the unfortunate being, but her steps were slow and sluggish. ‘Just a little further.’ She willed herself to continue, knowing that if she stopped this poor sufferer would continue to scream. Minutes seemed like hours as Anne struggled to walk, but she finally reached the shadowy figure. She bent down to touch the shadow. She gasped loudly and jerked her hand back. The shadow turned towards her and Anne realized that this poor unfortunate person was…her.

Anne woke suddenly. The pain was still with her, and she was soaked with sweat. There was a noise of activity in the room as a servant helped her up and towards the bed. Confused by the intrusion of people into her bedchamber, Anne fought back. “What is going on?” She asked the young maid that helped her to the bed.

“We heard your screams my lady. It’s time. We have already sent someone to get the doctor.” Her tone was urgent and she spoke so fast it took a few moments to understand the meaning of her words. ‘Time? Time for what?’ Another shock of pain raged through her body. Anne cringed forward unable to move from the intensity of it. The crippling pain went on for what seemed like an eternity. Then as it gradually subsided, little by little, the realization of what the young maid was trying to tell her began to make sense. It was time.