April 6th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good morning all, I hope you’re enjoying your weekend.

Last night was a lot of fun, but all the rich, yummy, food I consumed is taking its toll on my tummy this morning. Oh, the joys of getting old! Hopefully things will calm down before my guests arrive at six.

I had a bad headache yesterday, so I took two aspirin and laid down for an hour. Unfortunately that hour put me so far behind, I couldn’t get the house completely finished, showered, dressed, and out the door by 3:45, so I could be in Stockton by 4:30. So my hubby, he can be really sweet at times, told me to go. He would skip the appetizers, stay back and finish straightening up, and then I could come and pick him up on my way to salad.

So that’s what I did. I pull into the driveway of the first house at exactly 4:30, less than thirty seconds after the other two couples, so they were all still standing in the driveway. After greetings, we trek up the walkway as a group and ring the bell. Jan and Bob were a little surprised to see us all standing there. Jan had thought we were arriving at 5:00. No big deal, we all pitch in with the final prep work, and the appetizers start getting passed fifteen minutes later. They had made a shrimp, avocado, lime salad which was very light and refreshing. They also had two kinds of sausage, one had beets in it, and one had pine nuts. Never in a million years would I have selected either of these sausages off the shelf, but let me tell you, they were delicious. They had a bunch of other stuff too which was yummy, but I’m not going to bore you with every detail.

I snuck out of there a few minutes ahead of everyone else, and got home twenty minutes before we needed to be at our next stop. My hubby did great. The slip covers I washed were back on the family room couches. The heavy folding table was out of the family room and back in the garage. The Colby droppings weren’t anywhere people would be walking, and even the bread was cut and in a bag, in a basket, ready to go. My husband had just gotten out of the shower when I arrived, so when he went into the bedroom to get dressed, I quickly went into the bathroom to straighten it up, and then we were off.

The timing worked perfectly. We arrived at Hank and Debbie’s right on time. Fran and Curt, the other couple, arrived a few minutes after us. We all sat down and had a lively discussion on a variety of topics, over regular salad, fruit salad, and some scrumptious homemade bread Debbie had made. It was so nice, and we were having so much fun, we were late leaving, so we arrived back at our house at exactly 6:59, a minute ahead of when guests should be arriving.

Luckily for us, the other guest, except Fran and Curt who were following us to our house, were hosting the salad stops, so they were running a few minutes late as well. By quarter after, Fran and Carl, and Stella and Victor, had arrived, and all eight of us were seated and enjoying our soup. The loaded potato soup was the big hit last night. Everyone chose that, and then Curt and Carl had some gumbalaya. It’s funny, the last time, it was the gumbalaya that went, and I had a whole pot of the other soup I had made. Normally I will not repeat from year to year, but because it was such a big hit, I decided to make it again.

Well, PJ will be happy. It’s one of his favorites, so I’ll send a few containers home with him tonight. Then I’ll bring a container to RV’s, because she said her husband would enjoy it, which leaves only one, so that’s not too bad. As for the potato soup, one serving container is for Syd, RV’s daughter, and one serving container’s for Bri, Dani’s friend, and that’s all she wrote. The pot made twelve servings – Dani had a bowl for lunch, and I sampled a little, and there’s a half a serving left over.

As far as getting ready for today, all I have to do is put away the china we used last night, wash the wine glasses and the two crock pots, one of which is going home with Bec & Lenny, run to the store to pick up the fresh broccoli I forgot when I went shopping on Friday, then cook it and the meat. We may need to drag the heavy table back into the family room, because otherwise we won’t have enough places for folks to sit and eat. If it was finger foods, it wouldn’t matter, but this is roast beef, mashed potatoes, and veggies. You can’t exactly cut roast beef on your lap.

Even with the extra table set up, there still won’t be enough seating for everyone, but it will be close. If we utilize the coffee tables in both the living room and the family room, plus the heavy table and the extended kitchen table, we have table space for twenty-two. There are, possibly, twenty-four coming. Oh well, whatchya gunna do? Cindy can cut Holly’s, and Bec can cut Noah’s (they’re the youngest of the kids), and they can kneel down at the other side of the coffee tables. We’ll figure it out, we always do.

Okay, I want to get some serious writing done on FTQ before my house wakes up, so I’m going to skedaddle. I hope y’all have a lovely day, and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge was:

Drip…drip…drip…

Drip… drip… drip…

I stare at the ceiling, wide awake.

Drip, drip…drip

I toss. I turn. I try to block out the sound with my pillow over my ears.

Drip… drip… drip…

I have a big day tomorrow. I have to get some sleep.

Drip, drip, drip… drip

Ugh! I get out of bed, and go into the bathroom. I tighten the faucet.

Drip… drip… drip…

It won’t stop. Out of desperation, I shove a towel into the sink to silence the sound. I can deal with the plumbing issue tomorrow, after a good night’s sleep. I return to bed, snuggle down, and, on a sigh, close my eyes.

Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…

ARGH!

Your Next Challenge is:

Write a story containing the following three: Onion, Dastardly, Anthony Hopkins

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

April 5th Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good morning everyone, I hope you survived your TGIF. I read some of your status updates this morning while I was having my first cup of coffee, and some of you had interesting plans for last night. Hope you had a wonderful time!

Yesterday, I promised to explain the event I’m participating in tonight, our annual Progressive Dinner. It’s an event sponsored by our church, and it’s a lot of fun. Roughly forty “couples” participate, and there are four “station” which are visited. (I used a nice round number so this would be easier to explain.) Ten couples host appetizers, ten host salad, ten host soup, and the final ten host dessert. When you host a station, you have three couples come to your house and stay for forty-five minutes for the meal, then everyone leaves and drives to the next station. You won’t run into the same people again until the dessert station, because that stop brings all of us together at the church.

This year, my hubby and I have to start half an hour earlier then almost everyone else, because our first stop for appetizers is forty-five minutes away. Now, this is not the norm. For the most part, the houses you visit are all within the town limits. On occasion, there are church members who move outside the town limits, and like to participate in a course other than dessert. Keep in mind, if you live on one side of our town, and you have a stop on the other side of our town, it could easily take you twenty-five to thirty minutes to accomplish it, so a forty-five minute hike to Stockton is not that bad. Plus, it’s my friend’s house, which I haven’t had the opportunity to see yet, so I’m excited to go.

So we have appetizers out in Stockton. Then we drive back to town to have salad. Next it’s our turn to host the soup station. I’m making loaded potato soup, it has lots of cheese and bacon. I’m also making gumbalaya (my crazy mix of gumbo and jambalaya), its chicken and sausage and shrimp, rice, tomatoes and onions and garlic, and a whole array of Cajun spices. My tummy’s rumbling just thinking about it. Finally, we all head back to the church for dessert, and there’s usually music and a whole lot of silliness. It’s going to be a fun night.

On a completely different note, my friend Linda Rawlins posted this article from Writer's Write, and I thought it was great.

One recurring comment from me, to authors whose books I edit, is - you need to stop TELLING your readers, you need to start SHOWING them. Then I'll rearrange a few of their sentences, so they can have examples. Well, now I'll be able to send them a whole chart of examples, at least for body language "showing". (Now if I could just find a more articulate way to explain Continuity of Tense, my job would be a breeze.)

So, writers, save this article. Use it as a reference while you're writing. Print out the chart and add your own ideas to it. This is going to be a handy tool.

Although it’s only eight o’clock, I have cooking and cleaning to do, so I should get going. I hope y’all have a super day, and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge was (random quote, chosen from a random page, from a random book on my shelf – closed my eyes, reached in, grabbed one, opened to a page, pointed, and opened my eyes – then found the closest dialogue):

Write your own story around the following – “Get out of your wet things and into those. Don’t worry, you’ll be decently covered.” (Kay Hooper, Enemy Mine)

Corina could not stop shivering. Her entire body literally shook from head to toe. Her hair and clothes were soaked, her lips were blue, and her teeth were chattering so violently, she was afraid she would chip one. With certainty she could say, she had never been this cold in all her life.

She cursed her boss for sending her out on this assignment. She cursed her car for not being able to handle the incline, and for sliding off the road. She even cursed Mother Nature for the unpredicted blizzard. If it hadn’t been for Caleb Makenzie, the man she was sent to interview, coming and checking, she probably would have died out there on the road.

Corina could hear the shower running, and a cloud of steam shrouded Caleb as he exited the bathroom.

Indicating a pile on the vanity, Caleb ordered, “Get out of your wet things and into those. Don’t worry, you’ll be decently covered.”

Meekly, Corina obeyed and padded into the bathroom and shut the door.

Your Next Challenge is:

Drip…drip…drip…

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.