His hand thrust through the elevator doors, causing the cabin to jolt.
“Sorry. I didn’t see you. What floor?”
He glanced over her shoulder at the flashing “42”. “That’s the one.”
She knew everyone on 42. She didn’t know him.
At floor 23, he pressed the STOP button.
She never saw 42.
~kat
52 words exactly for Sacha’s 52 Weeks 52 Words Challenge. Prompt this week: write 52 words of a character that is utterly terrified.
“…And…we’re back! Welcome to the 13th Annual Greater Suburbia Battle of the Bands! I’m your host, Martin Blaylock, WXRK, and I’m joined this afternoon by critic extraordinaire, Louis Axlerod, from Music Today Magazine. Tell me Louis, what do you think of this year’s battle line-up?”
“Thanks Martin. I’ll tell you, this is the first year we’re seeing all-original tunes. It raised the bar, I think, when we added that requirement to the mix.”
“I’ll say! This is one creative bunch!”
“Right. I caught a few of them at rehearsal. We’re in for a show tonight!”
“If you had to pick a favorite going in?”
“No question, I’m impressed by Abstract Evil Barbie and their track, “Ken You Hear me”. Those girls can rock! But they’ll have some fierce competition from the Squirrel Nut Zippers. They’re bringing a rap mash-up to the table in “Ball n Chains” that’s sure to raise the roof! And we can’t rule out newcomers GoGo Penguins and their new tune, “Iced”.
“I’ve been following The Pineapples from the Dawn of Time since they first came on the scene. They’re upping the ante with “Sweet Zombie”. And I heard that Reign of Frogs got a new lead singer.”
“The Pineapples are a solid group. No question. I’m looking forward to hearing Brent Barlow with the Frogs. He’s a decent songwriter too. We’ll hear that first hand with his track, “Lily Popped”. And I wouldn’t count out LoudMouthKitten’s “Scratched”. Judd Lowell, their lead, is a powerhouse! But the sleeper this year is Bimbo Toolshed. They’re promising a show-stopping solo by drummer, Liz Rayne on vocals singing her new song, “Hammered”.”
“I don’t believe she’s ever taken the mike! And she writes too!?”
“Exactly. This year’s battle is epic! In a word, EPIC!”
“No doubt, Louis. no doubt! If you’re just joining us, I’m Martin Blaylock here with Louis Axlerod, hosting the 13th Annual Greater Suburbia Battle of the Bands! First to the stage from Craigstown, is Kissyfoot, with their tune “Toe Jam”, followed by Stop Calling Me Frank, “Who Am I?” and then, from Hell’s Kitchen, Devil with Cheese, blasting their latest tune, “Cut it”. Hold on to your knickers kids! You’re about to be blown away!”
~kat
For MindLoveMisery’sMenagerie Sunday writing Prompt prompted by this list of actual Band Names:
Squirrel Nut Zippers
GoGo Penguins
Abstract Evil Barbie
Bimbo Toolshed
The Pineapples from the Dawn of Time
Reign of Frogs
Devil with Cheese
Stop Calling Me Frank
Loudmouthkitten
Kissyfoot
It’s Friday the 13th! I missed last week’s word of the day post…technical difficulties. But I’m back this week with a word from Dictionary.com that is quite apropos for this bleak rainy (at least in my corner of the world) Friday…Moribund.
It originated in Latin from the adjective moribundus as well as 16th Century French moribond both which mean about to die, dying and is a derivative of the Latin root mer- (to die). We picked up this word in the English language in the 18th century and carried over its meaning as both an adjective and a noun. As an adjective it means: in a dying state; near death; on the verge of extinction or termination; not progressing or advancing; stagnant: a moribund political party for example. And as a noun: a person who is dying.
Several heavy metal bands have incorporated this word into their names, record titles or songs. For example, Moribund Oblivion, a Turkish black metal band from Istanbul, Moribund (album), a 2006 album by the Norwegian black metal band Koldbrann, “Moribund the Burgermeister“, a 1977 song by British progressive rock musician Peter Gabriel, and Moribund Records, a heavy metal record label.
This term is also used in medical circles, as one might expect, referring to end of life symptoms, characteristics and stages: ‘on examination she was moribund and dehydrated”.
And of course one can also find it coined in political commentary and all manner things that are near death, fading, or not thriving: “But that market has been moribund, to say the least.” “Blowhard politicians trumpeted moral outrage to gratify moribund anti-communists.” Or “Prices in Japan are falling, so moribund is the economy.”
I can’t believe I haven’t come across this scrumptious word until now. But thanks to this little weekly exercise I have one more word in my toolbox. Moribund. It has such a smooth poetic sound, don’t you think? And I expect it will be quite useful when I’m in a melancholy mood.
Here are a few Haiku/Senryu then. Have a great weekend!
treetops of crimson
moribund leaves once verdant
on the wind take flight
it’s over you know
this moribund ruse of ours
it was never love
tempests and earthquakes,
the moribund harbingers
of an earth dying
~kat
I’ve never believed in signs.
Except today, after a series of idiotic missteps, the dog getting loose on our walk, misplacing my car keys, a telemarketer who called as I was walking out the door, who wouldn’t let me get a word in edgewise, so I just hung up because I was running late, only to be stuck in traffic, but not before getting lost after being detoured because of construction on Main, that made me miss my appointment, landing me in the reception area to wait for an opening in the schedule, where I met you, waiting like me after missing your appointment.
But like I said, I don’t believe in signs, although…no…no, I don’t believe in signs, but I get the feeling that you and I happened upon something here and if not for my crappy day up until this point, I might never have met you.
~kat
A Three Line Tale that breaks all the rules for run-on sentences and rambling gibberish, prompted by this photo by Austin Chan via Unsplash.
Some days the world felt so small. After college Lara spent the next few years traveling the globe.
“Travel while you’re young, honey,” her mum told her. She never mentioned though, that she was sick.
Lara received news of her mum’s passing two continents away. That day the world felt too big.
52 Words Exactly for Sacha’s 52 Weeks 52 Words Flash Fiction Challenge. This week’s prompt….Write about what happens next as it relates to the photo above.
like mercury colliding... 