Friday, July 10, 2009

Saturday Wordzzle Challenge: Week 71

This is week 71 of the Saturday Wordzzle challenge. Anyone new to the process can refer back here to find out how it works. I thought this was a really tough set of words and I'm not too thrilled with what my brained spewed out for next week either, but... Looking forward to reading what you all have come up with. I just love the variety and creativity of everyone who plays and what a wide range of directions the words take us to.



The words for this week's ten word challenge were: sober, spoilage, knight, laugh and the world laughs with you, peak, blueberries, owl, drugstore, lampshade, keyboard For the mini challenge: economy, Michael Jackson, ladder, clue, structure




My offering for the 10-word challenge:


Sometimes I think life would be easier if I wasn't sober, but I know that's not true. The spoilage of alcoholism runs deep and wide and destroys not only your own life but hurts everyone around you. I was lucky that I found my knight in shining armor who swooped me up and helped me heal before I came a lampshade on the head drunk. He was - well he still is - a pharmacist at the local drugstore. His name's Powell and for some reason I started calling him Powell the Owl... I think because he always said "who's next?" in a way that made me smile. My drinking was moving towards that peak - or maybe chasm - from which it's hard to return, but my wise owl - maybe it was his wisdom that made me call him Owl - helped me to see myself as worthy of better. He gave me his love but better than that, he taught me to love who I am. "Laugh and the world laughs with you," he always says, "but better yet, laugh and you lift your own heart. That and a box of blueberry tarts are the key to happiness." He plays a mean keyboard too... and he got me to sing... which is how I make my living now. How can you not love a man like that?




For the mini:


It's a strange commentary on our society that poor Michael Jackson dies and becomes the only news. Forget the economy, forget the goings on in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan... Dozens of people who haven't a clue, really, sit and gossip, try to create a structure of truth out of speculation and rumor and pure nonsense. It's sad really, the alternation between meanness and adulation, the hyperbole. A death called "mysterious," when it was really just unexpected. They build a ladder out of all the ugly half truths, lies, facts and opinions and pretend or convince themselves they have climbed somewhere. For me - whether I'm right or wrong - my instincts say that Mr. Jackson was an eccentric genius and a profound and wounded innocent who was easy prey for the more heartless and manipulative souls in our society. One thing that makes me think I'm right is just how very much those who really knew him loved him. Whatever the truth of who he was, hopefully he is at peace now. Poor Farrah Fawcett (this is for Mommy Wizdom), another eccentric often tormented by the media... was either unfortunate or lucky enough to die in the shadow of Mr. Jackson. Probably she was lucky not to be given our media's idea of a eulogy. May she too rest in peace.



My maxi:


"Laugh and the world laughs with you," my knight in shining armor always says with such sober seriousness that he makes me laugh in spite of myself. George is a physicist by profession, studying the structure of the atom., but an expert on everything from the economy, to decorating (his specialty is lampshades), to comparative pricing at all the local drugstores, the comparative virtues of different computer keyboards based on their structure and ergonomic virtues... The list goes on and on. There is nothing that George doesn't know. Really. The range of his expertise is phenomenal. He can quote the lyrics from every Michael Jackson song, everything that Joni Mitchell ever penned and... well, that list goes on and on too. He's like a living encyclopedia. But with charm. He's also a birder. He can name any bird he sees and not just in general. He knows every species and sub-species of owl and hawk and he can tell you their habits, habitats, mating habits, and calls. He's a genius on every subject. But amazingly, he's not a bore. He's fun and full of the joy of love and living. He makes time for me and the kids and even though he always wins at Clue and Trivial Pursuit, he does so with such good grace that I can't really be as annoyed as I'd like to be about losing. The only game I ever saw him lose was Chutes and Ladders and I'm not sure he didn't do that on purpose because he wanted the kids to feel good about themselves. Oddly, the only thing that makes my George cranky is grocery stores. He gets livid when there's what he considers unnecessary or unacceptable spoilage. This irritation peaks for some reason on the subject of spoiled blueberries, his favorite food in the whole world. This year, we are growing our own. Given George's penchant for excellence, I'm sure they will be the size of grapes and sweet perfection... just like my sweet, loveable husband.




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Next Week's Ten Word Challenge will be: corn pone, delegation, nectarines, happiness, 12 going on 13, prancing horses, magenta, butterflies, fragmentary, arthritis


For the mini challenge: lavender cowboy, over the moon, preparation, zebra, area rug






Thanks for playing. For those who are new, here are some guidelines to make the process more fun.



Enjoy! See you next week.



DON'T FORGET TO ADD YOUR NAME TO MR. LINKY!!!!!







19 comments:

Carletta said...

Loved the 'who's next' and the 'lampshade on the head drunk' in your ten word! :)
Loved your insight in your mini. I saw Mommy Wisdom's comment last week and my thoughts were that Farrah Fawcett had been upstaged by Michael's death. I think she fought a courageous battle.
Uh, George is too good to be true. :)

Richard said...

Three interesting and unique stories.

I have a different take on the celebrity deaths though; I think Carl Malden was the most worthy of praise of those that died last week.

He played in big name movies with big name actors, when stars were stars.

OK, enough of that. Vicki and I are off to the mountains in the morning, will check in on all the stories when we get back.

Have a great weekend.

Rich

DawnTreader said...

I agree, it was a tough set of words this week. But I think you used them well! :) I liked the mini especially.

Akelamalu said...

The first story is a story of hope and recovery. Everyone needs a wise 'owl' at some point in their life.

I so agree with what you have said in your mini - all serious news has given way to the Michael Jackson circus.

What an oracle George is! Actually he reminds me a little of MWM!

Great writing as always Raven. :)

Batteson.Ind said...

Beautiful writing again! Loved the last character.. I wonder do fellas like that exsist!lol.. The second one was spot on! and I love the term "lampshade on head drunk".. brilliant image! Cheers for more great words :-)

Reston Friends! said...

Good writing, Raven! You may feel you're out of touch lately, but your muse is certainly in business!

Dr.John said...

Three well done stories. I really like the second one.

Snowangel said...

Here's my Submission! :)

Laugh and the world laughs with you, kept ringing through my mind as I trudged through the darkened parking lot of the drugstore. I was in search of a new keyboard for my pc, as someone had poured juice into my present one. It was a lovely morning until the spoilage occurred causing my euphoria to sober up so to speak. The day continued in the same fashion of blunder after blunder, even my favorite daydream about a shining white knight ended up in disaster. Finally by the afternoon I gave up and took my son to pick blueberries. Despite my disgust of the horrid fruit it was the only fruit in peak harvest season to keep little hands occupied. The drugstore trip for my precious keyboard had to wait until evening. The only other customer was a kindly old man, whom reminded me of a screech owl when he spoke. He was still mumbling about how outrageous the price of lampshades had become while I was paying for my purchase. I quickly and quietly tucked my coveted possession in my coat and hope tomorrow would be better than today!

quilly said...

I like your tribute to Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. It is one of the more sane and rational ones I've seen.

Argent said...

Great stories. I want to meet George! This week's words were tough but fun to do. (Snowangel's post is nicely does also).

Carletta said...

Nice job Snowangel!
Loved the part of 'my favorite daydream ended in disaster.' :)

HeatherK said...

I liked the way you used your words. Starting when you wrote. "Sometimes I think life would be easier if I wasn't sober"

MommyWizdom said...

Raven, I liked your love stories!! They were very creative indeed.

I had a busy week so I didn't get to wordzzle... I was looking forward to the words even...

Anyway, thanks for including Farrah for me. I agree that it's less mysterious and more just unexpected.

Have a great week! I hope your week is to par with your b-day!

MommyWizdom

Stephen said...

The stories were good and worked the words in well. The first story, about a woman who meets a kind pharmacist who helps her overcome her alcoholism and who she falls in love with, showed how one person can make a difference. The second story, the mini, was an interesting editorial on the over-coverage of Michael Jackson's death. The last story, about a woman who married a genius who was also a good husband, showed that being smart can be a good thing.

I have my own stories up now.

Stephen from Scottsdale, Arizona, USA
http://stephen-has-spoken.blogspot.com/

CJ said...

Although I lived them all, I especially liked your mini this week ---you mirrored my sentiments exactly.

bettygram said...

I like your mini best, because I feel the same way. George was a winner.

Don't Feed The Pixies said...

Mine is up - late as usual, because i have no internet access at the weekend right now.

Excellent stories from the raven this week - particularly enjoyed your comments on the way the world has forgotten all other news.

BTW: what's a corn pone?

Don't Feed The Pixies said...

Just found out!

And if i can't write a short country song about a lavendar cowboy i'll eat my own shoe

gabrielle said...

Oh dear oh dear. I can’t believe I failed to comment here. These weeks have been full of emotional twists and turns, and I am feeling a bit tender and distracted. The two love stories were heartwarming. And of course your tribute to MJ and Farrah were so thoughtful. I agree with your take on Michael Jackson, expressed with such perception. Thank you so much for your kind words on my post.