haiku (for Jay)

In our life’s bustle,

you find moments to thrill me

with love’s surprises!

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [pickle]

"It seems we're in quite a pickle here," he sputtered.

"Not funny," I grumbled, treading vinegar as I looked for a way out of the large vat into which we'd been pushed. "This is the last time I take a job with you staking out the Vlasic factory!"

haiku (for Mom)

Your clever gift to

neighbors inspires delicious

possibilities.

Photo by: Osquer
Texas Sheet Cake by: Osquer’s Mom

Happy 7th Birthday today, Julia!

Happy 12th Birthday Monday, Jana!

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [burn]

By the time I could see that my skin was beginning to burn it was too late to take shelter. Even applying additional sunscreen was very little help. If my skin was turning pink while it was still daylight, I would be blistered by bedtime. I sighed and slathered on the sunscreen anyway. At least I could take steps to start healing. My mantra for the next few days would be "Moisturize! Moisturize! Moisturize!" and "Don't touch me!"

haiku

baking odors

congregate on the landing

spicy conversation

photo and muffins by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [bubble]

My brain was full of ideas that played off of each other like chemical reactions. They began to bubble and fizz, frothing over into the excited motions of my pen as I tried to gather them all before they flitted away like so many soap bubbles on the whimsical breeze of my mood.

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [congested]

The freeway was quite congested and I was in more of a hurry than usual. If I didn't get the results of this experiment to the University in time The Professor and I would never get it stabilized before it reverted to its component forms. A cross between a shih tzu and a slug is a hard thing to keep together.

haiku

With a bucket to

protect you from the frost, we

may yet see you bloom.

Photo by: Osquer

haiku (for Jay)

Your Valentine's heart

has more stamina than I

would have expected.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [alter]

"Well, we can alter the hem and tighten the bodice, but there's not much more we can do with the material on hand. I'll have to send the boys to find some accessories." She nodded over her shoulder at her two brothers. The two male mice scrambled past Cindarella's feet through a hole in the wall in search of ornaments for her ball gown.

There's only one good thing about being stuck in traffic on the West End Bridge...

55 Fiction Friday

Jessica snapped her suitcase firmly shut and took one last look around the room. Her father had offered to send someone to collect her things but Jessica, unused to living with servants, had preferred to do her own packing. He had, however, insisted on sending Andrews with her to settle her bill at the inn.

[FIRST] [PREVIOUS] (to be continued...)

haiku

I did not notice

how silent Winter was ‘til

I heard Spring birdsong.

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [lush]

The warm spell had brought out a lush new growth of leaves, but the sudden cold snap had stunted many if not outright killing them. The cherry blossoms had been cut off before their prime and I didn't hold out much hope for many of the remaing buds to open. I was thrilled, however, to discover that my trick of putting a bucket over the single tulip in the yard seemed to have saved it's single bud from a premature demise.

haiku pair

Each pansy turned its

puppy-in-the-window face

in my direction.


I’m glad the one I

brought home turned out to have a

healthy root system.

Photos by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [hello]

"Hello, I love you. Won't you tell me your name..." Jim Morrison echoed from some doorway at an unspecified distance down the shadowy corridor. I walked cautiously through the broken glass and detritus of tenement life. My profession certainly led me into some interesting places.

haiku

shamrocks fold their leaves

into tiny pyramids

entombed for the night

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [decision]

It wasn't an easy decision, but I finally settled on butter lettuce and bush peas for the spring crop. The plethora of seeds was overwhelming and I hadn't even allowed myself to look at the adorable little plants that were all lined up outside! I knew I would want to take them all home. I had to be somewhat selective. There was only so much space in the garden.

haiku

Domestic horses

scattered like wildflowers in

the field, crop Spring grass.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [extension]

The high pitched nasally quality of my contractor's voice was not serving as an extension of my tolerance for her being in my office. I was irritated enough that I had to call her in to service a brand new computer only to find out that it hadn't been configured properly in the first place. At least they could send me a technician whose voice didn't bend metal!

haiku

Easter Lilies yawn.

It is Monday morning for

everyone, it seems.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [spin]

My head was in a spin as I dashed up the stairs to my room. The stairs didn't even seem to be as steep, so light were my steps. I rushed to the trunk in the corner of my room and took out my mother's old dress. It had to be good enough! It just had to be! Maybe I would have a few spare moments after my chores to fix it up. The notice had said "every eligible young maiden!" There was no way they could keep me home from the ball!

Odd Things I Spot From My Car - Thing 6

I have no idea why someone would hang a pair of cowboy boots full of forsythia on a telephone pole in Crafton, but here they are. My dad suggested that maybe a utility worker had retired and ceremonialy retired his boots. He told me how the bagage handlers at USAir would take gloves and stick them out of the plastic tubs then send them down the conveyor line to wave goodbye when they retired.

Photos by: Osquer

More Odd Things: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [avoid]

I swerved to avoid the dark shape that lurched into my path as I careened down the slick road trying to peer through the worsening rain. I slammed on the brakes and spun to a stop facing the opposite direction. I was able to focus just in time to see something large and hairy glare at me before disappearing into the forest. Who'd have thought a skeptic like me would have an unprovable close encounter with Big Foot?

April 8, 2007 06:15 PM (21:15 EST)

haiku (for Jay)

The smell of fabric

softener in your shirt tells

me this is no dream.

haiku

My pen scratches at

the paper but its strokes are

random and scattered.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [wonder]

I couldn't help but wonder whether the weather affected my mind's wandering. While the season doesn't seem to be the deciding factor, the intensity of the weather definitely has a correlation with my ability (or inability) to concentrate. There's something about the motion of windblown branches, swirling snow- flakes or falling rain that pulls my thoughts.

April 7, 2007 08:39 PM (23:39)

55 fiction friday

“I must apologize for entering your house under false pretenses, Father.” Jessica blushed, genuinely remorseful. “I didn’t know what sort of welcome I would find here.”

Duke Gregory took Jessica’s hand, “My dear, to her dying day your mother never gave up hope of finding you and I shared that hope even after her passing.”

[FIRST] [PREVIOUS] (to be continued...)

haiku

I know if I had

not taken you in, you would

not have opened up.

Photo by: Osquer

(It's 29 degrees outside!)

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [tax]

"Look, I don't want to tax your already strained resources, but I really think we should do something about that little girl and her friends, your ladyship!"

"Yes, yes," muttered the Wicked Witch. She was far too used to having people obey her. This rebellion by the Munchkins was far more important than some little brat from Kansas, even if she did posess a flying house. Flying house indeed!

haiku

The forsythia

cringe from the long reaching grasp

of Old Man Winter.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [center]

I tried to find my center, but I had difficulty. Something about being vertical was throwing me off. Staring at myself in the mirror and eyeballing it just wasn't accurate enough. "Igor, come here," I summoned my lab assistant. I rolled a length of parchment out on the floor and had Igor trace around me with a marker. Then I picked up the paper and folded it in half.

April 5, 2007 06:57 PM

haiku

Feral daffodils

peer at me from the woods as

I make my way home.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, wo little time [sometimes]

"Sometimes...all I need is the air that I breathe and to love you..." K.D. Lang's voice purred from the stereo and I rested my head on your shoulder to disguise the fact that once again your offering in our daily love song exchange had brought me to tears. My previous day's gift of "Sex Bomb" by Tom Jones did not appear to have the same effect on you.

April 4, 2007 04:22 PM (19:22 EDT)

daffodil

What a difference a flash makes.

Photos by: Osquer

haiku

I'm photographing

the cherry blossoms when a

plane flies overhead.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [golden]

"Well, this is a golden opportunity if I ever saw one," he grinned pulling the knife from his boot and stepping toward me.

"No thanks, I have one of my own," I smiled back, pulling out my own blade.

We began to carefully pry gems from the gold encrusted tomb into which we'd been imprisoned. We'd find our way out later, when our pockets were full.

April 3, 2007 05:41 PM

haiku (for Paperback Writer)

Who’d have thought brussel

sprouts and phoenixes would have

so much in common?


Only one of last

year’s vegetables has sprung from

the ashes anew.

Photo by: Osquer

www.oneword.com - one word, so little time [quiz]

"If you're going to quiz me every time I walk through the door, I'm just going to stop coming home. Honestly, it's like being married to the entire U.S. Intelligence community."

"No. If that were the case would be trying to find WMD's in your sock drawer."

April 2, 2007 05:47 PM (20:49 EDT)

haiku

Turning my mind from

cleaning to writing, I stretch

to find syllables.

One Word - so little time [jocular]

We're lead by myth and media to believe that The Man In The Moon has a jocular disposition, but his appearance, especially when clouded by mist and branches, is melancholy and pale. Is he wan with loneliness or is he perhaps afraid of the dark?

haiku (for Jay)

I let you taste the

strawberries I'm slicing while

you grill sausages.

Photos by: Osquer

One Word - so little time [sedition]

As we struggled to restrain the long branches of wild rose it became increasingly clear that the were intent on sedition. Still with a combination of rope, pruning shears, ingenuity, brute strength and determination, in other words "a very special blend of psychology and extreme violence," we were finally able to whip them into shape.