Warmup Wednesday!

Jun24

Directions: Write a scene or an entire story of 100 words on the nose (no more, no fewer), inspired by this photograph. No judging. All fun. (Normal Flash! Friday guidelines regarding content apply.)
Don’t forget to add your Twitter handle & link to your blog, pretty please.

And a few words on how your week’s going would be so appreciated!

 This week’s Warmup Wednesday challenge: Include a lifelong dream that isn’t the Olympics.

Olympic Games, 1896; the athlete Herman Weingartner, horizontal bar champion. Public domain photo by Albert Meyer.

Olympic Games, 1896; the athlete Herman Weingartner, horizontal bar champion. Public domain photo by Albert Meyer.

83 thoughts on “Warmup Wednesday!”

  1. Ziegenwerder Bath

    “They will turn their back on you, Herman. It is all so unseemly.”

    “Father, it is an adventure, a grand adventure.”

    “These roman games are a diversion. I want you here. Our life in Frankfurt is full. When we were young, your mother and I planned for our children. Outdoor bathing, swimming, a health business to stimulate the spirit, the body, the pocketbook. This was our dream. This is what good parents do.”

    “And what should a son do, father? Have no dreams of his own?”

    “We all dream, Herman. But boys only play. Men dream of family.

    100 laps in the family pool
    @billmelaterplea
    http://www.engleson

    I’ve spent the entire week being much too literal. I’ll have to work on that.

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  2. The Butterfly Blues

    “Every night, I dream that I am a butterfly.” The Emperor said as he lay on the silken sheets.

    “Ah.” The Grand Vizier studiously held his finger in the air. “Can you be sure that you’re an Emperor dreaming you’re a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming you’re an Emperor?”

    The Emperor pinched his own plump cheek. “No. I’m the Emperor.”

    To prove his point, the Emperor had the Grand Vizier thrown in jail.

    The former Grand Vizier sat in his chains and wondered if he were a Vizier dreaming he was a prisoner, or a prisoner dreaming he was free.

    ####################

    Been to a couple on gigs over the past couple of days. First down to Winchester on Saturday to see my absolute favourite, Sylva Kay. Then on Monday, Alden Penner and Michael Cera (yeah that one) in a crowded and sweaty club in Guildford. Rock and Roll lifestyle.

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  3. @firdausp1
    Sweet dreams are made of this… (100 words)

    Why was I getting a gold medal?! Wasn’t this supposed to be a literary award ceremony?
    I climb up onto the podium to a thunderous round of applause. Flashlights blinding me. I smooth my sweaty hands down my dress only to realise I’m in my pajamas. PAJAMAS! My heart gags, sumersaults and gets caught in my throat.
    I have my speech on my ipad. Really?!
    Clearing my throat I begin:
    “Ladies and gentlemen, I am grateful for the Nobel…Booker…Nobel…Booker…” My ipad winks back. I try again. “…the Rotten tomatoes award for my book,’Any idiot can write’…”

    Today has been a good day. Busy but good. I’m in a good mood so I wanted to spread some cheer by writing some nonsense. Hope you all have a good week ahead.

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  4. BAD CALL (100 words)

    I never carried a gun. It was always just a big flashlight. Twenty three years working warehouse security and the isolation was becoming too much to bear.

    I had a dream. I wanted to work at an outdoor venue with thousands of cheering people. Sporting events, concerts, celebrations.

    I finally had my chance. I was hired as a part of the security detail at Brylcreem Stadium. The third week I was there the place hosted a World Cup Soccer Tournament. There was a horrible stampede when a referee made a bad call. Ten died, dozens injured. I miss my flashlight.

    ……………………..
    I’ve started another short story this week. Much more difficult that Flash Fiction. I wish my characters would speak up!

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  5. Elusive
    (100 words)

    I dreamed the dream again.

    Enveloped in pink cotton candy folds of love I twirl in a wildflower meadow, suns rays flashing off bedazzled slippers. He approaches, eyes radiating emotions that transcend earthly bounds, sending my heart on a journey to the clouds. Athletic arms enfold, protect and hold.

    We stroll hand-in-hand by cascades of falling water and dive into an invigoratingly cool crystalline lake. Laughter like silver bells fills the air. He leans in to lay tender lips against mine. I shudder deliciously in anticipation. We kiss and . . .

    I wake up, emotions teetering on a balance beam of frustration.

    ***********
    Looking forward to getting the copy of Splickety Prime’s Wild West issue with my first ever published story in it. And working on finalizing details for the live interview with Davis Bunn.

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  6. Careful What You Wish For

    Raw digits cling for dear life, pain penetrating to the bone. Muscles flex, sinews burn with acid soaked flesh. This isn’t what I pictured as a boy, staring out the window at night wishing upon a star that I would someday journey to space. I never in a million years could have imagined this path in that journey.

    I shift my weight, careful not to lose my grip on the bar, my only savior from the pit below. I watch as my captors take notes. Test of human strength or will I’m assuming. I fear I may fail this one.
    __________________________________________________________________________
    Realmommaramblings.wordpress.com

    My week is great so far. Recouping from last week. Out-of-state relatives and son’s 6th birthday party. (crazy, stress filled, fun) This is my first flash in over a week! Glad to be back at it. 🙂

    Oh and I ordered Solstice: Dark!

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  7. The Fallen

    The friction-burn sears into tightened fingers. Release! The body knows where to find grip and then -push! I lean forward, fingers splayed anticipating the next move, muscles tense and bunched, the power within ready to be released.

    ‘Hey, Jack! You like that? Impressive high-bar work, huh?’

    I relax and allow the tension to flow away from my body. At least from the part that I can still feel.

    ‘Sure, Tom, I like that’.

    ‘Listen Jack, he’s good but you were better, ya know?’

    Yeah, I silently agree. But for the accident, I could have gotten gold.

    ‘Push me home, Tom.’

    ———————

    My first post here and feeling decidedly rusty. Kindly Invited over by the remarkable Stephanie Ellis who found me languishing on ReadWave. http://www.readwave.com/tipp.hex/

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  9. Goals
    @agardana09

    “Balance,” his mother said to herself. The shopping bags slipped from her shoulder, he reached out to take one but she shook her head. “I got this.”
    “What about me? What can I do?” He asked her, still eyeing the bags.
    “I set out to be a good mother to you and a good CEO for them. I know what I want so I work for it.”
    “And how does this relate to you carrying too many shopping bags?” He asked.
    “This is my exercise– I have to stay fit so I can continue mothering you well into my eighties.”

    —-

    Having a good week so far, though it seems to be moving a little too slowly for my tastes.

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  10. Peer Pressure
    imaginationisamuscle.wordpress.com

    He was cross-eyed looking down the tip of his nose.
    He watched one bead of sweat, emanating from his brow, cling for a moment on the precipice of his proboscis, before departing his body entirely and falling gracefully to the red sand below.
    He thought of that red sand barreling towards his face and felt his arms shake under the strain and weight of his horizontal body.
    Just one more swing around, he’d worked his whole life to perfect his sport, and couldn’t fail in front of his friends, especially now.
    He sucked his breath in and tipped gently forward.

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  11. Formulas
    (100 words)

    F=ma. Isaac Newton’s Second Law of Motion is a very important thing to know in this situation.

    g = dv / dt. The Acceleration of Gravity is another thing to keep in mind.

    And of course, there’s also the Formula for Velocity that need to be taken into account in such endeavors.

    While it’s important to know how one’s mass, gravity and velocity are all related, they’re not the real difference makers. Letting go at the precisely right moment makes the difference between realizing one’s dream of soaring like an eagle or being driven into the ground like a meteor.

    So far my week is going good. I’m busy with some home renos, but I think it’s time to take a couple days away from the work and swap my tools for a fishing rod. But so far so good!

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    • Nice take. Topical for me as I was supporting a Yr 10 physics exam today accompanied by …. a physics equation sheet. Great ending.

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  12. BORN TO SWING (100 words)

    I was the kid in gym class that I would have made fun of if I wasn’t me. I was the 98 pound weakling in the ad on the back page of Boy’s Life magazine.

    I couldn’t even do a single pull up. For some reason I would start swinging back and forth like I was on a trapeze. One time I almost flipped myself all the way over the bar. The gym teacher excused me from class: liability concerns.

    I’m an adult now. I’m ready to give it another go. Ohhhh no! Not again!

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  13. Initiation
    (100 words)

    For the love of god, are they even watching me? Christ, I’ve done almost everything they asked of me.

    I ran up and down the stands a hundred times.

    I walked around the track on my hands.

    I did the required amount of push-ups, sit-ups and jumping jacks.

    I sang the Battle Hymn of the Republic from the top of the stands.

    I even drank that putrid, disgusting swill they called “whiskey.”

    Those bastards better have been keeping count of how many times I’ve swung around this damn bar. A hundred more rotations and I’m in the Black Jacket Club.

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  14. Dare to Fledge
    100 words
    @rowdy_phantom

    Hop. Grip.

    The pelicans roosted in the cliffs near the manor where mother polished copper to a swollen gleam.

    Kick. Hunch.

    I stretched out atop the bluffs to watch fuzzed chicks lurch their way to fledgling. Seagrass blades sliced into my palms as I clutched the edge.

    Swing. Lift.

    An errant wind could buoy or smash untried pinions. Their attempts stirred the dust of fear and hope. No flight without risk.

    Stretch. Hold.

    I took to gymnastics like a restless bird, daring to go higher and higher until I returned to the bluffs. My bar now straddles their nests.

    Release.

    —–

    The preschool-squid is in transition with her naps so I’m in transition with writing time. Bedtime is more chaotic than usual too what with there being light in the sky until 10. Loving the post-dinner trips to the park, though.

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  15. Reunited

    100 words

    @el_Stevie
    #FlashDogs

    “Faster, Herman, faster,” cried the Mayor. “They are at the walls, faster …”

    Herman gripped the bar tightly, spun round again; the force he generated sucked the enemy into his compression field, scattering their compacted remains behind him.

    Then he saw Berndt, the childhood friend who had taught him to look beyond material differences.

    It was the poor beyond the walls, desperate for help whilst the rich cowered within, jealous guardians of plenty. They were no enemy.

    It was wrong.

    He could, would change that. Defiantly Herman adjusted his angle of rotation and the walls of division came tumbling down.

    *******
    Enjoying flash at the moment, first time ever Flash Master for me today and an HM for Flash! Friday so that’s been a real boost for the old confidence plus reading the Flash Dogs Solstice anthologies (anyone NOT got copies yet?!). Counting down to the end of term so that I can put in the time on something longer. Oh yes and the sun is shining 🙂

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  16. Emily Clayton
    @emilyiswriting

    Eyes and Tales

    She deals in shadows, winding them around a finger that bleeds black and white. Her arms reach out, seeking contact, assurance. I’m here, Margit, you say with your nose, nudging the words onto her open palm. She tickles your fur, petting your steady soothing back.

    You’re her eyes. Her support system. You’ve listened to her tales of gymnast feats and daring balance-beam flips. They’re only stories, though. She’s been blind since birth.

    Her shadowed world clings like glistening sweat, and she knows — yet fears — her limitations. You nuzzle her tears, hoping the saltiness will generate her lifelong dream.

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  17. Swinging Back
    They carry me to the horizontal bar on their shoulders. My hands grip the metal pole like I’ve done hundreds of times before, like how I’ve wanted to again.
    My carriers step back, my legs dangle uselessly, my hands hold strong. Slowly I swing back and forth, back and forth, faster and faster. Air swooshes over me, the sensation of childhood swings with a hint of menace. I grip tighter. Doesn’t stop the memories:
    thud of the bike into car,
    airless,
    crash,
    pain
    and lack of pain below my waist.
    Yet Clapping, My carriers celebrating what I can do now.

    ****************
    Today has been a good day of just sorting stuff out while I was on holiday from work. Back tomorrow through 😦

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  18. Down to Earth

    Keep your feet on the ground, that’s what people say. I wish I could. The doctors don’t know what to make of it, they’ve never seen anything quite like it. They call it blimp foot. I’d kick them if they were taller.

    For a while I floated around upside down, but the headaches got to me. Eventually I came up with this contraption. If I build up enough momentum I can swing myself around. For a few seconds I’m the right way up, it’s glorious.

    I’d get a gold medal out of it, if only I could stick the landing!

    100 words
    @todayschapter

    Busy preparing for our trip back to England. Not looking forward to a 6 hour plane ride with the little one, but I’m sure all the other passengers will be total reasonable and understanding, right? Started reading Solstice Dark and loving the very creative takes on the prompt that everyone has come up with, I continue to be in awe of the tremendous talent on display 🙂

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    • Yes–and your England trip is the reason our Alpha Dog cautioned you against reading the final tale in Solstice: Light until you’ve returned safely home.

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  19. RESPECT
    WC = 100 (06-24-15) (Husband to rehab, picked up his foot at prosthetist, fed chickens, all is well)

    Smoothing the gelding’s neck Peanut urged the steed on. Lather crept from fingers to arm in the wind-whipped race. Other two year olds danced proudly and flirted with each other until their riders cropped them to attention abruptly as they paced down the track.

    The race of the week started with practice runs about the track. Jockey’s whips snapped the air and flanks as charged equine legs reacted like lightning strikes to the ground.

    Peanut won over his winners with gentle hand pats throughout practica and juried races. He said, “Spare the rod, respect the flesh, and crush the cash.”

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  20. Par for the Kourse
    100 words
    @mishmhem

    The obstacle course wasn’t just a series of things that had to be run over/through/around. It was quickly becoming an obstacle to Danny’s sanity.

    If he didn’t meet the time limit of the course he’d wash out and he’d never make it through training.

    He knew there had to be a trick that would get him over the fence, and wall, something that would let him make the grade.

    He returned to the training center on the weekend to see if he could work out what needed to be done, and that was when he learned of Parkour.

    Long day getting a test dataset setup, and learning how to trouble shoot someone’s billings (eg everything I got wrong when setting up the data in the first place) . No time to write more than 100 words, but I got them in! Stay safe y’all and I’ll see ya on Friday

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