Month: October 2016

Posted in romance, Uncategorized

#SoCS – Oct. 22/16 The Healing Power of the Ocean

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

img_0319

Most of the time, stream of consciousness posts don’t have a subject as you simply write whatever comes to mind. My thoughts today are on one subject and that is the healing power of the ocean and how, this past week, that healing power helped me.

I spent some time this week at the Atlantic Ocean. My favorite ocean because it’s the rough one, the wild one, and probably because it’s the first one I ever saw. I felt an affinity with the sea from the first moment I saw it, heard it, smelled it, and this week, that bond came right back to me. Do you know how I first react when I see the ocean? I cry. Every single time.

When I went to visit the ocean this time, I went with some very specific thoughts on my mind. They are still there although the power of the ocean has helped me at least partially resolve these thoughts. I’ve been feeling anger and confusion. Hurt and grief. All that will take a long time to go away, particularly the hurt which I suspect I will carry with me the rest of my life. Research supports that the sound of crashing waves has a healing effect on our minds and bodies as it causes us to enter deep states of relaxation. For weeks now, relaxation has escaped me. While at the ocean, I kept my oceanfront balcony door open, even all night, so I could hear the crashing waves. Somehow, I knew that would help me. Even though the nights were very cool, I slept listening to the sound of a rather rough Atlantic’s waves hitting the shore. I felt better every day.

The philosopher, Plato, said, “The sea cures all ailments of man.”

As I sat on that beach in Virginia and looked at the horizon, I felt a very fundamental shift in my thinking. The anger and confusion I’ve felt for so many weeks started to drain away. I started to understand, not what had happened, but my own reaction to it. The grief I felt didn’t seem quite so deep and gut-wrenching.

As I walked barefoot on the sand and waded in the sea water, I remembered what I had read about the healing powers of the sea. Not only can the ocean produce calmness, but it can actually change our perception about our lives, restore harmony in our souls, and restore our hope and open-mindedness. It is grounding. Looking at the horizon, on the other hand, provides us with a view of our future. That it is endless and limitless. I needed to feel all of these things and the Atlantic didn’t let me down. By the time I left, I had a new perspective and new hope. Before I arrived, I didn’t feel like I would ever have any hope again.

I’ve only been back home a couple of days but the feelings I got from being by the big, beautiful Atlantic haven’t left me. Although the hurt from the events which caused me to need to seek the solace of the ocean will always be with me, now I feel I can move forward with my life in a positive manner.

Grief is a process that you move through in stages. Sometimes, it takes a long time. Other times, not so long. You are never quite the same after you grieve someone or something. Grief changes you in a fundamental way. Time does not help, unlike the old saying alleges. What does help is understanding your grief and coming to terms with it. You have to accept you’ll never be quite the same ever again and find ways to live your life to accommodate that. The deep hurt that accompanies grief is what, I think, makes us who we are as people. What we can’t do is let that hurt stop us from living our very best lives.#amwriting #amblogging #writing #grief #SoCS

This post is part of #SoCS.

Thanks, Linda!

Posted in Uncategorized

Update on The Dark Fairy

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

Chuck Wendig, published author, blog owner at Terribleminds.com, and sponsor of a flash fiction contest is having a collaborative storytelling event. I wrote the first third of The Dark Fairy. Another blogger wrote the second part of The Dark Fairy. We hope a third author will write the third and last part of the story next week (the week of Oct 24).

Follow the progress of The Dark Fairy at the second or third links above! Thanks and enjoy!

Rosemary

Posted in Fiction, Writing

The Spook

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

img_0274

We are sitting across the street in the non-descript black sedan watching Frank’s house. The Agency has assigned us to the job of determining if Frank is circumspect enough to work for them, to be a spy. There are a lot of moving parts to check out.

Today, we’re charged with following Frank to make sure he isn’t hooking up with any other agencies.

“Here he comes,” says my sidekick, Margaret. “He’s got his dog with him, a black Lab it appears.”

“Probably going for their morning walk,” I reply. “Let’s see if there is any pattern to where he has gone for the past couple of weeks.”

“Look at this data,” Margaret says. “He has gone to the same Russian coffee shop every morning since he has lived here, taking his dog with him”

“What joker is trying to stick The Agency with a Russian spy?” I scoff.

*FFfAW sponsored by https://pricelessjoy.co/

Posted in Appalachia, Food, Recipe

Appalachia: Recipe for Fall Apple Cake

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

img_0273

Hi everyone! This is a very old Appalachian recipe, handed down from my great-grandmother to my grandmother and finally to my precious Aunt Red, the lady I wrote about in the blog post,  The Most Elegant Lady. It is so old that the writing is extremely faded on the paper I have. I have to get it typed up before it completely fades away! Since it is fall apple season, I thought it was time to share this with all of you!

Fall Apple Cake

*This cake was originally supposed to be made with Winesap apples. Winesap apples are very hard to find now. Granny Smith apples are the best substitute.

2 cups sugar

2 cups vegetable oil – Wesson oil or other oil

Mix sugar into vegetable oil

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsps cloves

1/2 tsps cinnamon

1 tsps salt

1 tsps baking soda

3 cups finely chopped apples (Winesap or Granny Smith)

Optional: 1 cup finely chopped nuts or 1 cup raisins

Mix everything together

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour

Let cool on a baking rack before cutting it

ENJOY!!

 

Posted in Creative Nonfiction Essays, Travel

Serendipity

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

image

I was thinking tonight about serendipity. Just simply deciding to do something on the spur of the moment and having it turn out to be a really desirable and fun thing to have done. In my life, I’ve found that the less you plan and the more you do things on the spur of the moment, the more fun you have. At my age, fun is important. In fact, at any age, fun is important! Just going with your gut and getting out in the world and doing something you want to do is what fun is all about.

It’s interesting. I know people who, as they age, seem to plan more and do serendipity less. I don’t know why. Perhaps they feel more of a need to control their lives, control their destiny. But, I think you lose some of the joy of youth when you forget about serendipity and plan every activity down to the last detail. Some seem to have to screen every thought they have about possible activities they might like to pursue. I guess I am youth-obsessed. As I age, I want to keep that joy that we feel when we are young, even the joy we have as children. Of course, I have also been accused of having the Peter Pan Syndrome, but I think that is a good thing. Doing serendipity allows me to keep that joy in my life.

I’ve had some interesting experiences by doing serendipity. Once, a friend and I were presenting a paper at a conference in Mesa, Arizona at Arizona State University. We had a free day so we took a drive (a long drive!) over and around the Grand Canyon. We  went off the beaten path to the northern edge of the Grand Canyon. To give you some perspective, the tourist area is on the southern rim. The northern rim is pretty deserted.

As we drove toward the northern rim, we felt totally lost. We were hungry and needed gas in the car and there was nothing around. Suddenly, we ran upon a restaurant with gas pumps so we stopped there to eat. It was a restaurant that was run by the Native American tribe who lived in the area. The menu was interesting and we didn’t know what to order since we didn’t really recognize any of the food on the menu. We told the server just to bring us something good. I still don’t know what it was I ate.

We set out, after eating and getting gas, for the northern rim. We drove down this straight, long, lonesome road, assuming that the northern rim would be at the end of it. We were literally the only car on the road. Suddenly, I had to slam on the brakes as a huge heard of elk ran out of in front of us. They were crossing the road and it was a beautiful site. There had to be 50 or 60 of them. We drove on and soon, we saw a parking lot. We parked and walked a bit and there was the Grand Canyon, but it looked different than it does on the southern rim.

There are not even any guard rails around the northern rim. It is steeper and more raw. It’s absolutely beautiful but in a different way. We spent some time taking pictures and drinking in the beautiful sight.

It was a long way back to our hotel in Mesa so we started back. On the way back, we saw a herd of wild horses. Being a horse lover, I wanted to jump out of the car, but they aren’t exactly longing for a pat!

When we got back to our hotel, we talked about our day. Serendipity was good to us that day. We would never have had those experiences if we had meticulously planned something.

I hope I can keep my joy in experiencing new things on the spur of the moment for the rest of my life. #SoCS #amwriting #amblogging #writing #GrandCanyon

This post is part of SoCS.

Posted in Eastern Kentucky, Travel, weekendcoffeeshare, Writing

#weekendcoffeeshare 10/15/2016

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

image

My friend, Jenn, is back from vacation and she is coming for coffee this Saturday morning. Since we are having coffee, I’d like to invite all of you to join us! It’s still warm in my part of the world (global warming) so we’ll have our coffee and tea on the deck. I see Jenn pulling in the driveway right now. Let’s all go out on the deck. I have all kinds of coffee and tea, including decaf, for you to choose from. I even have a new green tea some of you might enjoy.

“Hello, Jenn! It’s so good to see you. Help me carry out these trays! I hope you had a great vacation!”

“Hello,” Jenn says. “Yes, we saw Greece and Turkey. It was an awesome trip. Very romantic for my husband and I. When I have my pictures, I will tell you all about it. What’s been up with you?”

“It’s been a good week, Jenn. I’ll tell you about it.”

It’s always a good week when you get to spend time with friends. I was able to have lunch with a friend at a good restaurant in Lexington one day this week. They had the best food and it’s always so nice to see Pam. After lunch, Pam had things to do and I had shopping to do. I visited a couple of my favorite stores. I have to replace winter clothes and made a trip to the mall and some other spots. Even shopped for some girly stuff like makeup, perfume. I hadn’t done that in a long time since I usually shop online. Betsy, my little dog, was being groomed by my friend, Anne, while I shopped and she looks beautiful now.

The next day, Pam, Janet, and I went to Keeneland which is always so much fun. I wrote a  blog post about that so I won’t repeat it all here. I could go to Keeneland every day and enjoy it!

The rest of the week, I have been getting ready to take a little trip this coming week. Just a short trip but I really need it! I’m going to Virginia Beach for a few days and will be leaving on Monday. I’ve been to a lot of the beaches up and down the East Coast of the US but I’ve never been to Virginia Beach. So, a friend and I decided, just on the spur of the moment, to take a few days off from life and drive to Virginia Beach while it is still warm.

I think we’re mostly going just to get away, walk on the beach, and sit and look at the waves and the horizon. We’ll probably do a little sightseeing but we haven’t decided exactly what we’ll see yet. We’ll just do serendipity and go and do whatever pleases us at the moment. We were lucky because we were able to get an oceanfront hotel room!

I have been amazed because we heard so much about how Hurricane Matthew damaged Florida and the Carolinas but we heard nothing about how Hurricane Nicole, which almost wiped out Bermuda, impacted Virginia! I’ve heard no news coverage of that at all. The concierge at our hotel told me that they had water in some of the guest rooms, a lot of wind, beach erosion, and even a road closed. The hurricane was hundreds of miles off the coast. Lucky for us, the hotel has been able to get everything repaired so we can go on with our visit. We’ll be back at the end of the week. I’m really looking forward to the trip!

I’m making excellent progress on getting my sunroom converted to a writing room. After I return from Virginia Beach, it will only take another week to get it ready to go, if that. We’re working on the heat and air conditioning. I have the furniture, some of the art work, some tapestries for an extra dose of warmth, and I’m still on the fence about window coverings. I want the windows as open as possible but I also need to be able to cover them when necessary with something insulating. If anyone out there has a suggestion, please send it along!

I’m really excited because I plan to spend the remainder of 2016 writing my book in my writing room. I hope to have it completed by the end of the year and off to the publisher.

I don’t usually do much for the holidays, so while everyone else is doing the holiday thing, I’m going to just write. The holidays have been a down time of year for me for years since I lost my parents at Christmas and don’t have much family left. Writing will bring me comfort this year. I usually just sort of suffer through it and pretend I’m in the holiday spirit even though I’m usually not. I’ve also had some other problems this year and I’m trying to deal with those. Problems make the holidays difficult so I’m hoping to avoid that.

That’s about all that’s been going on this week except I think everyone is worried about this crazy Presidential campaign that we have going on and what the outcome will be. The second debate was disturbing. Who knows about the third debate?

Maybe, Jenn, next weekend, we can share vacation pictures and I’ll tell you about Virginia Beach! I’ll hope to see you next Saturday, along with all my friends who read this blog! Have a great week, everyone! #amwriting #amblogging #writing #VirginiaBeach #Keeneland #travel

Brought to you by parttimemonsterblog.com

 

 

Posted in Fiction, The Blog Propellant, Writing

The Woman Who Screamed

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

img_0272

“Johnny, we have to get the tent set up before it rains. I can see lightning off in the distance,” Jill said to her boyfriend of two years, Johnny.

Jill and Johnny were students at a university deep in the Daniel Boone National Forest in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. After their Friday classes were over, they had decided to camp and hike for the weekend. The area is a popular hiking spot.

“How is the campfire coming along, Jill?” Johnny asked.

“Great,” Jill replied. “Almost ready to light it.”

“Now all we have left to do is hang the rope in the trees for the food and we’re finished setting up the campsite. Then we can go for a short hike before dark,” Johnny said. “Well, if it doesn’t rain. I see the lightning too but it is off in the distance. It just looks like heat lightning.

Jill and Johnny were hanging a rope for food in the trees because black bears lived in the area and that was one way to possibly keep them stealing their food. Other smaller animals would also make it a feast. Lots of other, smaller animals lived in the forest as well such as raccoons and opossum that would also steal food.

Jill and Johnny finished setting up their campsite. They each grabbed an apple for their hike. Johnny retrieved their fishing poles and bait as they left to hike, telling Jill they were going to catch their dinner in the little stream that ran near their camp. There was trout in that stream and Johnny could already taste it. It was delicious cooked over a campfire and they had brought all the fixins’ to go with the fish just in case they could catch a few.

All of a sudden they heard a scream. Johnny turned to Jill, who had stopped dead in her tracks with her mouth open. “That sounded like a woman,” he said. Jill started to run toward the sound of the scream and Johnny followed her. They looked around everywhere and saw nothing. No people. Not another scream. Nothing. There was a cliff on the right side of their trail. They tentatively looked over the side of the cliff but saw no signs that anyone had fallen.

Johnny and Jill walked slowly back to where they had dropped their tackle box and fishing poles. They decided to call 911 and let the police handle this because they didn’t know what to do next. They had no weapons on them, not even a bow and arrow.

The couple went on to the stream where they planned to catch their dinner. It had turned into a partly cloudy day, but night was approaching. They baited their fishing hooks and threw them in the water. Johnny and Jill sat there in companionable silence and suddenly, Johnny had a big bite. As he pulled the fish in, he saw it wasn’t a fish at all. It was a turtle! Neither were in the mood for a turtle for dinner.

As Johnny baited his hook to try again, Jill quietly said his name. Then she said it again. When he looked at her, she nodded her head to the side. Johnny looked up and there stood a woman, covered in mud and clutching herself around her middle, tears streaming down her face.

There was no fish for dinner that night, but Johnny and Jill were back at camp with the woman who had screamed and the police and paramedics. The police were out in the forest looking for the man who had pushed the woman off the cliff. The paramedics were tending to the woman. Her family, under the crescent moon, were profusely thanking the two college students for possibly saving her life. #blogpropellant #amwriting #amblogging #writing

Literary device – elephant

Cubing the Stories 15

 

 

 

The betting window

I am lucky enough to live just about 60 miles from the most beautiful horse country in America – the area around Lexington, Kentucky. The horse racing track located here is Keeneland Race Track, ranked in 2009 as the #1 premier horse racing track in the United States by the Horseplayers Association of America. Keeneland has two racing meets per year. One in April for 4 weeks and one in October for 3 weeks. Here is a photo of two horses in the padlock in the 2016 October meet:

Besides racing, Keeneland does many other things. They have sales meets every year at which some of the best all-time race horses have been sold. Nineteen Kentucky Derby winners have been sold at Keeneland along with 21 Preakness and 18 Belmont winners. Eighty-two of 88 Breeder’s Cup World Championship race winners have been sold at Keeneland.

.The atmosphere at Keeneland can’t be beat. It is a bit old-world and certainly “old Lexington” and reminiscent of the thoroughbred industry of both the past and the present. Lots of old and new money changing hands but the common person off the street can also have lots of fun. There is seating from general admission at $5 per person to very expensive box seating. You can always “ride the rail” and feel the dirt being kicked in your face by the horses as they pound the track running by.

The dining options are extraordinary with three fancy dining rooms. Make your reservations way in advance! Then there are the equivalent of fast-food restaurants but many serve a Keeneland specialty food called Kentucky burgoo which is a type of stew. Burgoo can be made out of almost anything. The recipe is a closely guarded secret. Rumor has it that it may have rabbit, squirrel, or other game meats in it.

img_1223

Of course there is the gambling. Betting on horses is certainly gambling. Racing forms abound at Keeneland and there are experts sitting around in the most varying costumes. There are also ATM machines which this writer advises you to stay away from!

img_1229
The betting window

IMG_0271.JPG

There are so many things to do at Keeneland. You can go there early in the morning, watch the horses exercise, and sometimes have breakfast. They have a famous equine library you can peruse. Their gift shop and its merchandise is to die for. Arrange a trip to the backside (the stables) if you can and see the horses, grooms, and what really goes on in racing stables up close and personal.

There is also the quite fascinating people watching. Sit on a bench, relax, and watch the quite varied types of people who wander through Keeneland Race Track. That will entertain you all by itself. This is truly a travel destination. #amwriting #amblogging #writing #Keeneland

 

 

Destination Travel: Keeneland Race Track in Bluegrass Country

img_1180

The last three weeks have been some of the most miserable of my life. I’m sure it has shown in my writing and not always in a good way. However, one good thing about a writer going through both good and bad situations is that it gives them so much great material to write about.

The crazy thing is that I have gone through exactly the same situation under basically the same circumstances with the same people at least two other times in my life. This is the third time. It seems that I never learn, doesn’t it? That, my friends, has been true in the past. It will not be true in the future. This time, I learned a very hard, extremely painful lesson. Much more painful than the first two times.

The first two times were painful enough and it took me years to recover. Why? I’m a sensitive and emotional person. I think that came from my dad who wore his heart on his sleeve. That made him the best dad in the world, but I’m sure he was hurt many times. I don’t exactly wear my heart on my sleeve in most situations, but I do recognize that I can be emotionally fragile in the right (or wrong) situation. I was definitely in the wrong situation this time. Probably the first two times as well. I mistook flattery for something else. People should remember that words are important. Never say words that you don’t mean or that aren’t appropriate.

img_0261

This time, I’m older, more fragile, less able to come back from being shattered into a million tiny pieces. This time,  I was very emotionally invested and the rug was pulled out from under me in a brutal way. I never got an explanation. I’m not assigning blame. I was as much to blame as anyone else involved. That doesn’t make the hurt go away.

Until the last two days, for three weeks, I’ve hardly eaten or slept. That’s what happens to me when I’m upset about something that was as important to me as this situation was. I’ve sat at my kitchen table and drank a thousand cups of tea, trying to figure it all out. I’ve talked to my good friends endlessly and they have been saints on earth to put up with me. I feel like I would have lost my mind without them.

I’ve walked around in a daze because I’ve been so distracted. I would cry and not even realize I was crying. If I could catch a couple of hours of sleep at night, I would wake up sobbing. I’ve written – a lot – because nothing else much gave me any solace. I had no family to turn to – I’m an only child and except for a few cousins I seldom hear from, my family is gone. I didn’t want to burden the couple of cousins who might actually care enough to listen. I would find myself going about my days, living in the same pattern as I did when I was involved in this situation, except there was no need now. Then, I would just cry more.

Until today. Last night, for the first time in three weeks, I slept. I didn’t have nightmares. I woke up this morning and I knew it was over. The acute grief. I felt like myself again, for the first time in a long time. I knew that this time, the third time I’ve let this happen to me, would be the last time. Never again. Never again would I allow myself to be involved in this situation. I was finally able to put it in a little box and store it away in a corner of my brain, hopefully to someday forget it forever.

Now I don’t care what happens. I can deal with it. One of my friends told me today that I sound like the person she’d always know and, funny, I feel like that person again. So whatever this situation, or any situation, throws at me, I can handle it. Bring it on! I made a terrifically bad decision and mistake. But, I was not the only person involved who made a mistake and I hope the other people involved in this situation know that.

img_0260

So why do I have a picture of Marilyn Monroe here? It’s complicated. She reminds me of many things, but right now, looking at her picture reminds me not to make bad decisions. Put yourself first. Don’t let yourself be used. Don’t assume anyone will take care of you but you. I want to look at this picture of her a lot right now.

No sympathy please though I thank you! Now I’m ready to move on. At my age, there is no time to waste. I’m going to go to the ocean. Hearing the waves and seeing the water has always soothed me. But, mainly, I want to see the ocean because I can see the horizon. I can see for miles and miles. I need that. I need to be able to see for miles and imagine what a good future is waiting for me. #amwriting #amblogging #writing #shortfiction #romance #marilynmonroe #dailyprompt

I Can See for Miles

Posted in Fiction

Bachelor Buttons

Posted on by R.M. Carlson

img_0259

Barbara flings herself down on her couch in frustration. The damn muffler fell off her car again. This is only the third time. She had to call for a tow. Another expensive tow to the muffler shop. Can’t those people even put on a muffler? She knows her car is old but they still make mufflers for it. She should know. This will be the third one she has had to have the shop order and install. They never mention a problem with installation. She is so careful with her car.

Her nervousness makes her shaky and Barbara feels cold. She grabs the large throw from the back of her couch and snuggles up in it. She really can’t afford so many car repairs but what does she do? She has to have her vehicle to get to work and do all the other things a person has to do. She is fighting frustration and hopes she can just drift off to sleep for awhile.

After awhile, Barbara gives up on sleep. It’s not going to happen. She has way too much on her mind. She sits up, still snuggled in her warm throw, and notices the beautiful decorative treasure box sitting on her coffee table. She smiles. Looking at that treasure box helps calm her. Barbara’s mother gave her that engraved treasure box many years ago. Her mother has been gone for years now, but Barbara still keeps her most special things in it. She reaches for it.

The first item she sees when she opens the box is the ever-present pack of Monopoly money. If seeing that Monopoly money didn’t give her such good memories, it would increase her frustration because, after all, real money is what she needs to replace her muffler. That packet of Monopoly money is one of her treasures that reminds her of her Daddy. As Barbara was growing up, she and her Daddy loved Monopoly. Then, when he got sick, she helped keep him occupied by playing Monopoly until he got too sick to play. She will never forget all those wonderful times with her dad.

Under the packet of Monopoly money is the seed packet she recently picked up at the farm supply store. Barbara goes to the farm store to get corn for the deer that frequent her backyard. While she was there, she walked by the seeds and that’s when she saw the bachelor button seeds. Her mom always used to plant them in the fall in a planting box. By spring, they were coming up and then were planted in the flower garden. On an impulse, Barbara bought a packet of bachelor buttons.

Barbara jumped up, thinking her planting box was in her sunroom. She took the packet of seeds with her. Barbara got involved filling her planting box with dirt, planting the seeds, and watering and fertilizing them. She forgot all about the offending muffler.

Suddenly, the phone rang and it was the muffler repair shop. They were going to replace the muffler for free as they determined the previous muffler had been installed incorrectly. All that frustration for nothing. However, Barbara had already calmed down. She was much happier just standing in her sunroom planting her bachelor buttons. She would deal with her car later. #blogpropellant #amwriting #amblogging #writing #dailyprompt

TBP’s Objects in a Box 4-5