When You Build Your House (excerpt 2)

Within the hour, Sara had a bag packed. She had forgotten all about the broken teacup on the kitchen floor. She grabbed the broom and dustpan from the closet. She swept up the broken white ceramic shards with blue flowered print and placed the remains of the teacup into the trash container. She used the kitchen towel to soak up the remaining liquid on the floor.

With a few quick clicks on her computer screen, she had a one-way ticket to Geneva, Switzerland. She heard the screen door off the kitchen open and close and knew her husband was home. She got up from her desk chair and approached the kitchen. John had taken out a plate from the cabinet, some sliced deli meat from the fridge, and some bread from the pantry and placed the items on the counter. Sara stood in the doorway. John glanced over his shoulder and turned back to continue preparing his sandwich.

“Hey, hey,” John said casually.

Sara stood in the doorway silent. Her face was blank.

John sensing something was wrong stopped what he was doing and turned to look at Sara.

“I have to go,” Sara stated without emotion.

“Okay,” John responded. “I’ll see you later,” not realizing the intensity of her statement he went back to preparing his sandwich.

Sara stepped forward and said with emphasis, “John,” he turned. “I need to go away for awhile.”

John looked at her dumbfounded. “What? What’s wrong?”

Sara lied, “I need to go see my mother.”

“Is everything alright?” John said nervously.

Sara closed her eyes for a moment and continued her lie, “Yes everything is fine. She needs me right now. My father is being a pain in the ass.”

Jokingly, “well that’s understandable,” John smiled.

Sara stood un-phased by his comment.

John removed the smile from his face, “Is everything alright?” Realizing the severity of the situation.

Sara stepped forward toward John. “Yes, it is but I’ve got to go. Okay. I love you.” She kisses him quickly.

John stood there against the counter flabbergasted as she walked toward the back door and placed her hand on the handle. He managed to gain enough composure before she walked out the door. “Sara,” she stopped and turned toward him, “I love you.”

Sara gazed at him. She gave a slight smile and said, “I know. I love you too,” and she walked out the door.

Charlie

We’d like to welcome the newest member to the our family:

Charlie!


Charlie is a 4-year-old Treeing Walker Coonhound and we adopted him from The Animal Haven in North Haven. Charlie is from Georgia where he was found tied to a tree. He is very shy and timid but he is slowly warming up to us. He was at foster family for a while and the people gave him rave reviews. We already know that he loves to ride in the car. We hope that he likes his new home and that he is able to adjust quickly. Welcome to the family Charlie!

When You Build Your House (an excerpt)

She stood at the kitchen sink washing dishes. The phone began to ring mid-wash. She placed the plate she washing back down into the soapy water. She turned on the cold water to rinse her hands. She used the towel that was laid out on the counter to dry her hands. She walked across the kitchen, picked up her teacup from the kitchen table and continued to the phone on the wall. It had rang a number of times from the time it first rang and she was surprised the person calling kept ringing.

She answered, “Hello.”

“Sara?” a man said with a French accent

Sara dropped her teacup and it smashed on the tile floor. She said nothing.

“Sara, it’s Joque,” the man on the other line continued.

Sara stood there flabbergasted, staring blankly at the wall and more silence followed.

“Are you there?” the voice wondered.

More silence.

“Sara, are your there?” he pursued.

Sara forced her herself to say something. “Yes,” Sara finally responded.

New Post on July 22nd!

July Photo - Ballonar Ecclipse

Ballonar Ecclipse

July Photo - Hot Air

Hot Air

July Photo - Fired Up!

Fired Up!

Up, Up and Away

Hot bubbles of air

Wrapped in nylon

Carried by wind

Across the sky

Anthony the Ant Becomes Human (except 4)

Anthony began to squirm and forced his head through the thin barrier of his cocoon. He poked his little head out and saw what would be his surrogate mother. His actually mother, the queen would have nothing to do with him. It was the job of the other worker ants in the colony to look after Anthony and the other young ones. He pushed and pulled using all of his strength to make his way out of the cocoon as his mother looked on. Other young ants were also emerging from their cocoons. This was the colony’s nursery.

Anthony’s mother, Kathryn, leaned in and fed him some nectar.

“Wonderful job, Anthony,” Kathryn said.

“Mama?” Anthony said sluggishly.

“Yes dear, I will be your mother.”

He was already walking and his mother led him and a few others up a narrow tunnel. He could see a bright light ahead of him and wondered in amazement of what lay ahead. They quickly reached the surface. It was a warm July morning, Anthony scrunched his face, the bright light of the sun caused him to squint. He was able to see more clearly now. The multiple lenses in each eye now focused as one. He took a look around and was able to see his mother and the other young a lot better now. Each one was black with three body segments. Six legs were attached at the midsection. Large mandibles and antennae extended from their heads.

Tall blades of green grass surrounded them. Anthony’s mother reached over to grab a single blade that swooped down close to the ground. “Come here, Anthony,” Kathryn said.

“Yes, mama,” replied Anthony.

“Open your mouth.”

Anthony did as he was told. And she brought the grass to Anthony’s mouth and a single drop of dew feel into his mouth. The liquid was so warm and so sweet.

A little babble about nothing

Where am I going? What am I doing? Am I going in the right direction?

I thought that upon finishing my master’s thesis that my world would open up and I would be free to think about whatever it is that I wanted to think about. But…that’s not the case. I’ll be the first to admit that the blogs that I haven’t in the past few months have been thrown together at the last minute. Why bother? Why not let it go for a couple weeks? Well, if no one reads it or a hundred people read it, I do it for me. I made a commitment to myself to blog once a week…period. During times of upcoming stress I prepared blogs in advance and even had them automatically posted for me. The blog was to force me to… slow… down… A few years ago my entire day was filled with creative thoughts and ideas… not so much any more. I’m afraid I’m losing my touch. My mind is now flooded with science. Practically every waking moment for the past six months I was thinking and obsessing over my master’s thesis and now… its over. Done. What am I thinking about now; the publication that I will be writing on the same topic as my thesis. When I’m not thinking about that; the AP Environmental course that I am developing for next year. When I’m not thinking about that; the house projects that I want to complete. The last thing I typically think about is what I’m going to write. It usually hits me like a ton of bricks on Saturday night. I suddenly realize that I haven’t thought a moment all week long about what I wanted to write about. Instead I thought about what I needed? to write.

I’ve gone so far down one path that I have forgotten all about a path that I used to love. Finding my way back is going to be difficult as it is and I feel like I’m going to be traveling down this path a little longer. Is it possible to travel down two paths at the same time? Perhaps instead of continuing further down the same path day after day, I should instead, at least every once in awhile, choose the other path that has become overgrown and lost amongst the weeds. Only time will tell what I end up doing but I hope that which ever ever way I choose, I somehow find my way back home.