a schedule was made
grains of time sorted in piles
guaranteeing space
for messy unruly art
with quirky muses
A Recipe for Time Management
one cup sifted time
stir in twelve cups of chunked blocks
add paper to taste
bake in computer for one hour
we’ll see how well this works out
©2021 Tracy Swartz
eyes are a’ itchin’
the noses are a’ twitchin’
allergy season
©2021 Tracy Swartz
I have a folder where I keep a collection of “Word of the Day” emails. As a fun exercise to keep my writing skills and imagination supple and well-oiled, I’m taking a word from that collection to use within a short story. I haven’t decided on the frequency of writing yet. And, It may be a daily thing or once a week. Can you guess what word I used?
Billybob-Dave, an ordinary squirrel, was uncommon indeed. Dave, as we shall call him, was unlike most of his kind. He could remember where his treasures were hidden.
Dave, a bit naive, did not notice that several of his brethren squirrels were whispering and watching him closely.
One fine midsummer’s day, he decided with the innate nature that tells a squirrel that it’s time to hoard your food, set off to go a’ gathering. He didn’t notice several squirrels following him like brown furry darts through the tree limbs.
After Dave collected all he could carry, he mosied about until he found the perfect spot to dig a hidey-hole. Once dug, he dropped his collection into it and covered it up. He ran off to go hunt for more edibles.
The squirrels watching from above were simply gruntled that they could raid Dave’s cache of goodies.
“Joe-Bob and you, Joe-Don, go follow Billybob-Dave.” ordered the leader of the dray. “Joe-Dan, Joe-Fabio, and I will stay here and dig up his goodies.”
Dear reader, instead of the last name, squirrels will start with the family name and then add the first name with a hyphen betwixt the two.
Off went Joe-Bob and Joe-Don to follow Dave. The three left behind scampered down the tree to dig up Dave’s treasures, chattering with squirrely glee.
Meanwhile, Joe-Bob and Joe-Don, noticed Dave was headed back to his hidey-hole to deposit more goodies. They flew from tree to tree, squirrels being the natural acrobats they are, and beat him back to the hidey-hole. There, the others who stayed behind were stuffing their faces with Dave’s hard work.
“He’s on his way back!” they clamored in unison.
The squirrels dropped Dave’s booty, scattered up into the tree branches, leaping from limb to limb and away out of sight.
Arriving at the hidey-hole, Dave was quite disgruntled at what he found. All his hard work eaten and spread willy-nilly about. Dave learned a valuable lesson this day. And, he remembered his wise mama squirrel’s words, pay attention to what and who is around you when storing your goodies. Dave had to admit, he wasn’t and didn’t pay attention to anything but the joy of collecting. Dave, an optimistic type of chap, went about his business of finding a new place to store his batch of goodies. This time, he kept a wary eye out for anyone or anything that might be spying on him.
©2021 Tracy Swartz
on the couch, I sit
hungover stupor, staring
muscle relaxers
helpful for muscle spasms
not for the morning after
muscle relaxers
side effects include brain fog
morning hangover
©2021 Tracy Swartz
