#gb5ww

Five Word Weekly Challenge — Friendly Banter

Fandango9 Comments

“Where are you going?” Jerry asked Olivia.

“I’m sick of you two disagreeing over everything and anything,” Olivia said. “It’s a shame that the two of you can never see eye to eye on any matter. We’re on the precipice of a global catastrophe and you two idiots are arguing over whether Slipknot is heavy metal or hard rock.”

“Sheesh, Olivia,” Gary said, “Don’t get your bowels in such an uproar. We’re not arguing, we’re just engaging in some friendly, playful banter.”

“You know, Gary,” Olivia said, if you and your twin brother went through the same level of thoughtful machinations on important matters, you might get some respect, but the things you argue about are inconsequential.”

“Slipknot is not inconsequential, Olivia. It may just be the best heavy metal band ever,” Jerry said.

“No, Olivia is right,” Gary said. “We should be discussing something consequential, like climate change.”

Jerry laughed. “Climate change is a hoax made up by a bunch of environmental tree-huggers.”

Gary said, “The real hoax here is Slipknot billing itself as a heavy metal band.”

Olivia stood up, turned around, and walked out of the room, muttering to herself, “I tried. I really tried.”

Written for Greg’s Five Word Weekly Challenge. The words are shame, global, slipknot, machination, and banter. Photo credit: iStockphoto.com.

Five Word Weekly Challenge — He’s My Brother

Fandango1 Comment

I’m his brother, for crissake.
He made a fortune in cryptocurrency.
He knows I’m close to insolvent.
But will he even offer me a crumb to help me out?
The simple truth is that he has no heart
He has no soul.
He’s on a whole nother level of despicable.

Written for Greg’s Five Word Weekly Challenge. The words are simple, level, crumb, fortune, and solvent.

Five Word Weekly Challenge — Splashdown

Fandango5 Comments

Two days earlier, the small space capsule had been launched into the cosmic early morning sky like a meteor streak. As the astronauts inside the capsule started the descent back to Earth the next day, the men onboard the Navy recovery vessel were looking up into the cloud-filled as sky when they saw the capsule break through. It was their job to retrieve the astronauts once their capsule splashed down into the rough, deep ocean waters. The biggest challenge was to ensure that no astronauts drowned as they were transferred from the capsule to the boat and that they all made it safely back to the ship.

Mission accomplished.

Written for Greg’s Five Word Weekly Challenge using the words meteor, cosmic, cloud, capsule, and drown.

Five Word Weekly Challenge — The Noisy Spindle

Fandango19 Comments

Greg, over at Greg’s Blog, as given us another Five Word Weekly Challenge using the words indeed, spindle, whine, salvo, and clobber. I tried hard to come up with something using those five words, but after three or four attempts, all of which sucked, I was ready to give up and take a pass on this week’s challenge.

But at the last minute I went to a site called chat.openai.com and typed in “write a poem using the words indeed, spindle, whine, salvo, and clobber.” Here’s what it came up with:

In the quiet of the night,
The spindle whirred, an eerie sight
Indeed it seemed to have its own life
A rhythmic hum, with no respite

Suddenly there was a piercing whine
A sound that sent shivers down the spine
And then a salvo of loud knocks
A warning sign, like ticking clocks

A clobber then, a mighty blow
And silence fell, a tranquil glow
The spindle ceased its endless spin
Its journey done, its fate akin

For life is but a spinning thread
A journey that we all must tread
And though we whine and sometimes clobber
We find our way, and life goes on forever

So, would I have been better off skipping Greg’s challenge this week or did the chatbot do the trick?

Welcoming Spring

Fandango9 Comments

The spring equinox, for those of us who live in the Northern Hemisphere, is fast approaching. For me, even more so than at the end of the old year and the beginning of the new one, it’s a time for introspection. It represents a reawakening, where that which was dormant during the cold, dark months of winter comes back to life. It’s a time of renewal and rejuvenation, of growth and new beginnings, as the world wakes up from its winter slumber.

There is no better time is there than this to engage in self-reflection and to emerge as a new, and possibly, a better person.

Written for Greg’s Five Word Weekly Challenge, where the words are: