MLMM

MLMM — The Metaverse

Fandango6 Comments

For his Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Friday Faithfuls prompt, Jim Adams wants to know what we think about the metaverse, which is a virtual-reality space in which users can interact with a computer-generated environment and other users.

I really don’t know much about the metaverse. But that doesn’t bother me at all. Besides, Jim wrote that the metaverse won’t be “ready” until about five to ten years from now, or, as some experts believe, it won’t really be ready until 2040. At my age, five to ten years from now I’ll be in my 80s (if I’m even still alive), and I’m sure I won’t still be around in 2040.

So given that, my general thoughts about the metaverse is:

Loaded Nachos

Fandango14 Comments

“I’m sorry for the delay,” the waiter said. “May I take your order?”

“I am not very happy with your service. I was getting ready to berate you to your manager when you didn’t respond to my waving at you or calling out to you,” Cliff said. “But in spite of how long it took you to get to our table, you’re finally here and I’m ready to order. We’d like a large platter of loaded nachos, but use the chips that are the kind with hint of citrus flavor and are crisp and crunchy. Make sure they are fresh and not stale. And we’ll also have a large pitcher of sangria. Make it snappy, will you?” Cliff added, snapping his fingers.

After the waiter left, Cliff turned to the other people sitting at the table and said, “So as I was saying, San Francisco is a very hilly city, but the section we live in is very flat and quite walkable.”

The waiter returned to the table and set down a huge platter of loaded nachos on the table. “Here you go sir,” he said to Cliff. “Just like you ordered them.”

The waiter turned and walked away, a sardonic smile on his face. Just like you ordered them, except for the two gobs of spit I added, he thought.

Written for these daily prompts: The Daily Spur (delay), My Vivid Blog (happy), E.M.’s Random Word Prompt (berated), Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (spite), Ragtag Daily Prompt (citrus), Your Daily Word Prompt (crisp), and Word of the Day Challenge (crunchy).

Also for the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Opposing Forces Saturday Mix, where the words are “fresh/stale” and “flat/hilly.”

MLMM Friday Faithfuls — Multiple Prompts

Fandango17 Comments

Jim Adams posed an interesting question in his Friday Faithfuls prompt. He wrote about multiple prompts and offered his thoughts about combining multiple prompt words into a single post. His bottom line was expressed when he wrote:

The whole purpose of a writing prompt is to inspire bloggers to write and be original and resourceful, and using their imagination and I feel that a well written story should not bounce around being driven just to satisfy the prompts. I feel it would it be better if your story made gradual progress rather pushing it through all the prompts and losing consistency in the process.

With that said, Jim wants to know…

If you write posts where you respond to multiple prompts, I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

I host a daily word prompt, FOWC with Fandango, and there are six other daily word prompts that I often participate in:

  • Word of the Day Challenge
  • Ragtag Daily Prompt
  • Your Daily Word Prompt
  • The Daily Spur
  • E.M.’s Random Word Prompt
  • My Vivid Blog

I don’t respond to these one word prompts every day, but I probably do more often than not. And when I do, I attempt to include all seven words in my response if I can. But sometimes one or more of these one-word prompters gives us an unusual word that I would never in a million years use in everyday life. And when that happens I refuse to jump through hoops trying to fit such words into my posts.

Why do I respond to these multiple word prompts? It’s because each day I’m presented with seven randomly selected words and am challenged to come with a cohesive, engaging response that incorporates all (or most) of those words. I really enjoy that challenge. And, at the risk of sounding immodest, I think I’m pretty good at it.

However, I don’t typically do multiple word prompts such as the two that Jim mentioned: Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Wordle challenge and The Sunday Whirl. Each of these challenges uses 12 prompt words. I can only respond to so many prompts and I don’t think I can handle those 12-word challenges in addition to the other prompts I regularly respond to.

Any questions?

MLMM Photo Challenge — The Horse Soldiers

Fandango14 Comments

“Gramps, why is there a statue of a soldier riding a horse?” Jimmy asked.

“He was one of the Australian horse soldiers who fought along side British soldiers in the Boer War in Southern Africa,” Jimmy’s grandfather, William, said.

“I remember reading about that, Gramps,” Jimmy said. “The British came to Southern Africa for the gold and they exploited the people who lived there, sent Boer women and children to concentration camps where thousands perished, and raped the land that rightfully was Boer land.”

“Well, that’s one version of what happened, but it was more than 100 years ago and times were different back then. Society was different. The rules were different,” William said.

“So are you saying, Gramps, that, because it was more than 100 years ago, genocide in order to accumulate wealth for the British Crown was justified?” Jimmy asked. “Is that’s why it’s okay to have a statue honoring a horse soldier who participated in such atrocities prominently displayed in a public park?”

“This horse soldier, Jimmy, was doing his duty as a servant of the Crown. He was just following orders, as every soldier must.”

“Seriously, Gramps, isn’t ‘just following orders’ what every soldier who committed war crimes says?” Jimmy asked. “So why do we erect a statue honoring someone who was just following orders?”

“It’s a memorial, Jimmy,” William said. “Just so we can remember and not forget what happened. Sometime we need to be reminded of the bad and even the shameful things that occurred in the past.”

Written for the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Photo Challenge. Photo credit: Sarah Whiley.

MLMM Friday Faithfuls — Prompt Me

Fandango10 Comments

For the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie Friday Faithfuls challenge this week, Jim Adams would like to know our thoughts on blogging challenges. I’m going to take his questions one at a time.

Which ones do you participate in and why you decided to participate in them.

I participate in prompts that tickle my imagination, be they word prompts, photo prompts, Q&A prompts, or whatever.

If you are a host of any blogging challenge, talk about your challenge.

Do I host any blogging challenges? Well let’s just say that, all modesty aside, I consider myself to be somewhat of a master prompter. In addition to my daily FOWC with Fandango One Word Challenge, which I started back in June 2018 when WordPress abandoned its daily prompt, I have a number of weekly prompts that I host:

  • Sunday: Who Won the Week?
  • Mondays: Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge (a photo prompt)
  • Tuesdays: Fandango’s Story Starter
  • Wednesdays: Fandango’s Provocative Question
  • Fridays: Fandango’s Flashback Friday

I often participate in six daily prompts from other bloggers: Word of the Day Challenge, The Daily Spur, Ragtag Daily Prompt, Your Daily Word Prompt, My Vivid Blog, and E.M’s Random Word Prompt.

And I regularly participate in these weekly prompts: Song Lyric Sunday, Cellpic Sunday, What Do You See, Share Your World, Blogging Insights, The Monday Peeve, Truthful Tuesday, One-Liner Wednesday, Throwback Thursday, Thursday Inspiration, Fibbing Friday, Stream of Consciousness Saturday, and Weekend Writing Prompt.

There some monthly prompts, like Last on the Card and One-To-Three Photo Challenge, that I enjoy. And other prompts I may join in on as time and inspiration permits are some of the Mindlovemisery’s Menagerie prompts, Three Things Challenge, One Minute Fiction Challenge, Writephoto, Flash Fiction for the Purposeful Practitioner, TGIF, and Friday Fictioneers.

Do you feel that the host of a blogging challenge has any responsibility to the participants.

I try to read every response to my prompts and, time permitting, to comment on them. As to other bloggers who host prompts, it’s up to them how much they interact with those who participate in their prompts.

Talk about Mr. Linky or the Blue Frog.

I’m not a fan and don’t typically use them.

How do you feel when the host is not automatically approving your comments or pingbacks?

I personally made the choice not to moderate comments on my blog. But I think it’s up to the host of the blog to decide how to handle comments and ping