The arts fest was already crammed with people. In too narrow aisles, people ambled slowly past the booths, stopped at unpredictable moments. Suddenly the place was filled with classrooms of kids—3rd or 4th graders, from the look of them.

I squeezed my way between a platoon of children, thinking this place is full of kids. A girl passing in the opposite direction said to her classmate, “This place is full of old people.”

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “great minds . . . “

Mia leaned against the wall, the unpainted cinder blocks scratchy against her back. She brushed sweat from her eyes with dirty fingertips. Lily perched on the edge of her cot, keeping what little air there was circulating on her skin.

“I wish we had a hot dog,” Lily said, “and an ice cream soda.”

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “I wish.”

The cat purrs in my face.
I brush her from the bed.
The cat comes back.
I elbow her away.
The cat comes back.
Go ‘way, I say.
The cat comes back.
I turn over, hide.
The cat comes back.
I give up, climb out of bed.
The cat: victorious.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “morning routine.”

You have to be taught to love and hate.
Love thy neighbor.
Love one another.
Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.
The love you get is equal to the love you give.
With liberty and justice for all.

Anything else is hate, actually.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “Hate, Actually.”

The colors of fall are beautiful without enhancement. Even so, the sun plays tricks by moving low in the Southern sky to light up the fall colors from the side. The low sun illuminates the individual leaves of the trees from a new angle. The shadowy intensity of summer’s overhead glare is gone. Wheeling around the sun at a tilt offers unexpected benefits.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “low sun” or on some topic suggested by the photo.

The oyster said to the crab one day, “Have you seen anyone else here in the bay?”

“Not for a long time,” the crab replied. “Everyone in my family is gone. I’m glad to find you. I haven’t had a chat in ages.”

“Me, too,” said the crab. “You know I heard that we have to wait for something called a politician for things to get better.”

“Really? I need to find a politician and have a chat. Are they good listeners?”

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “the bay.”

Writer Chimamanda Adichie talked at a TED Conference about the danger of a single story. Adichie describes how we form stereotypes based on knowing a single story about a people or a place. She describes herself as a storyteller and has written 3 novels. Since hearing her talk, I try to identify the single story that we hear from the media. The single story of American TV. The single story of American history. The single story of pop culture. It’s a scary but enlightening line of thought.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “a single story.”

If someone really wanted to get to know me, they could read the daily trivia that dumps from my brain on this blog–every post way back to the beginning. Other places where I write are technical or journalistic or professional. This blog is just crap out of my head. The stuff that falls from your ears early in the morning is so revealing it’s almost scary.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “get to know me.”

Thanks for Joared from Along the Way for her kind words about this blog. A wonderful surprise!

Election Day was coming. I liked Ike. Well, my parents liked Ike. So I liked Ike. My friend Judy, a member of the only Jewish family in my small town, liked Stevenson. She was passionate about Stevenson. I was happy when Eisenhower won. Looking back, I think Judy was right to support a liberal Democrat. The older I get, the more liberal I become.

Please leave a comment with your first 50 words on the topic “election day.”