The Midnight Creeper — Writing Prompt #25

My first college roommate's name was Charlene. We were "friends" in the sense that we occasionally talked, if she were in a good mood. There were sometimes long stretches of no communication or interaction with one another if she was in one of her bad moods. Maybe a better way to describe our relationship is that we occasionally got along and otherwise stayed aloof. Is there a term for that? We only stayed roommates for my freshman year so it wasn't too big a deal.

Wait…You mean I CAN lie? — Writing Prompt #24

Every kid learns the same thing — lying is never okay. Right? I think it's a pretty universal lesson we all learned...and then at some point had to unlearn. Writing Prompt: When did you first realize that maybe it IS better to lie sometimes...despite what you'd always been taught?

Winnie the Pooh band-aids — Writing Prompt #22

When we got hurt as little kids, there were different tiers of accidents. The accidents involving the least amount of pain were covered with the cheap, boring tan band-aids, and then the animated band-aids were saved for bigger bumps and scrapes. And then of course there were the toilet paper and medical tape band-aids that my dad liked to make for us when we were out of the real thing, but that has nothing to do with today's story.

Child labor laws aren’t real — Writing Prompt #21

My family's favorite set of cousins lived in upstate New York. If you've ever been there you know it's the total opposite of what most people think when they imagine the big NY. You can drive hour-long stretches where the stench of cow manure fills your nostrils, and when I was little, I believed that only the hardiest of people can say they appreciate such a raw, earthy scent. Now I know it just reeks.

Meeting Alex November 2013, Part 2 — Writing Prompt #20

This is a continuation of Meeting Alex - Part 1. These stories of how we met are important to me. I like to remember pivotal experiences of my life with as much detail as I can remember. So even though it's been long enough (5 years) that I've forgotten a lot of the little or (at the time) insignificant details, I want to write down what I can manage to remember!

Meeting Alex November 2013, Part 1 — Writing Prompt #19

There are a few stories I never want to forget the details on, though I wish I wrote the back when they were still fresh. I'd have so many more details than I remember now, but better late than never! One of the stories I want to remember is the first day I met my husband in person (we met online).

Sock Mittens — Writing Prompt #18

Last winter I found these beautiful mittens at TJMaxx while shopping for something else. They were made with a thick blush pink yarn on the outside and lined with the softest plush material for extra warmth on the inside. I don't know how many people know this about me, but I rarely feel okay purchasing something totally on a whim.

When have you acted out of character? — Writing Prompt #16

My father chose to heat our house with a wood stove in the basement, rather than the conventional American heating method. I know — you and everyone else thinks I was Amish growing up. Other than the belief system part of it, you wouldn't be that far off. Using a wood stove, however, meant that every summer my family spent a lot of time down by our shed chopping logs for the winter months. Man, the more I type this and start throwing out phrases like "winter months", the more I'm starting to think we really were Amish.

Memorable Dreams — Writing Prompt #13

I've never paid much attention to my dreams, except for the short phase in my teens when I was having nightmares of people trying to kill me using various — let's just say "interesting" — methods. That was an odd stretch of time, and fairly inexplicable. I wasn't that much of an angsty teenager I don't think.

My (not recommended) at-home piercing experience — Writing Prompt #12

Have any of you watched the new Parent Trap? Wait, not new — it's, like, twenty years old. But of the two Parent Trap films, it's the newer one, with young Lindsay Lohan. In it, one of the Lindsays gets her ears pierced by her sister-twin at camp. I decided to be that Lindsay, only with my cartilage instead.