FF – Moon-Fall

June 14, 2017 77 comments

Here is my story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo was contributed by Dale Rogerson. Thanks, Dale!

That brightness in the sky is definitely an explosion, don’t you think?

Copyright Dale Rogerson

 

Cheers resounded as the sky lit up, the revellers clinking glasses in salute. Members of “Project Assured Destruction”, they had worked long and hard to realise the dream.

Antimatter.

A new source of energy. Or the most devastating weapon ever devised. So devastating, their government had elected to test-fire on the moon.

It would be days before observers noticed the change in the moon’s orbit. Weeks before the first storms hit. Months before the lucky died in blinding, super-heated fire as fragments of the moon impacted. For the remainder – the lingering, painful deaths of a freezing nuclear winter.

 

Sharing My World 2017 Week 24

June 11, 2017 26 comments

Here is my post for Cee’s Share Your World.

share-your-world2

What’s your strongest sense?
My sense of danger. Any perceived threat and I’m gone. Like spiders and such. Nasty creepy things.

Which of Snow White’s 7 dwarfs describes you best? (Doc, Happy, Bashful, Sleepy, Sneezy, Grumpy, Dopey)
The last time this question came up I invented a new one and called him Asshole.

So the original name of the Seven Dwarfs were Blick, Flick, Glick etc etc (1912 Broadway play). Eventually Disney came along and gave them the more well-known names, but in the original 1812 Grimm brothers’ story, they had no names at all!

That’s right, Wilhelm and Jacob didn’t bother naming the little guys. So as for our question, I’m going to be “Unnamed Dwarf Number Three”.

If you could be one age for the rest of your life, what age would that be?
Thirty-five. No, twenty. Or forty-six. No, wait, twelve. A hundred and two. I don’t know. Three.

List of Jobs You Think You Might Enjoy: Even if you aren’t thinking about a career change, it can be fun to think of other jobs you might enjoy. [Remember: This is SYW where even your dreams can become reality.]
Well, if it could be anything at all…

  • Fighter pilot (but just for the zooming around, not for shooting anyone down)
  • International Man of Mystery
  • Jedi Knight (but not one of the ones who was shot in the back by the treacherous Clone Army)
  • Space Explorer
  • President Supreme of the Galactic Empire of Draliman
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FF – Day of the Star Triffid Wars

June 7, 2017 65 comments

Here is my little (slightly plagiarised) story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo was contributed by Sarah Potter.

To read the other stories for this week, click on the blue froggy. The blue froggy who has upset me as he won’t allow me to upload my picture to the link-up. If anyone knows what “increase post_max_size and upload_max_filesize to 5M” means, let me know!

Copyright Sarah Potter

 

The plants ruled all, encroaching on all civilisation, their vines, tentacle-like, wrapped around human and animal alike, sucking them dry. The few humans who could still see, those who hadn’t witnessed the blinding meteor shower…”

“Whoa! That’s ‘The Day of the Triffids’. You can’t write that.”

“Okay, fine, I have another idea anyway. There’s these warriors with freaky mind powers who use glowing swords, and they’re betrayed by one of their own who gets killed by his long-lost son who grew up on planet Tartrazine…”

“Does it take place in a ‘galaxy far, far away’?”

“Hey! Stop stealing my stories!”

 

Sharing My World 2017 Week 23

June 4, 2017 21 comments

Here is my post for Cee’s Share Your World.

share-your-world2

What is the most famous landmark or building you have ever seen?
I guess it would be some of the London landmarks. The tower with Big Ben in, the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace and the like. It was many years ago, though, pre-camera phones and digital cameras and I don’t have any photos.

Do you like long vacation or lots of mini-vacations?
I prefer little holidays here and there. I have two weeks off coming up but I’ll just take one day as it comes and have little days out.

What is your favourite National or State Park?
We don’t really have state parks (not least because we don’t have states). We do have areas owned by English Heritage (a charity), The National Trust/The National Trust of Scotland (a charity) and The Forestry Commission (which would be the closest to America’s “National Parks” I guess).

Area-wise, North Wales, North and especially North-East Scotland and Cumbria are lovely. Also Dartmoor in Devon and, of course, Cornwall 🙂

Here’s a photo I took a couple of years ago in Dartmoor.

Dartmoor

And here’s North Wales.

Waterfall in Wales

A waterfall in Coed y Brenin forest park, Wales

What is your fantasy vacation?
Have I mentioned before visiting the Hobbits in New Zealand? And there’s lots more to see there too!

Categories: About draliman Tags:

FF – Charred Yet United

May 31, 2017 55 comments

Here is my story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo was provided by Karuna.

We have an election coming up in the UK next week, and I urge you guys to give this bunch a chance!

To read the other stories, click on the blue froggy.

Copyright Karuna

 

“My fur, my lovely fur, gone, gone…”

“This will not do!”

“Maybe it was an accident, Furry?”

“So little Tommy accidentally siphoned petrol out of his dad’s car, inadvertently doused us with it and then carelessly dropped a match on us? No, Cuddly.”

“What about me? My head’s all twisted backwards!”

“Indeed, Dolly. Shocking! We must take action.”

“Yeah!” broke in Cuddly. “Maim, kill, destroy!”

“No, we stand for government. We have one direction, united!”

Vote for justice for our cuddly friends. Vote Stuffed Toys – One Direction!

“Isn’t that a pop group?”

“Hush, Dolly.”

“Doesn’t that shorten to ‘STOneD’?”

Hush, Dolly.”

 

Sharing My World 2017 Week 22

May 28, 2017 29 comments

Here is my post for Cee’s Share Your World series.

share-your-world2

What one thing have you not done that you really want to do? 
Can anyone guess? That’s right. Go to Middle Zealand to see the Hobbits. There’s lots to see there too, with the two main islands and whatnot. I’d just need to be sure not to wander too close to Mordor while I’m there. It’s a 25 hour flight, thought, ‘cos it’s like a hundred thousand miles away or something.

How often do you get a haircut?
I get my hair cut every 4 weeks. Otherwise it kind of “fluffs out” from my head. It also tickles my ears 🙂

In regards to puzzle what’s your choice: jigsaw, crossword, word search or numeric puzzles?
Jigsaw, I think, followed by word search. I can’t do crosswords because I don’t know anything, and numeric puzzles make me feel ill 😦

How many cities have you lived in? You can share the number of physical residences and/or the number of cities.
If we’re talking actual “cities”, three I think. There is a handy list of cities I can refer to in the UK, fortunately, ranging from the biggies like Birmingham down to the tiniest like London. Towns are “promoted” to cities via royal charter. I don’t know what makes a city a city in the other countries I’ve lived in.

Guildford (Surrey) is a town. I’ll call Cobh (Ireland) a town as well. Welwyn Garden City (Hertfordshire) is actually a town, though it seems to be masquerading as a city. Nice try, Welwyn Garden City. Redruth (Cornwall) is a town.

Truro (Cornwall) is a city and so is Cork (Ireland) probably. I’ll call Stuttgart (Germany) a city.

Liss (Hampshire) is a village I suppose, as are Grampound Road and Carnon Downs (both Cornwall).

So that’s three cities, four towns and three villages. I think that’s all of them 🙂

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FF – Curse of the Housesitter

May 24, 2017 78 comments

Here is my little story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo was contributed by J Hardy Carroll.

After struggling the last few weeks, I had this story written within 15 minutes of seeing the photo. Doesn’t mean it’s any good, though 🙂

To read this week’s other stories, click on the blue froggy.

Copyright J Hardy Carroll

 

“Aagh! My flat! What’ve you done to my lovely home?”

“I’ve converted it.”

“Into what? A war zone? I was only away three days…”

“It’s for my art. It’s ‘Trash Chic’.”

“That isn’t a thing.”

“But it will be! Please, take a seat…”

“Aargh!”

“… not there, and take in your surroundings…”

“My ass, my ass, something stabbed me in the ass!”

“I call that piece ‘needle couch’.”

“My couch, my beautiful couch… what have you done to the bathroom?”

“Ah yes, ‘Druggie’s Toilet’. A masterpiece.”

“Oh yeah?”

Heave. Smash. Aaaargh! Thump.

“Well, I call this piece ‘Murder Window, Splattered Pavement’.”

 

Sharing My World 2017 Week 21

May 21, 2017 36 comments

Here is my post for Cee’s Share Your World series.

share-your-world2

How many languages do you you speak?
Mink bimble flibble hatstand meep meep. Snurgle McPhee mehaaaaaa.

None, evidently.

What are you reading, watching, listening to, eating?
I’m reading one of my standard urban Gothic-style books. You know the sort of thing – feisty heroine, has some sort of “banned” magic, living in secret, demons attack blah blah blah. Also “The Invisible Man” by HG Wells for my book group.

I’m watching Grimm series 5 (I think), Once Upon a Time series 6 (?) and Colony series 1 (all on Netflix). I have a few things lined up including iZombie series 3 (?). Looking forward to that! While writing this I’m watching Casualty from last night.

I’m listening to a lot of Gin Wigmore, The Pretty Reckless, Evanescence and Dragonette at the moment.

I’m eating all sorts of stuff. Mostly with hot sauce.

What was the last photo you took with your phone?
This one. I took it yesterday for my Instagram to illustrate the beauty of Spring time.

What is your favourite time of day?
Right at the beginning 🙂

Categories: About draliman Tags:

FF – Simple Food for Complicated People

May 17, 2017 86 comments

Here is my story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle. This week’s photo is from Roger Bultot.

When I saw this cafe scene I couldn’t get the last one out of my head (from Christmas) – “A Pie They Died For” – in which I murdered a whole bunch of people and ate them. That picture was by Roger as well. I wonder if this is the inside of the same cafe?

Well, I couldn’t do that again so I did something different. To read this week’s other stories, click on the blue froggy.

Copyright Roger Bultot

 

“Welcome to Just Burgers, how may I help you?”

“Hmm, I’d like cucumber with soft cheese on black bread with a side of avocado, please.”

“What is it about ‘Just Burgers’ you don’t understand?”

“Well, really!

“You know how in films there’s a bloke in the kitchen with a meat cleaver for difficult customers?”

“Yeees…”

“Well, we don’t have one of those. Or cucumbers. Only dead cows in buns. Get out. Next!”

“Hi, phew, some people, eh?”

“For sure. What can I get you?”

“I’d like goat’s cheese on rye with iceberg lettuce and a side of sashimi, please.”

“Aaargh!”

 

Categories: Fiction Tags:

Sharing My World 2017 Week 19

May 14, 2017 33 comments

Here is my post for Cee’s Share Your World.

share-your-world2

When you’re alone at home, do you wear shoes, socks, slippers, or go barefoot?
I have a battered old pair of slippers. When you vacuum as “often” as I do, barefoot is not to be recommended heh heh.

What was your favourite food when you were a child?
Yeek, that’s a long time ago to remember. I really liked a chocolate bar called “Yorkie”. Does that count as a food?

Are you a listener or talker?
I listen a lot. I can also talk a fair amount once I’m comfortable with people. With new people I keep my mouth shut until I’ve listened a lot and have sussed out what sort of people they are, their sense of humour, topics to avoid and so on.

Favourite thing to (pick one):  Photograph?  Write? Or Cook?
Do I pick one topic or do I pick one thing from each topic?

Photograph: views of nice places.

Write: flash fiction, preferably with dark/quirky humour.

Cook: I’m more a fan of eating the cooking rather than the cooking itself 🙂

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