Fred, that was a lovely piece. It has been a long time since I have lived through a real PA winter. I think I tend to romanticise it. But still you have the promise of spring. The knowledge that things will change, the rhythm offered by four season. That is not the case here. But still, this year, I have spoken with many of my friends and family members who were sorely tested by the winter of 2002/2003

I just liked the notion of the goth pilgrimage. Perhaps it is my age, but I just think they are soooo cute. Maybe not as cute as punks, but cute all the same. I always sort of wonder if they believe that they are making some sort of statement, if they think that this is new.

Neil... Neil... British bloke, right?

Yeah, I thought that was great, a goth pilgrimage to see Gaiman. Hee hee.

My idea was to compose a poem completely from the song titles of the Grateful Dead. They truly range from the sublime to the ridiculous. But I am just too tired.

I wrote Transit for you, Sharon, aside from the terrible pun, I could definitely see a Goth pilgrimage to see Neil Gaiman. Of course my information might be old, I had read somewhere that he lived in Minneapolis. Have you heard of Neil Gaiman?

Fred took mine. Or rather, I thought, "'Dead Air,' huh? I know what to write. ...And Fred's gonna have the self-same thought."

[rolls her eyes at Margaret for "transit"]

Sorry to be flaky lately. If you're wondering why, see Jon's topic: 15,000 words. 15,000 words is an ass-load of words.

Playing catch-up from yesterday, with more of an idea than a story. I still plan to write something for Ben's suggestion from last week. It seems like a good enough excuse to continue my silly "Weather Channel" film-noir story.

Playing catch-up for Sunday, too.

Hee hee; and I have fun doing it. I'm glad your posting, too, by the way. Now, to think of something with Dead Air in it...

Ben, I just want to thank you for posting so regularly. As a newbie to this whole genre, I am pretty excited about being involved. It makes me feel less self-conscious when there are other posts.

Thank you Fred. I found writing helped.

Margaret, I'm so sorry for your loss.

Thank you I will try to keep up.

Shawn is using the blog to talk to his wife. Heh heh heh... We'll order your implants shortly. Welcome to the fold.

There you are, Margaret, swapped into the rotation. Your next day will be next Friday, and then every 8th day thereafter. Yay!

I am happy to be in the rotation. I enjoy coming up with ideas that I think will invite a variety of reponses

Margaret, at the start, we made a standing rule that if the topic poster did not post a topic by noon, Central, then anyone may. So you're welcome to take today (or, nearly, anyway). And would you like to be in the rotation? I'm going to take Remi out anyway, and it's easiest, code-wise, to swap you in. You've been giving us great topics for months.

Mole mole. That what my other story was about. I had this idea of a Mother giving her kids shit about not soaking up the local culture on their Amazonian eco-tour, insisting that they try the mole on the menu and being served mole with the tails still on.

See? That's why I post first, then read later. All my ideas seem to turn into crap if I read other people's entries first. I suppose, from a point of view other than my own, the entries probably turn out as crap anyway, but hey, that's life.

*sniff* Poor kitty. I like the varied point-of-view characters you give us, Margaret. But when it comes to teeth, it is totally all about the sound for me. But I've never been drilled, so I don't know what it smells like.

Tee hee, Fred. And hey, Ben, would that make a mole of molé?

I like to choose topics that have many different homonyms. Conditioning and body are examples of such.

My favorite Great-Minds-on-the-Same-Theme moment was Mom and me on closure, or the lack thereof, posting nigh simultaneously. I learned from the best, yo.

Well maybe not so vastly different. I had a story idea about mole the sauce which I discarded after seeing Ben's post, So then went wth the mole as spy for moles the rodent, and I was feeling pretty clever about it until I read Fred's post. Oh well.

And Sharon, You were so on with the smell thing, I know for me when I go to the dentist, its not the sound of the drill, but the smell of grinding teeth.

I love that we can all have such vastly different takes on such a simple word as "mole".

Funny thing (to me) is, I have my co-worker, Sally to thank for that topic. She used my computer over the weekend, and ate a poppyseed bagel. It's disconserting, I tell ya', to find bagel crumbs on yer desk when you don't eat bagels at yer desk. OK, it wasn't funny. I'm sleepy.

It's okay, though, because they were controlling his mind. After all, they made him cite Phil Donahue!

Well, thats just icky. Oh not the rotting corpses stuff, Im down with that,
the man who wouldn't JUST WIPE OFF THE COUNTER!

God bless the internet. A Google search on Squid & Elwood turned up my post, and a fellow fan, from way back when, wrote to me. Sweet.

No, I get it, I get it. "Mow, Moo..." Yeah!

Catching up.

You see onomatopoeia MAY=may, MEE=me, MYY=my. Get it? Yeah well okay I said it didn't work.

See, the whole thing is an onomatopoeia. If you read it out loud, it both means and sounds like absolute bullshit. hee hee.

Poetry, Margaret. Thank you.

Oh ew! Excellent squick, Ben. Goosebumps. Marvelous.

My post yesterday didn't start out so Martha Stewartesque, or so icky. And I certainly don't want to encourage that particular brand of home restoration. I was looking for something about the same size as a gallon bucket of blood, however, and paint seemed like the logical choice. It's a good thing I ran out of time before I could figure out what to do with all 206 bones in the human body.

It does make the idea of a vampire draining a human body of blood in one go pretty ludicrous, however.

Sorry folks, I screwed up posting the topic. I wanted to post "pine tree". I did not see thedirections at the bottom of the page until I had already posted through blogger. I am not sure I understand what to do even if I had followed the directions. I am truly a neophyte in the virtual world.

Margaret, I'm glad you have your own persona here. "Virtual salon," I like that. ^_^ I take my mom and my visiting girlfriends to Petticoat Fair. It's the only place, in my entire life, where I have found bras that fit. I will take you sometime, if you like. Not particularly racy stuff, but well fitting is always sexy. (And in the same shopping complex is the only place that sells shoes that fit me. They cater to drag queens, so there you are. *sigh*)

I'm not sure what's up with Blythe. Margaret may get busy, but I doubt she'll get scared off...

Oh, and Fred? Ew.

Welcome to the funhouse, Margaret. Although, I should warn you, we seem to have scared off the last person to join the gang.

Hi everybody. I am Margaret, and Sharon has kindly invited to join your little virtual salon. I was going to act as a guest contributor in Shawn's absence, but I so thoroughly enjoyed the process, that I may just stay a while.

Fred, I was trying to figure out if I could work Baby Cakes in there, but didn't want to spend too much time in revisions.

Jon, I do my best.

It could always be worse, Sharon.

Y'know, no, in fact, I don't know how that was inspired by the topic, but the topic is where I started from, and the goal is to write, right? So, uh, there you are. Like something I coughed into my napkin and am now trying to ignore.

Thank you. I was reminded of <Skritch, skritch... whump! heeheehee>

[Gives Dependable Ben a gold star because he makes her happy.]

Hee hee. Corporate Campfire Tales.

May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back.

See, the difference is, you said you'd look good in muttonchops, whereas I know I'm not attractive as a woman. Actually, I'm more than comfortable with that knowledge.

Shawn, you were asking about Fred? Well, I'd say this about sums it up. (Threaten me with muttonchops, will you?)

And I feel that you've heard me.

Catching up with a melody.

It was still creepy.

You know, I thought this sounded vaguely familiar.

Can't go to a meeting without getting action items...

Things I shouldn't admit: I'd use a service like that.

Ah, I live for compliments like that. *bask*

Oh, well, actually, I was thinking Monster. Listening to that on the drive in. Toshi and I were making plans last night to go dancing, goth-style, because I want to be someone's crush, with eyeliner.

Sure you were. Not Monster.
I know you called. I can't be your alibi. Star 69.

*cough* Think phones, y'all.

Or not. But I was thinking phones.

Remember I mentioned Amelie, Shawn? My friend Keith's review is, "When I think of it, I just smile." And mine, you've heard: "It's not that I want to see it again. It's that I want to see it always."

Good flavah, Sharp.

I didn't mean a permanent change. I just thought it would be fun to give it one go-round. Let me get my feet back under me, remember what it's like to be in Texas, remember what it is I'm paid to do (and why I care...), and I'll give a thought to the logistics, taking your input here into consideration.

Hey lookee, my Starbucks punchcard is all full. Whee!