All posts tagged: Australia

Fiction Friday: Final part of short story “Roadside”

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Hello All, time for the final part, yay. It’s Fiction, so feel free to skip this post if that’s not yer thing! This piece won tiny accolades in several small writing competitions here in Australia, although it’s a few years old now. PART ONE is here, and PART TWO here, so please read first. A few readers commented that they’d prefer a longer read, to sink into it, so I decided to post a long one, rather than make it another two posts… I hope you enjoy it, and thanks so much for reading! In gratitude for words, G xO    “Roadside”- Final part ‘I can’t believe we have to find a way to live through this.’ She pulls at leaves that want to tickle her shoulder. ‘And I am a nightmare.’ A twig is snapped. ’You don’t deserve this.’ A cluster of leaves is wrenched and dropped, with fresh tears. Around their homemade seat, the plants in her garden push back attempts to contain them. A palette of colours ramble. Daisies nudge native grasses, …

Teenage Tuesday: Sharing the bathroom cabinet

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Him: Mum, I really need to cleanse and do a facial; my skin feels dirty from all the pollution… [after one week in Sydney] LATER [having worked his way systematically through a variety of my locally-made, organic skin-care products] Him: Feel my face now, how soft is it hey? I don’t like the smell of all your creams though; they actually smell of nothing, but in a health food store kinda way  

Fiction Friday: Part Two of short story “Roadside”

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  Hello All, time for Part Two, yay. It’s Fiction, so feel free to skip this post if that’s not yer thing! This piece won tiny accolades in several small writing competitions here in Australia, although it’s a few years old now. PART ONE is here, so please read it first. Then let me know what you think, G xO    “Roadside”- Part Two ‘Don’t touch him! And don’t touch me! I hate you!’ Blowing the lid off her temper, Lucy pushes past Eris. She shoves open the kitchen screen door, and slams out into the garden. Her exit seems trailed by black vapour that sucks energy out of her husband. ‘I can’t fucking believe you’re hassling me about this. Isn’t it hard enough already?’ she yells from the lawn. He can hear the tears catching round her words, and hurries with arthritic knees toward the door. ‘Stay away from me, Eris, I mean it. Leave me alone.’ Her command whips between strands of hair as she runs out the garden gate. ‘I’m a nightmare.’ …

Teenage Tuesday: Feedback on new, ‘dumb’ mobile phone

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Me: So how’s it going with your new, internet-free phone Honey? My blog readers loved it! They’re very proud of you; we have “Teenage Tuesday” now, so they’re all up to date on you. Him: [*smirks and rolls eyes, but obviously kinda pleased] PAUSE Him: [*staring at me in a way that I know means he’s up to something…] You know Mum, if ever you ‘monetize’ your blog, I want 50%. Oh, and that’s backdated, OK.

Fiction Friday/Me Monday combined: Part One of short story “Roadside”

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Hello Everyone, I hope you had a lovely relaxing weekend? I’m offering you some Fiction here, so feel free to skip this post if that’s not yer thing! This piece won tiny accolades in several small writing competitions here in Australia, although it’s a few years old now. It’s too long for a single post though, so I’m going to split it into parts, then link them together each week. Let me know what you think, G xO    “Roadside”- Part One Lucy’s silver waterfall hair tilts when she moves. The tiny peace badge on her jumper glints. She leans like a rusty hinge to stroke the cat, book forgotten. Elegant fingers smooth the purring animal. She always wears gloves when gardening, and marinates in moisturiser every night. Like Cleopatra, she wishes she could bathe in milk. She knows she looks good for her age, but still bristles against seeming ‘invisible’ to anyone under thirty. She can remember wearing miniskirts, and going braless to parties, brave and ready for the freedoms the new birth control …

Me Mondays: Blood Into Ink #MeToo Writing Contest Honorable Mention: bone&silver/#MeToo

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Originally posted on Whisper and the Roar:
Why had my cousin rung me 5 times in thirty minutes? I returned my phone to airplane mode, and pushed open the classroom door. But during the lesson, my attention kept being pulled back to the call record, even while I taught; why was my stomach knotting? The one hour dragged like mud, then I pressed redial. ‘It’s your Dad. He had a heart attack in Hawaii and…’ And is in hospital. Is fine. Will be fine. Or confined to a wheelchair at worst. ‘… and he died. I’m so sorry.’ Who took my knees away and punched me in the gut? Can I just curl up here and die on the street too? A passing cyclist wobbles and stops. ‘Are you OK?’ No. Yes. No. I can’t share this pain with you, leave me alone! Lying in bed that night, alone at home, with a silent waterfall streaming out of my eyes, drowning all those childhood snaps of kids on bikes, throwing snowballs, cuddling dogs. A black…

I’m back, Happy New Year, and let’s make a skeleton for this blog

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Hello Beloved Readers, and Happy 2018! I’ve missed you, but it was wonderful to give myself permission to unplug, letting the blog world responsibilities slide for a few days… And now I’m tip-toeing back, with a relaxed smile on my face. For I’ve survived another Christmas season. Every year I feel my anxiety start to climb mid-December, then welcome a huge sense of relief once the actual day is done. I think it’s inherited; somewhere there’s a classic family photo from the 80’s of 3 generations of us, opening presents on a dull English Xmas morning, while literally everyone looks grumpy. I was very Australian on Dec 25: I went to the beach, slathered in sunscreen, and swam in crystal aqua water. My 2 friends and I sat in shade under trees, pledging to continue dismantling Capitalism & Patriarchy in 2018, then went home to siesta, because it’s so exhausting. New Year’s Eve was way more fun, mostly because I had my first one off for YEARS. Usually I’m on stilts somewhere, adding to the atmosphere, …

Performing as a silent Golden Angel, trying to remind everyone to be Kind, Present, and full of Empathy #over50 #theatreperformer #empathy #kindness @boneAndsilver @brenébrown

For your Dec 25, ease up on the presents- just Be Present

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  Hello dearest Readers, where some of us are already well into Xmas Eve, while some of you are still waking up into the beginning of it (time zones still amaze/confuse me). I just wanted to share my one wish for this upcoming holiday season of both celebration and stress for many of us (I’ve never been a big Xmas fan, sorry). Yesterday, as part of my performing work, I was a Golden Angel, walking on stilts in a local mall. The place was packed, with so many folk rushing from shop to shop, clutching handfuls of stuffed plastic bags, or wheeling whole trolleys full of them. Slowly we walked along, smiling without speaking, merely ringing a tiny bell. And I was doing my goddam hardest to project and inspire Kindness, Care, Empathy, and Love. I know gifts are fun, and can be meaningful symbols of love and connection; but don’t forget how valuable it is to have a truly deep meeting of minds and souls with your family members, especially if you don’t see …