Posted in Prompts

Camping

Daily writing prompt
Have you ever been camping?

I grew up camping. I loved camping. It all started when my grandparents bought a travel trailer and a tent. They made plans with my parents at various times during the summers to go camping together. I’m from Michigan, USA originally, and in that state there are campgrounds everywhere. The coastal line along the Great Lakes provided many many campgrounds, which we frequented, and the inland lakes provided the same.

My favorite campground was at Lake Charlevoix up near Petoskey, Michigan. That would be the northwest part of the state along the coast of Lake Michigan. The emerald green and sometimes turquoise color of the water was breathtaking. While there, we went to the beach and looked for Petoskey stones (hence the name of the city). Other activities we did were fishing, swimming, hiking, riding bikes, exploring, and other kinds of interesting activities kids love to do. Eventually, our cousins went with us, which made the experience all that more fun.

Now that I am older, I don’t want to camp. The reason for that feeling has nothing to do with anything negative from my childhood experience of it, though. I have those cherished memories tucked in my heart. I guess I outgrew it and am on to other things now.

Posted in Social

The Observer

Photo by Yunus Tuu011f on Pexels.com

I love hot air balloons, yet I’ve never been up in one. I am afraid of heights, yet I would go up in one of these in a heart beat. The opportunity never presented itself. Just think about how quiet it must be up there. You’d be able to look down and wonder, letting your imagination go. Maybe you are going through some stressful times and need to get away from everything. This would be a great way to do that. Hiking is another fun activity to help one relax. Here again, I’ve never been hiking. Not really. I have friends who do and they send back some fabulous pictures of their trips. There’s so much so see in this world, not just here in America. Get out and live life. Enjoy the beauty it has to offer, whether you’re on the ground or up in a balloon.

Posted in Social

A Cruise Apart

Posted in Social

Yaquina Head Lighthouse

Posted in Social

American Golden Finch

Posted in Social

What Lies Beyond

Posted in Writing

Writing Is a Journey

Posted in Fiction

Real Life with a Twist

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

You are up in the mountains hiking with a friend. Along your path you come across a lone pint size milk carton. You’re a fiction writer, and you’re looking for ideas for another story but coming up with zilch. The hike in the mountains you feel will do you some good and perhaps get the wheels of creativity going. The milk carton accomplishes this goal as soon as you see it. It’s as if an electric spark shocked that story center of the right side of your brain. In an instant, your mind has a ‘What if scenario in place.

What if the milk carton had drops of blood on it, and the blood belonged to someone who vanished without a trace 50 years ago? The blood is fairly fresh too.

In reality, the milk carton is just a milk carton and it most likely belonged to another hiker. They finished the milk and didn’t want to take the carton with them, so they left it there. BOOM. That’s it. BUT, what you did with yourwhat ifscenario is put a twist on reality. That’s what fiction does. I love to put a creative spin on things. It makes life interesting.