Author Thursdays: Writing Exercise – I Like to Do it in Groups

by in Author Thursdays


I like to do it in groups*


“1, 2, 3” Riz said as he stuffed first one, then a second and finally a third plump marshmallow in succession into his mouth. “Four. Five. Fix” He continued, shoving them in.
“You’ll never make it.” Jerry stated, his arms crossed as he watched Riz reach into the open bag of mallows.
“Fuf Waf Me.” Riz revealed creamy snowmen teeth. He found another and was able to cram it into his grin.
“Hey Riz. Poopsicles!” Cried Jerry.
Marshmallows flew like bullets as Riz began to laugh, the ends of his mouth crinkling up enough to let the horde of sticky mallows loose.
“Aw, man!” Wailed Riz.
“Told you so.” Crowed Jerry. “Watch a pro. I like to do it in groups. You can get more in that way.”
With the air of an expert Jerry grabbed two of the marshmallows and popped them into his mouth, savoring the sugary coating as he scrunched the two as far back as he could without swallowing.
Jerry gave a wink at Riz and grabbed two more and popped those in as well.
“You gotta get 8 to beat me.” Riz reminded Jerry.
Jerry did not even bat an eye but grabbed marshmallows number five and six. In they went but there was almost no space left.
A trickle of sweat beaded on Jerry’s forehead and made its way down into his mouth, mixing salt and sweet together. Jerry paid no attention but grabbed another grouping of marshmallows. This time he held three. His eyes narrowed and he lined up the mallows with his mouth and then half chomped them in and half pushed them in until his lips barely contained the new additions to his collection.
“Aha” He cried triumphantly, the sound echoing from somewhere distant inside his mouth. He had done it! 9 marshmallows.
“Ya gotta finish.” Riz cajoled before cries of “Do it! Do it! Do it!” He pounded a fist in the air. Cheering on his friend. He had wanted to win but seeing his friend trying to chew while 9 air-puffed mallows sifted around inside was winning enough.

Jerry managed to find a mallow with his teeth and bit down, the others shlooping to fill up all the empty space left, which wasn’t much and his eyes teared a bit as it took everything he had to keep from spilling them all out again. Slowly but surely, Jerry found more room to chew and his saliva melted down the mallows enough so that he was able to finally lick the last bit of goo from the roof of his mouth in triumph.


*From a SnoValley Writes Workshop

Toiling Tuesdays: An Observation on Getting New Jobs

by in Toiling Tuesdays and tagged ,

I have heard both ends of the stick on being able to get a new job, one being that it is easy and you only have to try and the other being there are none and you can’t seem to get an offer (or even an interview!)

Being able to get a job is like being able to follow a new recipe, at least the way I do it. The first time following the recipe I sub ingredients, I only partially follow directions and it never turns out how I want it to (I don’t get the interview or the job because I don’t properly prepare or style my resume to highlight my relevant experience and expertise). The second time I only sub ingredients I know can be subbed and I follow all the directions I’ve newly found to be important after flubbing up the first time. The produced effort is rewarded with a decent reward (or a half dozen interviews). The third and subsequent times you throw a spin on the recipe to make it your own so it caters to your own tastes (this is when you are so confident in yourself that you get the job!).