Writing Exercise: A Rainy Wednesday in Las Vegas

It is a rainy Wednesday in Las Vegas. I hear thunder rumbling. I see lightning flashing. I watch rain falling from charcoal gray clouds. I watch a breeze moving the limbs of elms and pine trees.

This is not a good day to drive through the streets of Las Vegas. It is not a good day to walk through grocery store parking lots; however, I did both today. When I left the house at 8:30 AM, to go to Smith’s Food and Drug Store, it was cloudy, but not raining. When I arrived at the store, there was still no rain, so I took my time shopping.

When I left the store, it was raining. It was a continuous and gentle rain; unfortunately, I had left my umbrella in the car. I walked through the rain, unloaded my groceries, pushed the cart to a cart corral, and then returned to my car. As I drove home, I noticed that most drivers had the headlights turned and were driving carefully. I arrived home safely and unloaded my groceries.

Saturday Traffic in Las Vegas

I went to the store to the pet store and the Ninety-Nine Cent only store this afternoon. Before I backed out of the driveway, I said a prayer of protection and it is a good thing I did. Driving in traffic was all right, all drivers were following the speed limit and driving defensively. Every driver on the road was watching what he or she was doing.

I parked in front of the pet store, went in and bought what I needed. I had someone help me load the stuff into the car. I backed out and started home and someone else almost hit me while I was driving through the parking lot. The pet store I went to is a shopping center with several other stores. The car that almost hit me was backing out of a parking place in front of one of the other stores. The car did not hit my car because my breaks worked and there was no car behind me when I put on my breaks. The driver in the car that almost hit me did not seem to notice I was there; he drove off without a look back.

I am not sure what I am going to do with this experience, other then a blog entry. I suppose I could write a poem about it. I could just as easily put in in a flash fiction story. Maybe write something from the other driver's point of view. The driver of the other car was a man, so that would be a bit of a stretch for me. Normally, when I write I use a woman's point of view and voice, but that does not mean I cannot write from a man's point of view. I am not sure how good it would be, but it would be a good writing exercise.

Write about a recurring dream

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for Friday, July 18, 2008. This is a day early, but it was the first one in the Daily Writing Practice Prompt folder, so it is the prompt I am responding to.

Write about a recurring dream

My recurring dream concerns my Grandparents' house in Blackwell, Oklahoma. In the dream Mom and I have returned to Blackwell and are staying in the house. The reason we are in Blackwell varies with the dream.



The constants in the dream are my grandparents' house, Mom and me, and the fact that we are about to leave and return to Las Vegas. Usually we are in the kitchen, but sometimes we are in one of the other rooms of the house. All the rooms look the same as they did when I was growing up.



There are usually other people in the dream. Sometimes relatives I have never met, sometimes my brothers or sister, and sometimes cousins who grew up around me. In one dream, there were even strangers who I knew in the dream, but had never met in my waking life.


In the last dream, which occurred two or three months ago, Mom and I had returned to Blackwell to attend my Grandparents' memorial service. We were getting ready to leave and had packed up everything we were taking back to Las Vegas. My cousin wanted to know what to do with the house and everything we were leaving behind. We told them to go ahead and sell the house.

The interesting thing about this dream is when it occurs. It usually occurs right before something changes in my life. The change does not have to be a change of address; it can be a situation change or a change in mental attitudes. The dream always occurs right before some type of important change in my life.

When I wanted to leave

Kamál (Perfection), 1 Jamál (Beauty), 165 B.E. – Monday, April 28, 2008 about 6:14 PM PDT

Dairly Writing Practice Prompt for April 28, 2008: Write about a time you wanted to leave but coudln't.

Times when I want to leave but cannot usually occur when I get bored, uncomfortable, or stop having fun. Boredem by a presentation or lecture is the worst. I can think of everything I could be doing at home these times. I always have a list of things I could be doing; things that are more productive then listening to a boring lecture or presentation.

I get uncomfortable when I am hungry or tired. I dislike falling asleep sitting in a chair with people on either side. When I sit up and sleep, I snore. I know I snore at these times because I wake myself up. The people on either side do not have to wake me.

A time when I wanted to leave but could not occurred several years ago when I went to a mall on Christmas Eve. I went because I needed to get a gift for some reason. It could not have been a Christmas gift because I do not celebrate Christmas. My reason for going at the time seemed important. I cannot remember why I needed the gift, perhaps a birthday present or something like that.

Anyway I got into the mall and it was crowded with last minute Christmas shoppers. I pushed my way through the crowd and realized I was not having fun shopping. I like to shop, but when I stop having fun doing it then I want to go home. Unfortunately, I could not go home until I bought the gift. I pushed my way through the crowd and finally arrived at the store. It took me an hour and a half to get to the store. It took me another hour and a half to get out of the mall. Then it took me two hours to drive through traffic. The drive is usually less then thirty minutes.

Sundays Are

Jamál (Beauty), 19 Jalál (Glory), 165 B.E. – Sunday, April 27, 2008 about 6:30 AM PDT

Journal Writing Prompt for Sunday, April 27, 2008: Sundays are...

Sundays are for planning the week ahead,
for looking at old and new goals,
for changing the changeable,
for accepting the unchangeable,
for attempting to know the difference.

Sundays are for prayer and meditation
on the important reasons for living life to the fullest
and finding ways to achieve the goal.

Sundays are for relaxing and contemplating
the little things that bring us joy and happiness.

Sundays are for proclaiming the eternal beloved,
for stopping to smell the roses,
for watching the dawn of a new day,
for acquiescing to the will of God.

Sundays are for making new decisions,
for letting go of the past,
for listening to the inner voice of happiness,
for memorizing prayers,
for eating peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches,
for trying a new breakfast cereal.

Sundays are for being alone,
for experimenting with a new recipe,
for catching up on the important things left undone
over the past week.

Sundays are for singing,
for writing letters,
for relaxing.

Caught in the Act

Kamál (Perfection), 4 Baha (Splendor), 165 B.E. – Monday, March 24, 2008 about 5:50 PM PDT

Daily writing practice prompt for March 24, 2008: Write about getting caught in the act.

Caught in the act of missing you

until I remember you last words,

then I wonder why

I ever thought I loved you.

NOTE: I think this is the beginning of something, but at the moment that is as far as this poem is going.

A Writer's Mid Week Reflections

‘Idál (Justice), 4 ‘Alá (Loftiness), 164 B.E. – Wednesday, March 5, 2008 about 3:34 PM PST

Weekly Journal Writing Prompt: Take some time to write in your journal. What's happened so far this week? Share with the list if you'd like.

I look in the mirror of the week,
I see the could haves and the should haves
I see the accomplishments and the new experiences.

I look in the mirror of the week,
I leave the should haves and the could haves unlisted
I focus on the new experiences and accomplishments
I list the new experiences and the learning which occurred.

I experienced my first chemical peel on Monday,
I learned on Monday that it takes five quarts of oil to fill an engine,
I learned on Monday that the routing code on a check
and the routing code on a deposit slip are different,
on Monday I found a penny laying face up next to my car.

Now I have to incorporate these items
into my writing and expand my learning experiences
to add more depth to my writing.

Another week of writing has passed

Jalal (Glory), 3 Mulk (Dominion), 164 B.E. - Saturday, February 9, 2008 about 8:39 AM PST

Another week of writing has passed and I completed the 5,000-word essay The Light of The World. I now have to rewrite it because I used the free write approach and just wrote my thoughts on the subject. I did put some scripture verses in to begin the thought process. That writing exercise taught me a lot about what I actually believed about the light of the world.

In doing a free write exercise, I time myself by using the clock on my computer. I give myself a time limit ranging from 5 minutes to 30 minutes to complete the writing exercise. I just write, I do not go back and correct misspellings or grammar, I just write. After the exercise is completed then I do the corrections if I feel like it, otherwise I let the piece rest a while before making any corrections.

I use Word to do the free write, but you can use any word processing program or you can write long hand in a pen and paper journal. Where the free write is done isn't important. The important thing is just to write and not think about what you are writing. It is amazing what a writer learns about him or herself when doing a free write. A person can do this exercise anywhere and anytime, as long as you have about 5 minutes to spare and a place to write.

Flash Fiction Friday: Shadows

Istiqlal (Independence), 7 Sultan (Sovereignty), 164 B.E. - Friday, January 25, 2008 about 9:59 AM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for January 25, 2008 - Shadows

Evening's shadows cast their long fingers across the valley. The western mountains seemed particularly foreboding tonight. A shiver ran up Rena's spine as she began to ascend the pass that led into the Daughter Mountains. She remembered all the stories her mother had told her about those mountains and the ancestors who passed through them on their journey to the Valley of the Lavender Lilies.

As she climbed Sarn's Pass, the shadows seemed to gather around her like fog coming in from the inland sea that washed against the Valley's southern boarder. The shadows seemed oddly protective, as if there was something beyond them that stalked her, but needed an even deeper darkness to conceal themselves. Rena instinctively knew, that whatever stalked her would wait until full darkness to attack, but she would reach the crest of the pass before the sun had completely set.

At the crest Rena took the firewood stacked beside Sarn's Mound and build a fire. She had reached the point of now return, the grave of her ancestor who had defended the fleeing tribe as they entered the Valley of the Lavender Lilies. If she did not return to the Valley at dawn, there would be no going back because none of her kin would accept her back in their midst.

"Daughter," came her mother's voice from one of the surround caves, "it's safer within the cave. Join me in my exile."

Rena added another piece of wood to the fire. A shadow that resembled her mother stepped out of a cave and beckoned to her. Responding to the shadow would only draw it closer, so Rena took a honey cake from her pack and began to eat. She ate the cake slowly as she scanned the entrance to the other caves. Apparently only one of the caves was inhabited, but Rena was not sure what dwell in the cave. She knew only that it was not her mother.

"Please, Rena, I am Jura, your exiled half-sister, join me."

At least now, Rena thought, I know what I'm dealing with.

"No, Jura," she picked up a burning log and threw it toward the shadow, "I'll not join you. Return to your chosen exile." The shadow of her half-sister fled into the cave.

Flash Fiction Friday: The Horizon

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for January 14, 2008 is write about the horizon.

Leah stood in her flower garden and watched the horizon. If anyone had ask what she saw, she couldn't have told them. There was movement as if ocean waves washed against an invisible barrier, but nothing else. Still she couldn't take her eyes off the horizon and the movement. Well, she thought, since I'm not going to get any work done, I may as well sit down.

Going onto the front porch, she sit in her grandmother's oak rocking chair. She began to rock in time with the movement on the horizon. As she rocked back and forth, back and forth, the movement changed. Now it resembled clouds gathering on the horizon and coming towards here. Clouds pushed by a mighty wind coming over the horizon and moving towards here.

Leah watched in fascination as the clouds approached her house. Lightning flashed, thunder roared and then the rain began to fall. Getting up, Leah went into the house and made herself a cup of hot tea.

Word Count = 166

Spiritual Sunday: After Midnight

Jamal (Beauty), 14 Sharaf (Honor), 164 B.E. - Sunday, January 13, 2008 about 3:23 PM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for January 13, 2008 - After midnight.

After midnight
and my midnight prayers are said;
I lay in bed listening
to the noise of the city's night.

After midnight
I hear the neighbor's dog bark,
the police copter overhead,
the squeak of brakes,
an ambulance
and sometime even gunshots.

After midnight
I feel no fear
for I have intoned the verse God
and feel the protection of the Divine.

After midnight
the hours before the dawn
the verses of faith
echo through my mind,
reverberate across the landscape
of my dreams.

After midnight
I review the days actions and decisions,
I consider where improvement is necessary
to that I can make today better then yesterday
and tomorrow better than today.

After midnight
tranquility and peace
is in the verses revealed by God.

NOTE: This is how I feel when I say and read my prayers at midnight. Even in Las Vegas, with all the noises and danger, there seems to be something spiritual about the midnight hour, when a person is alone with the sacred scriptures and a prayer book. This is just a personal feeling, but lately it seems to pertain to the events in my life.

Flash Fiction Friday: In the Middle of the Night

Istiqlal (Independence), 12 Sharaf (Honor), 164 B.E. - Friday, January 11, 2008 about 11:05 AM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for January 8, 2008:

It's what I do in the middle of the night.

Aven woke up and reached for the clock on the nightstand. Midnight, she thought taking a deep breath, another night of no sleep. She got out of bed, walked down the hall pausing at the thermostat she moved the switch up until the heat came on and then continued to the kitchen. There she opened the refrigerator door and stared at the contents.

I guess I could heat up the leftover oatmeal, maybe that and some hot chocolate will put me to sleep, before she could take the oatmeal out of the fridge, the phone ring.

Who in the right mind would be calling me in the middle of the night? Going to the phone she picked up the receiver.

A voice on the other end said, "This is Ebrad, please give me a call as soon as possible," and then hung up the phone.

Who is Ebrad, putting the receiver back in its cradle she went into the living room. That's the last time I answer the phone at midnight, the next time the answering machine can pick it up.

In the living room, she turned on the computer and waited for it to boot. Then she dialed her Internet provider. Since I can't sleep, I may as well do a few reviews. She logged into her writing.com account, clicked on a featured title and began reading the poem. Then she loaded the review tool and began to write the review.

NOTE: This is not be the most exciting piece of flash fiction I have written recently, but it is a fictional account of I do in the middle of the night.

In anticipation of the night

1 Sharaf 164 B.E. - Monday, December 31, 2007 about 12:37 PM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for December 31, 2007 - In anticipation of the night

I would be nice if I could do something in anticipation of the night. I'd like to plan to go outside and look at the stars, however the light pollution is so bad here in Las Vegas that you can't see any stars.

If you're going to plan something in anticipation of the night, December 31 is a good day to do it. Tonight the whole country will commemorate the end of 2007 and celebrate the beginning of 2008. I'm looking forward to 2008 both as a writer and a woman. 2007 was not a good year for me so 2008 has to be better. I'm not making any resolutions right now though. I don't make my New Year's Resolutions until Naw-Ruz (March 21) because that's when I celebrate a New Year.

In anticipation of the night all the casinos in town are planning New Year's parties. So this should be a good night to stay home. I enjoy crowds as long as I'm having fun, but I don't consider the way New Year's is celebrated as fun. I prefer to stay home and watch the celebration on T.V. or get online and write. So this afternoon, I'm going to go out and get some things I need for dinner tomorrow. I also need to get a filter for the central air.

I think I'll start 2008 off by either going to sleep early or doing reviews on writing.com. I do know I don't want to get out tomorrow. Nothing is open on January 1 except some malls, grocery stores and the casinos here. I'm going to stay home and enjoy my house, work online or write.

My Name is Prosperous Snow

My online handle at writing.com is Prosperous Snow. I chose this handle because it is the meaning of my middle and first name. Snow is the local meaning of Neva, it refers to the high snow capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains.

I use Prosperous Snow at local poetry reading. True I haven't been to a poetry reading in a while, but that is going to change in 2008. I need to feed my muse with more then just online reviews and reading other people's poetry on writing.com.

In the past eleven weeks, I've written several new poems. I entered two December challenges. One challenge called the Twelve Days of Christmas used the gifts given in the song as prompts. Several of the entries were poems. The other challenge called Stretch Your Style and I have to write poems in specific forms. It has two more weeks left in the Stretch Your Style Challenge.

When I do start going back to open mic readings I'm gong to have a lot of new poems to read. I'm looking forward to the first reading I attend. There are several different reading in Las Vegas. Despite opinions to the contrary this town isn't devoid of culture, you just have to search for it.

Write about Masks

7 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Tuesday, December 18, 2007 about 1:45 PM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for December 18, 2007 - Write about Masks.

The mask of night hides
the beauty revealed by dawn's first light,
while the mask of day
conceals the rainbow hues of distant stars.

The masks of civilization
hides the primitive individual
that dwells within the human being.

We all wear mask to conceal
our true selves,
we wear masks because we fear;
we wear masks to hide our differences
or the conceal our sameness;
we wear masks and fear the masks removal.

NOTE: This is as far as I've gotten on this poem and I'm still not sure of a working title.

I Dyed my hair red once

6 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Monday, December 17, 2007 about 4:20 PM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for December 17, 2007 - Write about a red headed woman.

I was a red headed woman once. I dyed my dark brown hair red, actually I had someone else dye it. I went to a beauty parlor and said I wanted red hair. The beautician explained that for my hair look good red, he would have to bleach it then dye it. I said "Go ahead."

That was one of those things I did on the spur of the moment without thinking about the consequences. Only when my hair started growing out did I realize the difficulty and the expense. In order to keep my red hair I'd have to go in every four to six weeks have the roots bleach and then dyed red. At that point I realized that while I might like red hair, I didn't like the idea of having the roots bleach and then the hair dyed.

I let the hair grow out, but I wrote a poem about it. I've decided that if I want to be a red head again, I'll buy a wig. At sixty, going on sixty-one, I'm waiting for my hair to go completely gray. That way I can be a blond or a red head without doing more then going in and having it dyed without having it bleached first. That's one of the advantages of having gray hair, you can have it dyed any color you want without a lot of difficulty.

I Miss the Winter Constellations

16 Qawl 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 8, 2007 about 11:34 AM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt - Write about Winter Constellations.

I miss the winter constellations of my childhood. Growing up in Oklahoma I could go out in my grandparents front yard on a December night and see the stars. I never did learn the names of the constellations, when I went to collage I took an astronomy course. I could never associate the constellations in the sky with the way the charts revealed them.

The only constellations I ever learned to identify was the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper. The rest were just a group of stars shining on a December night. Not being able to identify the winter constellations doesn't make me miss them any the less. The light pollution in and around Las Vegas prevents me from seeing the stars. Sometimes I can see Venus, but seeing the stars is a different story.

Even when I go out in my front yard and look straight up, I never see the Big Dipper or the Little Dipper. I see Venus and sometimes one of the other planets, but never the stars. I'd really love to get far enough outside the city so that I could see the stars, but with gas prices the way they are and my car needing some work it'll be a long time before I can drive that far out of Las Vegas.

Winter Constellations shine
in my childhood's black velvet sky.

Wednesday, Midweek Reflections

14 Qawl 164 B.E. - Wednesday, December 5, 2007 about 5:51 PM PST

Wednesday is midweek reflections day on the yahoo journal writing group I'm a member of. The exercise is to sit down and write in your journal about what happened so far this week. I like this exercise because it allows me to look back at the three proceeding days and find lessons learned. I begin each paragraph in the exercise with "So Far this week..."

So far this week I've learned never to question that God answers prayers. Sometimes those answers come in a miraculous way, but most of the time they occur through ordinary happenings. Never question that prayers receive answers because when you do you prevent yourself from seeing the answer.

So far this week I've realized that I can't do everything. When I have to do more then normal the idea is to do what can be done in a day and finish the rest the following day. Everything eventually gets, done and if it don't, what will the effect be in say 10,000 years.

So far this week I've learned to let go and let God. One of those irritating sayings that everyone gives you at sometime. Even if they don't use those words we know the paraphrase for those words and hear the phrase in our minds rather than the words said.

The proper way to refuse an invitation

10 Qawl 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 1, 2007 about 5:00 PM PST

Daily writing practice prompt for 12/1/07: Write about an invitation refused.

"There are two ways to refuse an invitation," said Lisa studying the wedding invitation in her right hand. "This one is for your Aunt Rita's wedding," she glanced at Gina, who lay in her bassinet giggling at her mothers voice. "We, of course, are not going and we're not sending a gift. At least, not a wrapped expensive gift."

Laying the invitation on the desk, Lisa reach over and stroked her daughter's baldhead. "How do I refuse this invitation, without insulting your aunt and having to send an expensive gift?"

The doorbell ring and picking up the baby, Lisa went to the door. Looking through the peephole, she smiled when she saw the UPS delivery man. Opening the door, she signed for the packaging and had him sit in inside the front door.

"It's for you sweet one, it's from your gramma and granpa."

Going back to the desk, she lay the baby down and pick up a fountain pen. "I think I'll tell your Aunt that we are going to my high school reunion. The reunion is across the country from your Aunts wedding and I don't have to deal with question concerning your father's release."

NOTE: This is a short example of Flash Fiction. I think I need more conflict and a bit more description.