February 2013 Blg Chain: Under the Bed

 

Tweet of the Day: 10 Greatest Science Fiction Board Games of All Time

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Another month, another Absolute Write blog chain. This time is write about whatever the person before you tells you to write. No really, it is. Not in a mean way, mind you. They suggest a topic and you do the best to write about it. Here are the “official” rules:

Starting Date: Monday, February 4, 2013
Open to all forum members, even after it starts!

This month’s prompt:
Suggest-A-Prompt

We have so many good prompt ideas that don’t get used, so it’s now time to mix it up. Posters get to suggest a prompt for the next blogger in line! I’ll step in and sort things out if the prompts are too arcane or obscure. Be sure to list the prompt and credit the suggester in your post.

Since I’ll be going first, my prompt will be handled differently: the first person to join the chain gets to suggest my prompt.

Instructions:
Simply post your blog’s URL in this thread to join. Each post should be less than 1000 words if possible. Read and comment on other participants’ posts if you possibly can–they’ll be doing the same for you!

So unto my entry, a short little story about things under our beds!

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According to my wife, we were blessed with two boys: Charlie age four and Samson age two. Charlie was a rumbustious, inquisitive, drive my parents up the wall with a million questions type of kid and Samson was about the same, except with barks instead of words. Samson was our German Shepherd. Playtime between the two involved a lot of running around, uproarious laughter and the odd howling chorus.

Best Friends Forever material and Samson went out of his way to prove it.

One night Charlie came into our bedroom scared witless. He swore something was under his bed. I did the dad thing and check and re-checked, even stayed up until he finally fell asleep. But Charlie didn’t complain about it after that. The answer to how Charlie overcame his fears appeared on Saturday morning.

“Daaaad! DAAAAAaaad!”, screamed Charlie from his bedroom upstairs.

“What is it, son?” I replied with a weariness that comes from being a father at seven in the morning on a Saturday.

“He won’t come out,” said Charlie.

“Who won’t–” a tan furred tail poked from under Charlie’s bed. It wagged furiously at the sound of my voice. “Oh, I see. Okay Charlie, go downstairs and get the doggy trea-” Samson bolted from under the bed and raced Charlie downstairs.

“I swear that dog is too smart for my own good,” I said to an empty room.

It turned out that Samson, our gigantic furry beast, took it upon himself to guard Charlie’s sleep.

Nine years latter Samson died.

The year after that my wife died as well.

Charlie and I went through a rough patch. We lost someone we loved at a time we needed them the most. But somehow we muddled through. Then on the Charlie’s first visit from college he brought a visitor. Not a girlfriend but a pup named Goliath.

“They say that owning a pet extends your life, dad. Besides, he needs two walks a day and,” he pointed at my belly, “you need the exercise.”

So Goliath became my new friend.

He even slept in my room.

Under my bed.

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Participants and posts:
orion_mk3 – http://nonexistentbooks.wordpress.com (link to post) Yuppies Who Hate the Family Business
ConnieBDowell – http://bookechoes.com/ (link to post) Unexpected Library Encounter
bmadsen – http://hospitaloflife.wordpress.com/ (link to post) Cupcake Disaster
MsLaylaCakes – http://www.taraquan.com/ (link to post) Unfortunate Sports
HistorySleuth – http://historysleuth.blogspot.com/ (link to post) Less-than-fortunate Foods
writingismypassion – http://charityfaye.blogspot.com/ (link to post) Blind Date with a Ventriloquist
katci13 – http://www.krystalsquared.net/ (link to post) Evil Cupid
KitCat – http://twilightasylum.wordpress.com/ (link to post) Hunting with Hounds
Angyl78 – http://jelyzabeth.wordpress.com/ (link to post) A Ghost’s Bad Day
randi.lee – http://emotionalnovel.blogspot.com/ (link to post) The Wrong Bar
Lady Cat – http://carolsrandomness.blogspot.ca/ (link to post) Visitors
pyrosama – http://matrix-hole.blogspot.com/ (link to post) What the Leprechaun Said
Ralph Pines – https://ralfast.wordpress.com/ (link to post) Under the Bed
dclary – http://www.hardhobbittobreak.com/ (link to post) Topic
meowzbark – http://www.lizzylessard.com/ (link to post) Topic
SRHowen – http://srhowen1.blogspot.com/ (link to post) Topic

Bumped:
Amanda R. – http://www.twoamericansinchina.com/ (link to post) Topic
Briony-zisaya – http://fantasywriterwannabe.wordpress.com/ (link to post) Topic
CatherineHall – http://theelephantinthetemple.blogspot.com/ (link to post) Topic

And the new prompt is? “Warm kitty, soft kitty, evil ball of fur….”

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