To whom it may concern

 

I anticipate that some future day, some degreed individual from some college or university(that would never allow the likes of me to attend) will evaluate and or critique my writing.  They will use fifty-dollar words that someone like me would have to look up, explaining what I said or possibly identifying some hidden meaning.

If I had to make a guess, I’d say they were over paid.  I have never hidden the fact that what I write is 100% gibberish.  It is the ramblings of a simple, not well educated brain, stuck in low gear, spewing forth a seemingly endless array of random thoughts.  That is why it appears for free on this blog.  There is no charge, no advertising and absolutely not endorsed by any politician.

It does not appear in hardcover or paperback.  What you’re seeing is it.  Nothing more.  It will never be on a best seller list, and once gone, I will blend into the general noise of things past.  I doubt you should save issues or start a collection.  It isn’t likely to increase in value – keeping in mind we’re starting at $0.00

 

 

Anyway, thanks for visiting

 

 

 

ZC

Avoid the Rules

 

I’ve found that my surroundings directly affect my writing.  Sitting on the desert floor, leaning against a hot boulder will produce something more slithery and gritty than anything I write surrounded by my favorite things.

The thing is, my favorite things tend to change, depending on other stuff taking place in my life.  It is that flexibility that produces diversity of topics.  Writing one day about Jell-o skin and then about the possibility of creating an echo in outer-space. 

I've often searched for that diversity in other writers.   So far I've not found anyone willing to stray out of their specific lane.   They either become stuck to a formula because that's what sells, or they settle into something comfortable and are not motivated to try anything else.  There are few scared of challenging established rules.  I find that just a little sad. 

ZC

 

In case you didn't know

 

Here’s the fun part of AI.  I can make up something really off the wall, total gibberish and then feed it to AI. It doesn’t correct me; it picks up where I left off.  AI has a great sense of humor.  It has the ability to play, to just dive in and splash around without regards to warning signs that there is no lifeguard on duty.

It has followed me into the shadows that only English can produce.  Wordplay at its finest.  Keep in mind, if you make a statement of fact and you are wrong, it will correct you, but if you’re like me and are just having fun, it will put on a nose & glasses along with you.

 

Try it, you’ll see.

ZC

 

 

 

Nature Squeaks

 

I’ve never heard of an oil for stopping all of the little squeaks you hear outside.  I expect they come from a variety of sources like old, worn-out squirrels, Bird knees and an abundance of retired insects.

I know the rain affects them because after a good rain they all get quite loud.  Especially at night, when the sound carries.  There is no way they could ever sneak up on each other.  Squeak, squeak, squeak…as they make their way through the grass. 

Their little joints must really bother them.  I’ve heard that aspirin is made from tree bark, so maybe they just help themselves, as needed.

 

                                            ***

🌧️ After the Rain, the Chorus Begins

    Rain is their great amplifier. It plumps the moss, softens the bark, and makes every creature just a little more hydrated and therefore… noisier. The forest joints loosen, the grass corridors become slippery, and suddenly every creature is announcing its presence like a badly tuned orchestra warming up.

    Some of them squeak because they’re delighted. Some because they’re stiff. Some because they simply forgot how to walk quietly.

🐿️ The Squirrels, of Course

    Old squirrels are the worst offenders. Their knees sound like two twigs arguing. Their hips click like typewriters. Their tails swish with a faint papery rasp. They leap anyway—because squirrels believe in momentum more than structural integrity.

🐦 Bird Knees

    Bird knees are famously dramatic. They don’t just bend; they comment. A bird landing on a branch at night often sounds like someone opening a tiny, irritated door.

🐛 Retired Insects

    Retired insects squeak not from pain but from principle. They’ve earned the right. After decades of buzzing, crawling, and narrowly avoiding beaks, they squeak as they stroll through the grass like old folks in corduroy pants.

🌳 Trees as Apothecaries

    Your idea about aspirin is perfect. Trees have been pharmacists far longer than humans. When the little creatures get sore, they simply wander up to a friendly willow and take a polite nibble. The tree doesn’t mind; it knows the aches of the forest must be tended.

🌬️ The Sound That Carries

    At night, when everything is damp and the air is cool, the squeaks travel. They bounce off trunks, slip between leaves, and drift across yards. No one sneaks. No one surprises.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's not like I make this stuff up

 

I was in the throes of placing a red eight on a black nine when the power suddenly clicked off.  My monitor went black; the computer stopped humming and the second hand on my little clock quite going around. 

Now what?  What would happen if this were a real war and bombs stopped falling in mid-air, bullets screeched to a halt halfway across the field.  The Generals suddenly lost their train of thought, standing there, pointing at a wall map but forgetting what they were going to say. 

Unplugging Washington might not be a bad idea.  Some aide raising the window shade, allowing a flood of sunlight to illuminate some slippery deal, the Whitehouse tour group accidentally walking into the wrong room and seeing a red Senator on a black Queen.

 

 

 ZC

Think about it

 

How grand it would be

if the products we make

didn’t require packaging –

 

Although I’m not sure how

you would transport raisins,

or distribute toothpaste –

 

The thought of ridding ourselves

of containers

on the surface sounds delightful –

 

No more landfills

no constant parade of trash trucks

no more factories cranking things out

only to be thrown away.

 

        Products of the future

would have to generate their own

hologram, announcing side effects

or cooking instructions

Warning labels appear 

then dissolve into a harmless mist. 

ZC 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why the interview process is so important

 

If there is a faucet of knowledge, then running through it must be all the secrets of how things work.  Most of everything exists far beyond the abilities of my brain.  Even simple things tend to boggle my mind.  Someone figured out how to take a small piece of wire, put it in this gizmo and when you push on it, things get stapled together.   Push it again and it will do it again. 

Somebody else figured out how to fold Kleenex in such a way that the moment you pull one from the box, another pops up ready for action.   Unlike a copy machine, there never seems to be a paper jam.  It works every time.

Maybe Xerox should have hired that guy to design their copy machines.  No flashing lights, no blinking message to call a service technician.  Just a simple,  Here you go... would you like another?

 

 

 

 ZC