This only took me all day to do. And also, I'm not spellchecking it.

Okay, I hate to even preface this with an apology, because it seems like everything I post or share is done this way (did I just actually apologize for apologizing?!), but I'm not overly impressed with the content of these questions. I had hoped to find something with halfway thought-provoking material, but when the majority of my search was on myspace, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Anyway....everyone can just use mine and delete the answers and type in your own. (Aren't you glad I'm giving you instructions like this is a new and difficult process for us all?)

State a fact about the person you like?

He can suck on his own toes. (But I'm totally not telling you who I'm referring to, so now you're all left to contemplate the flexibility of all of the guys in my life.)

What happened at 11:00 am today?
Get back to me in 38 minutes. Or call Dill Mogolov if you can't wait that long. (Krystal: Dill Mogolov is an alleged mind reader who Breona accidentally booked a show for at the coffee shop. He was also the topic of our writing prompt on Tuesday evening.)


What are you excited for?
I *was* excited for Heather's (my future sister-in-law) bachelorette party tomorrow night. But then I found out that the one time I assumed my parents could babysit they actually have plans on a weekend. So now instead of actually doing my hair and looking halfway cute and enjoying adult beverages with a group of women, I'll be feeding, bathing, and playing with my baby and then watching TV before falling asleep on the couch after I put him to sleep. I guess that's what you sign up for when you go and get yourself pregnant, huh?

Are you wearing something you borrowed from someone?
Not that I'm aware of. But my underwear was inspected by #26. I know this because she (I PRAY that it was a she) placed her sticker on the crotch of my new undies. That's weird, right?

What is the last thing someone bought you?

Erik bought me lunch on Wednesday. It was his turn to pay. (Although technically Brian picked up some deodorant for me two nights ago. That just seemed like a less cool answer.)

When was the last time you saw your mom?
About twenty minutes ago. (I'm so disappointed with myself for not being able to come up with something funny to a question with the phrase "your mom" in it.)

Name someone whose name starts with the letter "A".

Ricky. The "a" is silent. And invisible.

Do plan on moving in the next year?
Nope. I really like our house, and I have high hopes to someday decorate it and actually make it look like we live there.


What is your current problem?
Probably that I can't seem to get this blog posted. I started typing this about 10:00 this morning, and it's currently 1:38. Also, I can't seem to motivate myself to do the dozen or so things that I *should* be doing at the coffee shop instead of this. :)


Who was the last person to lay in your bed besides you?
Brian and Brutus. I'm not sure who was the last one out of bed this morning, but my money is on Brutus. That dog does NOT like mornings.


Who was the last person you saw?
Caroline, Ryan, and Charlie. They're regular customers, and to be quite honest, I've come to find all three of them extremely endearing. (Plus Ryan is letting me pick a winner out of a writing contest that he's giving one of his summer classes. The prompt is going to be a picture of the mural in the coffee shop, so he thought it was fitting that I judge the assignment. Please note: I can ALWAYS be bribed in this fashion.)


Who was the last person to freak you out?

I'm bored with these types of questions. But in order to play along, I'll say that it was the kid who comes in to use the internet but feels no need to buy anything. I'd say he annoys me more than freaks me out, but the general consensus is that he's slightly creepy, so he seems like a good answer to this question.

Something you say when your mad ?

Mother f-er. And if I'm REALLY mad, I say the actual "f" word. Shocking, yeah?


Have you cried today at all?
Cried? No. Complained, felt sorry for myself, and just in general lazed around? Yes.


Are you ticklish?
Like you wouldn't believe.


Are you happy right now?
In the grand scheme of things, yes. I actually have never been happier (which is a terrifying place for a pessimist to be). But in this moment, right now? I'm kind of stressed and tired.


Have you made a mistake this past week?
I forgot to pay my employees. That seems like a pretty big mistake. (Seriously, how have I held this business together for four years? It's a complete mystery, isn't it?)


Do you know anyone with the same name as you?
I would be extremely shocked if there were another Kara Ohorilko in this world. But I do know several Karas .



When was the last time you really laughed?
Two nights ago at the dinner table when Max was flapping his arms like a crazy, birdlike creature. Brian and I both could barely breathe we were laughing so hard. It was actually probably some type of Hallmark moment. Or maybe a slightly weird Hallmark moment. Either way, I liked it.


Did you have a nap today?
Ha! Naps, unfortunately area thing of the distant past. I greatly look forward to the day when I can take naps again. (Does that make me slightly pathetic?)


Do you have any regrets?
I don't do the regret thing. I never have. You try to reflect on your decisions, good and bad, and then you just hope that you remember that reflection in the future when similar stuff comes up. That's life according to Kara.


Do you use an alarm clock?
I set my radio alarm for 5:12 and hit sleep 4 times every day. Brian's cell phone alarm starts going off around 5:30, and then I reset the radio alarm for 6:15. We need all the help we can get waking up at our house.


Do you work?
I have trouble calling something that I love so much (overall, not on a moment-by-moment basis) work. But yeah, judging by how tired at the end of every day, I work.

Do you have a tan?
White is the new black, haven't you heard? Uhhhh....that just doesn't sound right, but I'm still going with it.

Who was the last person to disappoint you?
My mom. It's not her fault, but I really would have liked it if she wasn't going out of town tomorrow night.



What were you doing at 5 this morning?
Telling myself that I could hold it in and go to the bathroom in 40-ish minutes. I HATE getting up any earlier than I'm supposed to.

two prompts

Re-write a classic fairy tale: either by changing something that happens in the plot to make it have a not-so-happily-ever-after ending or by writing the story from another character's perspective. Or write your own fairy tale: it can be like a classic or totally different with some weird twists.

OR

Bust out your dictionary, and randomly pick ten or so words that you find really interesting, fun to say, or that you don't even know what they mean; use them to write a poem.

Prompt :D

Write about the origin of your name.

because i'm bored, i'm starting us off.

i just realized that no one gave a prompt to start us off for the week. i'm having one of those days where i want to write. so i googled (well, actually ask.commed) writing prompts and stumbled upon this one. i like it, but i'm personally going to have to think on it before proceeding. enjoy!


Write a short story based on a favorite song, using the song’s title as your story’s title and the lyrics for your plot.

maybe i'll even list you all as editors. :)

nate hulne is graciously creating a new coffee shop website for me. i'm working on some content for the pages, and i just took all of two minutes to write up a history of the business. i know that it needs some work (which is why i'm not sending it to him yet), and i'd love to get some feedback. i know so far we've mostly just been patting each other on the back and giving words of encouragement (which, p.s., has been good for my writing ego), but i'm actually asking for some critisism on this one. and it won't even hurt my feelings because i haven't even read through what i just wrote. (see how that means i can take less offense? because it all makes sense in my head!) so have at it....


Once upon a time, a girl in her late teens semi-flippantly said she would one day like to own a coffee shop. But then she went on to college, got her four year degree in English, and landed a fabulous part-time job at a library. After a few months, she began to feel a burning desire to do something more with her life. The idea of a coffee shop seemed the perfect amount of ambitious and fun. With the support of her husband, family, and friends, she decided to move forth with the plan.

The Altoona Pub was purchased, and months of renovation began. Coffee equipment was bought, paint was painted, and the girl realized she better quickly learn a thing or two about espresso. (Her palette had long ago been trained to taste a good drink, but she didn’t actually know how to MAKE one!) She happened upon Carl at The Coffee Barn (ß a link here would be fabulous!), ordered some flavoring, decided on a name (thanks to her big brother, Brad), and soon after the doors opened. (Well, some of the more boring details have been left out, but you get the picture.) Ever since that wonderful day in June of 2004, Being There Coffee House has been making Altoona-ites and anyone else who graces it’s door very, very satisfied coffee drinkers.

Keys

On my first visit to New Orleans, I found a key. Wandering the French Quarter, it's easy to believe in adventure and hard to believe in coincidence. The stately homes belie history, power, and influence, while the seedier taverns and alleys remind passersby of darker elements of society. An unknown key represents drama, mystery, intrigue, all heightened by its discovery in a troubled historic city. Picking up the key, I expected to be swept into a world of locked doors concealing dark family secrets, fantastic wealth, and troubled romance.

Of course, only in fiction will a key lying on the ground in a distant city ever open anything. Discoveries might feel like opportunity, even fate, but the universe never delivered me a grand plantation mansion with a shadowy back room that remained locked until my arrival with a mysterious key. (Because what was I doing there? How, exactly, would my slide into this world begin?)

Keys are one of the most symbolic objects in literature - they represent knowledge (or more often, the phallus). A key never shows up by mistake in a story. I chose to believe that life would imitate art, but out here in daily Midwestern life, it seems a key is just a key.

i'm a few prompts behind.

i told krystal that i was going to preface some of what i write with something like this, and it's more for my benefit than yours. so just fyi, i've put little thought and no editing into this piece, AND i'm only sharing it because i feel like i need to force myself to not be so uptight about sharing my writing. :) and after that uplifting intro, here you go....



i am the black cord stilly slithering in a bed of green blades.
without me
this show is nothing but an acoustic whisper
in a sea of drunken unappreciatives.
i am the aorta to the heart of the city of speakers.
i am largely unnoticed and ignored.
i'm only touched by the roadies
who ignore my scuffs and stickiness as they unwind me and
leave me to inconspiculously do my job.
my secret power is masked in rubbery darkness.
i am a musical super hero.