100 Word Story - Peas in a Pod (Repost from Facebook, 3 October 2009)

Penelope and her sisters were roused from their sleep by the golden-green light filtering through their pod wall.
“M-morr-ning,” she yawned. She got the usual grumbles and murmurs in reply. The others didn’t like mornings as much as Penelope.
As the familiar sounds of machinery starting up for the day reached them, they heard the giants moving through the rows of pod plants around them, and shadows crisscrossed their view.
Something wasn’t right, though; suddenly, she remembered: “It’s Harvest Day!” she screamed. A hand’s shadow slid over the pod, blocking the light, and their pod was torn from its stem.

This was my second effort, written for Weekly Challenge #177 on the prompt of "Peas in a Pod", for the week of 9/12/2009. It was a pseudo-literal tale of anthropomorphic peas in their pods, about to be harvested by the farmers. I liked the way I was able to maintain some level of ambiguity and parallels with sci-fi/Matrix-style stories.

100 Word Stories - Oliver vs. The Interloper (Repost from Facebook, 14 November 2009)

Oliver tore into the interloper with abandon. “Rrrr … Unh …. Rrrrrr-rah! That’ll show you!” The interloper stopped resisting, and lay limp and lifeless under Oliver’s grip. Just then, the front door opened. Oliver froze as Trish and Jay walked in on an interesting scene: their Beagle sitting amongst a blizzard of cotton batting swirling around him, with Trish’s favorite Teddy Bear pinned under his paws, the stuffing knocked out of it.
“Oliver! No! Bad boy!”
Oliver slowly released the plush rag. He sat up, his tail curled around his butt and his head dipped submissively.
“I’m sorry,” he whimpered.


This was in response to the prompt of "Stuffing" for Weekly Challenge #186 (week ending 11/14/09) for the 100 Word Stories weekly podcast. It was the first of three I wrote on this topic. My mind had gone in several directions, and I knew that the possibilities were wide open. So, I asked Trish to give me a topic/genre/idea to go with, and she said "stuffed animals."

100 Word Stories - The Perils of a Paper Bag Awaiting Recycling in the Moonlight (Repost from Facebook, 28 December 2009)

Ow! Watch it, buddy! Oh, good gravy. It’s another dumpster diver. Scavenger! It must be a full moon. They like the natural light to rummage by. I wish he’d be more careful; we don’t enjoy the groping, shoving, tearing, and the stick with the nail in the end, you know. My purpose in this life was to help a wino hide his bottle from cops and have him slosh and slobber on me. Now, to have this guy toss me aside for a 2-cent piece of glass or metal is humiliating. I hope I come back as a notebook.

This was in response to the combo-prompt of "a story told from the perspective of an inanimate object/paper sack/full moon/new beginnings" from the 100 Word Podcast Weekly Challenge #192 (Week Ending 12/26/2009).