The Line-Up

Davina stood at the end of the line, her shoulders back, looking straight ahead of her, mirroring the others’ poses. The tall woman paced across the floor, looking closely at each of them. Davina’s palms were sweating, her legs trembling and her heart thudding in her chest. She couldn’t help thinking about the shooting earlier and her part in it. Things hadn’t exactly gone as planned…

The woman had stopped now, was staring at her and opened her mouth to speak. Davina closed her eyes, waiting for the verdict.

 “You’re through to the next round of America’s Next Top Model.”

Jackpot

He sat on the sofa, alternately staring at the screen wide-eyed and then looking back at the ticket in his hand in disbelief as the numbers were called out. 

“I’ve got five numbers… come on… YES!!!! I’VE WON THE LOTTERY!”

She hugged him in his initial euphoria and then he pulled away, looking at her smugly.  

“I don’t need you or your money any more.  I’ve been seeing someone else, someone younger, prettier…”

She'd suspected it all along, but let him finish and then calmly replied. “And I recorded that programme three months ago and bought that ticket this morning.”

Headline News

Lisa held her breath as the gypsy took her hands and looked closely at the palms. She thought of the X-Factor application she had posted just that morning. Would the fortune-teller see a life of fame and fortune awaiting her? There was a long silence.

“I see bright lights and newspaper headlines,” the old woman said eventually, tracing Lisa’s life-line.

 Lisa grinned as she left and headed home in the dusk. Fame and fortune would be hers. Lost in dreams, she stepped into the road.

 “Woman killed in hit and run” was the front page headline of the local newspaper.

National Storytelling Week

It’s National Storytelling Week this week (26th January – 2 February) and my friend and fellow-NaNoWriMo-er Geri has set herself a challenge of writing a short story each day and has been posting these on her website. It’s inspired me to try and do the same. Now since embarking on full-time mummyhood, I’ve become a little rusty in the creative writing department, despite having plenty of opportunity in the bedtime story department, but 100 words isn’t all that much really and it sounds like a fun challenge. Watch this space and I’ll try and post the first one later on today.

Space birthdays

I discovered this site via a friend's blog and it appeals to the geeky side of my nature. I seem to have very recently celebrated a significant birthday on Mercury (140 – I think I look quite good for my age!) and have another milestone birthday coming up on Mars - my 18th - on 16th March. Which rather conveniently happens to fall on a Saturday. Would it really be very geeky of me to have an 18th Martian birthday party and invite my friends to come dressed up as aliens? I'm sure I could find an alien costume for Jessica...