Dylann’s Waterfalls; A 3 Act Story: Act 3

[ Read Act 1 here and Act 2 here ]
Dylann left his best friend’s house just before noon. He had half a mind to just drive back to his apartment. He couldn’t slow his heart down and the longer he drove the faster it beat. He was nearly shaking and wondering where all his confidence had gone. Never before had he felt so nervous about meeting a woman. It could have been the fact that he didn’t even know her name, nor would Keezer give it to him.

He pulled onto the dirt road and with the window rolled down he could hear the falls in the distance. Checking the clock, he found he was a little over ten minutes early. He hoped she wasn’t there yet. Once the falls were in sight he pulled off the road and parked near an old weeping willow. From there he could see a white sheet sprawled on the ground with a picnic basket in the center. The small river flowed by after it came crashing 300 feet from the cliff above. Perfect. Dylann took off his shoes and lay on the blanket looking up at the sky with arms folded softly under his head and he listened for approaching cars. Nothing.

At almost 12:45 she was about to be a no show. He couldn’t believe he was about to be stood up. Why did I let myself get talked into this? But quickly his mind changed from the silence of the road to the crashing of Spider Falls and the water flowing by. Then even quicker he started dozing off. He never heard the car pull up beside his 50 yards from the picnic spot. Nor did he hear the car door shut and he never stirred until he heard a soft and gentle, yet very familiar voice say “Hello.”

He quickly sat up and turned to see who his blind date could be. The exact moment their eyes met, smiles creased their faces and laughter rose from their throats.

“Hi Dylann.”

“Hello Joe. I was hoping it would be you.”

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This is an old story I attempted to revive. Feel free to let me know what you think. Praise or critique, I’m open to both.

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Dylann’s Waterfalls; A 3 Act Story: Act 2

[Read Act 1 here]

It was barely a five-minute ride to get across town to the Princess. As Dylann pulled into the half full parking lot he found Keezer’s brown Cavalier already there. Keezer was inside sipping a Coke anxiously waiting for his friend to arrive. Dylann entered and the smells of the pizza parlor welcomed him. He made eye contact with Keezer and they both broke out with their boyish grins. Dylann sat at the booth with his pal and rolled his eyes as he slid in next to the window .

“So how was it?” Keezer asked, too excited to hear the verdict of his friend’s last date.

“It sucked so bad. I would have rather kissed my sister.”

“Damn.”

“Funny you say that. That’s exactly what Joe said when I told her about it this morning.” Dylann, now excited to tell his friend all about the sour date, could hardly sit still. “See my finger?” Dylann asked raising his right hand to show the giant band-aid around his middle finger.

“The hell happened to you?

“She slammed my finger in the car door. This was after she told me she had no idea who Shakespeare was. Never even heard of Romeo and Juliet.”

“Bullshit.”

“That’s what I said. I think she was about to cry… she stopped talking to me until we got to there. She didn’t say a word to me during dinner.”
“Huh?”

“Before the food came she did. I got to hear about her parents divorce, mostly. But, once the food came she started talking to it. I had no clue what she was doing. So right after dinner I took the psycho home. I didn’t even get out of the car to walk her to the door. And as soon as she closed the car door I took off. Don’t think I’ll be hearing from her anytime soon.”

“Damn, that sucks big time. Maybe the next one will be better. Hell, sounds like she beat that one who threw meatballs at you.” They both laughed, remembering that unfortunate date.

“Next one?” Dylann asked quizzically. “I don’t think there’ll be a next one for quite some time. I’m staying single for a while. This whole dating thing is crap anyway.”

“Before you go making any harsh decisions, I got something for you.”

“Oh God. Dare I ask?”

“I want you to go to Spider Falls tomorrow. You know, that spot Trish drags me to all the time so she can write?”

“What are you talking about? Why?”

“Just do it. Trish thinks she’s found this perfect girl for you or something. She’s at lunch with her right now telling her what I’m telling you.”

“Which is?”

“Go to Spider Falls at 12:30 tomorrow afternoon. You’re having lunch there.”

Dylann’s heart sank, raced frantically and seemed to stop all at the same time. He’d never been set up before – especially by his best friend’s girlfriend. “Who is she?”

“She’s beautiful. Oh God is she hot.”

“What’s her name?”

“She’s your height. Black hair. Athletic build. She’s hilarious too. Oh, and she loves to be outside like you do nature boy.”

“Ok, great. But I’ll ask it again, slower this time so maybe you’ll understand me. What is her name?”

“Doesn’t matter. Look at it this way; it’s a picnic. Which means it can be as long or as short as you want it to be. If it turns out you like her, go hiking. Trish says she loves that stuff. If you don’t like her, tell her go take a hike and you can split. Whatever.”

Silence ensued next. Dylann’s thoughts were like static. His palms were sweaty. He was just plain nervous. “Come on Dylann, do it for Trish. I told her I would make you go and she said if you didn’t she would kill both of us. Just this once and if it doesn’t turn out right I’ll never let Trish talk me into this again.”

“Man, if this is bogus, I’ll kick your ass. So your only hope is that this works out.”

“Awesome. You can stay at my place tonight since I only live a half-hour from there. Trish is going to be out till tomorrow morning anyway. I have a six-pack that has our name it, literally. Oh, Trish is going to set it all up for you tomorrow. It’s secluded, so you don’t have to worry about intrusion.”

“Yeah, I’ve been there before. I’ve climbed the cliff beside the falls a couple times.”

“Great now lets get some pizza. I’m starvin’.”

Be sure to check back tomorrow for Act 3. Will Dylann’s blind date be as catastrophic as his previous two dates?

Crash’s Fairy Tale

I had nothing to do with this post. As much as I’d like to edit it, I won’t. It’s not my work. I’m sure my teacher friends (Frideds) will be able to decipher this. This is the work of 7 year old Crash. He saw me writing/editing Dylann’s Waterfalls and wanted to write his own story. Personally, I think he just wanted extra computer time. But he was writing/typing so I figured I’d let him get away with it this time. After about 45 minutes, this is his completed story. I love his inventive spelling. Happy Reading!

Dylann’s Waterfalls; A 3 Act Story: Act 1

It was just another Saturday morning as Dylann McDermont sat at the small kitchen table with the warm morning sun shining through the window. His current work, a fictional story about an orphaned brother and sister, covered the table. He somberly ate his cold cereal while contemplating his love life; or lack there of. He was beginning to wonder if he was looking for Ms. Right in the wrong place when the silence was broken by the voice of a female. It was only Josephine, a long time friend and a current roommate in the cozy apartment. She strolled into the kitchen with her hair as dark as midnight, eyes so captivating, a smile as inspirational as a million dollars and a figure to die for. “How was your date with what’s her name last night?”

Dylann looked at her with such intensity she had no difficulty seeing the fire in his eyes. “You mean Erin, the freak of nature?”

“Oh. That bad, huh?”

“My God Joe. Um, yeah, don’t think she’ll be hearing from me again.” Dylann said with contempt.

Unable to contain her curiosity to know what happened, she gently prodded and poked to hear as many details as she could. “What did she do?”

“For one, she is rather stupid. Her light bulb burnt out. Not even a flicker. “

“You’re kidding. I thought she was smart.”

“So did I. But no… we were wrong. First she had no idea who William Shakespeare was! Shakespeare! Who doesn’t know Shakespeare?”
“Damn. That’s bad.”

“It gets worse. That was just on the way to the restaurant. Once we got to Fernatelli’s, you know that little Italian place across town? I opened her door, being the gentleman that I am. She closed it and slammed my finger in the door.”

“Oh no. Let me see.”

“I would let you, but the band-aid is still on it and I’m afraid it’ll start bleeding again. Anyway, we order dinner, laugh at how the night’s progressing and enjoy the moment. Until the food arrives. Then she talked to it.”

“To her food?”

“Yep.” Then in his most high-pitched, mocking a female voice continues, “ I’m going to cut you up and eat you all. None of you will be left.”

“That’s what she was saying to her food?”

“Could I make this up?”

“So what did you do after dinner?”

“I took her straight home. Hell, I didn’t even walk her to the door.”

“Dylann!”

“What? I was just trying to save myself. What about your date?”

“He cancelled.”

“Lucky you.” Dylann rose from the table, placed his empty bowl in the sink and was about to begin editing his latest creation when the phone rang. “I got it,” he yelled to Josephine, who was about to get in the shower. “It’s probably Keezer calling to ask the same questions you just did. Hello?”

It was Keezer. He had never known him as anything but Keezer. He didn’t even know where or when Keezer got his nickname. That’s just how his girlfriend, Trish, introduced him at the writing consortium 2 years ago. Dylann knew Trish because they were both English majors and Trish had introduced him to Keezer and they’d been best friends since. Keezer had become Dylann’s only other best friend since moving here 3 years ago.

“Hey, slacker, what’s up?”

“Not a damn thing.” Dylann replied.

“You want to do lunch later?”

“Where?”

“Fernatelli’s?”

“You’re funny. Hell no. Pick somewhere else. How about The Princess?”

“That’s cool. I love that little diner. How about 12:30 then?”

“Sure. See you there.” Dylann hung up the phone and checked the time. 9:30. That left plenty of time to shower and do a little cleaning.

Return tomorrow to read Act 2: Dylann’s converstation with Keezer.

Awesomest Sound Ever!

According to Google Maps it’s roughly 8,000 Km (4,970 miles) from here – an 89 hour drive. After we win the lottery and get that RV, we are so going here. Yes, in January when it’s cold and the lake is frozen. Just so we can hear the sound of skipping rocks. I must admit, I think my reaction would be similar to his. How exciting would it be to hear such an unexpected sound from doing something so mundane as skipping a rock on frozen lake? I’ll probably pack my own rocks to throw just in case there aren’t any there. Alaska, here we come! (sometime in the very distant future) Anyone in Alaska or anyone who knows anyone in Ak, who knows more about this, I’d love to know!

Guess What?

Have you ever claimed “ignorance” as excuse to explain why you didn’t do something. You didn’t do it because you didn’t know you weren’t supposed to. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. This time, for me, it works.

The Bandshell

When nothing else exists
The whisper of trees cease
Cicadas quiet.
Our bodies pressed close
Our eyes lock
Holding our souls embrace
With your silvery sweet satsuma scent
The band plays our song
We dance
Like no one’s watching
And you giggle
Because I have two
Left
Feet.

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This is a story in 100 words or fewer for Friday Fictioneers based on the photo above. Click the blue frog to read more stories inspired by this photo!

Our Little Geek

Today is report card day. I am always impressed by how much work goes into these things here. In Virginia we simply put the student’s grade and comment or two from a drop down menu. Talks too much. Pleasure to have in class. Needs to turn in more homework. Great job! That kind of thing. Not here. Here, there are paragraphs written about each subject that was studied. It’s a three page report!

Crash’s first report card last November was shining. All A’s and one B. He also nearly had straight C’s (C is for constantly which means he was able to do the task all on his own). Though he did have one P (which would be for prompting. He was able to do what was needed after being asked to do it a couple times. Fortunately, he only had the one P because if he were like me he would have had A LOT more). I wonder what what kind of grades his teacher will give him he will earn this time around? Check back this evening and I’ll let you know.

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For those checking back, the report card has arrived. We have tried to set high standards without applying too much pressure. I think we’re succeeding. He doesn’t seem stressed about it at all. Then there’s that consistent B in speaking and listening. He’s 7, he doesn’t listen to much of anything other people tell him unless it involves video games, farts, or the Lego Movie. On the flip side, his interaction with others – being positive, resolving conflicts, and working collaboratively – is outstanding. He’s a people person who strives to please. Room for improvement? Of course. Are we proud? As punch.

A Thing (or 2) About Me

I think I need to update my about page. I’ll post this here for now and move it over later. In university as we student teachers were preparing to head out to our awaiting mentor teachers, they asked us to fill in a couple forms. One question was “Is there anything about yourself that you would like your mentor to know?” This is what I sent, though it wasn’t given to my mentor, I gave it to her later after I found out it wasn’t sent to her. Now, I send it to you should you desire to know a few facts about me and the exciting life I’ve led. You might be surprised at just how little you know of me! Even my DW and parents don’t know most of this! So, shhhhh….

A Reptile Adventure

Little Rays Reptile Zoo is a rescue Zoo. You can read their blog here. Most of the animals they have are unwanted pets. Pets that people gave up, had illegally, or were rescued. They have an outreach program where they bring the zoo to you, show you the animals and provide some fascinating facts. Not wanting Crash and Bang to miss this opportunity, we opted for the first show at 6:00 because we figured the second show at 7:15 would be too late for Bang who is usually in bed at 7:30 (as is his brother). It was pretty busy and they were excited. As were all the other kids who were up running around and couldn’t keep their voices to a dull roar so we could hear the presentation. The teacher in me was going berserk! Who brought the monkeys to the reptile show?

Anyway, back to the show. We got to see some animals we wouldn’t otherwise get too see. She began the show with this little furry critter…

Chilli the Chilean Tarantula

It was tough to get a good picture of him because she wouldn’t hold still long enough. But you can see here he’s about the size of the palm of your hand. Poisonous? Yes, but not really to humans. She said Chilli’s bite would ruin your day, but it surely wouldn’t kill you. In our household, we like spiders. But this “little” guy takes it to a whole new level. She then brought out a scorpion. I don’t even have a blurry photo of it let alone a good one. Again, it was poisonous, but not enough to kill you. She told us it would have to sting you ten times to equal one bee sting.

Coaster the Tortoise

Afterwards, she showed us Coaster, the tortoise (I forget exactly what kind). He’s named Coaster because when he was born, that’s how big he was, the size of a coaster you would use on a coffee table. When he’s full grown he’ll be the size of the coffee table. He’ll live to be about 100 and weigh 250 pounds. Coaster is currently the size of a soccer ball.

Mooshi – The bearded dragon

Then she moved on to show us the reptiles. First was a bearded dragon name Mooshi (Mushi?). I love bearded dragons and used to own 2 once upon a time – Shadow and Ezmeralda. *Note: fireflies are toxic to bearded dragons. I learned that first hand.* He was a fair size dragon and, of course, made me want to get another. They are extremely friendly, docile pets. Mine would curl up under my blankets to sleep when I would let her. Mostly, she just loved to hang out on my shoulder. They eat crickets and meal worms and tons of fruit and veggies. If crickets and meal worms were easier to come by, we’d have one!

Things wound up a bit more when she brought out a 6 foot albino rat snake.

Albino Rat Snake

Normally, these things are black. But being albino, he’s not. Obviously. I didn’t catch much of what she said about it as every kid in the place was oohing and awing. She did bring four kids up front to hold him. *Side note: this is where the teacher in me became frustrated. Did she pick kids who respectfully raising their hand from where they sat? No, she picked the ones who were jumping and shouting.*

Cayman

Lastly, she brought out this little fella, a cousin to the alligator and crocodile, a cayman. He’s only about four feet long at the moment, but full grown he’ll be six feet. When first born they are often preyed upon by anacondas of the Amazon. However, those roles are reversed when the cayman is an adult.

Here, the show ended and the kids were allowed to come touch some of the animals. However, Crash and Bang missed out because instead of letting them rush the presenter with all of the other kids, we held them back in hopes of getting to touch and see them with less frenzy. She put the animals back in their travel containers and announced that the next show would start in about 5 minutes. Nearly everyone from that show had cleared out and seeing a smaller crowd coming in we opted to go ahead and stay for the next show as well as Crash and Bang were fairly well behaved. We are glad we stayed.

The second show had a smaller crowed and Crash and Bang got front row seats. We saw the tarantula, the scorpion and the turtle again. However, this time she brought out a new lizard. Instead of the bearded dragon, she had a green iguana named Izzy.

Izzy the Green Iguana

She said he wasn’t as green as usual because he was looking for a mate. His tail is used as a whip and if used properly will send you to the hospital for stitches.

Lastly, she brought out the snake. Only this time it wasn’t the rat snake from the first show. This snake, when born, was only as long as a pencil and as big around as your finger. Full grown he’ll be 300 – 400 pounds and as long as school bus. A reticulated python. I’m guessing this one was about 8 feet long. But he’s only 3 years old – same as Bang.

Bang petting the python