Wednesday's Words on a Friday

On Wednesdays, assorted people have been taking monthly turns at putting up a selection of six (or twelve) words which is called “Words for Wednesday”.

We have taken over this meme from Delores, who had been having computer problems.

This month the meme continues here, with words supplied by Mark Koopmans.

Essentially the aim is to encourage us to write.   

Each week we are given a choice of prompts: which can be words, phrases, music or images.   What we do with those prompts is up to us:  a short story, prose, a song, a poem, or treating them with ignore...

Some of us put our creation in comments on the post, and others post on their own blog.  We would really like it if as many people as possible joined in with this fun meme.

If you are posting on your own blog - let us know so that we can come along and read your masterpiece.

I’m hopeless at poetry so I always do a story.

It’s a fun challenge…why not join in?

This week's words are:

1. baseball                              
2. farting
3. yodel
4. glasnost
5. Nancy
6. pen

and/or:

1. margaretville
2. scissors
3. water
4. chocolate
5. talker
6. zoological

and/or:

1. vacation
2. shark
3. toboggan
4. orchid
5. realtor
6. iPod

That's quite a challenging selection. I haven't used all the words, some of them may make an appearance in a later story.

Here is my story:

 "Listen up class!"
Mrs. Grundy clapped her hands to get the kids attention.

"The board of education has come up with a new plan for grade six essays.
All of you are to write one word on a piece of paper, and bring it to me. I'll put it in this large cookie jar and give it a good shake up.
Then each of you is to draw out one word and that will be your essay topic for the weekend.
Essays are to be on my table first thing Monday morning.
Everybody understand that?" 

Nods and murmurs from the class indicated they'd understood. 

Betty was heard to say, "This should be interesting. Instead of all of us writing about the same subject, there will be twenty five different essays. How will they grade them?"
"Who cares how they grade them? I just hope some of the boys don't write disgusting words that I might get one of." said Pamela. "Like snot."

Jason and Cameron were sniggering in the corner, not noticing that Mrs Grundy was walking towards them. 

"Right boys," she said. "Hand over those words". They did of course. Mrs Grundy was well known for dishing out a one thousand lines punishment for infractions. 

"Oh my goodness! Cameron! Where did you learn such an awful word?"
"My sister's new boyfriend says it all the time," said Cameron.
"And do you know what it means?" asked Mrs Grundy.
"I think so," said Cameron.
"Well if you're not sure of any word, then don't use it as an essay selection. Just for clarification, this word is not suitable, even if you do know the meaning." She tore the slip of paper into small bits and told Cameron to write a different word.

As each word was placed into the cookie jar, Mrs Grundy read them quietly to herself to be sure they were suitable. A couple of them caused her to frown in the direction of the child who had written it, but she let them drop into the cookie jar.

After the final lesson for the afternoon, each child walked up to the desk and withdrew a word. 

"What happens if we draw our own word, Mrs Grundy?" asked Kathy.
"Whatever word you draw is your essay assignment. If you wrote a word that might prove difficult and then draw it out, that's your assignment and you'll have to make the best of it." said Mrs Grundy.
Kathy's face fell as she read the word she'd drawn. "This is even worse than what I wrote," she said. "How long does this essay have to be?"

"Well now, I forgot to mention that didn't I?" said Mrs Grundy. "Class, every essay must be at least five hundred words. You can write more if you want to, but you must not write less. There is to be no exchanging of words, remember I wrote down what each of you drew out of the cookie jar."

Several faces showed disappointment at this statement and as the dismissal bell rang, the children erupted into the schoolyard, calling to their friends. "What word did you get?"
Various answers filtered back to Mrs Grundy's ears as she cleaned off the blackboard.

"yodel; baseball; scissors, what the heck am I going to write about scissors?;
I got farting! I bet that stinky Bob Wilson put that one in; 

hey Ruby! what did you get? shark, what about you? talker, I'll write about our neighbour who never shuts up.
I got chocolate, said Craig, that's an easy one, I can write all about Easter Eggs.

The voices faded as the children got further away from the classrooms.
toboggan; orchid; glasnost, what the heck is that? I'm going to have to ask my dad..."