Writing Prompt # 3 Nearest funny Fix

This is getting really interesting. The third writing prompt is up, this time by altoid.

Before you read the prompt, make sure you will have 10 minutes of uninterrupted time to write and please do time yourself. Once you've written it, please leave a link here so we can come over and read it. Here goes:

Write about who your nearest and surest clown/joke/humour fix is? Who is that one person you can always count on making you laugh, even if you werent looking for one? Is it someone in your immediate family, a close friend, or perhaps its you? You could be your own clown! Alright, go on now-tell us about him/her and maybe leave a number as well so we could dial-a-laugh perhaps, if we need one?

My Husband! He makes me guffaw , actually go ROTFL literally and figuratively. He has this habit of coming up with the most random one liners off the cuff , all the while poker faced. Needless to say I'm in splits and go all blue in the face. His 'jokes'? They can't be defined as jokes by any standards. Just the most absurd, spontaneous comment. So sudden and unexpected that I get the impression he also heard of it only after the words have slipped out of his mouth. His comments have this picturesque quality about them that the moment I hear it , I see it in Zoom video. I’ve always been notorious for my explosive guffaws. I’ve managed to startle myself with my peals of laughter. The moment I start off like a machine gun my husband gets into panic mode trying to ‘shhush’ me into silence. He thinks I might terrorise the neighbourhood. He mumbles "veTi poTTikkaan thuTangi” which means 'there she goes bursting fire crackers'- as if it was entirely my fault. His ‘jokes’ have this habit of replaying itself in my mind in the most awkward moments, and I’ve a tough time trying to control my chortles. I’ve to admit that I can laugh at his ‘jokes’ even when he repeats them!

Writing Prompt # 2

Now from here

Before you read the prompt, make sure you will have 10 minutes of uninterrupted time to write and please do time yourself. Once you've written it, please leave a link here so we can come over and read it.

Do you have any one moment in your life, when you were totally, madly, utterly embarassed? Was it a situation in which you did something, said something or just happened to find yourself in? If you recall those feelings of wanting to sink through the ground, or suddenly appear invisible....use this prompt to recount them and help us feel your plight.

I am trying to remember the times I've been embarassed- those times when I felt like sinking underground a la- Sitadevi. Doubtless there were many such instances, but somehow now as I try to summon the memories they refuse to resurface; and one of the conditions to be followed in this exercise is not to read other posts in response to the prompt before doing the exercise oneself.

Then voila! I remembered. I was in college. The lecturer was handing over answer papers after the recent exams. I was not too anxious about receiving mine. The moment arrived. The lecturer waved my paper in front of my eyes, gave me a smile that I could not deconstruct and proceeded to give me a lecture on my tardiness. At the end of her tirade she did not forget to comment on my distracted countenance in class. I remember the mortification I felt as I heard her words- I remember her words too- but I still cringe in embarasment and so desist from recording the same. And finally she expressed her amazement at my having managed to score fairly decent marks in the test!

My ten minutes are up-

Revised, revamped, refined:

Her delicate face was in stark contrast to the expression she wore. A forbidding smirk adorned her face perpetually. Her long plait jostled merrily as she walked with the grace of a dancer. Her fingers were long and slender which she wielded artistically as she droned away in the dreary afternoons. Her saris were impeccably starched. She had an arresting, formidable persona.

Miss J marched into our classroom that sultry afternoon, her pout firmly in place...I shifted uneasily in my seat. The sight of the ungainly wad of answer papers in Miss J's clenched fingers did not bode well. My palms turned sweaty and I felt an uncomfortable churning in the pit of my stomach. I tried to assume a nonchalant stance and failed miserably. The lunch I had during recess seemed to swirl threateningly within me. I tried to look steadily at the unpleasant countenance of our beautiful lecturer.

She began calling out our names and distributing the answer sheets. My heart beats thudded in my ears. Then there was this uneasy pause and silence loomed in the classroom. A voice from within warned me, 'this is IT.’

Yes, there she was, staring at me with a piercing gaze. I flinched. My ears burnt. I heard her voice boom,” Aaaaaaaaardraaaaaa…

The rest of her tirade has been thankfully blanked out by my selective memory but the last whiplash of words resound with astounding clarity:

“Instead of wasting your time in appreciating my saris and admiring my nails, you would’ve fared better had you bothered to pay attention to my words. ( Amidst all the indignity being heaped on my wretched self, I distinctly remember being amazed at her perception though ). "Still, I hardly expected you to score even this much. See if you could try to pay at least half attention to the lesson being taken in future.”

I meekly looked up at her to see the most contemptous sneer on her perfectly etched face. I could hear stifled chuckles around me. Many a time had my friends and me discussed animatedly about Miss J’s saris and appearance. But for now, I was the solitary scapegoat.

The rest of the afternoon passed in a nauseating blur.

Writing Prompt #1

Following this

Before you read the prompt, make sure you will have 10 minutes of uninterrupted time to write and please do time yourself. Once you've written it, please leave a link here so we can come over and read it. Here goes:

Write about a sleepover, a slumber party or the time you stayed somewhere overnight.

Many years ago, as children , my brother and me went over to our friend's home for a sleepover. I think it was our first stay away from home.


We were pretty much excited and so were the brother -sister duo friends. We had dinner with our friends, their parents, I think we watched some movie on video and then it was time to crash.

I just could not go to sleep and my little brother was also wide awake. Our little friends though were fast asleep. We slowly crawled out of the sheets, switched on the lights, took out colouring books and crayons and started colouring in the middle of the night.

Not much later, aunty came in - probably woken up by the light in the room and our muffled whispers. She seemed totally bewildered to see us busy colouring away when we were supposed to sleep! She asked us to keep the books and crayons away and go back to sleep. She tucked us in bed and wished us Goodnight.

I remember sinking into slumber long after...but we had many sleepovers at the same house afterwards and never had trouble going to sleep again.

Update: After reading other posts in response to the prompt, I found mine so drab, tried enhancing it, but there is only this much I can do about it:


We had gone out with our family friends that weekend. We had become more closer and enjoyed the company of our two new friends. A sister and brother just like the two of us. Both of them were much younger to me and I enjoyed being the oldest. We used to go for family outings together and enjoyed these occasions to the hilt. Whenever we had holidays coming up , my brother and me would want to stay over at their place and they would want to stay over at our place. As we returned home from our outings we would be pestering our parents to let us sleep over in either homes.

The first time we had the sleep over, I remember we were so excited. I dont remember much of how we spent our times- most probably playing monopoly, scrabbles, word building, reading, story telling. One other thing that we liked about their place, I remember was their home had a bath tub! I liked aunty's cooking too.

After watching some video, we were asked to go to bed. And then it was that I began feeling strange. The room, the bed, the sheets, the pillow- all so different and strange. Our friends went to bed and after some random chatter went off to sleep. I kept looking up at the ceiling. I remember feeling so utterly bored. I had yet not reached the age of entertaining myself with simply my thoughts. I looked around me in the pale light of the bedroom lamp, and saw our friends sleeping soundly. I don't remember if my brother was lying awake, or I woke him up.
Anyways, we decided to tip toe out of the bed and engage in some activity that would keep us occupied. we knew where the colouring books and crayons were. soon enough, we put on the lights and settled down to some serious colouring as if we had some assignment to complete!

I don't think we got much ahead with our self assigned task, because soon a much bewildered aunty came in. She just could'nt fathom why we felt the need to color at that time of night. If there is one thing that I remember clearly about that night, it is the expression on aunty's face.
She enquired with concern why we were not asleep. We assured her that it was simple boredom and then she asked us to keep aside all colouring - get on with it the next morning and tucked us into bed. She sked us to call her if we needed anything. I just did not want to go to sleep. I wanted to stay awake, and most unwillingly crawled back under the sheets. I don't remember how long I stayed awake.

The next morning, aunty called my mother up and told her about our midnight assignment and they found it rather amusing. We had many more sleepovers after that in the same house and afte that first time, I never needed to go hunting for crayons in the night.