Hello, Dear Readers. I hope you are healthy, and that your week was a good one. For those of you in the United States, I hope you had a nice Memorial Day weekend. I spent my Monday crocheting and quietly contemplating my grandfathers and my maternal uncle, all of whom have long-since passed away, and all of whom were in the military at one point during their lives. I had talked to my Dad, a Vietnam veteran, on Saturday, during what turned out to be a hilarious "first time using video chat on a tablet" adventure for my parents. Mom thought it was perfectly fine to start the call in a dark living room with only the TV on for light, until I let her know I couldn't see her or Dad, and then once they turned on some lights, neither of them could figure out where the camera was, and none of us could stop laughing. Remembering it still makes me smile.
Memory is an important, but odd thing; it is like an intangible muscle in some aspects, that we must work with it in order to remember things consistently. We get so much information every day, every week, that it is so hard to keep up with everything and remember the most important bits. As the influence of fast information via the internet grows, our attention spans shorten and we aren't given enough time to process the information given to us. It doesn't help that 2020 is proving to be an overwhelming experience of information, whether it be from health professionals, or the news, or government entities, or viral videos of what people are doing on the other side of the world for the betterment or detriment of their fellow human beings.
Be good to yourself, and take the time to process all of this mental information. A lot can happen within every news cycle, and between juggling working from home (or looking for work from home) and keeping informed (and for some of you, also taking care of at least one kid), it can be a lot to handle. Take some time away from the screens each day so that you can process everything you've taken in, and take care of yourself; stretch, breathe, drink some water, and remember to eat.
I don't know how long this new normal may last, but we must remember to be kind to ourselves, both physically and mentally. Have a good week, Dear Readers.
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
Self-Paced Personal Improvement
Hello, Dear Readers; I hope you are healthy and have had a pleasant week.
Back in April, I signed up for three continuing education courses online. Get Grants!, A to Z Grant Writing Part II - Beyond the Basics, and Project Management Fundamentals. All of them were self-paced, so I could read through the each course in its entirety right off the bat, and that helped me tailor my learning experience.
I find that self-paced classes are much more in keeping with my learning style; some days I don't feel like logging in to read at all, while on other days I feel like going through three chapters of material, and still others I feel like I've studied enough to take half of the quizzes for the course all in one go.
For these online classes, you have three months from the day you sign up to finish the course. As I was still under a stay-at-home order, it seemed like a way to use the time of both unemployment and obligatory sequestering as a way to improve myself. On Sunday I took the final exams for both Get Grants! and A to Z Grant Writing Part II - Beyond the Basics, and passed them both. On Monday, I took the final exam for Project Management Fundamentals and passed that as well. Three more certificates for my resume, and a nice feeling of accomplishment besides.
Since the stay-at-home order and then the safer-at-home order, I've made time to look for work, take those classes, play video games, watch an abundance of streaming video, and even started crocheting again, to both help with anxiety management and for me to do something with my hands while I'm job searching.
I'm working on a shawl that is turning out breathtakingly fugly, both due to the varigated yarn I'm using and the "haha, follow what pattern, I'll wing it as I go" attitude I've adopted, ensuring that the yarn colors don't stripe nicely together. While the color palette of orange/white/dark grey/dark blue/light blue looks great while it's in the skein, when there's giant patches of orange next to giant patches of light blue, it's actually getting to the point of "so ugly it's cute again", which was not my intention. I still fully intend to use it around the house when it is finished; the yarn is thick and soft and perfect for slightly chilly nights.
Sometimes the projects we use to improve our skills and ourselves aren't the prettiest when they're done, but they served a purpose. I'm using this shawl as a way to practice new stitches that I've been learning from YouTube tutorials, as well as practicing old stitches that I felt I was getting a bit rusty on. I'm working at my own pace, so the end date for the project is not set, but I don't feel rushed; even if I finish this project sooner rather than later, there is always more yarn and there are always some actual patterns for me to try. Pacing myself is important, because I need to know and respect my limits. Many people try to work on themselves in such a regimented way that they forget to be kind to themselves too, and that will inevitably lead to backlash.
Be good to yourselves, Dear Readers. There is enough going on outside that you may feel like you have to do certain things to get ahead, and that very well may be, but do not forget to give yourself a break too. Stay safe, wash your hands, and be kind.
-A.M.W.
Back in April, I signed up for three continuing education courses online. Get Grants!, A to Z Grant Writing Part II - Beyond the Basics, and Project Management Fundamentals. All of them were self-paced, so I could read through the each course in its entirety right off the bat, and that helped me tailor my learning experience.
I find that self-paced classes are much more in keeping with my learning style; some days I don't feel like logging in to read at all, while on other days I feel like going through three chapters of material, and still others I feel like I've studied enough to take half of the quizzes for the course all in one go.
For these online classes, you have three months from the day you sign up to finish the course. As I was still under a stay-at-home order, it seemed like a way to use the time of both unemployment and obligatory sequestering as a way to improve myself. On Sunday I took the final exams for both Get Grants! and A to Z Grant Writing Part II - Beyond the Basics, and passed them both. On Monday, I took the final exam for Project Management Fundamentals and passed that as well. Three more certificates for my resume, and a nice feeling of accomplishment besides.
Since the stay-at-home order and then the safer-at-home order, I've made time to look for work, take those classes, play video games, watch an abundance of streaming video, and even started crocheting again, to both help with anxiety management and for me to do something with my hands while I'm job searching.
I'm working on a shawl that is turning out breathtakingly fugly, both due to the varigated yarn I'm using and the "haha, follow what pattern, I'll wing it as I go" attitude I've adopted, ensuring that the yarn colors don't stripe nicely together. While the color palette of orange/white/dark grey/dark blue/light blue looks great while it's in the skein, when there's giant patches of orange next to giant patches of light blue, it's actually getting to the point of "so ugly it's cute again", which was not my intention. I still fully intend to use it around the house when it is finished; the yarn is thick and soft and perfect for slightly chilly nights.
Sometimes the projects we use to improve our skills and ourselves aren't the prettiest when they're done, but they served a purpose. I'm using this shawl as a way to practice new stitches that I've been learning from YouTube tutorials, as well as practicing old stitches that I felt I was getting a bit rusty on. I'm working at my own pace, so the end date for the project is not set, but I don't feel rushed; even if I finish this project sooner rather than later, there is always more yarn and there are always some actual patterns for me to try. Pacing myself is important, because I need to know and respect my limits. Many people try to work on themselves in such a regimented way that they forget to be kind to themselves too, and that will inevitably lead to backlash.
Be good to yourselves, Dear Readers. There is enough going on outside that you may feel like you have to do certain things to get ahead, and that very well may be, but do not forget to give yourself a break too. Stay safe, wash your hands, and be kind.
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
This Is Starting To Look Real Familiar
Happy Tuesday, Dear Readers.
I remember with visceral clarity what the job market was like between 2008-2012, which was both time for me to go to grad school and trying to acquire a job. It was hectic and messy, frustrating and rewarding.
I remember the fallout of the mass layoffs in 2008 that happened; companies realized they could get people with decades of experience on the cheap, compared to the salaries they'd been paying just a few months prior. Suddenly all the jobs that we as grad students had been eyeing to apply to when we were closer to graduating were out of our reach, as companies were less interested in our shiny new degrees and more interested in snatching up all the people with 10-20 years' of industry experience.
Only in the past five years or so, have I noticed the ludicrous requirements for jobs have slowly relaxed a bit, to something a bit more sensible for employers to look for and expect from applicants. However, with the mass layoffs of March and April 2020, I have seen a return of higher requirements, including more years of experience in general, more years of experience regarding certain job tasks, more certifications, etc. However, I do not think it will work as well for employers this time.
It worked 12 years ago was because the eldest of the Baby Boomer generation were setting out to retire, and with the layoffs happening in 2008, it mangled their retirement plans to a point that they had to get rehired and keep working. Now though, most people in that age range have either already retired or were at a good place to retire when the 2020 layoffs happened, and I think a lot of them will choose their health over the rigmarole of trying to get rehired during a pandemic.
I sincerely hope that when businesses open up again that people will be offered their old jobs back, and that they are hired back at a non-reduced rate of pay. I sincerely hope that people are able to find a job that they love to go to by the end of all this. I sincerely hope that, when all is said and done, we can learn from what we have experienced and be better people and a better society.
Have a good week, Dear Readers. Take care of yourselves.
-A.M.W.
I remember with visceral clarity what the job market was like between 2008-2012, which was both time for me to go to grad school and trying to acquire a job. It was hectic and messy, frustrating and rewarding.
I remember the fallout of the mass layoffs in 2008 that happened; companies realized they could get people with decades of experience on the cheap, compared to the salaries they'd been paying just a few months prior. Suddenly all the jobs that we as grad students had been eyeing to apply to when we were closer to graduating were out of our reach, as companies were less interested in our shiny new degrees and more interested in snatching up all the people with 10-20 years' of industry experience.
Only in the past five years or so, have I noticed the ludicrous requirements for jobs have slowly relaxed a bit, to something a bit more sensible for employers to look for and expect from applicants. However, with the mass layoffs of March and April 2020, I have seen a return of higher requirements, including more years of experience in general, more years of experience regarding certain job tasks, more certifications, etc. However, I do not think it will work as well for employers this time.
It worked 12 years ago was because the eldest of the Baby Boomer generation were setting out to retire, and with the layoffs happening in 2008, it mangled their retirement plans to a point that they had to get rehired and keep working. Now though, most people in that age range have either already retired or were at a good place to retire when the 2020 layoffs happened, and I think a lot of them will choose their health over the rigmarole of trying to get rehired during a pandemic.
I sincerely hope that when businesses open up again that people will be offered their old jobs back, and that they are hired back at a non-reduced rate of pay. I sincerely hope that people are able to find a job that they love to go to by the end of all this. I sincerely hope that, when all is said and done, we can learn from what we have experienced and be better people and a better society.
Have a good week, Dear Readers. Take care of yourselves.
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Managing Anxiety During A Plague
Hello Dear Readers. I hope your week has been a good one.
Managing anxiety has become a far more pressing issue in the past couple months than usual. Anxiety hits everybody differently, but for me I can get insomnia, and/or completely lose my appetite, and/or get a headache because I've hyper-focused on something and forgot to drink water, and any combination of these things will absolutely screw me up worse if I don't take care of myself.
I have a plan written on my white board that says the following:
"If you feel like everything is going wrong, or you can't sleep, or your head hurts, or your chest is tight, or your stomach feels like lead, remember to do three things:
1) Drink water - a full glass!
2) Eat something green or lean protein
3) Take a nap, Nerd!
If you've just done 1, do 2 and then 3. If you've just done 2, do 1 and then 3. If you've just woken up from 3, do 1 and then 2. You are more than your anxiety, and you are more than what is posted on your resume. Breathe."
Living during a time of Plague and also Spring is not great for me. Spring and Fall are prime times for me to get sick, and it's usually a throat/upper respiratory cold, which makes the prospect of getting sick that much more anxiety-inducing. I would prefer to not have to play a game of "Regular Spring Cold, or Plague", just because I came home from running an errand, and then a couple days later started sneezing/coughing. I have a mask, but the amount of people blithely running about without one, so convinced of their superiority that they will be immune to Rona's pull, is irksome. I go out as little as possible in response, and manage my anxiety about going outside to run errands as best as I can when I go out to get supplies.
I hope, Dear Readers, that if you are experiencing anxiety, that you are finding healthy ways to manage it. I hope that the world acquires a new normal that is healthier for everybody, but in the meantime, remember to wash your hands and stay safe.
-A.M.W.
Managing anxiety has become a far more pressing issue in the past couple months than usual. Anxiety hits everybody differently, but for me I can get insomnia, and/or completely lose my appetite, and/or get a headache because I've hyper-focused on something and forgot to drink water, and any combination of these things will absolutely screw me up worse if I don't take care of myself.
I have a plan written on my white board that says the following:
"If you feel like everything is going wrong, or you can't sleep, or your head hurts, or your chest is tight, or your stomach feels like lead, remember to do three things:
1) Drink water - a full glass!
2) Eat something green or lean protein
3) Take a nap, Nerd!
If you've just done 1, do 2 and then 3. If you've just done 2, do 1 and then 3. If you've just woken up from 3, do 1 and then 2. You are more than your anxiety, and you are more than what is posted on your resume. Breathe."
Living during a time of Plague and also Spring is not great for me. Spring and Fall are prime times for me to get sick, and it's usually a throat/upper respiratory cold, which makes the prospect of getting sick that much more anxiety-inducing. I would prefer to not have to play a game of "Regular Spring Cold, or Plague", just because I came home from running an errand, and then a couple days later started sneezing/coughing. I have a mask, but the amount of people blithely running about without one, so convinced of their superiority that they will be immune to Rona's pull, is irksome. I go out as little as possible in response, and manage my anxiety about going outside to run errands as best as I can when I go out to get supplies.
I hope, Dear Readers, that if you are experiencing anxiety, that you are finding healthy ways to manage it. I hope that the world acquires a new normal that is healthier for everybody, but in the meantime, remember to wash your hands and stay safe.
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Update on the Tail End of Stay At Home
Happy Tuesday, Dear Readers. I hope you all had a good week, and a good time with the prompts I provided for creative writing during the last five weeks. Time to go back to regularly scheduled programming, and since I haven't posted a real update in the past five weeks, I will use today's blog to catch up.
Classes have been going well. I signed up for two more grant writing classes, and a project management class. All of the classes are self-paced, and I spent the time to download all the reading material for each class. I downloaded everything first so that I don't have to log in to the online classroom in order to study, and so far I have enjoyed the material.
Job hunting is mostly the same, though I have noticed a significant jump in applicants via LinkedIn for remote positions, which is in no way surprising. I am waiting for restrictions to ease in my county before contacting my agency to ask if the positions I interviewed for prior to lock-down are still interested in hiring me. In the meantime, I have applied to many positions, some of which let me know they were happy to get my application and resume, but they were freezing hiring until further notice.
I took some time at the beginning of quarantine to hand-sew myself a mask, and then a headband to go with it. The headband has buttons sewed onto it, for the elastic of the mask to loop on to, and works well. I wear glasses, and having both the stems of glasses and elastic loops was proving to be too much pressure on the cartilage-filled skin-ridges that help me hear. I also made a mask and headband set which I sent to my sister, who also wears glasses, so that she could be more comfortable when she went out.
I used to consume a lot of news, but since the Stay At Home order, and everything that has happened in the last month-and-a-half (and I had to check a calendar to make sure it has only been a month-and-a-half, because Yikes), I had to cut down on how many hours I spent consuming news for my own mental well-being. I have invested the time into my classes and some de-stressing measures, to keep me on an even keel.
That is the basic round-up for me, Dear Readers. I hope you have a good week!
-A.M.W.
Classes have been going well. I signed up for two more grant writing classes, and a project management class. All of the classes are self-paced, and I spent the time to download all the reading material for each class. I downloaded everything first so that I don't have to log in to the online classroom in order to study, and so far I have enjoyed the material.
Job hunting is mostly the same, though I have noticed a significant jump in applicants via LinkedIn for remote positions, which is in no way surprising. I am waiting for restrictions to ease in my county before contacting my agency to ask if the positions I interviewed for prior to lock-down are still interested in hiring me. In the meantime, I have applied to many positions, some of which let me know they were happy to get my application and resume, but they were freezing hiring until further notice.
I took some time at the beginning of quarantine to hand-sew myself a mask, and then a headband to go with it. The headband has buttons sewed onto it, for the elastic of the mask to loop on to, and works well. I wear glasses, and having both the stems of glasses and elastic loops was proving to be too much pressure on the cartilage-filled skin-ridges that help me hear. I also made a mask and headband set which I sent to my sister, who also wears glasses, so that she could be more comfortable when she went out.
I used to consume a lot of news, but since the Stay At Home order, and everything that has happened in the last month-and-a-half (and I had to check a calendar to make sure it has only been a month-and-a-half, because Yikes), I had to cut down on how many hours I spent consuming news for my own mental well-being. I have invested the time into my classes and some de-stressing measures, to keep me on an even keel.
That is the basic round-up for me, Dear Readers. I hope you have a good week!
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
Stretching Imagination Muscles, Part 5
Happy Tuesday, Dear Readers! Hopefully this week will be the last full week of stay-at-home, as some people are ordered to do so until April 26th, and most others are April 30th. As such, I'm planning an actual blog for next week, so barring any evolving circumstances, this will be the last writing prompt blog for the time being. Let's begin.
1. In a fit of pique, your beloved decides to send you a letter written in Victorian love-letter style, and beseeches you to write one to them in return. What do you say to your beloved? If you have no current beloved, write one to your ideal partner.
2. You are on vacation! It's just you and a pile of books, and some puzzles, and a lovely cabin in a heavily forested area, which your rich grandfather built himself back in the 1950s. The cabin is fully furnished, and has gas, electricity, and running water. All of the systems have their main controls in a small shack off to the side of the clearing where you parked your car. One night, just after the sun has gone down, the power goes out. There is no storm or heavy wind which could have caused this, so you get ready to go out with a flashlight to reset everything from the shed when you notice the complete and utter absence of sound outside. No animal noises at all, not even the song of crickets or the family of raccoons you know nests in a tree not too far from the house. The hair on the back of your arms and neck stands up as you finally hear the sound of skittering on the front porch, and you hold your breath as the storm door is jostled, then slowly let out your breath after the action is not repeated. After a few moments, the skittering noise is heard moving away. What do you do?
3. You have been turned into an animal familiar as part of your training to become a magical apprentice of a warlock/enchantress. They can communicate with you telepathically, so you can still talk to somebody while you are like this, but everybody else will just assume you are just an animal. What animal do you turn into, and what sort of shenanigans does your magical teacher order you into while you are like that?
4. It is a beautiful day outside. You start to take a walk, and notice a calico cat, fluffy and friendly, on your path. She turns about your legs for a few moments, purring as she receives pets, and then trots off down the path. You are going the same way, so you travel with her for a few moments, before she turns off the path and after about 10 feet, looks back at you and mews. On a whim, you decide to leave the path and follow her. You swear you only follow her for maybe 20 minutes, the fluffy plume of her tail easy to see, but when you look at the darkening sky and your watch, you realize it's been four hours, and nothing except the cat looks familiar. You keep following her, as trying to backtrack seems futile right now, and soon you come to a clearing. The clearing has stone pillars, carved with runes, at the four cardinal directions, and a single stone stand, carved intricately and three feet tall in the center. The stand has a small wooden chest on top of it, and just enough room for the cat to leap up and sit on the corner. She blinks slowly at you and mews again, and you get the distinct impression that she is smiling. What do you do?
5. Big businesses no longer push for a boring "formal business" aesthetic, and let people dress and style themselves however they want, because as long as you do a good job, your aesthetics do not matter. Facial piercings, tattoos, dyed hair, and wacky outfits are totally fine, though if you prefer something more conservative that is fine too. What is your preferred aesthetic, and how do you get to change how you look now to look how you want? How do you feel about going to work and comparing styles with your coworkers? Thinking about your coworkers, do you think you can guess the style they would wear if given complete freedom to do it without repercussions?
As always, think these scenarios over, have fun, and enjoy playing in a different head-space. I hope you are all staying safe, are healthy, and are washing your hands. Until next week, Dear Readers!
-A.M.W.
1. In a fit of pique, your beloved decides to send you a letter written in Victorian love-letter style, and beseeches you to write one to them in return. What do you say to your beloved? If you have no current beloved, write one to your ideal partner.
2. You are on vacation! It's just you and a pile of books, and some puzzles, and a lovely cabin in a heavily forested area, which your rich grandfather built himself back in the 1950s. The cabin is fully furnished, and has gas, electricity, and running water. All of the systems have their main controls in a small shack off to the side of the clearing where you parked your car. One night, just after the sun has gone down, the power goes out. There is no storm or heavy wind which could have caused this, so you get ready to go out with a flashlight to reset everything from the shed when you notice the complete and utter absence of sound outside. No animal noises at all, not even the song of crickets or the family of raccoons you know nests in a tree not too far from the house. The hair on the back of your arms and neck stands up as you finally hear the sound of skittering on the front porch, and you hold your breath as the storm door is jostled, then slowly let out your breath after the action is not repeated. After a few moments, the skittering noise is heard moving away. What do you do?
3. You have been turned into an animal familiar as part of your training to become a magical apprentice of a warlock/enchantress. They can communicate with you telepathically, so you can still talk to somebody while you are like this, but everybody else will just assume you are just an animal. What animal do you turn into, and what sort of shenanigans does your magical teacher order you into while you are like that?
4. It is a beautiful day outside. You start to take a walk, and notice a calico cat, fluffy and friendly, on your path. She turns about your legs for a few moments, purring as she receives pets, and then trots off down the path. You are going the same way, so you travel with her for a few moments, before she turns off the path and after about 10 feet, looks back at you and mews. On a whim, you decide to leave the path and follow her. You swear you only follow her for maybe 20 minutes, the fluffy plume of her tail easy to see, but when you look at the darkening sky and your watch, you realize it's been four hours, and nothing except the cat looks familiar. You keep following her, as trying to backtrack seems futile right now, and soon you come to a clearing. The clearing has stone pillars, carved with runes, at the four cardinal directions, and a single stone stand, carved intricately and three feet tall in the center. The stand has a small wooden chest on top of it, and just enough room for the cat to leap up and sit on the corner. She blinks slowly at you and mews again, and you get the distinct impression that she is smiling. What do you do?
5. Big businesses no longer push for a boring "formal business" aesthetic, and let people dress and style themselves however they want, because as long as you do a good job, your aesthetics do not matter. Facial piercings, tattoos, dyed hair, and wacky outfits are totally fine, though if you prefer something more conservative that is fine too. What is your preferred aesthetic, and how do you get to change how you look now to look how you want? How do you feel about going to work and comparing styles with your coworkers? Thinking about your coworkers, do you think you can guess the style they would wear if given complete freedom to do it without repercussions?
As always, think these scenarios over, have fun, and enjoy playing in a different head-space. I hope you are all staying safe, are healthy, and are washing your hands. Until next week, Dear Readers!
-A.M.W.
Tuesday, April 14, 2020
Stretching Imagination Muscles, Part 4
Happy Tuesday, Dear Readers. I hope you are all doing well in this time of pandemic. General update about me: I have signed up for more online classes, and I will be diving into those as soon as I post this entry. I have hand-sewn a mask for myself along with headband, and then did a second one which I sent to my sister. I have made soup and applied for jobs and stayed home as much as possible. I'm still holding out hope that when the stay at home order is lifted, the office I interviewed with right before all this went down does want to employ me in some capacity, as I was up for two different positions in their office, and I was very impressed with the place.
Now that all the personal stuff is out of the way, here are your writing prompts for this week:
1. Great news! Your cousin invented a working hovercraft, about the size of a small sedan which floats, and they want you to be the pilot while they video proof that it works. They give you a how-to manual and a minimum instruction about the control panel, which is less them piloting while you observe and more of them making you sit in the pilot's seat while they point to different things and say "this one does x". Do you read through the how-to manual, or do you wing it? What shenanigans do you get up to while learning how to pilot this vehicle?
2. You've taken up a handicraft (e.g. knitting, crochet, embroidery, spinning, weaving, etc.), and you've gotten rather good. The next time you join a march/parade, you decide to use your craft to make a sign/banner. How fabulous is it, and what does it depict/say?
3. A bored billionaire wants you to be their player piece in a life-sized game of Monopoly, which goes strictly by the actual rule-book. You get to walk around a constructed city set up like a Monopoly board, with holograms to simulate houses/hotels, wearing a hat that looks like one of the Monopoly tokens and doubles as a headset so your billionaire can tell you how many places to move. Whenever the billionaire "buys" a property, you have to place a sign on the property saying your billionaire owns it, and when they "buy" houses/hotels, you have to activate the hologram to display the appropriate amount of buildings. The jail is a real building that you have to get locked into, with an on-duty warden. For this ridiculous job, which takes a full day to play, the billionaire will only refer to you as the Monopoly token on your head, but they promise to pay you $100 per hour, and double that if they win. Do you take the job?
4. You, as an archaeologist, are on a dig when one of your diggers uncovers a stone door, slanted down like a cellar door you might find behind a house. You read the inscription and it appears benign, so you document everything, and open it up. There is a set of stone stairs descending into the dark gloom of the earth, but as you contemplate who goes on the expedition down with you, a whistle-like screech emanates from somewhere deep within the opening. The sound gets stronger and stronger for 10 seconds and then abruptly cuts off, leaving your ears ringing. You look at your team and they look at you. Do you go down into the ancient underground, or do you look to see if maybe there are other ruins topside to look at first? No matter which you choose, what do you find?
5. For video game nerds: You get sucked into the last video game you last played, and you can choose to be a non-player character, or a new antagonist (think mid-level boss), or a new option for people to play as the protagonist. What game are you in? Which do you choose? If you choose to be a non-player character, what do you choose to do? If you choose to be a new antagonist, what is your aesthetic and attack type?
As always, enjoy these, have fun, and I hope you have a good week! Stay healthy, stay occupied, and wash your hands!
-A.M.W.
Now that all the personal stuff is out of the way, here are your writing prompts for this week:
1. Great news! Your cousin invented a working hovercraft, about the size of a small sedan which floats, and they want you to be the pilot while they video proof that it works. They give you a how-to manual and a minimum instruction about the control panel, which is less them piloting while you observe and more of them making you sit in the pilot's seat while they point to different things and say "this one does x". Do you read through the how-to manual, or do you wing it? What shenanigans do you get up to while learning how to pilot this vehicle?
2. You've taken up a handicraft (e.g. knitting, crochet, embroidery, spinning, weaving, etc.), and you've gotten rather good. The next time you join a march/parade, you decide to use your craft to make a sign/banner. How fabulous is it, and what does it depict/say?
3. A bored billionaire wants you to be their player piece in a life-sized game of Monopoly, which goes strictly by the actual rule-book. You get to walk around a constructed city set up like a Monopoly board, with holograms to simulate houses/hotels, wearing a hat that looks like one of the Monopoly tokens and doubles as a headset so your billionaire can tell you how many places to move. Whenever the billionaire "buys" a property, you have to place a sign on the property saying your billionaire owns it, and when they "buy" houses/hotels, you have to activate the hologram to display the appropriate amount of buildings. The jail is a real building that you have to get locked into, with an on-duty warden. For this ridiculous job, which takes a full day to play, the billionaire will only refer to you as the Monopoly token on your head, but they promise to pay you $100 per hour, and double that if they win. Do you take the job?
4. You, as an archaeologist, are on a dig when one of your diggers uncovers a stone door, slanted down like a cellar door you might find behind a house. You read the inscription and it appears benign, so you document everything, and open it up. There is a set of stone stairs descending into the dark gloom of the earth, but as you contemplate who goes on the expedition down with you, a whistle-like screech emanates from somewhere deep within the opening. The sound gets stronger and stronger for 10 seconds and then abruptly cuts off, leaving your ears ringing. You look at your team and they look at you. Do you go down into the ancient underground, or do you look to see if maybe there are other ruins topside to look at first? No matter which you choose, what do you find?
5. For video game nerds: You get sucked into the last video game you last played, and you can choose to be a non-player character, or a new antagonist (think mid-level boss), or a new option for people to play as the protagonist. What game are you in? Which do you choose? If you choose to be a non-player character, what do you choose to do? If you choose to be a new antagonist, what is your aesthetic and attack type?
As always, enjoy these, have fun, and I hope you have a good week! Stay healthy, stay occupied, and wash your hands!
-A.M.W.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)