Category: Uncategorized

The Misunderstanding

Photo by Dennise Anorico on Pexels.com

I don’t know if you would call it the funniest misunderstanding but it was funny at the time. I’ve spent a lot of time in Asia and I thought I knew all the customs and how not to step on someone’s toes but there was one time when we, my ex and son, went to Singapore to see why I loved the place so much.

Things change very quickly in Singapore. It never stays the same and perhaps that is the attraction of this tiny island nation and we were prepared for a great time with good food and lots of things to see. We did get some delicious food and lots to see as well. However, things had changed again. They have these food courts or rather hawker centers and if you want really good food at low prices, it is the place to be.

We went there one evening. The atmosphere was great and the place was bustling. All the tables were taken and then I spotted one in the midst of all the chaos and it was empty! We rushed to it glad to have found it. There was a pack of tissues on the table and we were very grateful. It was hot and that pack of tissues came in handy. We opened it, cleaned our hands, and wiped the sweat off our faces. We noticed people glancing in our direction but paid them no mind.

A few minutes later, a young couple approached us and said, “Excuse me, this is our table.”

Me: “Sorry, we saw it first. It is ours.”

Lady: “We choped it first.”

Me: “What do you mean choped? What is that?”

Lady: “In Singapore, if there is a pack of tissues on the table, it means it is taken.”

You can imagine our embarrassment. We apologized and left the table politely and quickly.

Choping or rather reserving a seat is done by placing a pack of tissue paper on the table. This only applies at the hawker centers or at least I think so, maybe they’ve changed that again! It means it is taken or rather reserved. It is also considered a massive local taboo to break that rule.

We later laughed about it BUT we learned to read up on the rules and regulations and believe me when I say, breaking of rules and or laws in Singapore can cost you more than a pretty penny! The one we broke only cost us a laugh, but it could have been worse.

Daily writing prompt
What’s the funniest misunderstanding you’ve ever been part of?
View all responses

Not an App Fanatic

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

There is an app for almost anything these days. They’re supposed to make your life easier or so they say. I have a few apps I use regularly but nothing that consumes most of my free time. It is a quick in and out.

Some people download lots of them and I know someone who does that but he uses only a few. I, on the other hand, have the same kind of attitude towards them as I do towards technology. I know that it is a necessary evil but I don’t have to tie my wagon to them.

What about the dating apps? Hmm….those I do use but not on a regularly basis. I get a message or messages that say I got likes and my first thought, “Oh God!” I do go in to see who wrote me just for curiosity’s sake. Sometimes I reply if the person seems nice but most days, I ignore and delete if the message is obnoxious and not to my liking.

Apps are necessary I suppose in this day and age. Everybody and almost every store uses it so there’s no getting away from them. However, it is up to me if I want it to take up all my time or just enough to keep my existence going!

Daily writing prompt
What app eats up most of your screen time — and do you even feel bad about it?
View all responses

Cheaters Listen Up!

This one is for all the cheaters out there. The ones who think that they’ve walked off scot-free. The ones who have walked off into the sunset after breaking a heart. The ones who thought cheating was what it was about and not getting caught was an adrenalin rush!

This one is for all of you.

Ladies, if you’re struggling and wondering if they’ll ever get payback, listen carefully. What goes around comes around!

I HOPE SHE DOES YOU WORSE!

AND

This is revenge dressed in style!

Magazines

Photo by YC C on Pexels.com

I can’t remember their names! Dad used to order lots of books, puzzles, and things of interest and I got my hands on them! I would work the puzzles, and read all the other stuff that was there. That’s how I took an interest in reading. I have dad to thank for that.

Then one day, those new magazines started arriving. They had beautiful pictures of faraway places. I could go there and dream without ever leaving home. Switzerland became my fav place and I read up on everything I needed to know about that place. One day I was going to visit this marvelous place and experience it for myself. It never happened.

Other places came along. Sri Lanka, Brazil, Hawaii, Asia, and many many more. I would visit some of those places in real life and experience the culture, the people, and the cuisine for myself.

I realized that I didn’t have to leave home to go to my dream places. I could do that right from my bedroom and flipping pages took me to some wonderful lands and faraway destinations.

Traveling was not a choice. I married somehow who traveled alot, career choices helped with some other visits, and I went along whether I wanted to or not. These days I am content with where I am at. Peace and quiet is what I seek the most and those faraway places will remain undiscovered as far as I am concerned. I’ve done enough traveling in my life, time to hang up those shoes and COOL it for a while at least.

To answer your question, no movie or book inspired me to travel or maybe it did but I can’t think of any right now. Those magazines come to mind so question answered!

Daily writing prompt
What’s a movie or book that inspired you to travel?
View all responses

LOL!

Photo by Misho Cha on Pexels.com

A traveler once visited a small village in the countryside.

At the local bar someone asked him if he was married.

“i’m divorced. Actually, I never could find a woman I didn’t end up fighting with all the time.”

The local man said, “you should go talk to the old couple on the top of the hill outside the village. Rumor has it they’ve been married for over 60 years and they’ve never fought this whole time.”

“What? That’s impossible everyone fights”, exclaimed the traveler. But the local swore to him it was the truth and nothing but. The traveler just had to check it out.

So in the morning he knocked on the door of the little house on the hill and was immediately welcomed by the husband who invited him in for tea. After the traveler explained why he came to see him the man smiled and nodded, “yeah, it’s true we never fight”

“Please”, begged the traveler, “can you tell me your secret?”

“Well”, said the old man, “it all started about 60 years ago right after the wedding. We were riding our mule back to town and walking it down the street when it tripped over a stone and my wife said to him that’s one and kept riding. As the mule tripped again on another stone when my wife immediately said that’s two. Minutes later the mule tripped over a stone again. My wife said that’s three. She pulled out a gun i never knew she had and shot it in the head without thinking twice. i was shocked and yelled at her what the heck do you think you’re doing we needed that mule. Are you crazy?

My wife looked me straight in the eye and said that’s one. And we’ve never fought since.”

Hmm….I should have thought of that! 🤣🤣🤣

Trends

Photo by Ayomide Isaac on Pexels.com

Trends come and they go. They come to stay for a while and leave just as quickly. It takes the fashion world by storm for that moment in time and it is all the rage. Everyone wants to duplicate, imitate, and let it all out as far as that trend is concerned but it is not a permanent fixture. Just a passing phase.

As a former fashion editor, I’ve kept up with them, worn them, and written about them. Fashion has evolved with the times and it went from opulent wear that were restrictive to say the least to more functional streetwear. The 1920s brought about a revolutionary style of dressing. Gone were the tight-fitting corsets and these were replaced by drop-waist dresses that moved freely and gave women a sense of freedom.

Remember the bell-bottoms? This was the trend in the 1970s. The wider the bottoms, the better! I’m talking about the pants of course. Bohemian was in and casual ease was the trend.

1980s brought power dressing to the forefront. Oversized blazers, bold jewelry and PADDED shoulders took dressing to a new level. Add big pieces of jewelry to that and you were on your way to success.

Then Grunge came in and held court for a while. It was based on minimalism. Low-rise denim and velour tracksuits were in. Combat boots and slip dresses were in too. Comfort was in and who cared about dressing to the nines?!!

Today, we have a mishmash of all those styles. Anything goes and if you borrow from all those styles, you are considered fashionable and ready to step out and be seen. Today’s trend is based on blending comfort with high fashion. Yoga pants, sweatpants, big comfy tops, are the norm for daily wear as it is with me and I dress it up a LITTLE for the evening with a nice shirt, a good pair of jeans and comfortable shoes and I’m ready to be out there looking smart and fashionable.

Coming back to your question. If I could erase one trend from history, it would be those bell-bottoms. I think they looked ridiculous back then and still do today! That’s just my opinion. However, they are making a strong comeback. Celebrities love them and so do the normal folk. Updated to look better than they did back then, today’s trend has high fitted waists and flare gently past the knees. It doesn’t look that bad depending on who wears them but I’m hoping it leaves quickly and goes to never never land!

Daily writing prompt
If you could erase one trend from history, what would it be?
View all responses

Elias Grace

This guy is phenomenal. He not only looks like Jesus, my kind of guy, but his voice, his voice touches a chord within me. I listened to him last night and it brought tears to my eyes so I can understand the “tears” gushing in the arena where he was in Jerusalem.

Listen and you will see what I mean.

I know that name too. I grew up with it, I walked with it, I spoke to it, I walked away from it, but not for long. I came back to it. I know that name well and it is where I draw my strength from. It is a beautiful name.

The Key Start Technology

Photo by Sofía Nuñez on Pexels.com

All the new cars have this keyless system. You can start the car before you get in, tap the key pouch or whatever they call it and the engine revs up! If that isn’t scary, I don’t know what is.

This year was a hard year as far as my car was concerned. I had problems, two major ones and I had to step back and decide if I should give it up, trade it in for a new car. I did do that or was about to do that. Let me tell you, the experience wasn’t a pleasant one. We went to two or three dealerships, a friend and I, and it was mind-boggling. I saw some really nice cars but all with the keyless function. Add “hybrid” to that and my whole being rebeled automatically. I’m not equipped for new technology. It seemed I had no choice. I asked if I could get one that started the old-fashioned way, with a key no less!

The guy shook his head. “It is so easy, once you get used to it you wouldn’t want to go back.” Hmm….but I want what I want. No can do. So I stepped into one to do a test drive. It started when I held that thingamagig to the start knob, I think that is what I did. It revved up. My heart jumped and wanted to run away from that place! I took a deep breath and we took off. It drove like a dream and I felt good driving that car. Inside my “tech demon” was jumping up and down. It hates all things new and kept screaming, “STOP IT! You and this car don’t jive.” I went against what it had to say and decided to buy the car. Two weeks later, I had to sign the contract and this new “tech” machine would be all mine. An hour before, I backed out. The “tech demon” had been working hard and it gave me the pros and cons. I must say it had some good points. One of them being, “Don’t expect me to get in that car with you!”

So I got my current car repaired at a huge expense and it is running fine. Tech demon is happy as well. Here’s the thing, the keystart method is still there if you find an older model and at a used price. Most new cars have a whole new technology going.

I know Elon. You think different but you’d never catch me in a Tesla! Why? The “tech demon” has been giving me pointers on that one too. It is enough to make you want to go back to when cars took you from Point A to B and didn’t have all the gadgets they do now. My current car has them too, I use some but I don’t know how the rest works! It is there for decorative purposes, nothing more, nothing less. That is my opinion and I will stand by it.

You think I have problems with men. I’m on the same path with technology as well, anything new that is!

Daily writing prompt
Which outdated technology do you miss the most, and why?
View all responses