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catwithangerissues · 3 years

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hey!! for your weekly event: sugawara & 6:30 pm (romantic btw) tysm!!

Okay get ready because I made this DRAMATIC and very descriptive (just for you, @sunalma ) lmao

6:32 pm

For you, this was a regular hangout spot. A place you frequented, one that you were well aware of all the mysterious stories surrounding it.

An old lighthouse at the edge of shore, sat up on a hill of rugged rock that had been shaped after years of dark, harsh waves crashing against them.

It had long since been abandoned, hence the hundreds of old folk tales, some with still unsolved cases, that the sailors and old fishermen in town would tell to any new comers, children, or teenagers who were looking to wonder there.

You’d heard them all before, a thousand times over, but since childhood this place remained your secret haven. Your little corner of the world that was untainted by others. A place you could escape to at any time of day or night, and you’d be alone with just your thoughts and the sea.

You hadn’t invited anyone there before, and only one person knew of your little hideout. You had finally found the courage to share this little slice of heaven with another person, and that person was Sugawara Koshi. Your friend of many years, was the only one you ever told of your corner of the world, but tonight would be the first time he ever saw the mysterious lighthouse in person.

You loved your not so little lighthouse, and you knew Suga would too. From the outside, the lighthouse is bleached to a far lighter color than it’s original from years out in the sun, and the large lantern at the top is now a dim warm yellow color as opposed to it’s original bright white.

The inside was just as enchanting, a small apartment like home residing within its walls. It had homey wooden floors that had been worn from the oceans salty overspray, windows that always seemed to be slightly fogged over, and a seemingly endless staircase to the top.

You’d decorated the inside to your liking many years ago. Remnants of your previous visits scattered throughout the place in the forms of Polaroids, house plants, string lights, hidden places for snacks, and even an old carving of your name into the entryway floor.

You’d cleaned up the place for Suga’s arrival, and you’d cleaned yourself up as well. Telling yourself over and over again that it wasn’t a date and you didn’t have to be nervous, you’d been friends for years so why were you so anxious? Were you excited? That could be it, you suppose..

It’s chilly out and overcast, and you could smell the salt heavy in the air from the crashing waves. It was a comforting smell to you, one that felt like a warm bath after a long day. It always brought a smile to your face. Due to the weather, you’d brought some extra blankets and snacks to your little hideout, and thrown on an old cable knit sweater that you knew Suga admired on you as he’d complimented it many times- reminding yourself again that this wasn’t a date even if you’d wished it was.

Picking him up from the nearby dock, you told him it was best to remove his shoes while walking along the cold sand, as it would mean less clean up later.

During your few minute walk to the lighthouse, you made idle chatter about each others day, picking up random sea shells or admiring small creatures together along the way.

The lighthouse coming closer and closer with every step, you noticed the glimmer of excitement in Sugawara’s eyes, and upon reaching the creaky wooden door that you had put a few extra locks on long ago so that only you would be able to get inside, he seemed to be in awe of the buildings exterior and the surrounding area. Rightfully so, in your not so humble opinion.

Opening the old door, you gave him an in depth tour of the interior, one that took far too long- filled with old stories of you and your adventures here. But, the finale was leading him up the spiral staircase to the top- your favorite spot.

Once you reached the peak, his eyes shot open in awe of the surrounding area, the overcast skies making the sea look especially dark, but still clear enough to see the small schools of fish that regularly ventured close to the rocks. You felt pride swell in your chest for your little home away from home.

“I have one more surprise if you’d like to see it, I saved it for last because I knew you’d enjoy it the most!” You called out to the grey haired boy, your hands behind your back as your rolled from heel to toe on each foot.

Excitedly, he immediately rushed over to you across the lighthouses smallest floor, his hands in tight fists close to his chest.

You lead him to a small panel on the wall, one that was once red but had since worn to a light pink orange with peeling paint revealing its original bland white. He looked at you curiously, and when you took note of the too worn to read words song the top, you smiled- shrugging in fake innocence as you told him to just see what happens. Offering a playful smirk with his still questioning look, he pulled the lever on the panel, only to spin around in surprise when a large click was heard and a bright light began to show on the water below.

Rushing to the edge, he looked like a kid in a candy store looking out at the ocean with even more excitement than before.

Joining his side, you told him the story of an old fisherman that died several centuries ago that lived in this lighthouse, in the home on the bottom and middle floors. How his ghost still haunted the building and occasionally, to this day, would flick on the beacon that perched on top of the building.

After a look of pure puzzlement, you smiled knowingly at the boy, and that’s all it took for his brain to connect the dots.

“All these years, you’re the one that causes all these ghost stories here?” He asked, rather amused, with a light chuckle in between his words.

A nod of your head a few more ghost stories that actually turned out to be your doing, and you both were a cackling mess. A moment of silence dawned on the two of you, looking out at the beautiful scenery. Being able to see through the water clear as day with the fog light on.

“Thank you for trusting me with this hideout of yours, I understand it can be difficult to share something so comforting and important to you with another person- so believe me when I say this means a lot to me. You should buy this someday. This place truly is beautiful, and I still can’t get over the fact that all these ghost stories are actually just you making yourself at home here,” he paused for a moment to let out an airy chuckle, “I wouldn’t mind having more dates like this with you.” He ended with a small smirk followed by a playful wink.

Ignorantly, you hadn’t predicted the night would end up the way it did, but when you were snuggled up next to Suga, your long time crush and close friend, you couldn’t find anything but happiness and fondness in your heart.

Tag list: (send an ask to be added!) @sunalma @toworuu

WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT DRABBLES. I can’t write them okay don’t hate me .. I hope you liked this way too extra and dramatic ass oneshot. I thought the concept was cute🤷🏻‍♀️ lmk what you think!

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rollingthunder06 · 4 years

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Fic request; persephone comes home crying :)))

This was probably supposed to be Hades/Seph and as much as you know I love them, this is what popped in my head first.also i tried to put in a cut but it wouldn’t work, and it clocked over 700 words btw __________________________

Stupid husband.

Stupid Mama.

Stupid birthday.

Persephone slammed the front door shut, in a beeline to the kitchen. Her tears burned fast and hot down her cheeks and she furiously wiped them as she slammed around the kitchen.

She finally found what she was looking for, an unopened bottle of cherry wine, and slammed the cabinet shut. She popped the cork, unceremoniously taking a swig from the bottle.

The goddess pushed out a chair, clumsily sliding into it. She carefully placed the bottle on the table, running her hand through her hair.

Gods, she was getting old.

And every year it was the same thing.

The heavy silver bracelet that had been delivered with her card from her husband weighed down her wrist. She wanted the through it across the room.

She didn’t want jewelry, for gods sake why was it so hard for him to understand? The goddess took another swig of wine. Why couldn’t he have came and visited her instead?

Not that he gave a damn about her. It sure as hell felt like he didn’t. Like she was just some trophy for his pride. You keep it polished, but otherwise pay no mind to it.

And mama.

Her damn mother that sends her a card questioning her marriage every year. Damn Demeter who’s lies turned her into a victim and her husband into a monster in the eyes of the muses and the mortals.

Damn her mama that caused the first real strain on her marriage.

Persephone tilted her bottle back, but found it completely empty. She drunkenly wiped away the tears her memories brought, tossing the bottle into the trash.

A familiar sense of numbness spread over Persephone. But it wasn’t enough this time. She wanted to forget, to not feel anymore.

Sometimes she wished she wasn’t immortal. That one day it would all be over. That her birthdays would actually mean something. That people would actually care.

That her husband would care enough to come see her. Or care enough to be with her when she went home.

That her mother would actually talk with her. That her mother would care enough to put her personal beliefs aside and come visit her.

But no one cared.

The sun was setting outside, and that meant that the day was almost over. Persephone clumsily threw open the screen door to the patio, stepping into the sticky summer heat.

“Was wonderin’ when you were coming out.”

Persephone snapped her attention to the figure clad in silver that was seated lazily in one of the old straw chairs.

On the table was a pot of iced tea, and a square wrapped in brown parchment. The goddess sat in the opposite chair, tilting her head at her brother.

“I hate my birthday.”

Hermes laughed at her complaint. “I know.” He said, pouring them each a glass. “Open it.” The god gestured to the package that sat neatly wrapped on the table.

Persephone groaned picking up the package, her drunk fingers making quick work of the paper. Inside was a worn checkerboard that looked as ancient as them.

Persephone laughed, the warm sense of happy memories flooding her head.

“Where’d ya find it?” She asked, running a hand along the wooden board. “The boy found it. Gets into a lot of trouble for an eight year old.” Persephone laughed again, fishing in the attached box for the pieces.

“Now, I figured you’d rather spend the rest of the night playin’ with me rather than getting drunk and crying yourself to sleep.”

Persephone didn’t react to her brother’s tease, she just cleared the small table and laid out the board.

She played black and he played red. They’d never swapped colors, and even had painted on their pieces one summer when they were bored.

“I’m winnin’ this time.”

Hermes scoffed, “The only person you can win against is your husband.” Persephone shook her head out of drunken annoyance and clicked her tongue. “We’ll see about that.”

The two gods played until well after midnight, the only light being the moon and a gas lantern.

Persephone yawned, gathering their pieces. “Thank ya, brother.” She said, and Hermes just waved her off teasingly.

“G’night, Seph.” Hermes called, and Persephone waved from her perch halfway up the stairs. “Night brother.” And with that Hermes left, claiming another victory.

Persephone walked into her bedroom, throwing the bracelet with the rest in her jewelry box. The goddess laughed to herself.

Maybe her birthday was awful. But leave it to her brother to make her smile and forget about if for a while.

After all it meant so much more to her than just a game of checkers.

#hadestown #persephone #hermes #persephone hadestown #hermes hadestown #hadestown fanfic #fanfic #prompts #rt answers #rt writes #hadestown fic

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enderham · 5 years

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Parental approval

Sojiro is the best wingman, and, coincidentally, best dad.

Just wanted to do a light-hearted little piece where Sojiro inadvertently helps everyone and doesn't even know it in some cases. I'm open for prompts too btw!

Sojiro looks up at the sound of two sets of sneakers on the stairs followed by loud meowing. Ryuji seems to be squabbling with someone but Akira must be talking too low to hear, as he's wont to do. The cat seems aggravated.

"You kids heading out?" He asks when they make their way all the way down.

Ryuji grins as he shrugs his jacket on "Yeah, Boss, don't get me wrong, your curry's the best this side of the world but I've been craving some sushi!" To Morgana he says, "Shut up, cat." Which only prompts the creature to start screaming even louder until Akira picks him up with a murmured "Morgana please."

"We don't have money for anything fancy, though." He then reminds his friend but the blonde shrugs.

"We'll find a cheap place, don't worry about it!"

Sojiro watches them negotiate spending and whether they should bring Morgana along, partially for that exact reason. Ryuji says leave him home, Akira says that he'll buy some extra fish to bring back to the cat even if they do, so what's the point of leaving him? Ryuji is losing traction fast and Sojiro decides to help him out before he gives up and gives in to Akira's obliviousness. He clears his throat.

"You know what, Akira, I just remembered, I wanted to talk to you about something." Both boys turn to him in unison, Ryuji with genuine curiosity and Akira with a raised eyebrow. Damn that kid and his unusual perceptiveness.

"Ryuji, why don't you go wait for him outside. He'll be out in a minute."

The teen in question gives them both a bemused look but he's already shrugging on his jacket, "Uh, sure thing Boss." What a good kid that one is.

Once the bell above the door rings upon it's shutting behind the blonde, Sojiro breaks eye contact in order to idly wipe the counter while he says: "That kid's been in n' out of here a whole lot, hasn't he?"

When he looks up after a pause, Akira's got his eyebrows raised. Sojiro can't tell if it's simply a prompt to continue speaking or a challenge to say something against his best friend. Morgana's been silent throughout the exchange and a quick glance shows him leaning towards them on the stool where he perches like he's watching a particularly enticing interrogation scene. Instead of doing any of that, Sojiro slaps some money on the counter in front of his charge. "Here, take him somewhere nice." He says amiably.

To his great amusement, Akira goes red to the roots of his hair and starts sputtering. Morgana tips forward and falls to the floor, where he rolls over making high-pitched barking sounds as if he's laughing. He keeps it up long enough for Akira to get over his stupor and glare down at the creature, as if he actually believes it's laughing at him and not at all concerned it might be having a stroke like Sojiro had been.

"You have the weirdest cat, kid." He says instead of suggesting calling the vet.

"You have no idea." The teen mutters and Sojiro has no intention of unpacking that, "But everyone I know is weird." He adds with a small grin when he looks up.

"Hey now," Sojiro protests in mock-offense, and the earlier tightness in Akira's shoulders melts a little. "I'll take care of your weird cat while you're gone, kid." Then just for that 'weird' jab, he adds, "I'll even talk to him like he's a person, just like you do." The cat squawks as if he's the one who should be affronted. What a goddamn weird cat.

His weird owner turns to him as if to soothe him.

"I'll bring you back some fatty tuna, alright? Don't worry, Mo." Then he proceeds to look everywhere but at Sojiro while he takes the money from the counter. He stuffs it in his pocket and finally looks up when he's already shrugging into his jacket. "Thanks, boss." He says with a small smile which Sojiro waves off.

"Don't sweat it, kid. Now scram. Go have fun." 'With your boyfriend' is left unsaid, but heard loud and clear. With a last smile, Akira leaves and can be seen draping an arm over Ryuji's shoulder before they step out of sight.

"I wonder what he'll tell him about our talk just now." Sojiro muses, still looking at the door to the vacant café. "I'm sure he'll spin some tale about probation talk or something. That kid's way too smooth for his own good, y'know? But I'm glad he found someone. Life's had it in for him lately, he deserves this." He tells the cat. The cat meows in agreement. Then he remembers he's talking to a cat.

"Well I guess he ain't wrong about all of us being weird." He says with a chuckle. "Talking to cats. God. I guess I am keeping my promise of treating you like a person. I can't help it though. Sometimes you just act so human."

Morgana stares at him so long he nearly falls off the stool again, but Sojiro doesn't notice, too busy with a customer that just came in.

Later, he'll feel an incessant tapping from the creature curled up in his lap while he's doing crosswords at the bar, and hell follow the cat's lead to the door where they'll spy a shy goodbye kiss being exchanged. They'll both scramble back to the bar and act nonchalant when Akira comes in with the biggest from on his face and rush past them in the hopes of hiding his blush. Sojiro will extend a hand to Morgana and the cat will slap it as if giving him a low-five, and the whole exchange will be buzzard but hey, Sojiro's getting used to it all.

But for now, he has a customer.

Read on AO3

#persona 5 #persona 5 protagonist #akira kurusu #akira kusuru #pegoryu #akiryu #ryuji sakamoto #morgana #sojiro sakura

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furilia · 6 years

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Strange letters from my father

New Post has been published on https://www.furilia.com/strange-letters-from-my-father/

Strange letters from my father

I never do paid posts but I’m doing this one for two reasons. 1) Because I was already going to write about this. Stick with it and you’ll see why in a second, and 2) because the 8th Annual Jame Garfield Miracle is going on and I needed more money to help kids in need and this was a super easy way to do it. So if you’re reading this, you are helping needy children. EVERYONE WINS.

So, StoryWorth advertised on my blog this year and I loved it so much I paid full price to buy one for my dad. Here’s how it works: StoryWorth emails your family member weekly story prompts in the form of questions. They reply to the emails and you get to read their amazing family stories that you never knew existed. Then at the end of the year StoryWorth binds the years worth of stories into a keepsake book. My dad has been doing it for about six months and the emails I get with his answers are so insane and lovely that I often have to call and ask, “Is that true?” Stories about my grandparents and great grandparents that I may never have known are now being shared with family. It is awesome and I highly recommend it because it’s a gift for you and for them. It’s normally $79 but right now (until 1/31/18) it’s only $59 through this link.

The stories my father shares are really too good to keep to myself so I’m sharing a few snippets of my favorites here. You may think they’re strange and terrible but I love and treasure them. I suppose that’s how family stories work though. (BTW, Nelda is my mom. She types the answers as my dad dictates.)

Have you pulled any great pranks?

I was prying something loose one day, and I broke off half the blade of my skinning knife. Stupid! Now the six-inch blade was only three inches long. It was now perfect for prying things loose, but it was also perfect for a practical joke.

We have an electric knife sharpener at the taxidermy shop, and I don’t allow anyone to use it except me. If you’re not paying 100% attention to what you are doing, the high-speed sharpening wheel can throw the blade back at you. Bad news.

I went to my own working area where I hide from the other workers and went to work on my joke. I super glued the tip of my broken knife blade to the inside of my inner right arm. Next I built up the wound area with 2-part epoxy. It’s a product we use in the taxidermy shop like modeling clay to make artificial skin on a mount. I smoothed out the epoxy, texturized it to make it look like my own skin and modeled it to look like that knife is really embedded deep in my arm. I used an airbrush to paint the epoxy area to match my skin. Next I feathered in some white, purple,and red paint to make a realistic cut. Finally I mixed up some blood- red and black paint. I added a little glycerin to give the fake blood a wet glossy look. I poured the blood where it needed to be, and splashed the rest on an old rag that I used to cover the gag.

I staggered into the shop and sat down, not saying a word.

Don was the first to notice the blood. “Holy Crap! What did you do?” Helen came out the office, and I removed the blood-soaked rag to show my work of art. Everyone gathered around me to either gawk or help. Helen hollered out, “Don’t put it out. He’s on blood thinners! He”ll bleed to death!”

No sooner did she say that, Jonathon grabbed the knife and pulled it out. I quickly covered the wound with the bloody rag. I figured the joke was over till Jonathon looked at the knife and screamed, “It broke off in his arm!”

I didn’t get any compliments for my realistic art work. I cleaned up my mess and came back in the shop. I sat down next to Jonathon and asked him if it looked real. He said. “Yeah, I thought it was real……..What are blood thinners?”

What have you changed your mind about over the years?

I use to think that dogs are a man’s best friend, but I’ve changed my mind. Dogs will always forgive you quickly if you ask them to, but they don’t do laundry, they don’t cook, they don’t scratch your back, and they don’t clean house. They are pretty good at doing dishes, as long as you smear left-over gravy over the whole plate.

I use to think that a loving wife would see the humor in that previous paragraph. Dogs will still always forgive you quickly if you ask them to.

I use to think this was funny.

If you could choose any talents to have, what would they be?

I asked Nelda what this question meant. Any talent? She suggested singing, or playing an instrument , or maybe x-ray vision. X-Ray vision might be cool only if it is selective. Some old fat guy crossing your path of vision could ruin your day. A cute young chick could also ruin my marriage. I’ll stick with my near- sighted astigmatism with floaters.

I already sing beautifully. I have that talent even though no one else thinks so. My ears are so good that in my head the notes sound pitch perfect. Self corrective hearing is what I call it.

I might like the talent to finish everyone’s sentences before they could say it. Unfortunately I hang around a lot of people that don’t make a lot of sense. I’m not going to take credit for a bunch of nonsense.

I would like the talent to communicate with animals. I would like to understand their thoughts. Someday I will.

What is one of your fondest childhood memories?

One of my fondest memories is going perch fishing with my mom. When I was about five years old, I got the fishing bug. I couldn’t get enough fishing. My dad had a farm out at Eola, about twenty miles from home. The whole family would pack up before daylight, and drive out to the farm to work. My dad would usually be on his John Deere tractor. My mom would be either building electric fence or picking rocks out of the field. My sisters would be together hoeing weeds. I, being the baby, stuck with my mom. We would work till noon, and then drive to our neighbor’s pasture to have a picnic lunch. A small dirt tank with green water surrounded by large mesquite trees was one of my favorite places to spread out our homemade quilts, and rest in the shade. We would eat bread, summer sausage, longhorn cheese, and drink Cragmont orange soda water. After lunch, I would get out my cane pole. I always saved some of my lunch to use for bait. Those perch would bite on anything, but bread was my favorite cuz it stayed on my hook the best,

My dad would usually sleep and rest while my mom would watch me fish. She was actually watching a five year old kid making sure I wasn’t gonna fall in the water. The fish would bite as fast as you put the hook in the water. They weren’t very big, but I kept anything that had eyes. I even kept a little turtle. When I caught a water snake, my fishing was over.

Have you ever won anything?

The last year that the famous Sam Lewis put on the World Champion Armadillo Races, I won. Actually, my armadillo won. All I did was get behind Army and stomp and holler and chase him across the finish line. I guess I came in second. I released the armadillo back in the woods, but I kept the silver ring. My daughter Jennifer has the ring (I think).

I probably wouldn’t have given her the ring if it was gold.

What inventions have had the biggest impact on your day-to-day life?

The cube is probably the greatest invention of my lifetime. Before the cube, there was really not much stability in my life. Spheres were the rage when I was growing up. How can one build anything on a sphere? No matter how you slice it, you end up with just a lot of wheels.There was hope for wheels in those days, although someone took the idea too far. The whole world revolved around wheels and anything that could be made with them. Donuts were one of my favorites. It was like a wheel inside of a wheel. Clever. But look at a really fat donut from the side. It’s a cube. Give the cube the credit due. You eat a donut from the side, don’t you?

Cubes were the true building blocks of the future. The Egyptians knew this. They even made huge cubes all over their back yard. Then they sliced the cubes diagonally, tipped them over so they would rest on their most stable side, and “BAM”! They had yard art that would last for decades. People would ride by, see the yard art, and ask the age-old question, “Do you think that’s a cube cut in half on its axis, or is that cube half buried in the sand. If someone ever invents the wheel, we could build a big bulldozer and find out.”

Ice cubes. How would you like living in this planet without ice cubes. Sure, there’s people up north that don’t appreciate ice like we do, but what if they want to sit down for a while. Up north, chairs don’t grow on trees, but a big cube of ice would make a wonderful chair. You could probably build a house out of ice if you had enough of it laying around. An air-conditioned house. With an ice box.

I really don’t dislike spheres. After all, a sphere is just a well-rounded cube that likes to travel.

I changed my mind. My favorite invention that has changed my life is a 19 volt battery-operated screwdriver with an extra lithium battery. Made by Craftsman.

How has the country changed during your lifetime?

The country hasn’t changed at all. The cities are all screwed up. I lived in the country when I was a kid, and I live in the same country now. The trees I remember as a kid seemed to be a lot smaller back then. The country roads I use to walk down seem to be a lot shorter when I drive them.

Water skiing, tubing and fishing wasn’t good at all on our local lakes, but I got pretty good at skipping rocks. The trick was to find flat rocks about three inches across. If you could find rocks that were flat on the top and bottom, you were in business. With a little practice, you could get thirty or more skips out of one perfect rock. You could get even more skips if the lakebed wasn’t sandy. When you found that perfect rock, you didn’t squander it. You walked out in the lakebed and retrieved it. Once when I was retrieving one of my dad’s washers (sometimes I used artificials),I found a rowboat. It was a Sears/Roebuck 10 foot aluminum just like the ones in the catalogs. This boat was mine.There wasn’t a drop of water in my new boat, and I started dreaming about all the adventures I would have on Lake Nastywater. (We use to called it Lake Nasworthy, till the water level went down and old tires messed up our rock skipping). I named my boat S.S Minnow. Gilligan’s Island was my favorite after school tv show. I liked Gilligan the best, but Ginger and Mary Ann got a lot better over the years. My Dad enjoyed that show too. I knew he was really gonna get excited when I showed him The Minnow. We walked out on the lake and gazed down on our boat.

“Oh My Gosh! Look! ” Daddy saw my boat. He was excited. He peeled off his sweat stained farmers hat, smiled, sighed, and said something that I couldn”t believe. “There’s my old boat.”

“What! Your boat?”

“Sonny, I lost “The African Queen ” about forty years ago.” I was noodling for yeller cats down here when this was the Middle Concho. You know what noodling is……Catching them with your hands. It wasn’t against the law back in them days. Now, they would throw you in the pokie. I found this big rock right here and knew this was where the big one lived. Right under this rock. Your Uncle Sam, my older brother, was a better swimmer than me ,and he had more experience at catching big fish. Sam jumped in the water, took a deep breath, and went underwater. He came back up about 30 seconds later ,and told me the good news. “There’s a big hole under that rock, and there’s a catfish down in there. His head is as big as a five gallon bucket. As soon as I catch my breath, I’m going for him. My brother, Sam went under. He was down there a long time. He was down too long. I jumped in the water, and found the hole that Sam had entered. I reached in, and found Sam’s legs kicking up a storm. I grabbed his legs and started pulling him out of the hole. It was a struggle,but I pulled him out. We surfaced, and Sam was as white as a sheet. We looked around and couldn’t find “The African Queen”.

We sat up on the rock, Sam caught his breath finally, and told me what happened.”That monster fish was deep in the hole. I was rubbing his belly with both hands. My arms were extended, reaching for his gills. He kept swimming further in the hole. I didn’t realize that the hole was getting tighter, and I was running out of breath. My arms were out in front of me, and I couldn’t push my way out. I was stuck underwater. I was ready to give up when I felt you pulling me out. You saved my life!

We reached down to release our boat from the encrusted mud, and it proved to be a lot lighter than expected. There was no floor in the boat. It had rotted out years ago, but it still held some shared memories for my dad and me.

Uncle Sam and Daddy are both gone now. Maybe they’re floating down the Middle Concho in an old rowboat with a floor in it. Maybe they’re fishing for big yeller cats. They’re not noodling though because Sam promised God that he wouldn’t fish that way anymore.

Do you have any particularly vivid memories of your grandparents?

All of my grandparents were Czech. They didn’t speak English but they were successful farmers. They figured out early in life that to be wealthy, you had to have good discipline. They saved their hard-earned money that they made sharecropping. Then they bought land. They made do with growing their own fruits and vegetables. They raised chickens for eggs and meat. They had cows that they milked daily and butchered their own beef and hogs.They made their own clothes, churned butter, canned produce from the garden, made cheese , flour, cornmeal, and bread. The only thing easy on the farm was falling to sleep at night.

Butchering hogs in those days was a big deal. There was too much work for one family to do all the work in one day. There would also be too much meat and sausage to cure, smoke, and package. The meat from a three hundred pound hog would go bad before one family could eat it.

When the first cold day would come around, all of the aunts, uncles, and third-generation heathens would meet at my grandparents house with all their butcher knives, tow sacks, hog scrapers, seasonings. We were having a butcher day. There was going to be a lot of work and a lot of fun for everyone except two fat hogs.

The women would build a big hot fire under a wash kettle full of water. The men would get the hogs up out of the mud, and wash them off. The hogs didn’t know what was going on with all this special treatment, but I bet they thought they were family and they were being invited for dinner. Smart pigs.

My uncles would build a sled,and then would position our dinner guest close to it. A shot would ring out and an unhappy but short squeal would alert the second dinner guest that now might be the time to cancel his reservation. The relaxing swine napping on the sled would be given a ride to the kettle area. Tow sacks (burlap bags) were pulled out of the boiling water and spread over a portion of the sleeping porker. The scalding loosens the hair on the pig and a dull butcher knife is used to scrape the hair (root and all) off of the pig.

The whole process is repeated on a new area of the pig until the whole hog is as balded as the top of my head. That pig is also pretty and pink like the top of my head.

Now it’s time to gut the clean “organ donor”. The liver, kidneys, and heart are saved. The small intestines are also saved. It was my job to clean out the green juice out of these long tubes. I liked attaching a garden hose to one end and let the water pressure do the work. My job was taken away from me because of the mess I made all over the porch. I think years later Whamo made a fortune with a toy called a Water Wiggle. I guess I was just ahead of my time on inventions, but my marketing skills had not yet been perfected. Sometimes, poop happens.

The rolls of fat from the hog is collected for later use. The ashes from the fire were shoveled into a tilted wooden trough. Water was poured over the ashes and drained into another container. This was lye. The fat is put in the kettle and rendered down to lard. Some of the lard was saved to cook with. It was poor man’s shortening. Then the belly meat and flanks were cut up (with the skin still attached), and the small pieces were fried in the lard. This was cracklins. You eat them hot with molasses and homemade bread. You now have a lot of lard in the kettle. Dump the lye in with some kind of perfume and boil the devil out of it. Let the whole mess cool down and you got soap. Cut the soap into bars with a butcher knife and let it get cold. It will last forever. I think it has such a long shelf-like cuz no-one wants to use it. It stinks, and it takes your hide off with the dirt. It will cure a young boy from cussin .

Cut up the pork chops,cure the bacon, cure the hams and hocks, and start turning the grinder. It’s “SAUSAGE TIME”.

Those casings that were rescued from me are refilled with seasoned ground pork and tied into links. Hang ’em in the smoke house.

It’s now pretty late, and everybody’s tired. We sample the sausage and clean up the huge mess. I clean the front porch.

I give Babuska (Grandmother) a hug goodbye. I smell like the front porch, but she returns the hug anyway. That was sixty years ago, but I can still smell the aroma of fresh baked poppy seed kolaches from her homemade apron.

I still smell like her front porch.

My dad with his sisters and his mother. Wall, Texas.

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biotechniczeal · 7 years

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-- choriocytosicInquisitor [CI] began pestering biotechnicZeal [BZ] at 15:03 --

CI: C!TR!N, MY LOVE.

CI: H!.

BZ: OH ZHIT IT'Z DAT BOI.

BZ: what'z up??

CI: WHADDUP !S... me wonder!ng when you w!ll be v!s!t!ng Lauct!s? >80

CI: W!ll that be soon?

BZ: YEAH, ACTUALLY. i've been packing my zhit.

BZ: i juzt had to make a few arrangementz firzt...

BZ: lmao it'z weird being productive.

CI: !t's not we!rd. !t's good ?or you! And there?ore, TERR!BLE ?or th!ngs !? you mean ?or them to be ?un.

CI: ! m!ss you. 8(

BZ: i mizz you too. B(

BZ: IT BLOWZ... but at leazt i'm keeping myzelf buzy at leazt.

BZ: alzo... zoon... ZOON.

CI: HOW SOON. ! can come see you R!GHT NOW.

CI: !? you tell me where you are.

CI: !'ll go ?!nd you!

BZ: OH FUCK.

BZ: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

BZ: in that caze i'm at my dadz' houze.

CI: Your dads' house????? BUT HOW CAN ! RAV!SH YOU W!TH SMOOCHES !? !'M AWARE YOUR DADS ARE HOME!!!!

BZ: plz.... they're probably too buzy zmooching each other or zomething.

CI: Strangely enough, that doesn't make me ?eel better about the arrangement.

BZ: LMAO i know it'z grozz.

BZ: but ztill.

CI: Okay.

CI: ! w!ll now proceed to vo!ce my compla!nts !n success!on.

CI: Aaa.

CI: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

BZ: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!

CI: WHY MUST EVERYTH!NG BE D!??!CULT!

CI: ?!ne. !'m go!ng over anyway.

BZ: u fuckin' better.

BZ: >8P

CI: PREPARE YOUR PER?ECT BUTT, MR. STR!DER.

BZ: IT'Z READY.

CI: THAT D!DN'T TAKE LONG AT ALL! !'M SHOCKED.

BZ: that'z my butt'z zecret, ruleuz...

BZ: it'z alwayz ready.

CI: 8)

CI: !'M ON MY WAY.

BZ: B)

BZ: ZEE YA.

CI: *Perhaps close to a whole hour later, Ruleus is STORMING into the Casa de Strider English Captor and bullying J Dad awake from his nap. WASSALLA HULLABALO? It's Ruleus in the main living area.*

BZ: *citrin floats in when he hears a whole lot of hollering, which isn't unusual, but there's the distinct sound of RULEUS HOLLERING so he's here.* RULEZ ZTOP HAZZLING MY DAD GOZH!!

CI: *Here he is, the tall lanky fish caveman spongebob meming at Citrin.* CITRIN!!!

CI: JAKE: *still blinking heavily and sleepily, half waving an actual pistol around* Hoh rascals... you boys. You know better than to-- *mumble mumble, he's getting comfy back into the couch.* Take it to your room fellazzz.... zzzz

BZ: *snorts at ruleus and jake... they're both dorks... but here comes the peach, rocketing himself in ruleus' direction so he can cling to him.* eheheheheh!

BZ: you heard the man, let'z zplit.

CI: *HUP, naturally ends up carrying Citrin up in his arms.* GLUB. RIGHT! As you wish!!!! *scurries out of there, peach in tow.* Sorry Mr. English!

CI: JAKE: *snorts and waves his hand. Get on out you crazy kids.*

BZ: eheheheh... *buzzes all the way to his room, and once they're out of sight down the hall, he's covering ruleus in smooches.*

CI: Pfft prfbthth, that TICKLES. *scolds him, but not before ducking right into his room first. Stops dead in his tracks.* Wait.

CI: This is YOUR room, right?

BZ: LOL. well if u don't hear zim, dru or vic zcreaming then i think we're good. *looks over his shoulder*

BZ: YEAH WE'RE GOOD.

CI: OKAY. *launches Citrin onto his bed.* BYE.

BZ: WEEEEE. *there he goes. he lands and bounces gleefully. BUMBLES BOUNCE.* eheheheh.

BZ: *curls finger at him after posing seductively.*

BZ: /come hither./

CI: *launches for the bed, flailing his limbs. SCREAM. Casually drops on Citrin.*

BZ: DOOF.

BZ: *clings to him and ROLLS.*

CI: >8) *He is FEARSOME AND LARGE and not at all twiggy. There they go, rollin like a tumbleweed.* Ahhhhhhhh, I've missed you sweet peach.

CI: Even a finful of weeks is TOO MUCH.

BZ: ENOUGH IZ TOO MUCH. *giggling against his fins as they roll.*

BZ: pretty zoon we'll be in the zame place though... PERMANENT LIKE.

BZ: i'm gonna hit up nannerz later zo we can zcope out placez to live. oh zhit. *sits up while he's on top of ruleus.* BTW...

BZ: dadz cubed hooked up at the zkaianet branch on lauctiz in the bioengineering department!! >80 juzt an internzhip for now but ye.

CI: An internship??? *his fins perk until he's grinning wide. Yessss, Citrin perched on top of him was the best view. But Ruleus has to roll up to sit and scoop him in another hug.* THAT'S SUCH GREAT GLUBBING NEWS, CITRIN. I KNEW YOU WOULD NEVER HAVE TOO MUCH TROUBLE!!!!

CI: Will you be needing help searching for a place to live? Should I come with you and Ananya?

BZ: eheheh... *flushes a nice shade of peach, leaning into the embrace.* ummm.

BZ: the more the merrier tbh...

BZ: PLUZ it'll be your place too, zo??

BZ: bazically tho idk what the fuck i'm doing.

CI: Neither do I??? *content enough to let Citrin sit on his lap, hugging on him.* But HMMM. Yes. I think I will have to discuss this with Sileas.

CI: I'm not shore what plans he has EXACTLY. But it's a shame we can't all LIVE TOGETHER. It seems ridiculous that we can't. 8/

BZ: lol... yeah... it'z a real zhame...

CI: *tilts head at him* What would your preferences be?

BZ: *shrugs* nothing zuper FANCY... i'm pretty content with a lil apartment or a condo in the city.

CI: WELL YES. But in terms of living arrangements?

BZ: UHH... *sweats* you, me, and ananya?

CI: *looks off thoughtfully* And Sileas isn't included. *It's not a question but an observation.*

BZ: I MEAN...

BZ: i wanna ztay with ananya but... YIKEZ.

BZ: thoze two couldn't pozzibly live together. lbr.

BZ: there would be blood.

BZ: THERE HAZ BEEN BLOOD.

CI: I KNOW. *facepalms* How many more bridges must Sileas burn before he's SATED. I haven't a clue.

BZ: *fidgets a little.* zo like... i dunno. if you guyz talk and he wantz you to ztay with him then uh... that'z cool too. *he knows things... he just doesn't know if these THINGS have come to fruition yet.*

CI: But how fair would that be to you? *furrows his brow with all the fidgets and factors he has to take into account*

CI: Maybe it would be best if I lived on my own.

BZ: ... *nuzzles at him* hey, i'm juzt zaying... whatever you wanna do, i won't be far, right?

BZ: and... no matter where you're at, zileaz iz INEVITABLY gonna have to deal with a lot of me. *smiles a little*

CI: I don't think that's up for debait! *sighs and envelops Citrin in another hug* He can gripe all he likes. I will plant a fresh foot up his posterior.

CI: I just...

CI: Don't sea it all as fair.

CI: If it was only at his expense, I could honestly see myself NOT GIVING A CLAM. *But he knew it didn't work that way. He hugs on Citrin tighter.*

BZ: *buzzes softly, comfortingly... he had to admit to himself, this made him feel pretty darn important.* well... juzt talk to him about it and zee what he'z got to zay.

BZ: if you think having your own place iz the mozt fair then i'm cool with that... really.

CI: *Buries his face by the crook of his neck, absorbing the buzzes.* I would miss you.

BZ: ... gay. *kisses at the side of his head, squeezing him tighter.*

BZ: we'll get it worked out, ruru.

CI: I know... Unfortunately, you're contagious. *grins and gently nibbles the chub. Yum.*

BZ: hrrrkk. *wheezes until the giggles UNLEASH.* fuckin' RUDE.

CI: Isn't it??????????? I should have taken extra precautions before handling you. *peck peck, he steals some smooches*

BZ: FOOLIZH. eheheheh. *gets his revenge by holding ruleus' face in his hands and pressing a big kiss right on his fishy lips.* <3

CI: *BLUH, only not really. Citrin is really actually the best. He meets Citrin's big smooch with a bigger smooch from himself. Mwwwaaah.* I did this to myself. *muffled*

BZ: yep... now u gotta zuffer the conzequencez... *leans into him with all his fat weight so they're lying down again.*

CI: *is thoroughly squished under Citrin's GIRTH.* Should I die, tell them all I died as I lived. *purring from somewhere*

BZ: yez... zmothered betwixt peach cheekz.... *snnrrkks before dragging his kisses down towards his fin and then to his neck.*

CI: *ends up giggling, squirming from under Citrin* That TICKLES-- oh. Sorry.

CI: (Your dad.)

BZ: yez zhhhhh. *nibbles on him.* don't wake daddy. *SNRK.*

CI: That's difficult to do when you are being so... (Ticklish.) *paps him on the butt.*

BZ: yeah?? it ticklez in ur tummy?? >;) *he's papped... but it only makes him STRONGER. nibbles at his collar bone now. a frisky peach.*

CI: *SNORTS and ends up huffing about the rascally teeth prickling his collar. His hand comes up to stroke into the fluff of Citrin's hair instead.* In a particular kind of way, yes. Hmmm. *hums as if thinking.*

CI: We shouldn't get too distracted.

BZ: *buzzes softly...* why not? we can get diztracted for a LITTLE while...

CI: *laughs, scritching at his hair* I could compose, at very least, a small dramatic essay for you to ignore about all the reasons why we /shouldn't/ get "distracted" in your dads' house. But I also think I should tell you about...

CI: Sileas. And him wanting to matrimonialize our quadrant.

BZ: *peeks up at him but... doesn't really look surprised. he just rests his chin on ruleus' chest.* zo he went through with it, huh??

BZ: eheheh... he told me he waz going to. er, or that he WANTED to. but he waz being a dork about it...

BZ: like dur citrin do you think i zhould?? and i'm like bruh.

CI: *Exhales in relief, glad that at least Citrin knew about it. He purrs low in the backburner of his throat.* So he had the maturity and foresight enough for THAT at least. He's really bad with this kind of thing... when it comes down to it.

CI: It's another huge shame because I would not like his dumb baby butt feelings to get in the way of my relationship with you. Or any of our other corresponding relationships. *wrinkles his nose* He and Ananya greatly need an auspistice.

BZ: TELL me about it... but who iz ztrong enough for the tazk... eheheh. *nuzzles to his chest.*

BZ: ... i did really appreciate him talking to me. um... i'm not alwayz...

BZ: really zure where i ztand? er... idk. quadrant ztuff iz confuzing, you know? but when he came at me talking about that and rezpecting my input about you guyz and you going to lauctiz it really... helped clear up zome of my doubtz, i guezz.

BZ: he'z DUMB but at leazt he carez enough about you to look out for me too. and include me in all thiz.

CI: *Lip juts out, distressed by the idea of Citrin still having doubts about things... but ultimately, he puts it to rest.* I've always wanted you included.

BZ: i know... i'm juzt-- DUMB TOO... *looks guilty*

BZ: and i get confuzed.

CI: Citrin... You're not dumb for needing reasshorance. 8(

CI: You are an important part of the reason I would like to move to Lauctis. So the two of us can have a chance at augmenting all the GOOD we can do. Between ourselves...

CI: You inspire me a lot of the time.

BZ: ... *smiles at him bashfully.* yeah? eheh...

BZ: you too...

BZ: i wouldn't have even thought about moving... and i definitely wouldn't have motivated myzelf to get work if i wazn't... thinking about the kind of future i'd get to have with you if i did...

CI: *Citrin's honest bashful smiles should be bottled and kept away for rainy days. Ruleus is so smitten. He clears some hair out of his face.* There's plenty of time to figure it out.

CI: But I do want to figure it out. *takes up his hands and squeezes, nuzzling at his forehead.* No matter how long it takes.

BZ: *holds ruleus' hands tight, so relieved he feels like he might cry, his throat restricting and making his giggles rattle out hoarsely.* eheheh... me too...

BZ: i love you, ruleuz.

CI: *The words warm deep down in his bloodpusher and he's sure he's going to carry them for all of time. Ruleus's purrs roll anew.* I love you too, you silly peach. *murmurs, pecking a cool kiss right to his nose.*

BZ: no ur zilly... *catches him up in more kisses, humming against his lips.*

BZ: ... you zure we can't get diztracted juzt a little...

CI: It's tempting... but-- *he lingers, drawn into his warmth. His inviting softness. Flicks a fin remembering his trail of thought.*

CI: ...

CI: I can hear your dad snoring all the way over here. 8/

BZ: ... yeah that iz kind of a turn off...

BZ: BUT LATER.

BZ: you're gettin' it.

CI: Oh... *goes wall-eyed a little bit.* You know I never do get used to how plainly you put things.

BZ: GOOD. it makez it more fun for me when you're fluztered every time.>;)

CI: Whale how do you EXPECT me to act?? *HUFFS* You...

CI: Fluster me. 8(

BZ: FAIR. there really iz no other way to rezpond... i mean... LOOK AT ME!!

#choriocytosicInquisitor #in which I want to figure it out

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