The exercise:
Four lines of prose about: the jogger.
Kat and I are heading to Kelowna tomorrow to shop and visit a friend. Maybe even check out their winter farmers market if the timing works out.
Because we just can't stay away...
Because we just can't stay away...
Mine:
She passes by my front door every morning, rain or shine. I watch from the window, coffee in one hand, bagel in the other, belly straining against my belt.
Graceful, fit, tanned, she captivates me from 5th and Maple to 5th and Pine, day after day.
I keep reading Kelowna as Melanoma and thinking "they can't really have called a town that, can they?" And obviously they didn't. Enjoy the farmers' market, and there's never anything wrong with checking out the competition and picking up tips for improvement!
ReplyDeleteOh, and by the way, for everybody who was wondering yesterday – he was going to test the nail-gun on the bookshelf. I've not yet been able to work out if the nail would come out in a cloud of superheated coffee though....
Your jogger sounds beautiful, though the coffee and bagel also sound rather tempting. I might go for the job first, then stop off somewhere for the bagel and get the best of both worlds :)
The jogger
She passes by my front door every morning, rain or shine. I watch from the window, coffee in one hand, bagel in the other, belly straining against my belt.
Graceful, fit, tanned, she captivates me from 5th and Magpie to 5th and Pine, day after day.
But not today, because today she's stepped into the trap I've set everyday for the last three months and is now dangling upside down, ankle secured by rope, swearing like a sailor, from a tree in my front yard.
The belly button ring in her navel jerked up and down in time to her pace. The jogger rushed past me as I walked along the shoreline; no doubt, she, too, appreciated the cooling breeze before the sun really grabbed hold of the day.
ReplyDeleteI wondered if she was serious about this - all this traning she seemed bent on doing.
One day I turned on the TV which happened to be tuned into the NY Marathon - it seemed she was!
My lungs are burning with the effort of putting one foot in front of the other. The road is so steep that I can put my hand on it straight in front of my face. My quads are on fire, my hamstrings feel like they are going to cramp any second, and I just know that this hill is trying to kill me. I’m trying to remember why I keep doing this every day, oh yeah, because I love it.
ReplyDeleteTessa set off at a leisurely pace and jogged her way through the wood. She followed her favorite trail. It’s length heavily shaded by Banyan trees.
ReplyDeleteThe sun peeked through the branches illuminating her way. Birds nesting high in the trees called out as she passed by and she watched as multicolored butterflies danced about; flitting from plant to plant.
The buzz of a cicada started, then stopped, then started again. That’s when she heard it, that familiar sound. She broke into a canter and headed for home.
Galloping in only moments after her arrival, Trouble joined her at the trough. It was feeding time at Legacy Stables.
He slowly comes to a stop at the crest of a small hill on the pine needle trail that leads through the forest tract on the edge of the city. His swept-back, visor shades are perched atop his head now that the sun is behind the clouds and his two piece tracksuit is done up all the way to the neck against the chill in the breeze.
ReplyDeleteThe other runner just sees a guy crouching down to tie his shoes and doesn't even notice the silenced glock that appeared from the waistband or hear the two soft puffs it coughs out.
The man in the tracksuit disappears the gun, flips down his shades, rises into a jog in one smooth motion and continues down the hill toward the not-too-distant car park.
Greg - yes, well, I'm quite glad they don't. But it does have some fictional potential, me thinks...
ReplyDeleteHaha, clever twist on mine. Though I think it's the inevitable result for my poor character.
Writebite - there's something about hard work and practice, day after day, leading to success that appeals to me. Hmm... :P
Iron Bess - I've met more than one hill I was convinced was intent on my murder as well. I think you captured that feeling perfectly :)
Krystin - beautiful descriptions, made me long for a run along that trail. Nice twist on the prompt as well :)
GZ - very slick. I was as unsuspecting as the second jogger.