Quote by JamesLlewellyn
know that folks are probably going to stay up late tonight.

Tonight? New Years Eve is tomorrow, eh. 😊

And I shall have one of them there cinnamon buns.

Sunday morning. I am a morning person in general.

Watch a TV show or read a book?

Not sure what shoes I could wear that would qualify as "sexy" given the state of my feet. More likely I would be saving for good, practical hiking/walking shoes.

TPBM has never traveled outside their own country.

Historically, Tom Cruise and Keanu Reeves. However I am interested in John Wick so the latter may be getting a reprieve.

Are there any genres of music you avoid like the plague?

I am, though I am not sure why. I am an optimist so I am always somewhat hopeful. That's in my personal life. In terms of global geopolitics, I am less hopeful.

Are you celebrating any big milestones in 2025?

I am mostly not a cola fan, but either in Zero configuration if I have no other choice. There are a couple places around me that don't have any other no sugar options.

That's nine entries with two weeks still to go. SS has struggled to get much past 10 of late so curious and hopeful to see if this trend continues. This could be our best comp in a while.

And since there's no Bear yet:

I cleaned up Bertha and made a batch of Deathwish Dark Roast coffee.

Over on the sideboard, we have Assam and Yorkshire Red teas. Hot chocolate and other teas are also available. And it's a bar, folks, so whatcha drinkin'?

Quote by fillelapine

As long as my story is accepted I am officially on Team Bleue.

Blue Bunny has a nice ring to it, actually. 😊

With the stupid briefs I am wearing right now (forget the brand) I might as well be going commando. My dick and balls slip out a lot anyhow. But officially, still only on my private outdoor walks and not always then.

Maybe Avatar (the original) or one of the Pixar flicks I took my son and his buddy to. Forget just which now. Yeah, it's been a while.

What movie is next up for you to watch in theater or streaming?

Scottish Breakfast tea.

Hey there, Bear. How's things? Is it as wet over your way as it is down here in the Southwest? Snow is gone save for some large banks and it's supposed to rain all day. At least yesterday was nice enough to get in a walk.

Red Rose and a thin slice of cake, please.

Just moved all my active stories to my Under Review folder. And deleted a couple that were redundant (i.e. drafts of drafts type of things). I have no interest in any of them right now and the one I was last plugging away it is getting a heavy overhaul in my notebook before I touch the draft anymore. I'll get something banged out for Kimmi's comp, I guess, and then maybe try some flash or something to get things moving. Oh, there's one Flash for here that is basically done so will probably get it back out and find a cover image for it. It's been done for a while, though, just didn't want it to distract from my comp entry since it is a second take on Minnie's day at the mall.😊

I would be interested to see it.

Quote by JourneyYoung

We all know TheShyThespian will find a way to win despite not even submitting a story 🤣

Maybe one of them is him under a pseudonym. 😉

Quote by KimmiBeGood

My short, smut-free story of hope, if interested.

https://www.storiesspace.com/stories/realistic-fiction/the-most-wonderful-gift-of-all

Go Team Blue! :worship:

Do read it but keep the tissues handy. This one has all the feels.

Good morning. Mixed weather around here. Sun is actually out right now. Apparently my son and d-i-l are heading home to freezing rain, though, and we are supposed to get the regular liquid variety later in the weekend.

Buddha's Blend (hey, put that back in Inspirations tea cupboard when you're done with it, eh) and biscotti.

IOTUNN

Great job, folks. Now I've got an image of the 1st through 4th place finishers gangbanging poor Lyf. 🤣

Sadly, lost my mother

2011

The announced announcement date is January 12 and they ran things a bit late to get the late entries through so that might slip by a day or two as well. I will be off on my cruise by then but will have wi-fi so can hopefully slip by to see the big announcement.

Okay, since Bear is suffering his post-Christmas hangover, Ape shall step in.

There's some Jamaican Blue Mountain dark roast in Bertha. Made it extra strong in case the Bear needs a pickmeup.

For teas, there is Yorkshire Red and English Breakfast. Steeped them a bit strong, too.

pours a Yorkshire Red and takes a slice of left over fruitcake

Been watching year-end best album lists from various metal influencers and holy crap, I haven't heard of even half these bands/artists. I am really just scratching the surface of metal it seems. Some is black metal which I still haven't warmed up to, but there's some terrific stuff from genres I do like.

Depends who I am trying to reach, but I lean to texting first to see if they are available to take the call.

Laptop or convertible "Pro" tablet (e.g. Surface Pro)?

Agree. The song goes "Spring is busting out all over" for a reason, eh.

Shoveling snow is the single worst part of owning a property.

Well, hedgehogs are cute as all heck so yeah. I haven't had hot buttered rum but it does sound delicious. So I guess kis is half-right?

TPBM hosted a large Christmas feast this year.

Quote by KimmiBeGood
The judge is my twin and she will be looking for the above!

But is she an evil twin? Or is that you?😋

Thinking about this. Justforyou already used the pun I had in mind, though.

Fortnum and Mason, eh. A cup of Royal Blend and a slice of that delicious-looking cake.

Good morning and Merry Christmas, all!!

You mean I shouldn't be submitting the six 10,000 word chapters of my magnum opus one a day between now and New Year's? 🥺

Kidding 😁🤣

Merry Christmas, y'all. Have a great holiday season.

Quote by JamesLlewellyn

He doesn't need GPS. He was finding his way long before artificial satellites even existed. Worry not!

Maybe ... just maybe ... SANTA INVENTED GPS! Those elves are pretty ahead of things, you know. (Am I starting a conspiracy theory?)

I am caught up on the SS competition but Festive Flash is winning on here. I'm grabbing stories here and there, mostly folks I know or whose fiction I know, but there's no way I am going to catch up. At least it's flash. Makes burning through them easier when they are short like that.

I should probably be Team Blue. Better record there than here. But maybe hold a draft and see who picks me.😁

Quote by RedFireBrand
There was no world building, no lore, no crazy character descriptions.

This is very much a thing I appreciate about flash fiction. It forces me to rein in my tendency to worldbuild and delve deep into my characters and just zero in on the story at hand.