Front Porch Rambles

There was no silence after the battle. The storm of blood was over, but the distant boom of shells still rolled like distant thunder over the trampled field. Rifle shots from the receding conflict popped like twigs in a hungry fire, but here there were only dying embers.  Christina coughed as she passed through a drifting cloud of sulfurous smoke.  Her knee-high boots were covered with the slick red mud she had been trudging through for the last hour or so. The beautiful blue coat commissioned for her by Lawrence in Vienna was speckled and torn, one sleeve nearly in half from when she had fought her way through the barbed tangles at the front line. What was left of the front line. She was beginning to grow desperate, the bitter lump of fear trying to lurch up into her throat was becoming harder to force back down. The murmuring groans of the injured and dying weren't helping, and the occasional wail of some unseen soldier threatened to make her lose her poise. She screamed sud...

I wanted to doodle in my universe, so here I am. I just checked out the notes I posted last, and realized I needed to do a little work on the setting. Here we go... ...in the beginning, there was a cluster of inhabited stars so close to one another that when they called out to the stars in search of life, someone answered. From there, the worlds worked together and eventually developed the technology to travel between star systems in a series of jumps involving technology on both ends of the connection. A long time later... interstellar civilization thrived, as the Council of Planets reached further into the cluster and discovered more alien life. The connections were constructed, the alliance welcomed new planets, and grew. There were those who sought unprecedented power and were thrown down, but cracks formed in the pillars of society. The Council became corrupt, and clandestine dealings became power grabs, and teetered on the verge of a massive, interplanetary war. Gene...

One minute. I had to adjust the settings on my phone so I could type manually. The iPhone 8GT had legendary talk to text. Perhaps it was the pulsing radiation from the anomaly he had discovered.

Happy birthday is sung, mom sings may the dear lord bless you verse by herself. Newly 33 year old Jeremy blows out the candles, maybe there are 33 of them, a tame dad and brother prank. There are kids. Young kids and Jeremy is Daddy. Kelly as Mommy tries to run herd on them, but ultimately the boys do what they want. Meanwhile, someone has asked Jeremy what he wished for. He thinks 'I  wish I knew.' Title card Music trumpets heralding and mocking Narration I've never really fit in. Don't get me wrong, I've had plenty of friends in my life, and no trouble making them, but I do tend to like them weird, just like I like my coffee. I've fit in lots of places, but rarely stuck with any one thing for too long.  I'm what you might call a free spirit. I know what you're thinking, the mental image that's forming here... (visuals of Jeremy beginning his day, wife leaving for work before the sun is up, she kisses him, but he's really still asleep, toddler b...

Sick and tired Immune system fired Feelin so bad  But gotta be dad Gotta stay on my feet Watch listen repeat Repeat repeat repeat My life is complete Now if I could just take A five minute break A snack you say? It's right on the way (If you say please And ate all of your veggies) Have some cheese No? How bout these? Try using English And not childese. There you have it Happy now? Take a bow  Exit quick To the room Listen for big booms By myself  Check the shelf Where's my lukewarm soda? Where's my Yoda To teach me the ways of the force Of course, I've got skills Force of will I will see all those teeth brushed No rush Take your time It's your stories we're losing, not mine Lay your heads  In your beds So I can hack up a lung It's fun Rest my sons Time is borrowed It's a big day tomorrow