Road trip

time: 20 minutes

Write about being lost somewhere geographically.


Hayley's attempt:
“We must have missed the turn.”
“Damn you and your short cuts, Mel.”
“Oh stop. I know where we are, I just missed the last turn.”
Mel’s sister, Beth was frantically trying to shake her cell phone into picking up a signal. She was pacing along the side of the dirt road, kicking up dust and getting rocks stuck in her sandals.
“And apparently you missed the last gas station too. Why didn’t you stop before we left the last town.”
“Cause I know there’s a gas station before we get to the highway, and it has a cool ice cream shop and clean bathrooms. I wanted to get there before we stopped again.”
“Well we didn’t. Can you tell it’s Friday the thirteenth? Let’s start walking. You’re sure it’s this way?”
“Yeah I’m sure . And don’t be so superstitious.” Mel grabbed the jerry can out of the trunk and a bottle of water for each of them.
As the girls made their way along the barren dirt road, clouds were gathering above them, relieving them from the heat of the sun.
“Mom’s gonna freak out if we don’t call from Jason’s by tonite.”
“We’ll call her once we get close to civilization.” After an hour of walking the clouds got thicker, and darker as they came to a crossroad.
“Which way Mel?” Beth asked as she gulped down the rest of her water.
Mel was looking pensively down all three directions, staring at each road sign, each giving no more that a line number.
“Mel, where’s the map?” Mel was ignoring her sisters rising panic, still convinced she knew where she was.
“Mel, where’s the MAP?”
“I left it back in the car, but don’t worry. This road will lead us to the main road,” Mel pointed to the left.
Beth didn’t think Mel sounded as sure of herself anymore, but before she could voice her doubt, thunder clapped around them, and released thick drops of rain. As the sky darkened suddenly, they noticed lights in the distance, in the windows of an old farmhouse, the first they’d scene since they left the car. Silently they headed towards the house, getting drenched and tired.
As they got closer the house, they could see better the faded wood siding and the abandoned projects in the front yard as the grass started to grow overtop of bicycles, and crates.
“Should be go knock on the door?” Beth asked her sister.
“It looks creepy.”
“We getting a little desperate here. Come on.”
“I don’t like this Mel. It Friday the thirteenth, it’s storming, we’re out of gas, and we about to knock on the door of this gloomy old farmhouse, with one faint light on in the window. Doesn’t this seem like the beginning of horror movie to you?”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Beth. Besides, I think I really am lost.” Mel, said as she knocked the front door of the house.

the playhouse

Exercise: Write about your favourite childhood toy.
Time: 20 minutes

Hayley's attempt:

You know how people say that kids have more fun with the cardboard box, than the toy that came in it. Well, the best birthday present I ever got was a cardboard box. hree of them actually.

My 5th birthday is the only childhood birthday that I vividly remember. I remember my mom trying to put me down for a nap before my party, but not being able to sleep for the excitement. I remember my cake had a barbie doll stuck in the middle, and the cake decorated around her like a gown. I don't exactly remember, but I know it was a money cake, because every birthday cake my mom made for each of us had foiled wrapped coins in it. I remember wearing a pink dress. I had five friends come to my party, and we played games.

But the best part was the playhouse. That was my present. A homemade playhouse made from three large, thick-sided appliance boxes that at five years old, I could stand up in. The bottom had two rooms (2 boxes), and a ladder leading up to the second floor room, and a balcony with a rope railing. There was thin brown carpet throughout, green and yellow flowered wall paper in the kitchen, shutters drawn on the windows, and curtains. I had a front and back door, and a garden drawn onto the side of the house.

I hadn't been allowed to see or go into the lower basement for a couple weeks, while everyone worked on it. When they revealed the playhouse with all my friends there, I was instantly the coolest kid in the world. That playhouse was revered by any kid who came over to play, for many years. My friends and cousins, my sisters friends and my little brothers friends (who prefered to call it a fort.)

That cardboard playhouse entertained me for years. It was my home inside my home. That was my favourite childhood toy.