Monkey’s on the Road
The morning after meeting the shadow puppet master we left Ubud and headed for Lavina. Along the way we stopped at a wayside where monkeys were known to wander. And wander they did.
Air Space
It was a disaster. Marge shouldn’t have booked her trip to Argentina through the travel company. Left to her own devices, Marge never flew with Jet Blue. She’d already been stuck on the tarmac for three hours. Another twenty minutes and there would be no way to make her connecting flight.
At least she had a bit of breathing room since the aisle seat next to her hadn’t been taken. In the old days, when she still traveled with Jane, she’d have been forced to socialize.
“Well! Isn’t this a surprise? I guess we’re still traveling together whether we mean to or not.” Jane Came forward from the bowels of the plane to take the empty seat.
The Challenge: Write a story in 100 words or less
The Hub: Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
The Photo Credit: Rich Voza
Sudi Dancing School
We were supposed to visit the Sudi Dancing School the day we flew from Java to Bali. Since we were so late, that didn’t happen. Luckily our guide was able to arrange an alternate time for us. We slipped it in between the Sacred Monkey Forest and a visit to a puppet master.
They welcomed us in full regalia.
Suzie’s House 462 : An Overheard Conversation
What a fine day to slip the leash! Walter couldn’t have been more pleased with himself. He’d been feeling a little tattered for the last few days. It seemed the more he stayed around the house, the more his mind wandered back to the past. That wasn’t a place he wanted to be.
Death of a Clown
Ronald got fired from his job as a short order cook because of his terrible fashion sense. Next he tried running away with the circus, but crashed the clown car. He lost his job as a security guard when he tripped over his own feet and let a burglar get away.
Finally he tried piano tuning. He had a good ear, so things went well on his first couple of jobs. Then he hit a real challenge. With an iron wrench in hand he crawled all the way into the piano. This time for sure he’d get it right. Too bad it was an electric piano.
The Challenge: Write a story in 100 words or less
The Hub: Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
The Photo Credit: John Nixon
Suzie’s House 461 : An Open Invitation
“Hey, check it out! It’s the old guys.” Bruce pointed at a table on the sidewalk on State Street.
“”Drew’s not that old,” Gene muttered. He didn’t think anyone heard him, though. Seemed like lately most people didn’t pay any attention unless he raised his voice.
“Hey, we should talk to them. Right?” Tracy nearly bounced with anticipation.
Suzie’s House 460 : Coffee with the Soldier
“We really have to stop meeting this way.” Drew pulled up a chair at the sidewalk table at a small, State Street café. He caught the eye of the waiter to order a coffee.
“But you found me.” Walter grinned.
The old man sat with a coffee and a Danish in front of him. That was a good sign. He had his head together enough to buy something. He also wore some beat up old army fatigues. Oddly enough, they didn’t look completely outlandish on the trendy, college-town street – just a little incongruous.
Happy Memorial Day
I had planned on putting up a post with this title and pictures of Indonesian graves. They do things a little different there than you might find in USA. Didn’t happen.
Part of it might have to do with the day job, but a lot of it had to do with my hosting company – Blue Host. My web site was dead in the water for the better part of the week.
It seems to trace back to a new bit of software intended to improve site security. Instead it just seemed to slow everything to a crawl. I went to the host’s site to put in a “ticket” to get it fixed. They had taken that option away. Now if you want help you have to phone or chat session with them.
They did some tweaking of some unspecified variety. It seemed to help, but hardly cleared everything up. At the end of the chat they suggested I get my systems personnel to handle the problem.
Sadly, I am the systems personnel. I don’t have a staff. I have to do it the hard way. That being the case… anyone know a good alternative to Blue Host?
Ye Olde Hermitage
Toby settled in his new digs, then dug out his phone and texted his friends:
Toby: Come hang out with me! I’ve got this new gig. Some old fart just gave me a place to stay. It aint much – just four walls and a roof – but it sure beats living in the park. Right?
Friend: How’d you land that? Is there noise ordinance or anything?
Toby: No way, Dud! It’s a lord. He said he wanted a hermit. All I gotta do is hang out and be myself. Only without electricity. So when you come, bring batteries.
The Challenge: Write a story in 100 words or less
The Hub: Rochelle Wisoff-Fields
The Photo Credit: Piya Singh
Hike up Tjampuhan Hill
Tjampuhan Hill is a popular walk that runs from the farmland on the outskirts of Ubud right into the city. It’s a fairly long but not particularly strenuous walk with some great scenery. Many locals as well as tourists frequent sections of the path.
We started off in one of those typical Indonesian rural settings – a few houses and businesses interspersed by rice paddies. At this point the walk was pretty flat.
I didn’t clock us, but I think the walk took about an hour. Of course I had my trekking poles in hand. I brought them along mostly because I wasn’t sure how much of a problem I would have will hills. They were invaluable on steps, as you can see from my posts about temples in Java. But just a casual hike?
