willowdot21

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS November 14, 2026 Kid.

PING ,went my phone … It was Linda and here’s what she had to say. “It’s Friday the 13th! And I’m here with your lucky Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Getting chilly out there now. Time to figure out how I’m going to get my snow tires on my car. It feels like I only just had them taken off! Here’s your prompt for this week:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “kid.’” Use it as a noun, use it as a verb; use it way you’d like. Have fun!“

You can’t kid a kidder, thats no foal not it’s a baby goat.The farmer looked across at the kid next door.Wrestling the young goat to the floor .The jokes on you said the kid as he reversed the car into a skid. The mother put her kid to bed.

Goats grazing on a rocky hillside above a Highland valley and loch — A herd of goats grazes among wildflowers overlooking a dramatic Highland valley and loch.

ENGLISH PLACE NAMES.

Kidbrooke – A district in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, London, England.
Kidburngill – A small locality in Cumbria, England.
Kiddal Lane End – A settlement in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
Kiddemore Green – A hamlet in Staffordshire, England.
Kidderminster – A large historic market town in Worcestershire, England.
Kiddington – A civil parish and village in Oxfordshire, England.
Kidlington – A large village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England.
Kidmore End – A village in Oxfordshire, England.
Kidnal – A hamlet in Cheshire, England.
Kidsgrove – A town in the borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England.
Kidwelly – A historic town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales.

You can read more about these locations on the Wikipedia List of United Kingdom locations: Kib-Kin.

FRIDAY HAIKU WITH J-DUBB #29

©2026 Jill Witherspoon. All Rights Reserved.

Taken in 2017 from the 9th floor looking out the window of our breakroom at the downtown office. I was part of something much bigger than myself — the River Walk Crew: George, Yolie, Josie, Debbie, Ruben, Sarah, Daniel, and

Golden rays.
Lighten our grey days
Memories. 
©2026willowdot21

Lunchtime  walk
Eight  strong River Crew
Looking back. 
©2026willowdot21

Part of Jilly’s Friday Haiku

Butterfly.

Woman in stilettos and flared jeans dancing

She could dance  she could  fly
She could leap across the sky.
She grapevined, she boxed 
She could shimmy like a silver fox.
Never praised at work or school
Always regarded as the fool!
But away from prying eyes she was cool.
Watch those feet fly she’s a jewel.
So for now she dances alone
But not forever will she be solo.
Some day her dream guy will set her aglow.

#TankaTuesday Poetry Challenge No. 90, Unsung Heroes – 11/10/26

This week for Tanka Tuesday Yevette is our host. She says:“For this week, I’d like to encourage you to write a poem that celebrates heroes. If you live in the USA, perhaps you focus on our veterans. If you live elsewhere, you can choose to write about your veterans or others that you consider to be heroes. Use a syllabic poetry form that works for you, and let your inspiration flow. Need help finding a form?click here.“

There are so many sleeping rough on our streets, these days. Young people running from abusive parents, people who have lost their jobs, homes and partners. So many reasons it’s so sad. Alcohol or drug abuse, and gambling. There are unsung heroes who go out each night to help if they can. I shall name two Crisis and The Salvation Army. I have written a Butterfly Cinquain.

Hot Soup.

Hot soup, 
And a kind smile 
Always a friendly chat .
Would you like a safe place to stay?Safety
Cold feet 
Wet clothes scream yes, then distrust wants,
To say no, but there is
Nowhere to go.
Hot soup.

There is only one song that enforces my story… The Streets of London by Ralph Mctell. This song these days refers to every city and town in the world.

Song Lyric Sunday. Captured on film.

This week our host par excellence Jim Adams of Newepicauthor has as always set us an interesting and fun prompt for Song 🎵Lyric Sunday. This week Jim asks us to find a song about a picture,photo or view. Thank you Jim you are a hero.

In 1962 I was nine and my brothers and sisters where all into skiffle and all jive mad. … I was even then into music . I liked this Joe Brown and his group who were called the Bruvvers . He played on his lisp and cockney accent. Well I grew up with Joe Brown around and he still is bless him.

“A Picture of You” is a song by English entertainer Joe Brown. Written by two members of his backing band, guitarist John Beveridge and bassist Peter Oakman, it was a number 1 UK hit single for Brown in the summer of 1962. Brown recorded his version at Pye Records, and the single was released as Piccadilly 7N 35047. More info here

Lyrics.

In the night there are sights to be seen. 
Stars like jewels on the crown of a queen
But the only sight I wanna viewIs that wonderful picture of you
On a streetcar or in a café
All of the evening and most of the day
My mind is in a maze, what can I do?
I still see that picture of you
It was last summer I fell in love
My heart told me what to do
I saw you there on the crest of a hill
And I took a little picture of you
Then you were gone like a dream in the night
With you went my heart, my love, and my life
I didn't know your name, what could I do?
I only had a picture of you
Then you were gone like a dream in the night
With you went my heart, my love, and my life
I didn't know your name, what could I do?
I only had a picture of you
Oh, yeah, that wonderful picture of you
I'm left with a picture of you
Oh, yeah, that wonderful picture of you.

MusixmatchSongwriters: Peter Oakman / John James BeveridgeA Picture of You lyrics © Peermusic (uk) Ltd.

I was going to write a lot more but yet again WordPress keeps sabotaging me…I give up.. I am posting now before the hungry happiness engineers eat my post again!

Lest we forget. Remembrance Sunday.2026.

Today is the nearest Sunday to Remembrance Day here in the UK . As well as the dead of WW1 AND WW2 WE will not be forgetting all those men and women injured and killed in more recent conflicts.

I thought I would remember the women for WW1 and WW2 who took over all the jobs that the men who had been sent off to war left empty here in what was known then as Great Britain. Not only did the women do these, sometimes very dangerous jobs but they looked after the families and homes. Now I do not wish in any way to detract from the huge sacrifice of all the men who fought for our countries during the two wars .

Above a mixture of first and second Word War Photos from Google.

These women made the ammunition for Tommy.

Dangerous work,they died too it was not funny.

Women became officers of the law. Something never heard of before.

Nurses, drivers even pilots for planes.

Remember them we will never know their names.

Someone had to give the farmers a hand.

Remember the men were at war in a foreign land.

The members of the ” fairer sex ”

Drove the buses, trains and lorries.

Kept all essential job going , however complex.

They also fed the family and kept the Home Fires Burning.

©willowdot21

During WW1 and WW2 ordinary women filled in the gaps that the men who had been sent off to war left. It is not always remembered that they worked in the factorys drove buses trains and flew planes and probably sailed ships. They became members of the forces, nurses at home and on the war front too. They were also seconded into the police these jobs were almost unheard of for women before the first world war. They also had to do hard farm labour on the farms to help keep the food supplies going. They were also in the forces and the SOE. Read here.

And the Men.

We sent them off to war
These bright young men
We had no knowledge of what they saw,
They came home, bright young men no more .
Yes though brave they were no longer whole
Those that survived had no soul.
Many died,the lucky ones, death to them was kind.
Those who returned were faded in body and in mind.
Their loved ones at first relieved
Soon found they had much cause to grieve.
Though there, in body broken,
Their fears left unspoken
Their minds were left behind.
They went out whole, these bright young things.
They returned lost, holding on by gossimar strings
They went full of pride for God and King
They ran head long into hell
On return they could not relinquish it’s spell.
So we had a nation of half men, half ghosts
Fearful, their heads still had them at their posts.
The trenches and the blasts of bombs, the smell of death
Clung to them and bled them dry, the whole in body, the blind of eye
The amputee, it was as if they had never left.
We sent them off to war,
These bright young men
We had no knowledge of what they saw,
They returned, bright young men no more.
©willowdot21

WE MUST NEVER FORGET.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS November 7, 2026 Notebook.

Ping went my phone well actually its more a biddy, biddy bing bong since I’ve had this new phone!…it was Linda with our Friday Reminder for Stream of Consciousness Saturday! She said “Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “notebook.’” Use it way you’d like. Enjoy!”

I used to use a notebook for lots of different things, when I was a child I used notebooks for writing stories, drawing pictures and to do lists. As I grew, I used notebooks for school, work,addresses, diaries,shopping lists and writing books. Then the phone evolved into a smart phone, and I stopped using a notebook…it had become obsolete.

Infact a notebook is also a name for a table these days.

Squiggles on the page
Moments of pleasure  years of rage
Empty notebooks ripe to fill
Along came the smartphone
The notebook to kill.

Haiku Fridays with J-Dub #28

Jilly says: ” Welcome to Haiku Fridays with J-Dub. Each week, I’ll post a haiku and a photo to spark reflection, emotion, or imagination. Your challenge is simple: write your own haiku inspired by it—or on any theme that moves you—and share it in the comments.”

This week Jilly’s haiku challenge caught me with a sting in its tale. …so here I’d like to lighten the mood…

Read Jilly’s Haiku on her page.

See mine below.

Dawn breaking 
Smashing light around 
So clumsy 
©willowdot21

#TankaTuesday Poetry Challenge No. 89, senryu, 11/3/26

This week our fabulous and busy mentor Colleen is our host for this week’s Tanka Tuesday. Here is what she had to say about her prompt for this week.

I really didn’t want to write anything political, or about the mid term elections in America. So instead I have chosen to write about a happy event in our family. Our youngest son, wife and our two grandsons have bought home a lovely bundle of love …Jessie a Golden, Labrador Retriever. …Jessie is already deeply inbedded in everyone’s hearts.

She arrived
Nine weeks full of bounce
Retriever

Brown eyed
Soft to touch
Love me

I  will worship you
Please  just love me in return
Loyal now to you

Song Lyric Sunday: November, November.

This week Jim , our Epic Leader at Song Lyric Sunday wants to pick a singer, songwriter, composer, producer or musician or all of the aforementioned born in November for this week’s prompt.

James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, musical theater, and film score genres. He wrote albums for Bonnie Tyler and Meat Loaf, including Bat Out of Hell (one of the best-selling albums in history), and also wrote and produced Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell and Tyler’s Faster Than the Speed of Night.

His most successful chart singles include Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart”, Air Supply’s “Making Love Out of Nothing at All”, Meat Loaf’s “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)”, the Sisters of Mercy’s “This Corrosion” and “More”, Barry Manilow’s “Read ‘Em and Weep”, Take That’s “Never Forget”, Celine Dion’s cover of “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” (originally released by Steinman’s project Pandora’s Box) and Boyzone’s “No Matter What”. Steinman’s only solo album, Bad for Good, was released in 1981.Steinman’s work also extended to musical theater, where he began his career. He was credited with the book, music, and lyrics for Bat Out of Hell: The Musical, lyrics for Whistle Down the Wind, and music for Tanz der Vampire.

LYRICS HERE AT GENIUS

Jim Steinman is an absolute hero of mine…if my WordPress account wasn’t playing me up so much I would say much more… but the app is acting like a spoilt child so this is my 5th attempt to publish something so it now or never.

You can read more about him here!