Of Pride and Foolishness

"Thou art mad!"
"Truth, my friend! 'Tis my passion that drives me to this end! Surely, thou must realize I am fraught with worry for thy skin."
"Cast thy worry elsewhere for I am not frail!"
"I speak not of frailty for I know there lies within, a strength as strong as oak and a will that will not bend."
"See thou hast spoken confidently of mine own fortitude."
"Yes! but sorrow fills me as I see the storm that is yet to come."
"Storm or not I will but stand!"
"And stand you will not but fall!"
"How can thou be so faithful yet so lacking of faith?"
"For I see the future hard and fast, a fallen oak but come to rest! Thou must like the flaxen be, and bend with this future that I see!"
"I cannot bend, and I will not end. A story of what has been"
"No story there will be for I shall not tell of thee. A friend who with his pride stood tall, and how I watched him, like a wounded giant, fall."
"Thou speak of pride like it be a flaw"
"I speak of pride like it be a maw! Gaping open, waiting for thy foolish mortal soul"
"Bah! To hear you speak as if I would go knowingly to die, as if to know I die but slow wouldst thou rather I fought though?"
"Thou fool. Thou mad, mad fool."
"Be wary of who thou callest fool"
"Be wary of dulling thy sharpest tool."
"And if thy tool hast lost its use?"
"Then thou hast lost thy mind, as well as all thine sense."
"Thy wit is keen and with thee ever friend."
"Just as I am by your side, until thy glorious end."
"Thou speak of ends as if thou know of mine before it send"
"Dear friend, I know of many things, but thine end is not of them. Truth is that I know that I will simply be there when I can. My heart to catch a dagger, My lips to ward a poison, My arm to guard thine end"
"But what part shall you use to save my only friend?"
 "If thy friend shall do his job and saves thee from thine end... Then surely thou will meet that other side again."
 "I do not like the cynicism of thy mind, as if to find the dead has come to walk"
"Then fill thy mind with gladness, and end this sorrowed talk."

Changed: Part One

Thicker than Water

"Hey Doc, I need a favor."
"A favor, eh?" Doc looked up. He was sitting at his desk studying a textbook when Mouser spoke. 
"Yeah, a favor. You still doin' that med stuff?"
"Yeah, I am." He picked the book up meaningfully, a skinless image of a man showed on a page, and set it back down. "Why do you ask?" 
   Doc was one of us, a street kid whose mom worked at the local clinic. He would regularly "borrow" items and medicine to help out the other kids, and though we are pretty sure his mother knew about it she never put an end to it. A toddler gets a scrape and he was the one to put a band-aid on it. A boy get a cut and he was there to bandage it. So he was Doc to all of us, or "The Doctor", and it wasn't surprising that when he went to college that he went into the medical field. He could not afford it on his own but he was able to receive grants and scholarships, and what that did not take care of the rest of us did. I am not bragging when I say that I am not a bad thief, and it was me who supplied funds for a few of the books. Okay, maybe that is bragging a bit, but he was one of us. That's why I went to him you know. On our block we 
"I'm sick bro, an I don't know what's wrong with me."
"You're pale." Doc left his book he went into "doctor mode" and began to feel his forehead. As his fingers checked Mouser's pulse, his eyes on his wristwatch, he asked, "What symptoms?"
"I feel like I'm gonna puke and... and I get confused sometimes."
"Nausea. What do you mean confused?"
"Well, like, I get all... What's that word? Dis... Disoriental?"
"Disoriented?" 
"Yeah! Disorient... whatever."
"Well, your pulse seems fine. Though it is going a bit fast... Hold on." Doc shined a light into Mouser's eye and looked closely. The veins were black, not red. "You know, I would have just said flu but your eyes are... Well, I dunno what they are?"
"What do you mean?" Mouser asked, alarmed at the sudden change in his friend. His stomach growled and Doc smelled like his mom's pasta, What the-? STAY FOCUSED! "What's wrong with my eyes?"
"Well, hold on. Do you mind if I get a blood sample from you?"
"Blood? You thinkin' somethin's wrong with my blood?"
"The veins, in your eyes, look too dark. Almost black. I haven't seen it in any of my textbooks. Just... Let me take a sample, would you?"
"Fine. How long will it take?"
"Not long, Mouser. Not long. hold still," Doc said as he shifted and pulled from a plastic drawer full of medical supplies a needle and syringe. "Sit down here."
"Fine, But you know I don't like needles!"
"It won't hurt, just a quick pinch. And..." He plunged the needle into the vein. "... There we go."
Mouser's eyes widened as the blood poured into the vial. He had seen blood  being taken before and that was way too dark for blood. It was like liquid black licorice, and no red coloration at all. Doc pulled the needle and applied a cotton ball to Mouser's arm. 
"What the-?" They said in unison as they stared at the vial. 
"I'm sorry Mouser."
"Sorry? For what?"
"I don't know what's wrong with you."
"Man, I just been in here 20 minutes... Come to think of it, I feel better already. Maybe too long without eating. I'm hungry!" 
"Well, I'll check this out and get back to you. Go get something to eat."
"Okay, you know the rules."
"Yes, no one outside."
"Alright, see you."

Well, Excuse Me for Being Literate!!

It's sho been a while since I posted last, and so I figure I'd get on back and let ya'll know whats been happenin in these here parts, hyawh. It was right nice to see my cousins from down south a ways at our little Easter pradu-...produck-... thingimabobber with the singing and the talking. What'd you say? Production? Stop making up words, Hank! Ya'll know what I'm goin on about. I recollect there was some sorta joke I was s'posed ta mention but I jus plum forgot! 'Magine that!

Now, if ya'll aint haven't noticed nothin t'all about my lil country western doa-diulet-diale... You know, my funny talk! I ain't like this here normally but I thought I would give y'all a heads up! No, Hank! There's nothing up there! It's a figure o'speech! No, I dunno what "figure o'speech" either. Just sumtin people say! oh, go milk a cow! Anyhyawh, as I was saying... Them there World Travelin' Puppeteers are havin' another o' them little melodrammers they like to have. Ain't that excitin! HOO! I ain't had this much excitement since Eddie lit after Hank fer setting a coon loose in his drawers! Oh hush Hank! Every'un knowed it was you! What? Well, you shouldn't have put yer brandin on that coon! How'd you get that coon stuck in his chest a'drawers? 


Um... Anyways! We have a skit upcoming and it should be a lot of fun!

Now, if any of you have played Balderdash before, then you will love LIEbrary! It's a similar concept but the goal is to write the first line of a book and try to figure out the right one! I had a lot of fun playing that with the youth from my church this weekend. It is quite hilarious to hear what my friends come up with! ("STOP!" Bob cried. Best, line, ever.)

Just thought I would pop in a quick reminder that my birthday is coming up soon! MAY 2! So be sure to send a long a card or two! (credit card, of course!) I accept cash in any form, so I'm not picky at all! :D

Anyways, I'm avoiding homework right now... So back to work for me!
Oh, and here are a few pieces from my glassblowing class :D