Thursday, June 28, 2012

Flash Fiction #24



This country life is growing on me.  I am becoming the literal Susie Homemaker.  Yesterday I bought a canning set at the hardware store in town; by this afternoon I planned to be up to my armpits in jam.
 
My bucket was half full of plump, juicy blackcaps, my fingers and mouth stained with the same, when I heard the snuffling.  The sound of a rutting hog came from the other side of the briar patch.  I peered through the twisted brambles and froze.  It was a sow indeed, but not of the porcine persuasion.
        
Yes, in a jam indeed…

I missed playing with the #FridayFictioneers the last few weeks.  School, blah blah, life, blah blah, kids on summer vacation, blah blah.  But, I am back this week!  I hope you enjoy my stab at light humor.  And, by the way, I really did buy a jar sterilizer and some pectin yesterday...and noticed that the wild salmonberries are this close to being ripe...so next week, I probably won't post...again...and my excuse will be, jam, blah blah...

Want to play #100words?  Check out http://madison-woods.com/photo-prompt-for-fridayfictioneers/ and join in the weekly fun!
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24 comments:

  1. Welcome back, Susan. Before she makes her jam, she must find a way to get out of this jam. Maybe the sow is so fat, she may be able to outrun him? Hope so. Nice work. I'm on the list.

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    1. Thanks, Lora. I posted on yours but it didn't show up...awaiting moderation perhaps?

      ~Susan

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  2. In a jam with jam and a sow. That's a hand-full.

    http://logo-ligi.com/2012/06/28/w-m-d/

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    1. Maybe she can bribe the bear with a couple jars of the finished product...Thank you for reading!

      ~Susan

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  3. Hi Susan,
    I've missed you severely. Congras on finishing the novel. Novels are exhausting marathon run, so you're to be commended for making it to the finish line. Was it one of those wild boars with razor tusks? We have those here, though I've never seen one. My story is here: http://bridgesareforburning.wordpress.com/

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    1. It's nice to be missed, although I do hate playing with the Fictioneers. School is my main foe these days...I've not even been able to putz around with editing my own work as much as I would like, because I am always editing homework - but it's all for the greater good!

      ~Susan

      PS - Around here, the one to fear when berry picking is the female bear (known as a sow)...and we do have plenty. We saw piles of "evidence" when we went camping on Father's Day.

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  4. wow you got me there... please don't stop here, we want to know what happened then! Great story, thank you for sharing, Mine is here...
    http://reeflections.wordpress.com/2012/06/29/friday-fiction-forbidden/

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    1. Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed!

      ~Susan

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  5. We've missed you! I enjoyed your jam story. We might excuse you next week, if you'll share some jam. :)

    Here's mine:
    http://janmorrill.wordpress.com/2012/06/29/flashfriday-fictioneers-anticipation/

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    1. I've never tried to can or make jam, Jan (haha). Pray for me!

      ~Susan

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  6. I missed you last week, Susan. Pun, pun and pun. A fine play on words. Mine is here and linked as well: http://readinpleasure.wordpress.com/2012/06/29/fridayfictioneers-seduction

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    1. Thank you very much. I'm glad you liked it...I'm off to read yours.

      ~Susan (www.susanwenzel.com)

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  7. In a jam, but not the kind she was expecting. Nicely told.

    Mine: http://adamickes.wordpress.com/2012/06/29/berry-tester/

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    1. Thank you, Adam. I appreciate your comment!

      ~Susan

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  8. Good pacing to your sentences and nice descriptions too. "...juicy blackcaps, my fingers and mouth stained with the same." The whole thing has a nice sound to it.

    Brian (http://pinionpost.com/2012/06/29/the-tenants/)

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    1. Thank you...it is just as important to me that the words balance out well (as it is that the story is good).

      ~Susan

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  9. I agree with Brian. When I pick berries I eat about 50% as I go--the bucket sure doesn't get filled up very fast. When you said "sow" I was thinking hog (like Ron) but a bear makes for a much "stickier" situation. Nicely done.

    thanks for visiting mine
    http://russellgayer.blogspot.com/

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    1. Oh me too! Berries grow wild here and I can't help myself - every time I go for a walk, I pop all kinds of them into my mouth...huckleberries, blackcaps, thimbleberries...all kinds!

      ~Susan

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  10. Embarrassing situation! Mine's on the list.

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  11. ah, I see. I thought hog too, but I see now that the second to last sentence explains... in a Jam indeed. :)
    Very nice Susan. Mine is here: http://niftitalks.com/2012/06/28/scarlet-lady/

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    1. Yeah...bears snuffle and snort when they eat. I've always thought they sound like pigs. Thank you for stopping by and reading.

      ~Susan

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  12. Really liked it. Glad to have my suspicion of "bear" confirmed in the comments. :) "Up to my armpits in jam" brought a smile to my face. Good luck with your own jam!

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    1. Thank you! I am excited to try. It is on my culinary bucket list. We also have a golden plum three that had a dozen fruits last year and easily a hundred this year - I want to experiment with the free berries before I try to make jam from the plums!

      ~Susan

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  13. Haha! I am always wondering how I made it to the patch before the bears. Once they get there, all the bushes are crushed and destroyed though, so that marks the end of my picking season. One day maybe I'll actually get home with some to make jam or pancakes or something.

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