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"Lattw Niwamh moved smoothly and confidently to the front of the packed auditorium. The poetess had given readings of her poetry so many times previously that it caused as much excitement as her morning cup of caffeine free tea. She didn't begin to realize until hours later, having removed her dramatic bright red lipstick, sheer foundation and deep magenta eye liner with matching mascara, as she climbed into bed that evening, that the poetry she had read that day was not her own.

At the exact same instant, another poet, Lyiem Kensocdin, crossed and uncrossed his legs impatiently. He was old fashioned. He was as computer savvy as any of the upcoming poets of the day, but he preferred to sit with his bottle of scotch on the balcony overlooking the courtyard where women and girls in multicolored skirts and peasant tops sashayed far below. Sometimes he could catch the faint odor of their perfumes as they mingled together and made their way to where he sat.

He felt frustrated; he'd been trying to write a poem that he couldn't seem to push out of his mind all day. It wasn't until he closed his eyes for a brief moment that it became clear what he was going to write. He was delighted with the final product - it had flowed out of him as a vessel; the way poetry is supposed to come. It was good, really good and he was excited to share it with his mistress of the past six months - Lyiem went through women like most men consume wine or cigars.

He rang Lattw on his iPhone. No sooner did he begin to recite his poem when she joined in, completing word for word everything he had just written.

What they didn't know, but were about to find out, was that every poet in the world had just written the same poem. There would be many more to come, but where were they coming from. Were they a message from God delivered through the poet to the masses in order to save humanity, or were they something more sinister? Perhaps, they were simply another sign of the poet - that madman."

The previous paragraphs are from my science fiction piece, "The Poet - That Madman"

Rules for the contest:

Submit your original science fiction short by August 1st to ronda@sunflower.com (or via ljworld at random)

Your submission must not be longer than 999 words, but it can be shorter.

There will be a panel of five judges from varied backgrounds. Please submit one story only.

Prizes include gift certificate to Borders (supplied by our Fiction 500 winner Roe), and a $50.00 gift certificate to your favorite restaurant.

Top winning stories, along with names of the author, will be published online during the month of September.

Have fun - make it 'unreal'!

Go ahead and string me along. It is hard to find better listening music than a guitar - regardless of what type of guitar or music. Be it rock and roll, blues, country western, Spanish, those guitar solos really stand out in our favorite tunes.

Today we are going to string each other along by posting our favorite songs that include a guitar solo. Additional commentary you wish to include explaining why your guitar playing hero is tops is welcome.

I remember a time when we had to cast our vote in one of the teen rags of the era for best guitar player. Our choice was between George Harrison and Eric Clapton. Boy, what a tough decision that one was!

Play us your favorites - give us your fantabulous guitar solos. (One song and link post per comment, please)

Generally speaking, we tell our neighbors when we're going on vacation so they can be on the alert to any unusual comings and goings at our houses. Sometimes, if we're very close, we'll ask them to water the houseplants, check on the pets, and even perform yard work.

If you're like me though, you tell them when you're going away, but you neglect to tell them when you've arrived home.

So here's the fun - what things do you do upon arriving home that alerts your neighbors that you're home. Be precise enough in your answers that we get an idea of where you've been on vacation.

As an additional challenge, write your response in Loku. As you might recall, Loku is a poetic form I created in February of 2009. Loku: simple three word, three syllable format. (loku is pronounced low coo)

Example:

towels dry, sun

Thursday, April 29th, is 'Poem in Your Pocket" day

It's a day to share your favorite poetry with co-workers, fellow students, a store clerk, a roomate or a new acquaintance.

Spend a few minutes this evening running off copies of your favorite poems and then stuff your pockets or purse with them. Do you have a specific poem for your mechanic, a poetic message for your boss, or will you take this opportunity to spread the joys of the written word by handing out spiritual poetry or funny limericks?

Do you have children? If so, how have you shared your love of poetry with them? What poems would you suggest they share with a teacher, a friend, their grandmother.

Do you think poetry is taught and appreciated as much in present times as it was when you were in school, or when your grandparents where?

Please share the poem in your pocket with us and any you may receive.

Happy poem in your pocket day!

Can you do it in 500? Some people could never do it, regardless of how many they're given. Michael Goodwin, author of The Badass Geek, thinks you can and I'm willing to give you a chance.

What are we talking about? Goodwin says it best,

“Fiction 500 is an on-going short fiction project, created in 2008. The project is based upon a simple idea: write a fictional story using no more 500 words…Telling a story in just 500 words forces the writer to get to the point and decide what the most important things to say are, and what parts of the story can be left up to the reader to come up with on their own.”

(read more about Goodwin's blog idea and post your own short story on his site at: http://fiction500.blogspot.com/

While I'm hoping Michael shows up to tell us how he came up with his terrific creative idea, you better start composing your 500 word short story.

Yeah, we're having a contest! The three judges are as follows:

Tena Santaularia - Special Event Decorator and Balloon Artist (see: www.balloonarts.biz)

Lori Schutter - Gift Processing Associate at KU Endowment Association

RoeDapple - famous blogger and generally nice person; although he is notorious!

Please mail your 500 word short story to me: ronda@sunflower.com no later than February 16th (you've got one week). You may each submit up to two stories. I will then remove your name and assign a number to protect your identity before forwarding them along to our three judges. The winner will have their story placed in my online blog, along with a brief interview about them and their process, on February 23rd.

Have fun, keep them 'relatively' clean, and feel free to ask questions as you go. (what the judges don't know, is if they are able to pick which story is mine from the group they will also win a prize!) Stories will be judged on concise and precise writing, word count (exactly 500 words), creativity and compelling concept.

Coming in March: Memoir Madness - for those of us who don't give a hoop about basketball!

This time of year has many of us dreaming about some type of escape. Whether that involves sipping a pina colada on a tropical island, skiing at a favorite resort, or something as simple (okay, it isn't always simple) as a visit to Grandma's house, our minds are most likely vacationing somewhere during these seemingly endless days of winter.

I've never traveled by RV, never used a pop-up camper, but as recently as last summer, I did have the opportunity to spend several days and nights camping in the Rocky Mountains.

My first thought was how nice it would be to crawl inside one of the pop-up campers I saw attached to vehicles - somehow the RV world just isn't me.

The campers would offer immediate warmth, or air conditioning, depending on our needs, and quite frankly, we were freezing in our tent. It would save us time and energy spent setting up our tents, finding three 'legal' sites close enough together to actually enjoy the company of those with us isn't always simple, and it would enable us to travel and park at some other location during our travel time.

So the search is on. What better place to go than the RV show at Bartle Hall this coming weekend. Will I see you there?

What are you looking for. Are you looking for something specific or are you simply daydreaming?

I called one of the places about renting a pop-up - they are quite expensive! For those of you who use them, are they cost effective, or is it more about the freedom of being able to stay off the fast lane and travel without thoughts of motels, etc.?

http://www.examiner.com/x-34012-Lawrence-Parenting-Issues-Examiner~y2010m1d15-Lawrence-and-Topeka-parents-take-your-teen-to-an-RV-show-this-weekend

I am Ice Avatar. I came from a distant burned out star during this planet's Ice Age to see if Earth is a planet my people could transition to if needed. Our planet was becoming over populated and we knew we couldn't continue to live through many more of our people's spawning.

I flew in on my wind guide and what a wondrous ride it was. We saw terrain and species unlike any we had seen before, or could have possibly imagined. Huge monsters ruled the sky, land, and ocean. Trees, blue skies, and clouds were nonexistent on my planet where all is white, including my hair, eyes, and skin.

Our people raise a small pet you refer to here as a Maltese, which we use to harvest long, thick white hair to twine and make into snow boots. We use the heavy pelt made from other Ice Avatars once they are deceased - it is our unique way of carrying our dead with us forever. Our favorite delicacy is much like an Earthling's white ostrich. We carefully pluck feathers from its skin to prick through our heritage pelts. The result is a double layer of warmth and beauty. The ostrich feathers fluff, undulate, and glisten in the pristine cold; sparkling like diamonds under the small weight of ice.

We miscalculated earth's gravity. My wind guide was unable to take me back to my planet because of how much I weighed, but it assisted me in digging a deep crevice far below Earth's surface for me to survive before it left. It returned to our star to communicate this existence with those of my people.

Ice Avatar's have the ability to fall into a deep, almost trance-like, sleep for centuries at a time. Earth's century is but a day in the life of an Ice Avatar.

I began to awaken over the past month as my sensors alerted me to the cold above me. Today was the first day I knew I would be able to survive. The wind, pristine beauty of the sparkling snow, and the white world all around me, beckons. I have a mission, after all.

I make my way to the place on the hill where my small internal ears (which keeps out cold and wind) hear faint sounds coming from humans. Humans who are expected to work when they should be at home. They are a race that will die if they don't begin to adapt to conditions changing around them. I am surprised at how stupid the human race is. They have the technology to change for their survival, but they don't use it. They could adapt by staying at home.

A simple switch could allow them to take calls from home. A short visit by a technician could make them computer ready in their own houses. Not only would these changes help save a doomed economy, but protect people from pandemics and natural disasters. These Earthlings kill themselves because of their need for social interaction - always huddling together in mass.

I, like other Ice Avatars, spend my entire life alone. Maybe it is because we carry our ancestor's pelts with us that we never feel alone. They communicate constantly with us through our sensitive skin and nerves.

I make my way in giant strides in the direction of the unhappy mumblings - these people do not want to be at work today. I kick a cougar away with my long leg - it snarls, showing yellow teeth much the same color as it's skin. It is ugly.

I am happy to have been awakened. I have a purpose - I will go into the buildings and plug the computer systems into my essence and allow the people to leave.

I am Ice Avatar. I am in Lawrence, Kansas. I am home.

The Fox channel had its debut showing of "The Moment of Truth" Weds. evening following American Idol.

The show works something like this: pick a contestant and ask them fifty personal questions behind the scenes to get to know them and their vices and flaws.

Next, hook them up to a lie detector test in front of an audience, their spouse, their friends, and even their employer. Then comes the fun part as the contestant is asked the first six questions, which answered truthfully puts 10,000 dollars in their pocket.

It isn't as easy as it sounds, however, because some of the questions are down right demented! Some random questions from last night's show were

:"Are you addicted to gambling?"

"Are you currently a member of the hair club for men?"

"As a personal trainer, have you touched a female client more than was required of you?"

"Have you used the internet to flirt with other women?"

"Have you stolen a peek at another man's privates during a shower?"

"Have you had a sexual fantasy during mass?"

"Have you gone through a co-workers belongings without their knowledge?"

"Have you delayed having children because you don't think your spouse is your lifelong partner?"

The friends/spouse/employers have one out - they can push a large button that is centered between them (one time only) if they do not want to hear the person answer the question that was asked. The problem with that is it will be replaced with another question and the other question just might be worse then the first.

After the initial six questions, that can earn the contestant 10,000 if answered correctly, the next five questions, if answered truthfully, can get the contestant up to the 25,000 dollar mark. The higher you go, the harder and more revealing the question. Answer all 21 questions truthfully and you have $500,000 in your pocket. You may not have a job to go back to, your wife, husband, and friends have probably abandoned you, but you decide how important money really is in your life.

This show is destined to be a hit - audiences love to see people squirm in the hot seat, see their lives (and their friends and families lives) destroyed right in front of them - and the contestant most probably will end up leaving with nothing.

This reminded me of the games we played as teenagers: truth or dare and twenty questions.

Would you risk it all and tell the truth for $500,000?