The Colombians

It is day 18 of the Third Second Annual 30 Minus 2 Days of Writing challenge hosted by Nicky and Mike at We Work for Cheese and today's prompt is Liars.  Truth or lies?  Check out WWFC for the facts.

Agent Shore sat as his desk, a phone in one hand and a cup of strong, black coffee in the other.  This case was eating at him.  "I've questioned every man, woman and chimpanzee. I've turned over every stone from here to hell and back, and no one knows anything.  Just a bunch of liars!  Somebody knows something and I'm gonna find out."  Sometimes Charlie got a little dramatic when a case got down into his soul.

"Who you talking to Charlie" asked his partner.

"Hey Alex.  I'm still digging through the evidence from that crash, but it's just not adding up. I've got boxes of files, dozens of transcripts, including the black box.  Feel like jumping in," he asked?  "Two heads and all....  I know I'm missing something.  I'll order some lunch.  Feel like Chinese?

Image Source: Ksayer1

"Yeah, I'm in and Chinese is fine...make sure you get some of those hot peppers.  And get some extra fortune cookies too...I've got a date tonight," quipped Alex.  

"Okay, let's get down to business.  What do we know?"  Charlie got them back on track.

"Well, we've narrowed it down to two intended targets.  Tomas and the pilot, what was his name? Rafael?  Raul?  Whatever...who assigned him to this flight? Terrorist plot?

"Maybe it's a terrorist attack but I don't think the pilot was involved and I think Manuel was just plain lucky.  No, Tomas was going to work on some contracts so we need to find out who he was dealing with.  Maybe someone wanted those negotiations to fail."

"So, we're going to Colombia, huh Charlie?"  It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yep."

"What about my date?" complained Alex.

"What did the fortune cookie say?"

"Congratulations! You are on your way"


Previously:
Beyond the Window
Risky Business
Aliens, Really?

Quote of the Week

It is day 17 of the Third Second Annual 30 Minus 2 Days of Writing challenge hosted by Nicky and Mike at We Work for Cheese and today's prompt is I faked it.  Check out WWFC to see who else faked it.

Being positive isn't about faking it. It's just about being grateful for what you have and letting your light shine. - unknown

Genuine positivity is not something you fake, it is the product of gratitude and inner joy which is where your light comes from.  So be grateful, let your light shine and you will never have to say "I faked it".

What's That He Said?

It is day 16 of the Third Second Annual 30 Minus 2 Days of Writing challenge hosted by Nicky and Mike at We Work for Cheese and today's prompt is Shakespearean English.  Put on your best English accent and join us for a Shakespeare festival.

Hamlet anyone?

"I ask to be or not to be, that is the question."  What kind of question is that?  Either you are or you're not.

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."  It's the Cheese!

"The rest, is silence."  Well that's [yawn] boring.

"Remember me."  Remember you...I don't know you.

"A man may fish with the worm that hath eat of a king, and eat of the fish that hath fed of that worm."  What?  Now you're just trying to confuse me.

Even Gilligan got into Shakespeare.




Three Little Pigs - Shakespearean Style!

Here we look at how a simple children's story might have been written in Shakespeare's time, as told by John Branyan. It's a tad long, but it's worth it.  

What Does It Mean?

It is day 15 of the Third Second Annual 30 Minus 2 Days of Writing challenge hosted by Nicky and Mike at We Work for Cheese and today's prompt is My ears are ringing.  Are your ears ringing yet?  No, well head over to WWFC for the latest buzz.

Image Source:  ed101.bu.edu

We've all had ringing ears at one time or another, right? You know that high pitch sound that comes on suddenly and other sounds are momentarily hushed.  It's obvious immediately when it happens but it goes away so gradually you hardly notice. When the ringing in your ears doesn't go away it is likely tinnitus, which commonly affects people over 40, and more often men than women. Medication or injury can also cause ringing ears.  

But this is not a medical lesson.  We're here for another reason. Superstition. That't right. Did you know there is a superstition about ringing ears? You didn't?  I didn't either. 

The superstition holds that if your left ear is ringing, then someone is saying nice things about you. But, if your right ear is ringing, beware because someone is speaking badly of you.  I had always heard that if your ears were burning, then someone was talking about you. This is better because you know if it's good or bad.

According to one source, you can break it down even further by not only left or right ear, but by the time of day the ringing occurs.  

11 p.m. - 1 a.m.
Left ear means a girlfriend or loved one is thinking about you.
Right ear means you will lose money.

1 a.m. - 3 a.m.
Left ear means you will have a quarrel.
Right ear means you will have a more serious dispute.

3 a.m. - 5 a.m.
Left ear means you will lose money.
Right ear means you will be rushed off your feet.

It goes on to cover all 24 hours of the day with such predictions as friends coming over, you will be taking a journey, you will have a feast, etc.   The writer states that these are the Chinese interpretations of ringing in the ears.

After all that, my ears are ringing, how about yours?

Aliens, Really?

It is day 14 of the Third Second Annual 30 Minus 2 Days of Writing challenge hosted by Nicky and Mike at We Work for Cheese and today's prompt is It has to be aliens.  If your brains are still intact sail over and check out the other alien transmissions over at WWFC.

After clearing the wife, the driver and the pilot who had the good fortune to have the flu, he went to question the housekeeper.

"Good afternoon ma'am.  I am looking for Angela Perez."

"I am Mrs. Perez" replied the woman, wiping her hands on her apron.

"I'm Special Agent Charles Shore, FBI  and I am investigating the crash of Flight 0070.  I understand your employer Tomas Garza was on that flight.  Can you tell me the nature of his business in Colombia?"

"Only that he had to meet with some important people in Colombia.  It was a very important meeting.  I packed his suitcase for him."

"Do you know if he was involved in anything illegal" 

"Oh, no, Mr. Tomas would not do anything illegal" replied Angela sadly. "Mr. Tomas is...was a good man."

"Do you know who anyone who might want to harm him?" pressed Agent Shore.

Image Source:  Wikimedia

"Aliens," she said with certainty.

"Why do you say that, ma'am?"

"They are after our brains, you know.  They're out there just waiting for us...to suck out our brains."

"No ma'am, those are zombies, and I'm certain this crash was not caused by the undead.  It is for the real dead that we are trying to get justice.  Thank you for your time" replied Agent Shore, as he turned to leave.

"No, Wait!  You don't understand,"  her face pale beneath her tan.  "They make you do things.  They take over your body and make you do terrible things."

"What kind of things?" he asked, not believing her, but curious as to where she was going with this.

"They said if I tell anyone about them they will suck out my brains.  They will put this metal hat thing on my head with wires on it and flashing lights and tubes in my ears and my brains will be scrambled."  

"Ah, brains and eggs...oh forgive me.  [who said FBI agents have no sense of humor]  So, tell me why do you think they caused the plane crash?"

"Not them...ME" shrieked Angela.  "They made me do it, and now they will be coming for me."

"Why would they want to bring down an American plane?" he asked, but Angela's eyes had glazed over.

Agent Shore was pretty sure Angela was a nut case, but he wasn't ready to let her off just yet in the event that she was actually involved in some way, and this was just a ploy to avoid prosecution.

However, at the end of the day, he was no closer to finding out who was behind the crash, but had ruled out Angela and the brain-sucking aliens.