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Sound awake

and sleepwalking

By Andrei Z.Published 7 months ago Updated 7 months ago 1 min read
11
Sound awake
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Winter breathes above my shoulder. After October comes January, and blurriness in between. Take what's yours, but spare my life. I will be vending frozen poles for tongue-sticking and surgical scissors. Two for the price of two. No discount. This is life. My hair is covered with snow; when the last snowflake melts, I will catch a cold so that I have an excuse to grab an extra cup of tea with ginger, lemon, and honey. My snowman is too anatomically correct, and I had to cover him with a cloak. The carrot was stolen by a local gang of rabbits. Therefore, I replaced the gaping hole with a 40-watt incandescent light bulb. Now I'm calling it an olfactory bulb. My neighbors claim it fluoresces at night, strictly between 1 and 4 a.m. I wonder what makes them stay awake this late. Also, I pointed out to them that if this observation is not a product of their imagination, the bulb would rather phosphoresce but definitely not fluoresce. Finally, curiosity took over me, and I stayed awake the whole night last Saturday, watching my snowman from a kitchen window. Probably, the bulb had blown out: I saw nothing. Only at some point, closer to dawn, the snowman winked at me with his coal eye. I woke up in bed in the morning, comfortably tucked into a waffle blanket. Belgian waffles with maple syrup and black coffee for breakfast. I keep forgetting, do I have to hurry somewhere today?

Microfiction
11

About the Creator

Andrei Z.

Overthinker.

Reader insights

Outstanding

Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!

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  1. Compelling and original writing

    Creative use of language & vocab

  2. Easy to read and follow

    Well-structured & engaging content

  3. Heartfelt and relatable

    The story invoked strong personal emotions

  1. Masterful proofreading

    Zero grammar & spelling mistakes

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    Writing reflected the title & theme

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Comments (8)

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  • Randy Wayne Jellison-Knock7 months ago

    I hope not. Such dream-waking deserves time-taking.

  • Mackenzie Davis7 months ago

    Why am I taking it this way? "My snowman is too anatomically correct, and I had to cover him with a cloak. The carrot was stolen by a local gang of rabbits." (Can rabbits steal a carrot nose?) Anatomically correct, covered with a cloak. Then, the snowman winks at the speaker. LOL. Are my assumptions about the whereabouts of the bulb and previous carrot incorrect here? Yes, most definitely, as the joke "olfactory bulb" (brilliant!) is made. This little micro fiction oozes winter coziness and seasonal wonder and I love it, no matter the supposed innuendo...and my apologies if this interpretation is unfounded!

  • Grz Colm7 months ago

    An “olfactory bulb” and a “waffle blanket” in the same micro? I’m all here for it!! 😂👌

  • Lol, I wonder too why the neighbours were awake during those hours. Now I'm craving for waffles! Loved your story!

  • Rachel Deeming7 months ago

    Whimsical ramblings. I quite liked where you went with this. Not sure where we've ended up but the journey was enjoyable.

  • Hannah Moore7 months ago

    I have no idea what's going on, but I'm holding your hand all the way.

  • I really enjoyed this Andrei. Your use of words is do creative and clever. I like how you worked waffle blanket into Belgian waffle. Great work as always!!!

  • Suze Kay7 months ago

    I’m not a fan of winter, but this piece made me wish for it to come. I love your wordplay, and the mixture of tactile experience and wishful thinking that you’ve put forth here!

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