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Friday, August 6, 2010

It Was A Dark And Stormy Night

How Corny Can I Get? Plenty. Keep Reading.

My day had been inhumanly impossibly busy. Plus it rained all day. Kody kept dropping hints at my feet: frizbee, balls, leash. Finally at 9 PM, as twilight gathered from a moist day, I grabbed Kody and the car keys and off to the fair grounds to toss the frizbee.

The fair grounds is a spacious adventure in the daylight with it’s camp grounds, patches of forests, lakes, paths, etc. But, holy moly, I didn’t even recognize it in the heavy twilight. Dark suspicious shadows crowded the roads and heavy roiling clouds suggested more rain.

I was begnning to get spooked. Not one single car did I see. No late night picnickers or last minute dog runs. Zip. I was totally alone. I parked in our usual spot and Kody leaped out of the car with her frizbee. I just wanted to get this over with, but then, a sudden deja vu hit me.

This creepy feeling that I was experiencing was the same mystifying excitement I used to feel when I was reading Nancy Drew stories, as a child. I'd save my pennies and nickles until I had 35 cents and then off to the Ben Franklin store for the latest Nancy Drew book. My hands would tremble with excitement as I cracked the cover on the new book. I welcomed the anticipation of knowing I was going to be scared.

There was never any violence or murder …. just objects or people missing or wrongs to make right. All the little girls who read the books could transport themselves into Nancy’s body and experience the breath-taking thrill of near discovery when hiding in a closet or behind a curtain. It was thrilling enchantment.

That creepy, spooky night at the fair grounds brought back the anticipation that something ominous was about to happen. In spite of the fact I was creeped out to the core, I revelled in it.

Even so, I was happy when Kody caught her 20th frizbee and I could get outta there. Adios

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of reading, writing and things that fall off the table in the night, hop on over to 12 paws and frogs

(What a punster I am). Kj's got a great fun post going that as writers, we can all sink our teeth into and get some good comments going. It's entitled, "Why Writers Write."

9 comments:

  1. Wow! I remember Nancy Drew, although I read the Trixie Belden books instead. I love the little bit nervous feeling I get when I take Jake out at night. Too many scary books and scary movies. Thanks for a post that brought me back to girlhood for a few minutes.

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  2. You know, I never read Nancy Drew books -- not sure why, either. What I did love, though, was the Judy Blume books. I liked how she delved into the depths of her characters' minds and personalities. To this day, I still love books (and movies) about complex, and usually messed up people. Maybe I need to lighten up and give ol' Nancy Drew a shot once my granddaughters get a little older.

    One of my favorite dark, easy-read books (adult years) is Sue Miller's "While I Was Gone."

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  3. Ha! You're very brave and a better woman than I. I took Lulu to the park about a week ago, but strangely, not a soul was there. It's actually a very large community center, back forty for grass, 2 playgrounds and a parking lot that's usually really quite full. But on this afternoon there wasn't a soul. Well, with the exception of 2 vans full of guys. I guess I watch too much investigative discovery, because something inside me said "no".

    On another note: I loved the Nancy Drew books. I recently saw them in a used book store and have contemplated purchasing them again.

    Wishing you and cody, a great day!!

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  4. Kj, I think if I looked at a Nancy Drew book today I'd find Carolyn Keane to be a bad writer but that didn't matter when I was young. Nancy was my hero and I wanted to be a detective when I grew up. I think your grandkids would like them. I've never read Sue Miller but I've heard she's a good writer. I really read very little fiction. I am sooo into natural health. I must own every book on health that's ever been written. They're my "dark and stormy night."

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  5. Cinnamon. No, you were the smart one. I'd take "no one" over 2 vans of guys in a lonely park. Get out of there fast.

    That would be a fun thing to collect, Nancy Drew books. As i said to Kj I don't think we'd find her to be the best writer but she she knows how to fascinate kids. All my girlfriends read them too but the little boys read "the Hardy Boys." I tried to read one once but guys don't bond like girls do. I noticed that way back. My brother read them.

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  6. I was a Nancy Drew fan, too. Tried reading the Hardy Boys, but just couldn't get into it. A few months ago, I read a new Nancy Drew story. It was written in the last 10 years or so. Yuck! Just once, I'd like to read a tale where her friends aren't so insipid. I saw two Nancy Drew movies that were made in the 30s. They were fun to watch.

    Fairground in the dead of night. Mountain trails with out-of-place looking guys. You have guts, Manzanita! Here that buk-buk! That's me.

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  7. I remember reading the Nancy Drew books as a kid! I took them out of the library and read each one they had!

    Visiting and following from FF 40+!

    http://www.newjerseymemories.com

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  8. Hey Manzi... This comment has nothing to do with this post, but the hubby made me the soup (Gerson recipe- I think you said) that you wrote about a few days ago. While I was at work all evening, he slaved away in the kitchen making something really healthy for me and my little dopamine craving brain.

    Yummy and healthy. So a big thanks to you, my sweet little blogging girlfriend!

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  9. Hi Manzanita, nice to meet you.
    Thank you very much for visiting Friko's Poems and Pictures. It's a site I keep purely for self-indulgence, because I simply adore poetry.
    My ordinary, rambling site is Friko's Musings.

    Sorry to say that I don't know Nancy Drew's books. Wrong culture and wrong age, I suppose.

    I like your style.

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