Motown Melodies, Music Blog

Death and Taxes

Written for Song Lyric Sunday  
where the challenge is to write
about a song dealing with taxes
and/or money. Here’s my response.

Continue reading “Death and Taxes”
Flash

Paying Through The Nose

Written for Friday Fictioneers where we are asked
to get creative in 100 words or less using the
photo below for inspiration. Here’s my story
.

Photo Prompt Β© Roger Bultot

β€œDid you get it?” Ray asked when the door opened.

β€œYeah, but I had to shell out more money for it” grumbled Joe-Bob.

β€œThat rat bastard! Hand it over … and a flashlight.” Ray demanded.

β€œThis is primo, Joe-Bob! Gimme six Ds, will ya?”

Ray inserted the Ds and turned on his newly acquired battery-operated fan.

β€œListen, Joe-Bob. When Uncle Lester died, he left me a slew of money. I’m gonna buy a state-of-the-art, solar-powered, non-electric RV. I’m stocking up batteries β€˜cos when that asshole gets elected, gas and electric prices will be insane. I’m finally gonna beat the man!”

NARΒ©2024
100 Words

This is β€œTax Man” by The Beatles

All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not to be used without permission. NARΒ©2017-present.

Short Prose

Move Over!

Written for Stream of Consciousness Saturday where
we are asked to feature the word “move”. Here’s my stream.

Here it is …. the so-called unofficial start of summer …. and we’re celebrating Memorial Day once again in my neck of the woods – Southern Westchester County in New York. In case you’re not familiar with the area, Manhattan is about a 45-minute drive south – far enough away for us to be in the suburbs but close enough to get into NYC for a show or dinner if we want to. We’re approximately an hour from Jones Beach heading east out to Long Island and 2 hours from the Catskill Mountains up north.

We’re in a nice spot and we’ve loved living here for 45+ years but we often bring up the topic of making a move. And why would we do that if it’s so nice here? Two big reasons: stupid-high property taxes and ever-increasing congestion.

Our little village was exactly that when we moved here; now the population has exploded and every family member old enough to drive has a car. We live on a very quiet cul de sac and never think about the congestion in town until we actually have to go to town. What used to be a 5 minute drive to the supermarket or post office is now triple that (or more) because of the number of cars, trucks and school buses on the move .… and let’s not even start talking about road work! There’s construction everywhere we look and some of it takes years to accomplish. By then, it’s time to start repairs again! Move it!

So, if we did decide to leave New York, the big question is …. where would we move to? I have no idea! It seems like everyone complains about the same problems of high taxes and too much congestion no matter where they live. Besides, the physical act of clearing out the house, packing up, moving and relocating at this stage of our lives is daunting; I can barely manage packing for vacation!

Things to think about, for sure. For now, I think I’ll move out onto the deck, sit in my lounge chair, drink my iced tea and listen to the birds. Bill will light the grill around 2PM; now that you know where I live, c’mon over!

It’s time to roll out some Nat King Cole and “Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer”!

NARΒ©2024

All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephant’s Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not for use by anyone without permission. NARΒ©2017-present.