Category: Flash Memoir

Secret of Design

~ Stacey Guenther ~ 3 Comments

I made this fractal on February 20, 2023.

Here is a haiku I wrote on March 3, 2023:

sitting on the couch
watching the stormy rains fall
tornado warning

I hope everyone is having an excellent March so far. Today, I was thinking about my piano teacher from when I was younger. She was like a best friend to me. She impacted my life considerably, and she was a role model. She loved animals and treated humans with respect and friendliness. I learned a lot from her about how to be a kind human. I will forever be thankful that she was in my life. I miss her.

I don’t have many of my fractals or artwork for sale yet, but some are available on prints, t-shirts, and other items. There are digital downloads available on my DeviantArt, Etsy, and ArtStation sites as well. For a list of all my websites and where my fractals and art can be found, please see this website: https://linktr.ee/StaceyGuenther I have also added a donations widget to the sidebar of this WordPress blog. Thanks for looking and reading!

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WordPress Daily Prompt February 25, 2023

~ Stacey Guenther ~ 3 Comments

What advice would you give to your teenage self?

When I was a teenager, I did a lot of drawing with pencil, pen, chalk, pastels, and more. I also painted. I made a lot of traditional art. I was the president of the art club when I was in high school. I got to be pretty good and developed some nice skills. I even won an award from a congressman.

Sadly, after I graduated from high school, I stopped making traditional art. I focused on mathematics and computer science in college, but I completely left art behind. I stopped practicing my techniques. I have since moved on to digital art, but I no longer know how to draw or paint with traditional media.

The advice I would give my teenage self is this: “Don’t stop making art. Keep practicing. You can make art and enjoy math and computers at the same time.

If I had continued with my art abilities as a teenager and into college, my digital art skills would be even better today, and I’d also be able to say I can make traditional art as well.

WordPress Prompt for February 5, 2023

~ Stacey Guenther ~ Leave a comment

Something on your “to-do list” that never gets done.

There are many things on my to-do list that never get done. For the sake of brevity, I will mention just one of them in this blog post.

As some of you already know, I make art and do other creative projects. The art I make these days is strictly digital. However, over the past six months, I have bought a lot of art supplies so that I can make some traditional art. I used to make traditional art when I was younger. My problem now is that I can’t seem to get started making it. I keep making things digitally.

I want to use oil and chalk pastels, and make watercolor paintings. I want to draw with alcohol markers, pencils, pens, and fine-liners. I want to use my PrismaColor colored pencils, especially, because I bought the biggest set. I want to use my special art paper to draw and paint on. There is so much I want to do, but I don’t get it done.

I made this fractal on January 30, 2023.

WordPress Prompt for February 4, 2023

~ Stacey Guenther ~ Leave a comment

What’s your favorite thing to cook?

This may come as a bad surprise for many people, but I don’t cook. I simply don’t enjoy cooking. I do sometimes throw frozen food in the microwave, though, if that can be considered cooking.

When I was growing up, my mom did all the cooking. She cooked everything until the day I left home when I was 19. I moved in with my boyfriend, and he did all the cooking until our divorce in 2010. My next boyfriend did the cooking, again. Then, when I met my second husband in 2015, he did all the cooking. He still does it.

I have tried cooking before and I’ve made some delicious meals. My husband John was very impressed and enjoyed the food I made. However, I am not interested in cooking, and I do not find it to be fun or enjoyable in any way, other than the process of eating the food afterward.

John is 31 years older than I, so if I outlive him, I will have no choice but to cook my own meals. I am not looking forward to that. But, I can’t live off microwave food forever.

I made this fractal on January 28th, 2023.

WordPress Prompt for February 3, 2023

~ Stacey Guenther ~ 3 Comments

Write about your first computer.

My first computer was an Apple IIe. I was a kid in the 1980s when my parents got it for me and my younger sister. We kept the computer in the bedroom that my sister and I shared.

I spent a lot of time on that computer. I played games like The Oregon Trail and Math Blaster. I also made digital art using a programming language by Turtle Graphics called Logo.

The Math Blaster game really fueled my love of math. I went on to get a bachelor’s degree in mathematics with a minor in computer science when I graduated from college. Also, having a computer at such a young age has helped me to be skilled at using computers and electronics in my adulthood.

I’m glad I got started making art on a computer as a child, because I use computers, phones, and tablets to make art these days. I’ve had a lot of practice, and, while I also have made traditional art in the past, my main obsession in my mid 40s is using computers and other electronics to make digital art, write poetry, and make music.

Incidentally. I apologize for neglecting my blog. I hope to take better care of it in the future and stay in better touch with my blogging friends.

Frightened By Fireworks – A Flash Memoir

~ Stacey Guenther ~ Leave a comment
Photo by Dynamic Wang on Unsplash

When I was a child, my mother and father would take my younger sister and me to see fireworks for the Fourth of July celebrations.  I was not too fond of the loud noises because they startled me.  So, I would always cover my ears with my hands to avoid the terrible sounds.  The pyrotechnics were pleasant to observe visually, nevertheless.

These days, as an adult, I avoid fireworks whenever I can.  To this day, when an unexpected bang is heard in the house as neighbors light fireworks, I jump in my seat.  But, I still try to shield my ears.  I’m just like the many pets that feel anxiety because of fireworks.

Luckily, I live in a condo, and the homeowners’ association has banned fireworks in the neighborhood.  However, in surrounding blocks, some people light them, so I am not free from them entirely.  The good news is that our two kitties do not seem to be bothered by them.

Fireworks are unavoidable.  They happen every year and sometimes without warning.  Occasionally, randomly they will occur throughout the year as people use their leftovers.  It never fails that I get startled, especially when the fireworks are unexpected.  I would be better off without fireworks, and I’m sure many furry or feathered creatures would agree with me.

© Stacey Guenther  July 2, 2022

Written for https://flashfictionforthepracticalpractitioner.wordpress.com/2022/06/29/flash-fiction-for-the-purposeful-practitioner-2022-week-27/