And then my brain exploded...

Exploding head syndrome is a form of hypnagogic auditory hallucination and is a rare and relatively undocumented parasomnia event in which the subject experiences a loud bang in their head similar to a bomb exploding, a gun going off, a clash of cymbals, ringing, an earthquake, or any other form of loud, indecipherable noise that seems to originate from inside the head.

This noise usually happens at the onset of sleep or within an hour or two of falling asleep, but is not necessarily the result of a dream. Although the sound is perceived as extremely loud, it is usually not accompanied by pain. Attacks appear to change in number over time, with several attacks happening in a space of days or weeks, followed by months of remission. Sufferers often feel a sense of fear and anxiety before and after an attack, accompanied by elevated heart rate. 

Attacks may also be accompanied by perceived flashes of light (when perceived on their own, known as a "visual sleep start") or difficulty in breathing. The condition is also known as "auditory sleep starts". The associated symptoms are varied, but the benign nature of the condition is emphasized and neither extensive investigation nor treatment are indicated. Sufferers may experience an inability to vocalize any sound, or mild forms of sleep paralysis during an attack. There is no known treatment.

I got that from Wikipedia. 

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is "And then my brain exploded".

Tastes Like Chicken

"Tastes like chicken," He said as-a-matter-of-factly.

There were six of us sitting around the table watching Claude taste the meat.

Next was Peter's turn. Claude slowly slid the plate over and Peter sliced off a small morsel of the still steaming meat and popped it into his mouth.

"Tastes like chicken," he said.

Next was Patty's turn. A little more reluctantly, she reached for the plate. Patty hesitated and looked up, but the expectant stares from everybody around strengthened her resolve. She started chewing her piece, slowly and with a reflective look on her face. She swallowed. And when there was no response, Norah elbowed her.

Tastes Like Chicken

"And?" Norah prompted.

"Hmm," said Patty. "It's a little gamey. Kind of like chicken but sinewy."

At that instant, Ronen pushed in between them taking Norah's turn and picked up the piece of meat with his two hands and with one massive bite nearly finished the cut.

"Hey!" They all shouted.

"Leave some for everyone," someone else piped in.

Ronen furiously chewed his mouthful keeping the entire group in suspense for long minutes. He finally swallowed and with a disappointed grunt said, "Tastes like chicken."

Next was Alma, the timid one of those gathered. She stopped and started twice before picking up her knife and fork. Alma cut off a tiny piece, stared at it, closed her eyes and quickly put the piece in her mouth. She chewed twice and tried mightily to suppress a gag reflex. Tiny little Alma let out a belch that could knock down walls. But she wasn't going to embarrass herself any further. She quickly chewed and swallowed and then covered her face with her hands. From behind her hands she whispered,

"Chickeny."

Norah finally got her chance. She picked up her fork and jabbed the piece still on the plate. She muttered under her breath, perhaps a prayer, as she lifted the fork to her mouth. After quick bite and a few chews, she looked up and said, "Shawn, you really need to learn how to cook. This chicken sucks."

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is "Tastes Like Chicken".

I Faked It

I faked it. I really do not know how to write. And by that, I do not mean, I cannot write properly. I simply cannot write. I do not even speak English. I currently have no comprehension of what these words and sentences I am stringing together signify.

Random images on a page. They may as well be smiley faces.

Forget about English, I do not comprehend any language. So next time you read a story on these pages, remember, I faked it.

They suspect nothing

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is "I faked it".

Shakesperean English

While researching today's topic, Shakespearean English, I fell on this Twitter handle @ShakespeareSong. And the tagline, "Songs/movie quotes/phrases in archaic language. Can you guess them?"

With 385,000 followers, I was not the first to discover @ShakespeareSong. Contemporary pop songs and phrases are translated into Elizabethan-era Early Modern English. Need I sayeth moreth? Here is a sample of a recent tweet.

I started out by looking for a Google or babelfish type translator. But none really exist. I was about to download a translator on my Android but my phone conked out and I got into a fight with my mobile service provider. I will leave that for another post. I filed a complaint and now have to wait for the end results.

But I got off topic. Recognize this song?

Shakespeare Lyrics has some 900 or so tweets with some hilarious takes on modern songs and phrases converted into old English.

Here is my favourite. Can you guess the song?

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, and to read some of the great writers who are participating, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Shakesperean English.

Another One Bites The Dust

Queen - Another One Bites the Dust.

Another One Bites the Dust

Queen's partial discography
Queen (1973)
Queen II (1974)
Sheer Heart Attack (1974)
A Night at the Opera (1975)
A Day at the Races (1976)
News of the World (1977)
Jazz (1978)
The Game (1980)
Flash Gordon (1980)
Hot Space (1982)
The Works (1984)
A Kind of Magic (1986)
The Miracle (1989)
Innuendo (1991)
Made in Heaven (1995)



This was not creative. And I didn't write much but apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see who actually wrote something for today's prompt go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is One Bite.

Zombies

The Walking Dead has been on hiatus since December and with the second half of the season starting on February 9th, let us take a look back at the start of fourth season and forward to the upcoming episodes. The story surrounds a former sheriff, Rick, and his son in a world overrun by the walking dead, essentially zombies. 

The Walking Dead new season

Season four on AMC started up with Rick and his group of survivors holed up in a prison, the big walls and cages formerly used to keep criminals in, now used to keep the walking dead out. Surving a secondary purpose as well, it offers some sort of protection against the monsters of the new world, the other human survivors.

And the Governor came back, making peace with his losses and seemingly no longer with a chip on his shoulder. But we saw that the Governor still crosses those lines Rick will not, in the anything goes attempt to survive.

The Walking Dead

Conditions have changed radically for Rick, Carl, Michonne, and the rest of survivors as the mid-season finale saw the prison breached. The outcome of The Governor’s final attack, also saw the group splintered leaving Rick and Carl on their own, with the well-being of the rest of the crew in question, and more members either dead, or presumed dead or lost.

Typical of the television series and the novels from which it was inspired, season four and TWD in general, is filled with twists and turns. Any regular viewer, will by now have realized, no one is safe. The only constants in the Walking Dead are zombies, zombie swarms and that characters die.

Attempting to find additional realism in a world of post-apocalyptic fantasy, the survivors of Rick's team are faced with an everyday malady. A virus is killing off the healthy members.

Any of the main characters could die or disappear at any moment. Your time invested to get to know any one of them may be for naught.

Part of the back story, humans are infected if they get bit. Or, if they die they will awaken as zombies. So, let us assume the bite causes the infection via a blood infection. Otherwise, if it were an airborne infection, there would be no show. Everybody would be zombies. So, if the infection is passed on through blood, why don't the survivors get infected by blood splatter? They don't wear masks, or goggles, yet they are covered by zombie blood and guts.

Okay, okay, suspending belief is required in most fantasy stories. 

So what's up next for the Rick, Glenn, Michonne and the rest of the survivors? I won't reveal any spoiler details. That wouldn't be fair. But the upcoming few episodes will show how some stay safe, and others move on to face new challenges. They won't have each other to fall back on as the group was splintered. Untied we stand. Divided? Check out the Walking Dead season four mid season preview below.

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Zombies.

Damn the Torpedoes

Tom Petty Damn The Torpedoes

Damn the Torpedoes became Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' first top ten album. Produced by Petty and Jimmy Iovine, the album reached double platinum status. The album brought together rock, folk, country and blues in what has become Petty and the Heartbreakers’ signature style.

Damn the Torpedoes can arguably be called Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' magnus opus. A little bit of the Stones and a little bit the Byrds, yet completely modern for its 1979 release.

Previous classics from Petty included, American Girl and Listen to the Heart. Damn the Torpedoes dropped more classics on the world with Refugee, Here Comes My Girl, Even the Losers and Don't Do Me Like That.

Few rock albums from the era were as powerful as this. 

Re-released in 2010, one of the greatest rock albums of all time was shored up with nine bonus tracks.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, during their first year of eligibility in 2002 and are one of very few artists to score a top five record on the Billboard charts in five consecutive decades.

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Damn.

Scatterbrained

I scoured the internet and compiled this list. Here is a list of scatterbrained people.

Boom Boom
Cheesy Mike

Mr. Scatterbrain

dufus
Frank Lee MeiDere
inJaynesWorld
Katherine
KZ
LaughingMom
Lauren
Linda
Malisa
Margaret
Mariann
MikeWJ 
MsDarkstar
NathanaelV
Nicky
P.J.
ReformingGeek
Shawn
Tami VZ
Ziva

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Scatterbrained.

The Empty Bottle

The empty bottle rolled across the floor and came to a sudden stop with a clank against the leg of the table. I looked over to the couch and could see, if barely in the dusk light, the outline of a prone body. One arm thrown across his face, the other to the side and leaning on the floor, likely the source of the fallen bottle.

I shouldn't be surprised, I tell myself. The signs were there. The stress, the anger, the late nights, the depression, pills and finally drinking.

Stupid writing challenges.

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is The Empty Bottle.

Empty

When Hell Freezes Over

When hell freezes over

When pigs fly

One chance in a million

When my hair grows back

In a ghost of a chance

When Dallas wins another Superbowl

A snowballs chance in hell

When Baseball returns to Montreal

On the second Tuesday of the week

When Human Rights are respected in Quebec

In a month of Sundays

When I gain superpowers

The 12th of never

When I win the lottery

When my entire salary is tax exempt

...will be when I participate in another writing challenge

When Donkeys Fly

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is When hell freezes over.

It Was No Accident

It was no accident. He was pushed. And from the seventh story window.

I didn't see it happen. But I heard everything I couldn't get there fast enough to stop it. They did say he did not suffer.

Whatever the perpetrator's intention he kept repeating the same refrain over and over. "I have to teach him a lesson. I have to teach him a lesson."

I imagine no lesson was learned as the impact was fast and fatal.

As the suspect was led away by the police he was heard saying over and over again, "No more writing challenges, no more writing challenges."

Handcuffs

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see who else participated, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is It Was No Accident.

Gouda

Ambrosius Gouda was born on February 1st, 1933. Originally from the South Holland region of the Netherlands, Gouda moved with his family to Amsterdam, and then spent the rest of his life travelling and spreading the good name Gouda throughout the world.

Gouda and his wife, Jonge Kaas met as young teens in Holland. At first her father, Overjarige Kaas, did not approve. He was older and bitter, and felt that Jonge deserved to be with someone of higher order, and not yellow, as he called Gouda.

Nonetheless, they got married and had two children, a boy named Danbo, and a girl with curls named Leipäjuusto.

Their passion was strong and Jonge Kaas, even when she was old and crusty, would melt in Gouda's arms.

We will save the story of his financial fortunes and careers for another day, but let if be said, he became the big cheese he always dreamed of being.

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Gouda.