Creative Writing : My Life

"Wake up, partners," the trail boss, James called. I sleepily looked up , shivered, and saw I was the only one not up. "Here," James said, giving me the horses' bridles and saddles. "Take these and get the horses ready. We have a long day today." I groaned in reply and set up the horses for the day's long drag. I was the horse wrangler and this was my everyday job but I still couldn't get use to the idea of waking up before the sun and working. We drove the cattle into open plains against the winter's cold wrath.

Sue froze where she stood, frozen for what must have felt like hours. “You mean, he waited all of this time to paint his masterpiece and not only did he paint it for me but – he used his life to paint it.” Sue was overwhelmed at the thought, she was the reason Mr. Behrman had gone out that night, she was the reason he had passed away. “I caused his demise, my own selfishness did this!” Sue cried. Johnsy quickly took hold of Sue’s hands and said to her: “No darling, you did just the opposite, you showed Mr. Behrman what he had been looking for, for these years. You inspired his masterpiece!” Understanding then that Mr. Behrman’s sacrifice for her, was no sacrifice at all, his dream had been fulfilled and he had continued his journey. At that

I go outside, take the stolen bike, and go to Kaitlyn’s house. I was going so fast, I could have gotten a ticket. I stopped at the door and knocked on the door.

I Run to my bathroom and take off my pajamas and put on fresh new clothes for the new day.

I was cold damp and the air smelt of old wood and smelly feet. My mother was holding me but the place I was in was a place I didn’t like and the atmosphere seemed sad and gloomy. You could hear footsteps going up and down the hallways but you could barely see anything in the dimly lit room. There was iron bars and a small window where the slightest of light was able to seep through. The little window was the only comfort as the sun’s light came through in the mid afternoon providing warmth and a sense of comfort. It lit the room just enough to allow you to see many boring features of wood and bars. As the wood heated and released some of its moisture the smell of the decay became a little stronger.

Every night, at around ten pm, we all pile into the small purple car and drive to the laundromat to straighten things up for the next day's customers. We empty the trash cans and toss the trash bags into the dumpster. We sweep and mop the tiled floors, and clean huge mounds of lint out of the bottoms of the dryers. (The former is only done once every so often when the lint piles up, but it is one of the most exciting things you can do while cleaning a laundromat because of the potential for finding discarded money.) Walking through the glass doors of the laundromat, you are greeted with a faint smell of laundry detergent. There might still be a few people in the building, sitting in the plastic seats located by the back wall, playing pinball on an Addams Family pinball game, or just standing in front of the many dryers lining the walls. My uncle and aunt usually strike up a conversation with whoever is there while Eli and I start the process of straightening the place up. Inside the laundromat there are two aisles. The two aisles are split by a double row of washing machines with a small wooden table at the front end flanked on the left by a few arcade games and on the right by two vending machines. Eli and I usually start cleaning by getting a broom and a damp rag from the closet, then Eli sweeps the floor while I wipe the dust and dirt off the tables. The first couple of times I went to the laundromat I was mesmerized by how effortlessly Eli and his family did their jobs. Eli showed me the specific pattern that he used to mop the floor down one of the isles, then handed the mop to me and let me do the other side. The intricacies of the pattern were lost on me then, but after a couple of days practicing, I began to feel at home working in the laundromat. I had become part of the

“Daddy, don’t leave me!” I mock my five-year-old self bitterly. Tossing my hair, I add, “I don’t need him anymore.”

At approximately 9pm, it was my duty to put away, which as you know includes all items removed from the dishwasher, pots, pans, utensils, cutlery, dishes, bowls, mugs, glasses etc. In order to do this effectively one has to move quickly and efficiently, if there is a break in that movement, then that individual will fall behind, if and when that happens items left over requires put away by the whole team after their last break, this causes resentment and some bitterness amongst the team, since they have other jobs to do after their break. With that said, I try my best to make sure that if anything is left over, it’s minimal because I myself understand how annoying it is when there is a great deal of items left over to be put away. Because

As I enter my room, I don't notice anything unusual. I comb my thin hair to get rid of the tangles from the night before and change out of my pajamas and into some more sensible clothes for the day.

I grabbed the first clean sweater and jeans I could find and pulled them on, ignoring the thought that I'd look better if I actually gave myself more than a few minutes to get ready in the morning. I shoved my feet into my shoes and ran down the staircase to the kitchen, grabbing my red bookbag on the way.

I wondered if the clothes washer was the kind that dried clothes after the washing cycle. I read about such machines and decided to send an e-mail to Ann to ask some questions. I was thrilled when I read her

Parker works, while I keep busy with doing things around flat. I’m cleaning the bathroom when I realize, Parker left the medicine cabinet unlocked. Inside is all his pills and the only razor in the house.

Rolling off my bed of hay {I don’t know the living situation as I edit this so yeah}, I grabbed the first fistful of clothes from the pile that had been gathering on my floor. I

I can't say I'm elated this morning to spend the day with John. Nevertheless, I ordered myself out of bed and into the shower. Not wanting to entice John, I elected for a pair of jeans and a red hoodie, along with my leather coat, having tossed my pungent winter coat in the washing bin upon my return from the cafe last night. After my hair dried, I tied it back in a ponytail and inspected myself in the mirror. A plain Jane, just what I'd hoped for.

c)Rescue clothes from detergent residue. The washing machine will use gentle mist of water which helps dissolve detergents.