One thing I have enjoyed since starting up my blog is checking out other blogs. I have spent many hours holding Baby Maya in my left arm while alternating my right hand back and forth between the mouse and keyboard, checking out all kinds of interesting reads. One I came across is called Mama’s Losin’ It.
Every Wednesday she hosts a writer’s workshop where she posts topics for bloggers to choose from, and encourages you to choose one topic and blog about it. So for today’s blog I present to you my Writer’s Workshop Post:
You wake up one day with an unusual super power that seems pretty worthless—until you are caught in a situation that requires that specific “talent.”
For the record, I chose this prompt for my husband. Even though I really like all of today’s prompts, I figured I could write something he might actually enjoy, since he is such a loyal reader. And because he puts up with a lot of my postpartum moodiness. He deserves a good laugh.
Man-Chore Powers
It’s the chore that must be done, but nobody likes doing it: cleaning the gutters. Luckily, as a woman, I get out of this one. It’s a man job. Just like taking out the garbage, mowing the lawn, and doing the laundry. No? Not that last one? Shoot.
I was just as shocked as my husband was when the words came out of my mouth. “Why don’t you stay inside and watch the game? I can go clean the gutters.”
Crickets.
Before I could claim insanity, the Seahawks were on.
As soon as I got outside, the realization hit me: I had no idea what I was doing. I knew I needed a ladder, but what else? A hose? Gloves? A little hand shovel? (You can probably tell I spend a lot of time doing gardening and other outdoor home improvements.) I got out the ladder and went up, figuring I could see what was up there and then determine what tools I needed. As I SLOWLY climbed the ladder (one can never be too careful) I wished I had Spiderman’s powers and could just quickly scale the side of our two-story house. Then I could just get right up there, clean the crud out, get right down, and feel safe the whole time.
Well, Spiderman powers weren’t there for me, but that doesn’t mean I was left without powers.
When I got up to the gutters I almost gagged upon seeing the sopping wet mess of leaves, pine needles, and miscellaneous Northwest sludge that was waiting for me. But as I grabbed on to the edge of the gutter, the strangest thing happened: a shot of air came bursting out of my left ring finger. It had more pressure than the air hose at the Chevron. But more exciting yet, all the sludge came shooting out of the gutter, and disappeared into thin air. And my hands were still clean!
This was too good to be true. I quickly finished cleaning the gutters and then set out to see what my air-hose finger could accomplish. Leaf blowing, tire pressurizing, hair drying? The possibilities seemed endless.
As I tried all of these tasks, however, I came to a sad discovery. My air-hose finger only worked while it was in contact with a gutter. I went back into my house, head hung low, upset that I all I could do was a man-chore. But as I sat down to watch the rest of a typically pathetic Seahawks game, I was (thankfully) interrupted by some breaking news.
A family just down the road from my own house was trapped inside their home. A gust of wind, so strong, had blown the gutters right off their house, blocking every exit and vent. Not only were they trapped inside, but they weren’t getting any oxygen! And the gutters were so full of nasty Northwest sludge that they were too heavy to move. If someone didn’t clean their gutters, and fast, this innocent family would soon be meeting their maker.
I knew my time had come. This was the moment I had been waiting for my whole life. Today, I was going to become a hero.
I ran down the road as fast as I could (which isn’t very fast, but I did my best), to where a crowd was starting gather. “Let me through!” I yelled. “I can help these people. I clean gutters.”
Several of them sneered. “How do you expect to help them? You’re a 5’3″ tall woman with no ladder, and gutter cleaning is a man’s job.”
“I WILL help them,” I stated boldly, “with my gutter cleaning super-powers.” The crowd gasped. And with that, I reached out my hand to the ground level gutter. My air-hose finger took care of the rest.
The strong man (every super-hero story needs a strong man, right?) tossed away the gutter, and the family came bursting out through the front door. “Thank you, Gutter Cleaning Hero!” they exclaimed, as the news crews from all the major networks began interviewing me.
That night, my husband was so proud that he bought me extra-spicy chicken pad thai for diner (hint, hint… I know you’re reading this). He talked about starting what would be a very profitable gutter cleaning business. I stopped him shortly into the conversation. It was a good idea, and of course we could use the money. But I just couldn’t take advantage of people like that.
Some powers should only be used for good.
