Saturday's Stupid Saying and Snippet

Okay; today's 'saying' is actually a quiz (cue the applause)! Don't worry; if you're stumped, the answers will appear at the end of the post (sounds of cheering)

Beaurocratic Definitions: What is:

Thermal Therapy Unit

Optical Illuminator Enhancer

Indefinitely Idling (Hint: Barb, you should know this one; it originates in Pittsbugh, lol!)

Keep reading for the answers.

Saturday Snippet:
With nearly everyone enjoying themselves at RomantiCon, I thought I'd join Ashley Ladd in her Saturday Snippet MeMe. I'm not sure if I'll do this every Saturday, or if I'm really supposed to sign up first, but I'm sure she'll tell me if I've violated any rules.

Today's theme is Characters in Danger. Since I don't really write suspense, here's a scene from Love Is Sober, the first of two pivotal scenes in the book. I took a lot of heat from my first reader, but only because I left her hanging in the middle of the chapter! I've learned to only let my beta readers read the entire chapter, not just whatever happens to be spitting out of my printer!

Enjoy:)

Finals week approached, and everyone was on edge. The end of finals on the first day, Brent and Elicia went out to eat at Ponderosa to celebrate Brent’s victory over his toughest course. After they ate, Brent purchased a case of beer, and they drove to Todd’s house in Illinois to celebrate. Todd had also done well in the class, and several more people were already there when they arrived. Around midnight, Brent and Elicia left the impromptu party and headed back to campus. Just as they crossed the bridge into Indiana, however, a speeding car appeared, on the wrong side of the road.
“Look out!” was Elicia’s cry before the two cars collided. “Brent, oh my god, Brent...” was her last coherent thought.



Several hours later, she awoke to find herself bandaged from head to toe. She gingerly moved her head, which caused a flurry of excitement in her room.

“Honey?” her mother’s voice registered, and through slightly blurry eyes, Elicia saw her mother’s concerned face and felt her stroking her hair.

“M-mom?” she whispered. “I’m so sorry...”

“Ssshhh, everything is going to be okay,” her mother smiled through her tears.

“Elicia? I’m Doctor Stevens,” a white-clad man said, appearing on Elicia’s left. “Do you remember what happened?”

“I-there was a car...coming right at us...Is Brent all right?” Elicia asked weakly.

Dr. Stevens cleared his throat. “Elicia, it was a horrible accident,” he began softly. “The oncoming car that hit you caused you both to have massive internal injuries.”

“What-what does that mean?” she asked. “Mom?”

Mrs. Keller’s eyes filled with tears. “He didn’t survive, sweetheart. He died instantly at the scene, as did the other driver.”

Elicia gasped, then shook her head. “No, Mom, he’s-he’s going to marry me someday. He pinned me...I’ve got the pin somewhere...” She tried to move her arms and winced with the pain.

“Don’t try to move just yet,” the doctor cautioned. “You have a fractured collarbone, badly bruised pelvis, and a broken leg, as well as a concussion.”

“Where,” Elicia cleared her throat. “Where’s Daddy?”

“He went down for more coffee,” Mrs. Keller replied. “Diana went to get him.”

“Oh my god, my finals! What about my finals?” she asked.

“Ssshh, it’s already been taken care of,” her mother reassured her. “You passed the ones you took, and the others you’ll have to take an incomplete and retake the courses next fall.”

Tears flowed freely down Elicia’s face. Brent...Brent...come in and tell me this is just a bad dream...why did you have to die? Why not just the other guy? Why not me, too? We had such plans...it’s not fair... “That means Dad knows about my math grade and about Brent. I can’t face him, Mom. I can’t! He’ll kill me because of the incompletes, and I killed Brent. I killed him...”She sobbed uncontrollably.

“Elicia, listen to me,” her mother said firmly when the storm subsided. “Listen to me: This was not your fault. Not at all: The other driver was on the wrong side of the road, and there was nothing you could have done. It was an accident, and not your fault, honey,” she repeated, wiping Elicia’s face and eyes.

“She’s right,” Doctor Stevens asserted. He came around to Mrs. Keller. “I’ll have a counselor stop by in a few days, when she’s stronger.”

“Thank you,” she said gratefully. “Why is she thinking that way? I don’t understand...”

“It’s a classic case of survivor guilt,” he explained. “She’s the sole survivor of a horrible accident, and in her mind, she should have died as well, and she feels guilty about the other’s deaths. The counselor I’m recommending is very good with this type of problem,” he squeezed her shoulder. “I’ll be back in a little while to check on her.”

“Doctor? How is she?” Mr. Keller stepped through the door with Diana on his heels.

“Connor,” Mrs. Keller rose and went to him. “She’s going to be fine.”

“Fine? You call this fine? My daughter lies to me about her grades, goes to a party, drinks too much, then almost gets killed. And you call her fine? My God,” he shook off her arm. “I never should have let her come to this town with the reputation of the college...”

available at http://www.amazon.com/

Change of Plans:
Due to three inches of water/sewage in the locker room at the football field, the game was postponed until 3:00pm today. K is off taking his SAT's; we'll pick him up around one and head on over to the stadium. The weather has cleared; the sun is shining! Haven't checked the outside temperature yet. Hopefully, I'll have pictures to post on Monday.

Answers:

Thermal Therapy Unit: Ice Pack
Optical Illuminator Enhancer: Window Washer
Indefinitely Idling: Term used by a Pittsburgh steel company when it (are you ready for this?) shuts down a mill!

Have a good weekend:)