Bike-shedding helps when a difference of opinion is evident, you want to avoid a serious conversation. You are just opening a conversation with a stranger or casual acquaintance When you lack decision-making powers or competence on the more significant issues Bike-shedding hurts When important decisions are postponed due to bike-shedding, the entire plan is adversely … Continue reading Bike-shedding
India is one of those countries where people may not ask, “How’ve you been?” when they meet after a long gap. But they might exclaim, “Oh, you have put on/lost a lot of weight.” It is a transgression of personal boundaries, but that is how things are. So often have I been tempted to say, … Continue reading A Rant
Welcome back! Well, 358 is not a milestone, and I wish the number was a round figure like 350 or 400. But it is Thanksgiving Day! I want to extend my deepest gratitude to each of you. Together, we have reached an incredible milestone of 357 episodes of our weekly writing prompt. Your creativity, dedication, … Continue reading Reena’s Xploration Challenge #358
Welcome back to a new world with a not-so-new POTUS! Debates are raging worldwide. The Financial Times says, "His remarkable comeback is an extraordinary story that we will tell with authority over the next four years." I'm sure the world will settle down to its regular routine and not be interested in a four-year-long analysis. … Continue reading Reena’s Xploration Challenge #355
The first model of a boat didn't quite meet my expectations. But I didn't give up. With each new piece, I persevered and gradually perfected it. Yet the tiny boats looked weird on the wooden table as if they had been sent to a workshop for repairs. My Mom quietly spread silver foil on the table … Continue reading Recreate
Welcome back! The mood was retro last week, but the present keeps pulling us back. PROMPT #352 Once again, we have a line prompt. "Halloween is still days away, but horror rides unmasked on the streets." The format of the piece is not restricted, and there is no last date either unless you wish to … Continue reading Reena’s Xploration Challenge #352
Welcome back! FEATURED PIECE FROM LAST WEEK The Need To ... By Aishwarya The need to gossip,the need to sugarcoatthe need to pleasethe need to deny,the need to look beyond black and whitethe need to formulate narratives are we free yet? PROMPT #344 We have a word prompt for this week. WHATABOUTERY The Merriam-Webster dictionary … Continue reading Reena’s Xploration Challenge #344
Quietening the mind is a mammoth task because words ceaselessly reverberate. Thoughts become whispers. Sounds get louder as one dwells over it. If Google could do a thought-to-text version, we’d observe a lot of repetition. Then, I see Grammarly mercilessly chopping off sentences. Weekend Writing Prompt #377
If I had to choose one figure of speech to be used repeatedly, it would be the Metaphor. It is quite a simple figure of speech – describing one thing in terms of another. It hides an enormous number of layers. Human thought processes are primarily symbolic. One can gauge a person's mindset by 'listening … Continue reading Metaphor
Welcome back to another week of August! I must start with a heartfelt appreciation for all the contributors to the last prompt. Each piece was moving in its own way. The one that I found creative and all-encompassing is a series of micro-poems by Debbie Pierce. Agony in the backgroundcrumbling in my soulworld in chaosas … Continue reading Reena’s Xploration Challenge #343
Creative Experiments and More 