The MELODY Page

recent posts

about

  • Dolly Was My American Idol

    “This past week was very sad for me. You would have guessed by now that I’m a serious Beatles fan, and a Connie Francis fan secondarily, but another part of me was the happy-go-luckiest little girl from ‘round the town. When I was in first grade, I recalled listening to some traditional country music on 45s that didn’t sound like dubstep. That gave me a special opportunity to participate in a school wide talent contest. I won fifth place. Sure, I was taught about, lemme see now… Calamity Jane, Gene Autry, Johnny Cash, that whats-her-name who sang ‘Harper Valley PTA’, Bobbie Gentry, Kenny Rogers, and, **sighs** Dolly Parton.”

    Melody was very emotional when she streamed Dolly Parton.

    “That last name I’ve already mentioned… I am crying streams of tears just as I’m streaming to Dolly’s joyful noise. Her warm and cheery melodies — pardon the expression — made me feel like the happiest girl in the USA. It was highly emotional at a time when she gracefully left this earth as I am sitting here at my desk doing homework, reminiscing and thinking of how there could be one and only one Dolly Parton in the whole universe.”

    “This is one of my favorite Dolly tunes. Have a listen and have a smile…”

    “As I entered a second week of the new school year, the art teacher Miss Bell gave us an assignment to illustrate a famous person that I really loved and admired, and to be shared with the class on Friday. Who knows if there are kids my age who’s ever heard or listened to Dolly Parton, that homegrown Southern country voice only their grandparents would fully understand. I think today’s kids are really into this Alabama cowgirl who goes by the stage name ‘Ella Langley’, but Dolly was so much larger than life than writing and performing everything she did by the thousands.”

    “Friday arrives, it’s fifth period, and I get to present my prize-winning artwork in front of 31 other kids. Needless to say, almost a third of them had drawn their own versions of Dolly Parton, with all of them looking like absolute rushjobs. It looks like no one took the time to think inspiration over perspiration. Two of them drew preschool level caricatures of Dolly on notebook paper — they both got zero’ed because Miss Bell thought they were totally unacceptable. The rest of the class drew their own interpretations of content creators and social media influencers, and not even the art teacher could tell the difference between Dhar Mann and an everyday Average Joe. Me included!”

    “When I was called up to present my version of Dolly Parton, it caught the eyes of the entire class. I wanted to show everyone how much appreciation I had for her by slapping on coats of many colors on the canvas, and Miss Bell was very proud, too. She graded my artwork an A-minus, saying that while it was a little bit sketchy, it had a true sense of spirit. The kids say I’m alright.”

    “Godspeed, Dolly. May your Southern spirit forever shine!”

    She gave it her all. And the entire class loved it.

    * DISCLAIMER – ‘Melody’ is a cartoon girl crafted by an actual human being using digital technology and created for entertainment value.

    All Drawings Created By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM page for more images and fun! **

  • Good Morning, New School Year!

    Long story short…

    Short story long…

    Well, friends, my summer vacation didn’t last very long and that’s a real bummer. It was only yesterday that I wanted to spend my last hours of it by heading over to the ice cream shop in the quaint side of town. There, I was enjoying a Chocolate Brownie Sundae Supreme with a drizzle of hot fudge. So good! I think I’ll have another!

    You see, the trouble is… if I splurge on too many sundaes on Sunday, my brain won’t function correctly when I go back to school tomorrow. That’s on a Monday. This is when the journey begins until the very last report card comes in.

    After a pleasant night’s sleep, I wake up and find myself in an overly happy mood. For once, I thought sugary desserts would impair my cognitive abilities that would help me with homework. Instead, I find myself chanting “Good Morning!” in repeat mode.

    I broke the fourth wall by saying “Good Morning” to all of my social media followers. I said “Good Morning” to my lovely cat Midnite, sitting on top of my dresser drawer. I turned on the TV and said “Good Morning” to Rosie, that weather presenter at Channel 3 — she’s my 30-ish next-door neighbor, by the way. That happy feeling burst inside of me, so I wanted to make myself happy by putting my short little red dress like a fairy tale character. I know… I think I’ll put on my wide-brimmed hat!

    I don’t need a school bus because Jefferson High is walkable enough for a few blocks away from home. The air outside is cool and not humid, so there’s no need to sweat about it. Anyway, there’s this bratty boy passing me on the left with a scooter, thinking I’m talking to a ghost. I said “Good Morning, Sunshine” when in fact the sun was riding. It looks like it’s gonna be a very sunshiney day…

    I can feel this feel-good song in my brain right now…

    Trotting to school means taking a shortcut through the woodsy park, but I couldn’t believe I was seeing things. Was the mere sighting of Captain Kangaroo just a simple hallucination? So I said “Good Morning, Captain!” and he waved back with a smile. I felt like becoming a six-year old again.

    In case you haven’t heard of this jolly fella, I think the joke with Mr. Moose is the funniest thing to happen since Saturday Morning cartoons. And if you’re not careful, you just might learn something before it’s done…

    As I close in on Jefferson High for the brand spanking new school year, I think of Bob Villa because this old schoolhouse is in dire need of renovations. Especially the air conditioning. So I said “Good Morning” to it because I’m a lifelong student here. Buildings are stationary and they don’t move muscles, so be ‘it’.

    I was walking in the hallway in search of my homeroom class. There he was, the school’s newly appointed principal Dr. Carson. He takes student discipline to extremes by initiating a zero-tolerance policy on almost every benign infraction. That includes wearing hats while being in the building.

    I gave Dr. Carson a kind “Good Morning” on Day One of the new school year. Turns out he wasn’t so kind at all. Instead, he was infuriated about the short red dress I’d been wearing since I walked out of my house. Maybe I could have worn bike shorts underneath, but it wouldn’t have mattered, either. This wasn’t a warning at all, this was a recipe for Saturday detention. Great!

    Luckily, I did receive a verbal warning after seven periods of instructional bedlam, much of it orientation. Since this was the first day including Dr. Carson’s, the administration was nice enough to be lenient, so no detention… for now. But after today, it’s a whole new ballgame. Teachers will start lecturing, pass out pop quizzes and jot down so much red ink on every looseleaf sheet of paper I’m turning in. 

    I simply can’t wait for the weekend again. Just think… dancing in the club, hanging out with my friends and havin’ a burger. These things make me daydream when Miss Rowland lectures ‘The Great Gatsby’ and I start to fall asleep.

    I hope you’ve got just a little bit of school spirit, so here’s a good listen…

  • IMAGE GALLERY is now live!

    Newly added to Melody’s webpage is a collection of images and animations! It’s almost as if you’re reading the comics or browsing through Instagram but it’s home to the best of our lovable teen queen. I sincerely hope you enjoy them. If you still can’t find it, click right HERE. And watch for more of Melody’s stories, too! – J. Atwood, creator

  • Being Too ‘Smart’

    Those voice assistants they put in smartphones nowadays… how annoying!

    Why is my phone talking to me? I tried to get it to zip its lip, but it keeps listening to every word I’m sayin’. Like… ‘serious’! Seriously! Or how ‘bout… ‘cereal’! Next thing you know, I’m pouring in a bowl of Froot Loops and then my phone wants to get even with me because it wants in on the conversation. How ‘eerie’! Alright, now what if I say the word ‘curious’ and then what happens?

    When ‘holding on’ is bad enough…

    My situation escalated when a mail order company used an A.I. voice bot over the phone. You see, I ordered a new and factory sealed Wilson Philips CD and this automated message couldn’t resist on making me hold on for one more day. To put in plain English, things don’t go your way.

    This song’s been ringing in my head ever since I was a baby…

    Expressing yourself is easy-peasy with a phone.

    And what more can I do with a crazy good-for-nothing not-all-that-smart phone other than take selfies of myself and posting them to social? On the contrary, it’s great way to gain new likes and follows… I wish.

    I remember the time when I was using a self-checkout at the supermarket. To my instantly unexpected surprise, I was ordered to scan my face just to get a receipt! I don’t understand pages of the store’s privacy policy anywhere, but isn’t it strange why everything has to be automated? As if machines wired to infinity have minds of their own and they go berserkoid!

    Life is nothing but ordinary.

    Speaking of going berserk, I recall the day I sat beside this dork who brought out his 5G phone and listened to ‘Ordinary’ and repeating rhymes every five seconds. I can’t stand it no more! Petey was right…

    Melody has heart and soul. M.E.L.O.D.Y. has ones and zeroes.

    This smart phone is not very smart, trust me. It most certainly has a virus that’s impossible to cure. Guess I’ll deactivate ‘Seeree’ and trade my old phone with a pea-brained one. Touch tones, baby! And one more thing… a smart person is smarter than a smartperson. I’m not going to let robots with exoskeletons turn me into that girl from ‘Small Wonder’ or influence my daily decision making. I just want to be the real ‘Me’ and not let Scooter Computer & Mr. Chips bother me, and that’s that.

    For those who ‘Siri’-ously like their robots to be companions, this song is gratefully dedicated, btw…

    • DISCLAIMER – ‘Melody’ is a cartoon girl crafted by an actual human being using digital technology. No artificial intelligence necessary.

    All Drawings Created By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM page for more images and fun! **

  • What A Wonderful World This Would Be!

    Ring around the scholar!

    “It’s always a five-days-a-week sort of ritual, I guess. First, I have to get up out of bed at 5:30 in the morning. Second, I whip up a giant bowl of oats to gorge down for breakfast. Finally, I comb my hair, get dressed and walk the long and winding road to my dreaded high school. Rinse and repeat. I don’t like riding the bus because everyone coughs, sneezes and do all sorts of stupid stuff… even the bus driver who got reprimanded for not stopping at railroad crossings. Oh, well… life as a student has its usual ups and downs, just like everyone else.”

    Spinning nothin’ but ‘melodies’ day in and day out.

    “I have to arrive early because I’m the DJ of a top-secret underground radio station in the basement. Yes, believe it or not, the school board approved an FCC license to play hits for 45 minutes over the intercom just before the first period bell rings. Brain fuel before the big payback: seven periods of instructional torture. It’s not something like Mozart that’s being heard all over the place… what the kids really like are all those one-hit wonders like The Buggles and such and such. Actually, I did play Milli Vanilli only once. But I really thought Tony Orlando & Dawn might have worked since it’s great background filler for studying — well, too bad we didn’t get approval to play it.”

    “If only I played this oldie but goodie, then everyone would have gotten better grades…”

    A new low in disciplinary behavior?

    “English class is bad enough. Every day it’s all about Shakespeare and pop quizzes and all that. Every day it’s always about my desk. It makes too many squeaky noises whenever I squirm around in my seat and Miss Rowland is the one who keeps trying to discipline me for my actions, thinking I stepped on Ernie’s rubber ducky. Aargh!!! I feel so mad right now I could just take my seat and toss it out the hallway!”

    Class dismissed?

    “And sometimes, having to sit through a lecture about Hamlet is really enough to set off the trigger. It’s a false alarm and not a music video shoot. Like, every Monday, some brat whose nickname is ‘Flame’ keeps on instigating panic in the English hallway by setting off the fire alarm on purpose just before the third period bell rings. He’ll be wearing the Scarlet Letter when he walks out of the principal’s office. Let’s give him an ‘S’ for suspension!”

    Cafeteria food was always poorly prepared to begin with.

    “Lunch period is no better. I get a Hungry-Man type of platter — a salisbury steak with tater tots and greens — and the custodial staff doesn’t even bother to fire up the temperature to make my food warm. Tonight, I’m writing my grievances to city council, the health department, and the superintendent of the school board! I hope they listen to me.”

    There can only be one number two pencil. Share and share alike!

    “My dear classmate Yolanda from trigonometry needed to borrow a number-two pencil. I told her my red pencil was number one. I also told her there’s no such thing as a number-one pencil, so she took the green number-two pencil instead. Red is my number one color anyway, and it’s a number-two pencil.

    Hoops is right!

    “I was made a Prime Example in P.E. class today. Mr. Brass told us we were gonna do hoops. He really meant basketball, not hulahoops. He’d also penalize me for dressing out in the wrong clothes. To him, pink ain’t pretty, only blue and white is.

    Shame, shame…

    “Even worse, my history teacher (and ex-Marine) Mr. Ainsworth thought I couldn’t come up with the right facts to write a paper about an important event in American history: the War Of 1944. When he asked me about the role Schultz played, he thought I was watching reruns of ‘Hogan’s Heroes’ as factual evidence, so I sat in a chair wearing a dunce hat in front of everybody. How humiliating!”

    The best she could do is catch up on homework assignments for a change!

    “Here I am sitting here at study hall doing nothing but flipping pages of my literature textbook. If Miss Rowland can hold this good girl captive in her room for two periods a day, what gives? I wanted to please her with an apple because I’m a good student… honestly! But I assume she’s gonna toss it in the trash because food isn’t allowed in the classroom. On the other hand, she hides Folgers inside her cabinet, and I can smell it! Gross!”

    Try again, Melody.

    “We’re finally dismissed for the whole dreaded day, and I caught up with the love of my life Rick. So I put my singing skills of Bernadette Peters to the test in order to convince him to go out with me on a dinner date tonight. Well, you can’t say that I tried.”

    “It was time to head back home after a long day, but I needed to make an appointment with a fortune teller. Hopefully, she knows what the future may bring…

    The fortune teller is the one who should get an ‘F’… for ‘fired’!

    “Ha ha! Today was report card day! It’s the middle of the school year, I’m still alive and definitely not in danger of failing grade. I gyped the gypsy! And now I’m totally out thirty bucks!”

    “Hey, I like listening to Herman’s Hermits! The Beatles alternative, quite naturally…“

    All Drawings Created By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM page for more images and fun! **

  • Blubba Jones

    Tummy something good!

    “I was strolling my way through the park that one Thursday after school, and I met this big boy sitting alone on a bench all emotionally challenged and everything. Looks like he needs some serious motivation. Jones right here with a soda bottle needs a little cheering up. So, I’m gonna step into Lucy’s shoes and give this good ol’ Charlie Brown some highly valuable advice…”

    MELODY: “What seems to be the trouble? You’re all down.”

    JONES: “They keep calling me Fat Boy and all the girls hate me and all that. One of them taped a sign on the back of my shirt that said ‘Wide Load’.”

    MELODY: “Okay, Jones. I’ll stand firmly by you. But first, you have to convince me how to attract girls the right way. Especially much older women who are much older than you.”

    JONES: “And what is that?”

    MELODY: “Well, here’s what you gotta do. Stop being The Crisco Kid every day by cutting out frankenfoods like red meat, pizza, peanut butter sandwiches on white bread, Jujyfruits, the whole kit and caboodle. Start by eating plenty of fiber. You know, fruits and veggies on your plate at every meal. Also, drink lots of water instead of all that Tab. Now, to reach for your girl, uh I mean goal, sorry, you must limit your calorie intake, walk five miles a day, then report back to me in about a year. Understood?”

    JONES: “That’s a long wait! I’m too young to get old! Waaahh!!!”

    MELODY: “Long WEIGHT is one thing, Blubba Jones! Being HEAVYWEIGHT is another! Slow and steady wins the race, so stop being a sorry turtle hiding under your shell and hop to it! Good luck! You’ll need it!”

    Your jaws doesn’t have to be big enough to bite into something more nutritious.

    “You know something, friends? I better stop gorging down these triple angus burger meal deals and hire Denise Austin as my fitness trainer or I won’t make it to my bathing suits this summer. Oh, the hectic life of a teenage dream queen! Full of responsibility… AND taking better care of yourself.”

    “Hey, I caught this song on playing on public radio this morning! Get a load of this…”

    All Drawings Created By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

  • Gonna Be Some-‘Bunny’

    “Easter is ‘hare’ and I’m in the spring mood for a daydreamin’. So what would you think of me if I put on a pair of those rabbit ears and this puffy little $1.95 cottontail? The Easter Bunny? Bugs Bunny? Bunny Yeager, perhaps? Maybe just another silly Halloween costume. That won’t mean I’m a ‘bad bunny’ — pardon the expression — and I’m only here to have lotsa fun. Imagine the wonderful possibilities…”

    All Original Drawings Created By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    All written posts on this blog are fictional and played just for fun, while based on life experiences by the creator / author. There’s still some useful information, imagination and inspiration that may enlighten the reader’s desire for something unique and different.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM while you’re here! **

  • Getting Physical

    Umm… I don’t think this is the ‘physical’ I have in mind, folks. My story that is being shared with you today is much more positively inspiring than going to that clueless doctor. Read on, dear reader…

    There, that’s more like it! Ahem, so what was I going to say? Oh, yeah…

    What a boring day this is! Today is Monday, parent-teacher conference day and school is closed. I literally got a three-day weekend vacation out of this, so I want to put Monday to good use. Why, you ask? Because… I. Don’t. Like. Mondays. Period!

    I hopped online to find showtimes for this new movie playing at the theater called ‘The Brunch Bunch’, which is about high school teens stuck in a school library in 1980s Anaheim. Two o’clock it says. I’d better hustle before all the front row seats are taken, because I know all the people are gonna stare at my face laughing.

    When I arrived, the tickets at the box office were all sold out. Bad luck as they say. To add insult to injury, the price of one movie ticket is up in the stratosphere of fifteen dollars per person. All that yummy goodness at the concession stand is making my mouth water! Heck, this would cost me twice as much as one lousy movie ticket. Besides, who needs 3000 empty calories of nauseating stomach churning frankenfoods? I’d have tell the school to call in sick tomorrow.

    I could be streaming a movie right this instant. That’s soooo easy peasy! But I don’t subscribe to anyone. I could wait a little while longer and catch that eight o’clock movie on channel 33 right before bedtime. Except there’s one major problem… all the movies are chopped and edited for television and there are too many car insurance ads. That takes me to straight into ten o’clock when I have to go to bed and get ready for school tomorrow morning.

    Where can I go to watch a movie in peace without having to drain my tuition money and deal with losers who are constantly on their phones? On the contrary, how can I do this in the comfort of my own couch? Bingo! I think I have a solution…

    What a bargain! I hope they get a big revival out of this!

    Those secondhand stores — well, they call ‘em thrift stores, actually — have got to have some rusty old DVD players in working condition. Like, these people threw out old electronics just for nothing because movies are sorted and distributed through a pipeline. I hear some kids my age are upset about streaming stuff and are getting into collecting things. What things? Well, I suppose you could find a ton of New Kids On The Block CDs in the bargain bin…

    I found a section of the store filled with literally tons of used $1 DVDs and vinyl records that were given away by kind strangers. I’d better do some serious inspecting, though. Sometimes, the disc isn’t even in the case… OMG! So I picked up a dozen of these silver platters, which’ll cost a lot more than a dozen eggs but still way cheaper than buying new ones.

    But then, I need a DVD player… and some cables. What good are movie discs when you don’t have a gadget that uses them? Look no further! It’s a good thing the store had a refurbished one for only ten bucks… what a steal! Fortunately, the unopened pack of cables was stashed away up in my attic. Today, I gave away twenty-two bucks to a nonprofit that gives kids a higher education, and just for that, I got some free merch! Well, maybe not free, but a reward for kindly giving back to charity. Totally nice of them!

    Scaredy cat!

    One of the movies I bought today was this rom-com remake of ‘Bambi Meets Godzilla’. Don’t worry, it’s a lot more innocent and playful than that ‘other’ one. I also found this horrible horror flick called ‘Bad Bad Leroy Clown’. This one gave Midnite a shivery shock! I tried to convince my cat that it’s just a movie and that everything is make-believe. Of course, just about anything can stick out of a 100-inch tv screen mounted on a wall. I think 3D glasses would be more effective…

    But all’s well that ends well. You can thank a social media influencer for influencing me on how to ditch Cheapflix in favor of those shiny silver platters. It seems my generation of school kids are learning how to get into the act of preserving their favorite movies and music by holding onto them forever. I’d say this is far better than forking over thirty bucks a month for cheap thrills.

    Before I go, I’ll leave you with a pair of my favorite flicks that I could watch on repeat every day. Have fun collecting!

    ‘Labyrinth’ is my most favorite movie of all time!
    ‘Grease’ is the one I want! I want to be like Cha Cha, too!

    ** A big very special thanks to my creative consultant for loaning me some copies! Now I can enjoy watching movies in peace! **

    Written and Produced By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    All written posts on this blog are fictional and played just for fun, while based on life experiences by the creator / author. There’s still some useful information, imagination and inspiration that may enlighten the reader’s desire for something unique and different.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM while you’re here! **

  • The Queen Of Hearts Always Wins!

    No king will ever out-ace the queen, not by a long shot.

    “Let’s make this short, simple and sweet. Let’s talk about love. And I don’t mean the both of us, including you the reader, going out on a pepperoni pizza date together while dancing the night away at some broken down club down the street.  Do you really want to know what love is? I will show you.”

    “Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, or maybe right at this moment, or even Christmas. And… right now, well, we’re sort of losing our grip with this run down low down broken down world of ours. It’s time to get our bearings straight. Why are we fighting against each other, and what’s it good for? Absolutely nothing!”

    The essence of cherry bubbly.

    “Wouldn’t it be pleasant to live in a world that isn’t brewing with darkness, mean-spirited people, or just plain selfish losers? A whole lotta negativity is going on, but we can replace that with these four simple letters: L-O-V-E. Connect with strangers even if they’re on Instagram… or me, LOL! Give back to your local community and you don’t need an employee’s salary. Plant a garden and grow some kind hearts. How about giving out a bouquet of poinsettias to that very special Someone? All it takes is a little more luvin’ to make the world go ‘round without any real world troubles. That sounds simple enough, now don’t you agree?”

    “And when there’s love, there is also R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Respect wildlife… and your family dog, too. Don’t forget the environment, school property, or even the judge. Respect your teachers, your local representatives, your doctors, your elders, your parents… do it as always. Yeah, I know, I should respect the entire student body at my school even if I see a wolf pack of bullies in varsity jackets. Not to mention a clique of girls trying to pull dirty tricks on me in the crowded halls, but still, you and I must show appreciation to all of humanity. So in a nutshell… respect the process!”

    Another Rick in the hall.

    “You know what I really love the most? Actually, it’s WHO I love the most! Rick! **sighs** He’s sooooo cute! I wanna make him mine by sending a card and some chocolate-covered cherries straight over to his humble abode! Uh, **ahem**! Let’s save my love and affection for later, okay? Naturally speaking, I’m proof positive that you have a love and affection for me, too, because you’re my number one potential human fan. And for that, I would dedicate this last musical number, performed during the conclusion of every single Barney episode ever written, to each and every one of you guys who found this blog and are enjoying my stories.” 

    “If you‘re still willing to book an appointment to have a date night with me, then here’s my card. Queen Of Hearts — it says so right there. Deuces wild. This is to remind you that Love Is 4-Ever! Anyway, I LOVE you all so much! ❤️ “

    There’s joy in every Melody.

    Written and Produced By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    All written posts on this blog are fictional and played just for fun, while based on life experiences by the creator / author. There’s still some useful information, imagination and inspiration that may enlighten the reader’s desire for something unique and different.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM while you’re here! **

  • There’s Snow Place Like Home

    Snow days are worth it… supposedly.

    “It’s Friday, school is out for the weekend, and I’m too overly excited about a foot of snow falling over my head. I love being out from school on snow days when all the roads are too slick and everyone is slippin’ and slidin’ down the sidewalks — yeeowch! So I stay home and build myself a replicated version of your nice little Moi being Frosty The Snowman, a jolly happy soul with a wig and a scarf. A day off would also give me a chance to study more. Maybe I will beat a ‘C’ average this six-week period in algebra class should I ever score a hundred on my test paper about exponents and polynomials.”

    “I went outside to build my own snowman. Or Snowmelody, if you wanna call it that. With the help of some uber-cool photo equipment, I set out to take pictures of my sculptured masterpiece after five grueling and freezing hours in the making. My dear old feline friend Midnite dressed warmly for the occasion. Say, those paws are gettin’ too numb in the frigid cold, aren’t they? I put on some fancy footsies to help keep ‘em warm!”

    Maybe that head could be a little bit bigger, perhaps?

    “You know something? I think I made her head too small. There must be a feature on social media where you can alter body proportions like height or weight. Well, Ms. Jack Frost couldn’t be able to look around, smell, see or breathe if she flipped her head. Time will tell, not if, but when she melts away in the warm southern exposure to sunshine.”

    That’s enough to grab your attention!

    “Sunday morning was another story altogether. I looked out of the living room window and witnessed a pair of snow statues standing tall and short in the front yard. Not only did a stranger build Midnite from the ground up as if she were a Hello Kitty snow cone, but there I was, standing there in a pose like the boogie movie man John Travolta. A case of Winter Fever if you ask me! Whoever built this from the ground up must be a hardcore fan of your teen sweetheart Melody! Thank you to whoever you are. I would have loved to send you a fresh banana cake as a heartfelt compliment!”

    “The weekend moved along with an average temperature of nine degrees Fahrenheit and slippery streets turning into squishy slush. One can expect a last-minute announcement from my local school district that institutions would be 100% closed tomorrow. By the way, I hate Mondays. I mean, in theory, nobody wants to ride a school bus if it’s gonna slide its way towards a stop sign. Kids among us behold the moment when we can savor a free day or two without obeying the rules and taking the slack from faculty egging us about how to behave like good little girls and boys.”

    Life happens.

    “Now it’s Monday morning and something really surprised me when I turned on the TV. The ticker tape plastered on the bottom reveals the two dreaded words: “virtual learning”. Now I know why modern society has computers, broadband and 5G, so they found a workaround to spoil my potential day off. Instead of going outside throwing snowballs this year, I get hit by curveballs from the school system. Every student has to log in to the school’s torture chamber of education and face virtual reality. That is by logging in to online classes, or else get marked as “absent” — enough to ruin a perfect attendance record. I miss the good old days when I can watch old reruns of ‘The Letter People’ on public television. At least I can still slurp a hot bowl of alphabet soup because we still get thirty free minutes for lunch period. Too bad I won’t have time to stovetop it. I’ll have to use the microwave instead.”

    “I guess it isn’t always bad to try out and learn new experiences. You can say that remote learning was kinda neat, but I can’t help why I’m feeling so annoyed about missing out on the free time I had while being so much younger. And I’ve learned so much about learning today when I’m still growing up learning how to navigate this complex and complicated world where everything evolves.”

    “Oh, and one more thing. Punxsutawney Phil was right on the snout about having six more weeks of winter. He says the same thing every February 2nd, but I’m not gonna let school dampen my winter fun.”

    It’s a tough job but somebody’s gotta do it.

    Written and Produced By J. ATWOOD. ©️2026.

    All written posts on this blog are fictional and played just for fun, while based on life experiences by the creator / author. There’s still some useful information, imagination and inspiration that may enlighten the reader’s desire for something unique and different.

    ** Check out Melody’s INSTAGRAM while you’re here! **