Tag Archives: flash Cast

Spotlight: Ingrid Prohaska

30 Nov

November 30, 2011

Sit back and relax, Dear Readers. If you are reading this on your phone or mobile device I welcome you, but I also suggest that you find a place to sit down and get comfortable for a while. In fact, before we go on, go ahead and bookmark this page. When you get to the end of this post you’ll see why. In fact, let me give you some advice. Don’t.

Don’t get to the end in one sitting.  Take your time, come back to this over a few days. Pause. Savor it. Find that quiet and comfy spot and prepare to stay there for a while. But you’ll be there in body only. Your spirit is taking a little trip.

A trip to Vienna….

“Hi, my name is Ingrid and I’m very happy to be a mobster.

My main work is writing poetry and short stories; to publish my precious pieces I run a blog – “DancingElla’s Words“.

Some of you might know me as a legend teller on FlashCast. The idea came up when I read a blog post by JRD Skinner and almost at the same time he told me about his interest in Vienna. This reminded me of my old love in these legends and so I’ve started to transform the Austriagerman originals into English. You can find them all at “Viennese Legends“.

Finally a huge thanks to bmj2k for his invite!
I hope you’ll enjoy the selected potpourrie of my work and you’ll have an entertaining time.”

  • Legends

A legend about a junker, his vices and how to get a magical coin …
“The Heckthaler”

A bone house is the location of this creepy legend …
“Revenge of the Dead”

In ancient times three little devils played their mischievous tricks on the Viennese in and around St. Stephen’s church …
“The Three Little Devils”

  • Poetry

“Broken Mirror”
by Ingrid Prohaska

The mirror broken
a smash on my soul
a chapter closed

Scars on my face
a tear
just one
the last one

Then she turned into stone.

Copyright © 2011 Ingrid Prohaska


the original post > http://dancingella.blogspot.com/2011/07/broken-mirror.html

“The Fall”
by Ingrid Prohaska

Dark sides
dark impressions
dark poetry

I feel that I fall
and I fall
I fall

Hands are reaching out for me
offer me their help
but when I try to take them
I have to see
these hands are bones
of dead
or undead
I feel the cold
and I’m scared

So I fall deeper
and deeper
deeper
into a universe
where the sun doesn’t shine
and no flower can bloom
where tears freeze into sharp stones

An unknown land
without any light
where one can’t see
and hardly breathe
dark feelings are stronger than ever

My inside cries

But in my scream
there hang the words
for me to hear

I will survive!

Copyright © 2011 Ingrid Prohaska


the original post > http://dancingella.blogspot.com/2011/09/fall.html

“About a Break”
by Ingrid Prohaska

  • Short  Story

A story about light and heavy bags …

“On the Terminal”
by Ingrid Prohaska
I got out of the train on that big terminal. I had a lot of bags; my baggage had become very heavy during the long lasting journey. I felt tired, somehow burned out, hopeless and nearly desperate. I didn’t know, where my journey would go when I was going to leave the station again, but I was sure – I didn’t want to take all these heavy bags with me any more.

I carried my baggage into the station hall and looked for a silent place. Finally I sat down on a bench in a low frequented area. I thought about what I could do. I watched the passengers carrying their suitcases and bags. Some of them carried very heavy, others seemed almost to dance with their light bags. “I wish that could be me; dancing through the life only with light bags, carrying only things I really need.”

I had lost some of my light bags with things I was missing now. And somehow I was already used on the heavy bags I carried with me; this made it so difficult to dump them. Sometimes I asked myself, why it was so easy to lose light bags, and seemingly not possible to get rid of heavy ones.

While I was lost in my thoughts, my eyes fell upon a sign “Lost & Found”.

“Hey,” I thought, “there are the experts!”

I took up all my bags, carried them towards the sign, walked into the agency and looked for a friendly face. A middle-aged man with a blue working-coat stood behind the desk. He had a boring face without any expression.

“Can I help you?” he said expressionless with a monotonous voice.

“Yes, I really want to get rid of my heavy bags. Could you please give me an advice?”

“Never heard about someone who wants to lose something,” he answered still monotonous, “Normally people come to us because they want to find what they have lost.”

“Well,” I said, “I also lost a lot of things during my journey. So, maybe you can help me in this way?”

“Yes,” he said and gave me a form, “fill it out, make a list, describe your bags and bring it back. Then we will see, if someone has found your things.”

I took my pen and wrote down a list: love, time, joy, humor and hope.

I gave him the list and a smile crossed his face.

“Yes Lady, these things are often lost. Our backroom is full of these things. These are light bags. People rather lose light bags than heavy ones.”

He opened the door to the backroom, so that I could have a look into it and I was really surprised.

“And nobody comes to get back what he has lost?” I asked.

“Seldom,” he said. “Although many people miss their light bags, they don’t take the time to find them. Others even don’t notice what they have lost. So, we’ll have a look for your bags.”

He went into the backroom and while I was waiting, I felt hope coming back. And really how I had felt, he brought me the well acquainted bag of my hopes. Suddenly I felt joy. I had tears in my eyes when he brought me my bag of joy a short time later.

I left the “Lost & Found” agency again with my bags of hope and joy. And anyhow – my heavy baggage seemed lighter. I sat down again in the station hall. I cried and laughed the same time.

“Hey Lady, is everything alright with you?” An old man had sat down beside me. I told him my story about getting back my hope and my joy.

“But I still wish to lose my heavy bags.” I ended my story.

“What is in your heavy bags?” he asked.

“Well,” I sighed, “I had a lot of bad experiences, hurts, guilt, doubts, fears. – Do you know how to get rid of them?”

He smiled. “Losing heavy things is not so easy, eh? They are often connected with the fear of forgetting and forgetting bad things is often connected with the fear of happening again. Right?”

I nodded.

“Love helps,” he continued.

“But I have lost my love.” I answered sadly.

“Okay,” he said, “and what’s about your self-love? I’m pretty sure you have some, otherwise you wouldn’t wish to change your baggage.”

I looked around, “Could be I have a little bag self-love anywhere.”

“So take care of your self-love, let it grow. This can be a way to lose your doubts and fear and guilt. I’m sure you won’t miss them. And love will heal your hurts. And love,” he said, “will become more and more, if you take care of it and you will be able to give love and so you will get love.”

I felt that this man was right.

“And – do you also know, how I can find my lost time and my lost humor?”

He smiled again. “Time,” he said, “is lost. It is past. But take care of your future moments. Try to enjoy every moment in your life. And humor,” he said still smiling, “humor, you’ll see, come back alone.”

Before I could thank the old man for his advice, he disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. But he was right again.

After I had left the station – with my light baggage I had decided to walk except of taking another train – I found a bag of humor. I laughed and I danced and then – I wrote down this story.

Copyright © 2007, 2010 Ingrid Prohaska


the original post > http://dancingella.blogspot.com/2010/12/on-terminal.html

  • Links

DancingElla’s Words > http://dancingella.blogspot.com/


Viennese Legends > http://vienneselegends.blogspot.com/

DancingElla’sWords on facebook > http://www.facebook.com/DancingEllasWords
DancingElla on twitter > https://twitter.com/#!/dancingella
 —
DancingElla’s Words, where my stories are at home

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Spotlight: Spot of Bother by Jeff Lynch

23 Nov

November 23, 2011

Jeff lives in Asheville, NC with his partner Eric and their two dogs Dixie and Shade.

Small business owner and avid fan of all things bizarre.

Formerly of the Bothersome Things podcast, you can now find Jeff’s weekly Spot of Bother news commentary on the Flash Cast Podcast.

That’s the description from his website but that hardly does him justice. Over on Flash Cast he’s been called “the evil NPR guy” but that’s not quite it either. One thing is for sure, his segment is always a highlight for me. When you read the post below you’ll see why. And you’ll see why I’m jealous as well. While we share the some of the same interests, he writes about them much more eloquently than I do. And perhaps even worse, his segment usually precedes mine on the Flash Cast. While my voice work can be described as (and I am being generous) competent, Jeff sounds like a pro. He is a tough act to follow. In fact, given his deep voice and subject matter, maybe “Evil NPR Guy” is about right.

Jeff’s Spot of Bother can be found on the web right here.
You can also find him on twitter @PleaseLynchMe

This Summer I took it upon myself to lose twenty pounds of unwanted weight, and contrary to popular recommendations I did not opt to start by removing my head. I have such kind friends. Actually I had two reasons for my endeavor, lowering my cholesterol and an upcoming trip to South Beach. In all honesty, looking better (note: I did not say good) in a bathing suite was probably the real catalyst. I can see the flab in the mirror after all, not the Wendy’s Baconators swimming around in my bloodstream looking for a soft, warm home. After toiling away at the gym all Spring and Summer, I did in fact loose the weight and rediscovered my old self.  I’m now back to my college days pant size. The problem is, those trips to the gym must now continue or else I’m sure to slip right back into my arm chair and lose myself in another episode of, say, American Chopper whilst chowing down on the aforementioned Baconators. It’s a vicious cycle and quite honestly I can sympathize with those who throw in the towel and pick up the Snuggie.

As it turns out, so many people are opting for the ‘arm-chair-and-bucket-of-chicken’ lifestyle that manufacturers have been forced to take notice and expand (pun intended) their product lines to accommodate these hearty folk.

My friend Melinda, a physical therapist, recently spent thousands of dollars on a new oversized treatment table because so many of her patients were no longer able to fit on the old ones designed for Americans 1.0. She explained to me that it was a trend in the medical field. Oversized gurneys, hospital beds, exam tables, wheelchairs, ambulances, the list goes on.

Now, it seems the auto industry has taken notice of this big new challenge and have began researching ways to improve upon both existing and future automobiles in order to make them more safe and convenient for the big-boned soccer moms to haul their brood around the neighborhood.  Here’s a delightful story from London’s Telegraph (Yeah, it’s not just an American thing) :

Typical family cars have become more than a foot wider and almost double the weight over the past 50 years as manufacturers struggle with the world’s obesity crisis.

Consequently some luxury manufacturers have begun road-testing the next generation of larger-sized vehicles.

Officials say will allow bigger people to maintain their comfort on the road.

In plans dubbed “plump my ride” – in a play of words from the television show Pimp My Ride – BMW has recruited 800 volunteers, ranging from the slim to the obese, for a study to gauge how obesity affects mobility while driving.

The unnamed volunteers were last week put through a series of tests designed in part to examine factors such as getting in and out of cars or looking over their shoulder while reversing.

“People are getting more obese and we want to find out how that limits their range of motion and how our vehicles can adapt to the changing needs of our customers,” Ralf Kaiser, a member of BMW’s ergonomics team, told the Sunday Times.

“We know that a lot of overweight and obese people have problems in daily life, and in the car this starts with getting in and getting out.

“In general, these aren’t sporty people. We already have things like the parking distance control, which shows obstacles on a screen when you are reversing.”

He added: “For someone who can find it difficult to turn 140 degrees to look behind them, they can now just look at the screen.

“The study will mean we can look at things more scientifically and build a car that at least 95 per cent of people can use.”

Mercedes has unveiled plans to strengthen grab handles above its doors, in part to help heavier passengers support themselves.

Porsche, meanwhile, is installing “electrically-powered steering columns” on top-of-the-range models that rise when the engine is switched off.

Over the past decade, Honda has widened its seats by up to 2in to accommodate larger bottoms while its new range of vehicles will also have buttons that will allow for so-called “sausage fingers”.

Other manufacturers are installing reversing aids and blind spot detectors as standard.

According to the latest figures a Ford Prefect was 4ft 9in wide with an 18in long seat cushion in 1953. This compared to a 2011 Ford Focus that was 6ft 1in wide with a 23in long seat cushion.

Government statistics show that more than 60 per cent of adults in England and a third of 10 and 11-year-olds are obese.

In August The Lancet medical journal said that by 2030 more than 11m would classed as obese, with a body mass index (BMI) above 30, compared with a healthy BMI score of between 18.5 and 25.

Obesity and chronic health conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes cost Britain £20 billion a year in terms of lost productivity, it was claimed last month.

It was recently disclosed that over the past five years Yorkshire Ambulance Service spent nearly £10 million on specialist vehicles to transport obese patients.

Speaking earlier this month at a launch that unveiled plans to cut obesity levels by 2020, Andrew Lansley, the Health Secretary, said Britain had to become a nation of calorie counters to counter the obesity crisis.

Also, Consumer Reports has just released a new report reviewing the best cars currently on the market for plus-sized people. The complete list may be found here, but the top spot goes to the Honda Odyssey.

As for me, I’m going to continue my relentless pursuit of  skinny jeans on the treadmill for as long as my willpower persists. After all, the view out the gym window is great … there’s a Wendy’s right across the street.

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