100 Theme Challenge No. 29: Happiness

The newest 100 theme challenge topic is happiness, and I have to admit, this is a very difficult one for me. Happiness has been very hard to come by in recent years, what with our neighborhood going downhill and the inevitable moment when we realized that we were going to have to leave, as it was never going to get better. Being forced to flee one’s home against their will is bad enough, but it grows worse still when one starts to realize that the place to which we were forced to retreat may not be the safe haven we had hoped for. No, happiness is still not ours, nor has it been for a very long time. So…what would happiness be for me?

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 28: Sorrow

The newest topic for the 100 theme challenge is sorrow.  These negative topics are feeling rather redundant at this point, considering #26 was tears, leaving me to write about some of my saddest experiences in gaming.  How many times must I write about sadness, hmm?  Well, today’s topic hits a bit closer to home because writing about such a thing as sorrow is especially poignant when in the right mood for it.  And dear readers, I am in the mood for sorrow, whether I like it or not.  Of course, I am not the only one.  We’ve all been through it.  Many of us are probably feeling sorrow right now.  I will not claim my situation is unique, but that doesn’t mean I can’t write a little something from the heart.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 27: Foreign

Another 100 theme challenge, proving the Duck is low on ideas!  The newest topic is foreign.  The first thing that comes to mind are foreign countries, but I haven’t really been to any of those.  Not enough to speak about, anyway (I went to Tahiti once when I was way too young to remember, so it hardly counts).  And I already wrote a similar post for topic #21, vacation.  It’s one of my most popular posts, so perhaps you’d like to read it.  The next thing that comes to mind, and the focus of this post, shall instead be foreign languages.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 26: Tears

Today’s theme is tears, and I’ve been thinking a lot on this one, as I didn’t know how to write about tears without being depressing.  We’ve all had sad experiences in our lives, so who wants to rehash them?  But sometimes, ironically enough, being sad is sometimes a pleasant experience, a good way to release emotions and end up feeling happier as a result.  To quote Sally Sparrow from my favorite Dr. Who episode Blink, sad is “happy for deep people”.  So in today’s post, I thought I’d list a few of my favorite sad things.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 25: Trouble Lurking

Today’s 100 theme topic is trouble lurking.  The first thing that comes to mind is the idea of danger that’s just beneath the surface.  A bout of paranoia that actually rings true.  I have felt this way in my own life, but rather than discuss something so unpleasant as life’s troubles, I’m going to talk about…alligators.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 24: No Time

To fuel the Duck’s inspiration, I have turned once more to the 100 theme challenge, which…um, challenges me to write about the topic “no time”.  This is a phrase that probably describes all of us, at one time or another.  There’s not enough time for this work assignment or this hobby that I so badly want to return to.  Not enough time to finish reading that novel or binge-watching that great new show on Netflix.  While it’s never a pleasant feeling to be running out of time, I’ll admit that my busy self sometimes prefers to have less empty time in my schedule rather than more.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 23: Cat

The newest topic for the 100 theme challenge is cat, a subject I have already discussed many times in the past, particularly in regards to my current cat Elsa and the two I lost a few years ago, Alex and Arwen.  Since I have already talked a great deal about them, I thought it would be rather fun to tell you all about a cat that had an impact on me despite only knowing it for one short week.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 21: Vacation

The newest 100 theme challenge is #21: vacation, which should be an easy one indeed.  Let’s get right to it.  The most exotic place I have ever visited was Tahiti, which is very cool, but I was a duckling at the time and remember none of it.  Except that you could get this delicious bread with chocolate in the middle.  Leave it to a young child to remember sweets above all else when visiting a tropical island in a completely different hemisphere.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 20: Fortitude

We’ve arrived at topic #20 in the 100 theme challenge, making us one-fifth of the way done.  Our newest topic is fortitude, a word that means courage and strength, particularly when faced with life’s many trials.  I feel like taking such a topic too literally could lead down a rather unpleasant path, as life’s troubles, whether or not I managed to overcome them, is not something I feel like discussing.  Rather, I’m going to tackle this topic rather loosely and analyze…the fortitude of gamers.

100 Theme Blog Challenge No. 22: Mother

Mother’s Day is this weekend, meaning this 100 theme challenge couldn’t have come at a better time.  (It’s almost like I planned it this way.)  Today, I shall be writing a little bit about Mother Duck, with whom the Duck gets along spiffingly.  And I think one reason for that is our willingness to share in the interests of the other.

Mother Duck played video games before I ever did.  She doesn’t play them very often now (and only with coaxing), but back when I was a duckling, she and dad would often play our Super Nintendo.  One of her particular favorites was The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (I recall dad playing Donkey Kong Country more), though she was also a pro at Super Mario World.  While we didn’t share quite as many interests when I was younger, as I didn’t really get into gaming until the time she gave it up, semi-recent years have seen a drastic shift from us spending our time separately to spending it together.