Musem Lock-In

But not really. Instead my friend Meredith and I went to a Gotham Write-In, where you go to a building in Hell's Kitchen, sit at a big table with a bunch of different types of people, wait for the teacher to write a prompt on a board, and then write for twenty minutes about the prompt. Afterward you read out-loud if you want to and get some positive critiques. Then you have snacks and wine, write ANOTHER prompt but this time based on one word that the teacher again writes on the dry-erase board, and then read it out-loud if you want.

So Meredith and I went to Olive Garden in Times Square beforehand (after my job working the front desk at a structural engineering firm), stocked up on wine and breadsticks, and trotted on over to Gotham Writing Offices. The first prompt our teacher gave us was:

"Goes Without Saying"

So, here's my first prompt, buoyed by the finest Riesling Olive Garden had to offer.

Everything is assumed. There's always a Shrugging Emoji implied when people are dishing out the scoop. The real, nitty-gritty, down-and-dirty, cold hard "scoop." The resurrection of a time when "Duh" was a wondrous empowering revelation; a jukebox crooning incredibly heavy edicts atop a root beer nursed with some laughter on the side. "Life isn't fair." "You can't always get what you want." "Subways are for sleeping." Insert Shrugging Emoji girl here. Maybe a hair toss. And another shrug, if you're Jewish. There's always room for a shrug when Judaism is involved. A shrug, and some guilt. A phrase when, experienced, never fully comes into fruition until ten minutes later, when your'e experiencing the aftermath of your reality completely out of sync with your expectation.

However, I really see no difference between the two. Between your expectation and your reality. Or vice versa. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, or is it the other way around? When really, there is no other way around.

A priest, a rabbi, and a monk walk into a bar. And then they die. And all dogs goes to heaven: It goes without saying. So why do we say it! The knowledge means nothing!

The knowledge means everything!

The knowledge is the knowing is the knowing is the basics.

So now what?

*And that, ladies and gentlemen, was my first writing prompt at Gotham. I must say, I had a really great time, and my second one was even more fun to write! **And at that point my wine buzz had calmed down...