Wednesday 21 November 2018

JIMMY THE JOKER - 100 word story

Here's a little tale for the Friday Fictioneer's photo prompt adapted from one of my travel essays that was originally published back in 2003.


PHOTO PROMPT © Dale Rogerson




JIMMY THE JOKER


I once went hiking with Jimmy the Joker. He picked the trail: lonely and hemmed in by trees. Shadows danced. We heard a scuffing.
'Moose?'
'Probably a bear,' said The Joker.
Hah!
We found a river with a dinky waterfall. I unpacked our picnic.
'Uh-oh, bear.'
I ignored him.
'I'm serious.'
I sighed and looked up. And froze.
It stood on the opposite bank. The waterfall didn’t look so dinky now.
'Bears swim.'
'I know.'
The bear abruptly retreated.
'It didn't want to get wet!' I said.
'Maybe, but there’s a bridge up ahead.'
What?’
'Just joking,' said Jimmy.




I hope you enjoyed this story and I look forward to your comments. 


If you wish to read more Friday Fictioneers stories, you can find them listed HERE




If you'd like to join in the challenge, you'll find all the information posted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields 
- her blog is listed on 'My Blog List' on the right hand side of this page.


On a final note - I always try to visit the blogs of everyone who comments on mine. If I haven't commented on yours it's either because I haven't been able to find your blog when I've clicked on your name or because you have a wordpress account that requires me to sign in first. 



63 comments:

  1. Sometimes joking defuses the tension. Other times, not so much

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    1. Jimmy is based on my husband, the exchanges over the bear are quite close to the real experience. He loves to tease me!

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  2. Maybe he went for his boat?
    Fun tale, Susan

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    1. Oh no! I didn't think of that! :) Thanks for commenting.

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  3. Jimmy really needs to work on his comedy timing! Nice chuckle Susan :-)

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    1. Thanks, Iain - that Jimmy's a terrible tease. :)

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  4. Lucky for you the bear had other things in mind. Perhaps he had his own picnic to attend!

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    1. Yes you might be right, Karen. The real life black bear stared at us and then just turned and left - clearly wasn't interested, thank goodness!

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    1. Thanks, Neel - it's based on my husband's wicked sense of humour! :)

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  6. Dear Susan,

    This reminds me of the time I went for a walk with a friend in an Alaskan neighborhood. We came face to face with a moose. Can you say, "Poor taste, Jimmy?" Seriously, love your story.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

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    1. Big, aren't they? Thanks for the feedback, Rochelle.

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  7. Well that made me smile all right. :)

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    1. Oh, good - that's the reaction I was hoping for. :)

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  8. That was fun... and maybe Jimmy deserves a smack in the back of his head!

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    1. He he - yes, definitely! Thanks for commenting, Dale.

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  9. Many a true word spoken in jest - beware Jim-the-J!

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    1. That's the trouble with pranksters - if they cry wolf too many times...

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  10. I understand why the narrator said "I once went hiking with Jimmy the Joker." Once is enough. :)

    (By the way, my post today is a tribute post to Stan Lee, but the previous post is the one I was hinting about.)

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    1. Ha ha - yeah you have to watch that Jimmy.
      I'll pop across to your blog later for a look see. :)

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  11. Jimmy the Joker seems funny enough to give most of us a heart attack. Like The Silver Fox, above, pointed out, I also understand whey the narrator kept the hikes to only 1.

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  12. Ah, but he was joking about the bridge! Thanks for commenting, Stuart.

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  13. Amazing how a river can change from innocent to scary.... just intro a bear! Liked this.😊

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    1. Yes, one minute you're setting up a picnic, next thing a bear is staring you down. Thanks for commenting. :)

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  14. Ha. I saw the prompt and thought bear as well. Looks like your bear wasn't hungry. That Jimmy needs to cut it out. Funny story.

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    1. Great minds think alike? Thanks for commenting, Jo.

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  15. ha ha... just wondering who'll get the last laugh.

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  16. Ha, good fun! The stream reminded me of bears too :-)

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the story, Anurag. What is it about waterfalls and bears? Maybe all those images we've seen of grizzlies catching salmon?

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  17. Oh, that Jimmy, such a joker :-)

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  18. Sounds like the bear had either just eaten or was biding his time! Jimmy the Joker sounds like a lot of fun... in the right situation!

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    1. A lot of fun - but also infuriating sometimes. :)

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  19. Great story, Susan, and you survived to tell it despite Jimmy!

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    1. Tip of the iceberg, Lizy, when it comes to scary the bejesus out of me.

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  20. The bear just didn't have an appetite for your lunch, or for you. He'd just had his fill of fresh fish :)

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    1. You might be right, Linda. Thanks for commenting. :)

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  21. And did Jimmy live to lead another trek? He needed dunking under the dinky waterfall!

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    1. Yes, she forgave him and to this day he still plays jokes on her. :)

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  22. Jimmy should not joke about bears. Some day joke may become real. But it is funny if bears uses the bridge to avoid getting wet.

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  23. Jimmy needs pushing in that waterfall!

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    1. I think she was sorely tempted, but he's a lot bigger than her! :)

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  24. Jimmy sounds like a funny guy and a lot like my husband. In out swimming the bear, he'd probably say something like, "Well, you only have to (swim) faster than the person you're with."

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    1. Yes, it's the sort of thing my husband says all the time - usually after shark encounters when we're scuba diving. :)

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  25. A very well told story, great observation and humour, and all of a piece. Good writing.

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    1. Thank you for the feedback - much appreciated. :)

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  26. That was indeed fun, the bear is probably wiser than both of them

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    1. Hehe, you might be right, Michael. Thanks for commenting.

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  27. must have been a smart bear, he would use the bridge.

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    1. He he - well he might if there really was a bridge and Jimmy hadn't been joking about it. :)

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  28. Ha! Ha! Yogi is the only bear allowed to cross bridges.

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    1. Yogi? Now that's a blast from the past! Thanks for commenting.

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    1. Good! That's the response I was hoping for. :)

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  30. Ha.. very funny, but it reminds me of Peter and the wolf...

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  31. Great dialogue! I think most of us know people who joke around so much that it's virtually impossible to tell when they're serious.

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    1. Yes, I was with someone who is just like that only a couple of days ago. He drives me nuts. Thanks for the feedback, Magarisa. :)

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Many thanks for commenting. I appreciate your feedback.