A friend told me about OneWord.com. It works like this: The site gives you one word and 60 seconds to write about it (a helpful timer lets you know when your time is up). I am now hooked on it!

These are some of my entries:

May 3, 2010
The word: Regardless
My entry:
Regardless of what was being said, I still decided to try the special. I didn’t care that the fish might not be so fresh, or that the restaurant was notorious for bad health practices; the aioli sounded divine.

May 4, 2010
The word: Chained
My entry:
It sat there, chained to the straggly tree covered in fliers and pocked with staples: A single, bent bike tire. No bike; just the tire. Protected, I guess.

May 9, 2010
The word: Trial
My entry:
The trial separation didn’t go as well as planned. Each missed the other tremendously, but when they were in the same room, they forgot the wanting as it was overrun by a deep, intense hatred that clouded their senses and hurt their stomachs.

May 10, 2010
The word: Stride
My entry:
Her stride was long, confident and quick. She wove her way through the crowd of tourists and onlookers, staring ahead, maneuvering through the crowd, not paying attention to the actor lying in the middle of the street.

May 11, 2010
The word: Withheld
My entry:
i withheld crucial information that may have helped my case, but i really didn’t feel like talking about the time i saw the neighbor bury what may have been his dog in the backyard, behind the garage.

May 11, 2010
The word: Stand
My entry:
It didn’t really matter what his wife’s stand on the issue was, Walter was going to do what he wanted to anyway. No, he didn’t care that it could alienate him from the rest of the family. He was going to have the chocolate soufflé.

May 13, 2010
The word: Wealth
My entry:
He walks through the crowd with an odd, over-sized riding hat perched high upon his head, hiding his hair. He looks out of place, but he has a wealth of bizarre stories about his life, most of which are true.

May 14, 2010
The word: Lack
My entry:
The cat lacked any sense of curiosity whatsoever. He wasn’t interested in the bag, the catnip or what was in his toy box. Instead, he sat at the edge of my desk, staring at me as if to say “write faster.”

May 15, 2010
The word: Meaning
My entry:
I don’t know if there was any significance to the downpour on the day you arrived to the city, or the fact you couldn’t catch a cab or get a hot cup of coffee. But since you look for meaning in everything, I think the Universe was telling you to leave.

May 16, 2010
The word: Destiny
My entry:
The fluffy white dog wearing the red collar ran down the sidewalk, eluding its hapless owner. He ran under the food cart and hid, refusing to come out. Apparently, he disagreed that his destiny was to be dressed in ironic doggie sweaters.

May 17, 2010
The word: Reflex
My entry:
I don’t know what exactly set off my gag reflex – your cologne (is that CK One?); the faint slaughter-house smell of your newly renovated apartment; or the fact you just told me that you, a devout atheist and man of science, are joining a fanatical Christian church. In any case, I’m sorry about the carpeting.