Tag Archives: Award

1, 2, 3… Aspirate!

Gentle readers, were you aware that ‘aspiration’ has two meanings?

Of course, ‘aspiration’ usually refers to hope or a strong desire to achieve something, but it also refers to the mundane yet necessary process of breathing in and out. We cannot have one thing without the other. You see, hope is absent when we’re no longer breathing. And breathing without hope is like being dead already.

As long as we’re still standing here breathing then let’s aspirate, yes? Let’s dare to reach for the impossible–even if just for a short time–for tomorrow’s a blank page that hasn’t been promised to us. So, shall we fill the blank page that sits here with us today? Right now? In this very hour? Yes. Let’s do that instead of waiting for tomorrow’s pages.

We’ve had a wonderful year at Unbolt. Tony joined the fold and filled up the space with words to complement Tati’s own. We featured some of our treasured readers’ own works. And we received quite a number of awards and writing challenges too!

To celebrate the amazing year that was, we at Unbolt have put together two pages dedicated to the awards and writing challenges we’ve received so far. Why have we done this? Because we want to share those awards and writing challenges with you, dear readers. It’s our way of saying thank you for your support. You mean a lot to us. We want you to know that we appreciate every single one of you! So, please, feel free to click through to the Choose Your Award! and Choose Your Challenge! pages, and have fun!

Oh, and may we also wish you a Happy New Year? Yes, a new start full of breathing and aspiration. Just what the doctor ordered!

Yours ever,
Tati & Tony

by TETIANA ALEKSINA & TONY SINGLE
© All rights reserved 2016

Day 01

Damn! Quotes are such a tricky thing. Especially ones without a context. I’m always very careful with quotations. Yes, I see a question in your eyes. “Why is she whining here?” It’s easy.

I was recently invited by my friends to take part in the ‘03 days 03 quotes challenge’ party and I said, “YAY! Thank you! Of course, you can count on me!”

Prakash Hegade, Sheldon Kleeman, Ethel Beckett! 
Thank you, my dear friends!

Rules:
1) Post 1 quotation a day for 3 days.
2) Nominate 3 other bloggers to participate per post.
3) Thank the blogger who nominated you.

But when I started to write my first post for this challenge I realized the scale of my problem. I’ve since changed my mind three times before opening my rough draft dated June 27 to write these lines.

Of course, it’s not a big deal to find some cool quotes from some cool famous guys and be happy with my own coolness. I even spent about an hour searching for them. But then I suddenly understood that hiding behind other people’s famous words isn’t something that I consider a really cool thing. That was my first thought.

My second thought was to use my own quotes from my various essays and poems. It’s not very modest but at least I could always take responsibility for this bullshit. I’m glad that I didn’t start to do this because I liked my third thought much more…

I don’t want to use famous quotes. I don’t want to use my quotes. My friends! My community! My dearest Writers and Readers! Let me use your quotes!

I was nominated three times, so I will take three quotes and their authors will be my nominees. All agree? Excellent! Let’s go!

Grandpa asked why
I talked to his veggies
said I didn’t know
Didn’t know
how to say
Veggies don’t hurt me

Michael Spahr, ‘Grandpa Had A Garden’

One day,
when it’s time for me to go,
I won’t cry.
I will look back on all these days I got to spend,
and I will smile.
I’ll be glad that I’ve had the chance,
to be alive,
and all in all,
that I’ve lived
a pretty good life.

PROSPERMIND, ‘A pretty good life’

Writers write for they are egomaniacs,
A fancy poem our soul’s aphrodisiac.
Spinning words, the most heinous temptation,
Desperation for eternity our only salvation.

Obsidian Visionary, ‘Writer’s Dissolution’

Hmmm… Yes!
The end.

by TETIANA ALEKSINA
© All rights reserved 2015

SWBA. WLA!

Hey-ho! This February is the month of exotic awards for me…

Firstly, I was honored by Prakash Hegade for the Premio Dardos Award!
Thirdly, I was honored by Prakash Hegade for the Versatile Blogger Award!
(awww… the luckiest #13… aha! Coming soon.)

Where is the second? HERE!

Secondly, I was honored by Into the Forgotten for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award! Yay! Thank you, Katho!

(Hmmm… Tony Single, Cyan Ryan, Spahr Plops, PROSPERMIND, lordwalt... sorry, boys! It looks like you can have a rest today…)

To be honest, I don’t know Katho very well… but I know one thing exactly… Katho likes acronyms!

WTITR!

• TTBWNYALBTTS
• PTALOYB
• ATTQSTY
• NSB
• MALOTQFYN

LG!

1. If you were a musical instrument, what would it be and why?
IWPTBAV… IACWIHI
2. What is your guilty pleasure? IL
3. What is your favourite fictional world/universe? DOMFB
4. Why do you blog? WASQ! WDIB?!
5. What is your favourite movie of all time and what’s so awesome about that movie? LFDDAP… BIIJAM!
6. What is one thing you wish were true but isn’t? TWWB!
7. If you could Apparate (that’s right, Harry Potter style) to one place on Earth in this very moment, where would it be? NMLZ…
8. What is your life motto? DWBH!
9. Who is your inspiration in life? TP
10. What is your current favourite novel and why? HPATPS… BIRIIEN!!

MN!

1) all my unedited glory
2) EXPRESSING MY THOUGHTS
3) field of thorns
4) Insidethelifeofmoi
5) La Audacia de Aquiles
6) megdekorne
7) MENOMAMA3
8) THE SIXPENCE AT HER FEET
9) THE TATTOO TOURIST

9? IK! FTAT! IWTN9B!! MPFY… YAFFMQ

(OMG! If you’ll ask me tomorrow what I wrote… I can bet I will not be able to recall. So… ASK ME TODAY!)

Well, my dear nominees… The proper rules are here.

HAF. ILYA.
XOXO. YU.

by TETIANA ALEKSINA
© All rights reserved 2015

a Circus, Part #2 (Fragment #010)

A howitzer! It had begun with a conversation about the howitzer barrel aimed at a banquet! Hmm… Maybe I should say, “It began with our conversation about a circus!” to be more precise. I can’t say that I’m very snarky but I really don’t like circus art. I see many societal blemishes in it. A circus is an ugly show in my opinion! Nasty clowns with inflatable hammers who bash each other and the audience… A rubber girl who squirms like an epileptic with convulsions… A mangy dog with an old abacus – can I REALLY believe that IT is able to count to ten? Honestly? Can you believe in this? Golly! You’re such fools!

I realized that I was shouting only when I noted the expostulatory look from my lovely Chilperic. But I had decided to ignore it. And I’ll still tell him tonight that I’m a big girl, and he can stop parenting me! I must finish my speech!

So, I decided to gather all this rabble and to shoot them out of the howitzer. It’s the only decent performance in the circus! And when I had finished, I was quite pleased with myself.

A strange creature in the corner looked at me… And just then, I began to shiver, out of the blue… And after that chill I heard a stomp from the side corridor.

∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼

I stand on the stage and feel like I’m blind. I can see nothing beyond the blinding glare of terrible searchlights. A black gaping abyss is beneath my feet… the silent auditorium.
– ¡Señoras y señores, buenas tardes!
What? What the hell? I’m not only blind… deaf also! Perfect! Just perfect!
– ¡Ceremonia ‘Premio Dardos Award’ a la vista!
Oh, dear me… how could I forget? Hell… HELL! I try to recall where I put my list of nominees… on the table… or on the bookshelf… in the glove compartment?
– ¡Unbolt arenga!
I’ve never cursed myself like I do now… I can’t lay an egg! Not today when I’m so close to my target! Not today! My list of nominees… damn it! I don’t need it! I smile at Prakash Hegade. One step ahead… I close my eyes and start to speak. Without my list. Without any preparation. I’m saying their names by heart. I’m reading my heart list…

21 Shades Of Blue ∼ Dead Cat Comes Back ∼ Field Of Thorns ∼ Henry Game: His/story ∼ In Search Of The Perfect Spring ∼ Johnpoetflanagan ∼ Northern Nevermore ∼ PoeticDepression ∼ PoetryBySkull ∼ Prospermind ∼ Raycabiro 
SpahrPlops ∼ Strings Of Soulfulness ∼ The Poesy Project ∼ UP!::urban Po’E.Tree(s)

I’m happy. I didn’t lay an egg! I smile at the black gaping abyss and…

∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼∼

…and I wake up on a big heap of rotten beetroot and zucchini. (to be continued)

P.S. Ah… sorry, my dear Prakash Hegade for my creativity… Guilty! Now you can arrest me! The last thing that I should tell my heart nominees – “All information and rules regarding the Premio Dardos Award are here.” The end. Take him away!

by TETIANA ALEKSINA
© All rights reserved 2015

My special thanks to one and only Cyan Ryan,
a great friend and an excellent editor,
for grammar corrections and improvements this essay!

P.S. And for this incredible video too… thank you, Ry!

Very Inspiring Blogger Award. A journey to the basement.

Hey-ho! Wake up, sidekicks! It’s again your restless Unbolt and another award. Well… this time I was nominated by Prakash B. Hegade (Oh, India! Oh, The Beatles Ashram! Oh, the Victory tower in the fort at Chittorgarh! I’ll visit you necessarily!) for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award!

I want to thank you, Prakash! Thank you very much for your nomination! And… the most important thing… you demonstrated to me a beautiful example of kindness and attentiveness for every one of your nominees!

“unbolt – A blog full of very different and unique kind of writings. They speak direct.”

Damn… I don’t know of a compliment that sounds better! OK. Three things that inspired me the most this week…

Followers, likers and commenters on my blog! 

Well, you know, that every award for me is a reason to throw a party and make a little noise. Firstly, my VIP-nominees. It looks like I have a strong intention to nominate you every time, guys! It’s not an obligation for you… just a joy for me.

field of thorns          Cyan Ryan          Tony Single           lordwalt

And… Anthonie! Thank you for your incredible poem! It was a really, really inspiring post!

This time, I decided to find my nominees among the commenters here. So, my party moves to the basement… to the section of comments. Nobody is against this? Nobody is afraid of spider webs and old creaky stairs? Cool! Take your flashlights and let’s have fun! What is hidden down there?

Wow! #1 godsend! A Nominee ‘I know your secret’ THE WORLD ACCORDING TO RYLAND

That must be why you look so young. Bathory is clapping her hands somewhere out there.

(Do you remember? You promised me! No one should know!)

Interesting? It’s only the start!

#2. A Nominee ‘I got confused a little’ Strings of Soulfulness

I cannot make out whether its a girl name or boy name. I am new to this name. Would prefer TIA (for girl name) TAT (boy name) if you are okay.

LOL… Okay! I’m OK! I love unisex style.

#3. A Nominee ‘Flaming dancing heels’ roundWorldnMe

Ouch ! It hurts! Next time I will challenge you for a Salsa. Train well to save you feet then, with my 8 inch pencil heels!

Oops! A spider… I stepped on the spider with my 8 inch pencil heel! Sorry, spider!

#4. A Nominee ‘Women’s solidarity’ LISTEN TO THE BABE

haha… beautiful… really love this. bloody idiot. well it’s not his fault really. we never tell them til it’s too late…

Oh, babe, babe… Men, beware!

#5. A Nominee ‘Mr Storyteller’ A CUP OF JOE

And I like to call myself Rumpelstiltskin

Mein Gott! Rumpelstiltskin! Who’s shouting here?!

#6. A Nominee ‘A new expression’ Study God’s Word

Yoicks!

Really ‘Yoicks!’

#7. A Nominee ‘Everyone does it’ Spahr Plops

You’re a little Sherlock! I really didn’t expect you to find out about my secret “hardcore” side haha.

Aha, Michael! Caught Red-Handed!

#8. A Nominee ‘Dead can’t overshare’… Oops! Sorry, this blog was deleted. But it’s really one of my favorite comments!

I disagree and telling people you masturbate while typing is oversharing

R.I.P., idiot!

#9. A Nominee ‘What a potty mouth’ PROSPERMIND

censored

##$%^&*()_{LKJUGHF#$%^4“*56g78V/*HBJNMK<L:)(*&^%$&&$@FDIDJ_^&*()_!!

#10. A Nominee ‘Shamelessly obvious reasons’ BEHIND THE WHITE COAT

Love this! (For shamelessly obvious reasons)

Damn… be careful! This stair looks shamelessly broken!

Rules, rules… How boring… Hey! Where is the light?! Guys, give me a flashlight! I should read the rules for my nominees.

1. Thank the person who nominated you by linking his/her blog and display the award logo.
2. Nominate at least 15 other blogs (more or less). Link their blogs and inform them about the nomination.
3. Mention three things that inspired you the most this week (you can talk about last week’s inspiration too).

Ufff… What? Dawn… The party’s over… We must go home. But the show must go on!

P.S. I want to thank all of my dearest Writers and Readers! Thank you that you spend your precious time reading, liking, commenting… My blog would be dead without you! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! And Merry Christmas again for those who celebrate Christmas after the New year… like your devoted Unbolt. Please, be happy! Be silly and smart, weak and strong, lost and found… be different! But please, please – be happy!

I love you all,
Your Unbolt.

by TETIANA ALEKSINA
© All rights reserved 2014