SoCS: My Deep Dark (Blue) Secret

March 9, 2019 by JoAnna 35 Comments

Directions: Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “abash/a bash/bash.” Use “abash,” or “bash” as a noun or a verb. Bonus points if you manage all three. Have fun!

I was going to write that I don’t like to bash anybody, but then I realized that I do sometimes bash the mainstream media for not so much bashing but putting a spotlight on those who do bash. Oh how they love the bashing. Am I bashing them? The mainstream media? I know they don’t do it all the time, cause I go hunting for good news Tuesday. Just most of the time. They have this mistaken idea we want to see that bashing. It’s okay some of the time, but don’t make a bash out of it. That’s using the word to mean party. Where did that come from? Like a birthday bash.

It’s easy to see the connection between the word abash and bashful. There’s a shame/embarrassment factor in there. I was a bashful child. Not ashamed, but easily embarrassed and not wanting to draw attention to myself. I believe there’s a gene for this bashfulness trait. It can be overridden. In my first years of college I dabbled in drama – the class – but also some with the boyfriend, but let’s not go there. Taking acting class in college helped me become less bashful. I had to learn to project. It was fun! This helped me later in my career where I had to do some public speaking. I could still do it if I had to, but mostly I don’t have to, and I’d rather not.  Just like I’d rather not bash anybody’s head in. No. I wouldn’t. I swear I wouldn’t. Why do I feel the need to repeat that? Is there a hidden desire…. NO! NO! NO! We do not bash heads!

What would I like to bash? OMG. I’m scaring myself. The Stream of Consciousness is treacherous. I’m a PACIFIST. Maybe I’ve been watching too many cop shows. There, the cats’s out of the bag. Not just any cop shows. Not COPS. No way. But NCIS, and lately, I’ve gotten addicted to Blue Bloods reruns. Never woulda believed it. Anyway, it’s made me want to take a self-defense course. This is my deep dark secret. Blue Bloods. I’m going to stop now before I reveal any more secrets. Damn you, Stream of Consciousness. Now look what you’ve gone and made me do!  I don’t care. I’m not abashed at all.

In my senior year of college, the job placement person asked me if I’d be interested in being a cop. I quickly said no to this and that I wasn’t assertive enough. She said, “You could learn to be.” Were they desperate for lady cops? Anyway, becoming an addictions counselor I had to learn to be assertive. Now, I wonder what it would have been like to be a cop. That’s the way of TV drama as I watch Blue Bloods safe on my sofa.

Oh, in case you didn’t know, Blue Bloods is about a family of NY cops and the sister is an  assistant district attorney.  But I really only watch it for the cop romance and the philosophical debates at the Sunday dinner table.  It can be a serious show, so below is a “blooper reel.”

But first, I feel I need to mention that the suicide rate for US police officers is higher than the rate of line of duty deaths as reported in this Huffington Post Article.  Watching Blue Bloods has given me a better appreciation for the police and what they deal with. Yes, it’s just a TV show, but they try to present multiple sides.

 

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For more about SoCS, visit Linda at

https://lindaghill.com/2019/03/08/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-march-9-19/

But be warned. You never know what will be revealed in the stream.

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing (typos can be fixed), and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The,’” or will simply be a single word to get you started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read all of them! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later or go to the previous week by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!