(listed in order of loudness/pleasantness)
Birds
Bees
Insects
Whispering
Giggling
Swing creaking
Trampolene squeaking
Distant laughter
Not so distant laughter
School sportsday cheering
Car stereos (in passing)
Neighbour’s radio (in perpetuity)
Hoovers
Lawnmowers
Strimmers
Hammers and/or drills
Motorbikes
Ice Cream Van
Claire
__________
Notes:
1. Written on May 20th, 2024
__________A List Of Things That Are Stupid
Anna
Anna’s room
Anna’s films
Anna’s college
Anna’s fellow students
Being nice (concept of)
Dad’s old junk he left in the loft
Ethel
Everyone
Frogs
Girls who like mermaids
Gretel
Hansel
Hard boiled eggs (in general)
Hard boiled eggs (specifically Daniel’s hard boiled egg)
Lists
Lukas’s old fashioned hair
Mermaids
Nice Dogs (concept of)
Pacifism (in general)
Pacifism (in the specific idea that it would forbid you from kicking footballs)
Poems (in general)
Poems (specifically Tina’s poems)
Poems (unpublished and/or secret)
Poetry (idea of)
Postcards (general)
Postcards (specifically Dad’s postcards)
The idea that maybe Claire is pretending to think poetry is stupid purely because she actually thinks poetry isn’t stupid but she doesn’t want anyone to know that.
The idea that all four children are the same age just because they’re quadruplets (Claire’s the oldest!)
The idea that context and intention change the meaning of words
Rapunzel (character)
Rapunzel (hair)
Rapunzel (plot of)
Rocks
School
Shoelaces
Snow
Things
Tina
Tina’s Car Game That She Made Them Play One Time
Velcro
A List Of Things That Are Not Stupid
Claire
(References: Tale #1; Tale #20; Tale #28; Tale #30; Tale #49; Tale #66; Tale #68; Tale #70; Tale #72; Tale #84; Tale #102; Tale #106; Tale #115; Tale #117; Tale #132; Tale #134; Tale #135; Tale #148; Tale #150; Tale #156; Tale #157; Tale #159)
__________1. Drought
2. Famine
3. Disease
4. War
5. Radiation
6. Irradiation
7. Irrationality/psychosis
8. End of oil
9. End of electricity
10. Reality collapse
11. Clocks no longer tell the correct time
12. Hot
13. Cold
14. Wet
15. Mould
16. Usurped by cats
17. Enslaved by cats
18. Abandoned by cats
19. Ignored by cats
20. Enslaved/usurped by aliens
21. Ignored by aliens (and cats)
__________
Notes:
1. Written on August 7, 2023
__________1. A dream
2. A dream within a dream
3. A dream within a dream within a dream
4. A dream within a dream within a dream within a dream
5. A dream within a dream within a dream within a dream within a dream
6. A nightmare
__________
Notes:
1. Written on November 11th, 2023
__________A Day Out – The others said it was cheating to use this for A but I don’t care what they say.
Big Wheel – It went round and around until we got on and then it stopped. Everyone blamed Claire except Claire, who blamed everyone except Claire.
Candy Floss – Mum said we wouldn’t like this and she was right!
Dagger Throwing – We are NEVER allowed to do this at home.
Eggs (Pickled) – “It’s not a picnic without pickled eggs” says Mum (and no one else).
Fortune Teller – Apparently Tina’s going to get married! To a boy!
Gargantuan – What an amazing word. “The circus was gargantuan!”
Horror (House Of) – Daniel had a nose bleed in here.
Idiots (AKA Clowns) – They grow their faces in jars. Maybe they should keep them there.
Jugglers – Mum hates jugglers but will never tell us why. She wouldn’t let them teach us anything. We weren’t even allowed to watch.
King – Tina said he wasn’t the real King but then why was he wearing a crown?
Lady Luck – She told us we’d win but we didn’t win a thing (except for Daniel but he was cheating). Never trust Lady Luck!
Mirrors (Hall Of) – This made Claire absolutely furious!
Night – It was day when we went in, but night when we came out. I said this was magical and Mum agreed but then Claire said it was just the passing of time and she stamped in a puddle to prove it. (I still thought it was magical!)
Oracle – Apparently Tina’s going to get married! To a different boy!
Pennies – I found four and Tina found three but Claire and Daniel found EIGHT! But then I found a pound so who won really? (Claire and Daniel did it was a draw).
Queen – Tina said she wasn’t the real Queen but then why was she drinking all that tea?
Robots – Supposedly these aren’t “traditional”. But they were the best bit!
Selkie – Basically a mermaid. It’s a good thing Dad wasn’t here or he’d have gone all weird again.
Taffy – Mum said we wouldn’t like this and she was wrong!
Unicyclists – (see Jugglers)
Vampire – Mum said he wasn’t a vampire he was the ringmaster but he was definitely a vampire you could tell it was obvious.
Water – £5
Xtremely Unfunny – We didn’t laugh once (not even Daniel).
Y – Good question!
Zebras – There were some horses and that was as close as we ever got to a Z.
__________
Notes:
1. Written between the 11th and the 14th of July, 2023
__________