fracas

Fuelmyblog and SEOKats are running a competition. It’s got tons of great prizes and entering it is both easy and fun. Though I am posting an entry… I’m not entering it.

Why? I feel that I shouldn’t be greedy with the prizes since I did win fuelmyblog’s October contest. Because that fracalicious SEOKat is none other than my very own fraccy sister, and because I love Kevin and Sylvie to bits… I want to support them all by writing something to show you all how easy it is to enter. Now no one has to have that “I don’t want to go first” feeling.

Last year I wrote a story called I, uh… just need some space as my entry into WordPress’s contest for free storage space. My entry won third place. Some of the fraccy readers had asked me to write more. I wasn’t sure when or how, but new that the couple from the story would, like the coffee commercial couple, return to give us another glimpse into their lives.

It seemed obvious that this would be the time. The story below is then, a sequel. For certain parts to make sense, you should read the first story, linked above. The background to that story is simple. WordPress asked us to write about how we’d use the “space” if we won their contest. I fictionalized, and wrote as if the character in the story was the one who would actually win the space. Once again, it is the nameless character in the story, who will be entertaining you as you read about fuelmyblog, SEOKats and the wonderful sponsors that have provided the prizes for this Christmas extravaganza of the best stocking stuffers anyone could get for simply writing something and asking people to vote for them.

The complete rules are here. Please read the story below, and then consider entering the contest.

Another Good Night

She couldn’t believe it. A year had gone by since she’d confronted him about needing more space. It had been a good year for sure. They’d won the contest and with the upgrade, the tension had just disappeared like a teenager whose mother just called for help with weekend chores.

And yet, she was finding herself longing for more once again. Damn it all anyway, what was wrong with her? She breathed heavily as though a load of brick rested upon her chest. It wasn’t the house. Every bit of it was decorated as she’d planned; every room shrieked her name, her style, her very personality.

It wasn’t him. He was charming, generous, loving and ever since they’d received the additional space, even his side of the website was as organized as the closet she’d had done by professionals. There simply was nothing she could find fault with in him.

No, it was something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

She decided to try putting it out of her mind and going about her daily chores usually was the ticket when there was a problem to get beyond. A strange way to lift one’s spirits indeed, since most would look upon the day to day tediousness of dusting, vacuuming and tidying as a burden instead of a benefit, but not her. She took pride in her home and thought to herself how the act of bustling through it with the tools of the trade was oddly similar to the way a woman might primp herself.

It was then that she realized what it was that had been causing her such upheaval. The swish of the feather duster and the spritz of the glass cleaner brought forth a moment of such clarity that she stopped dead in her tracks, bottle and feathers tumbling to the white carpets beneath her feet while a rush of excitement filled her entire body with a desire to scream.

How could she be so blind?

Racing up the stairs to the office, the same office she’d called him to on that night last year, she frantically pulled the keyboard tray out from its resting spot beneath the polished desk, and began typing in her password.

She knew it. She knew what had been bothering her!

It was the house.

Not to be confused, she rationalized that she loved the house, it was her design, her baby if you will, and she had taken great pleasure in every step of the process. But… it was just a house. It wasn’t actually her no matter how much of herself she tried to put into it. She realized it was because in that way she always threw herself into everything she did, she’d made the house more important and had forgotten about herself.

It was so simple now that she’d realized it. She was unhappy because she’d forgotten about herself. How exceedingly simple. There was always something to do, some problem to take care of, some detail to handle… and all that resulted  was a house that was perfect but herself, a mess.

She knew how to fix that.

Just as last year, she’d solved their space problems by trusting the good folks at WordPress, she knew that this time, all she needed to do was trust in Kevin and Sylvie from that fuelmyblog place. She’d read about it so many time at some of her favorite blogs. Fracas, Life Onwards, that crazy DaddyPapersurfer, and that gal who probably still has a thing for Donny Osmond, why, they all carry on and on about this fuelmyblog place. Fracas even won some contest a while back.

She was sure she’d read something there about some really great prizes that right about now, were exactly what she needed to feel like she mattered as much as this house.

She couldn’t believe her luck. The contest seemed easy enough. Visit the sites of the prize sponsors and write something creative, using details from all the sites. Honestly, compared to keeping on top of contractors and designers, painters and permits made this task seem like a walk in the park.

She started by checking out the coffee from a wonderful little company called The Mad Roaster Coffee Bean Company. She loved coffee almost as much as she loved her house… or her husband. The company’s promise really impressed her.

“We promise that once you’ve tasted freshly roasted, freshly ground, and freshly brewed coffee; you’ll never go back to that other stuff. EVER!”

That was something she was definitely interested in trying. It helped too, that the company pledged to provide assistance for endangered animals in coffee producing countries. She couldn’t think of a reason to buy anyone else’s coffee anymore.

Reading through the contest post, she paused next at the description of the candles. Now candles were something she loved. She recalled the candles, and the wine of that night last year, the night she finally told him she needed more space. Clicking through to the site, she again couldn’t believe her luck. Soy candles, Beeswax… and those Sparkle Palm Candles too! She had to stop herself from placing an order right then and there. How much more could a person ask, than to be able to know you’re burning something that won’t fill the air you’re breathing with toxins? And just thinking about all the time, effort and money that went into creating her dream home, she couldn’t imagine burning rotten old petroleum based paraffin wax candles ever again. And these were beautiful! Her niece would simply love those sparkle candles.

This one was hard to put on hold. Since that night last year, candles seemed to be a regular occurrence in their home. It made her feel a little sick to think of how they could’ve been filling their home with the negative ions created by burning unrefined bees wax candles and how they could’ve been experiencing that wonderful feeling like the one you get from the ocean, waterfalls, rain and thunder.

Still, better late than never was something she believed in. She created a bookmark to Peter G.Candles so that she could go back and order a few candles to tide her over until the contest was over. It was scheduled to run for two weeks, December 1st to the 15th. Even if she was one of the winners and got to choose her prize, she wasn’t sure she wanted to wait.

Satisfied that she’d found a new staple, her attention turned to the tub truffles. This was just genius marketing. “Truffles with zero calories.” Who wouldn’t be tempted? The rest of the description made her grin. “Made with organic fair trade ingredients that support women and children’s causes,” it read. Good. Knowing that fuelmyblog was donating to Sustainable Harvest International instead of sending earlier contest winners something random from Kevin’s cupboard, and that profits from their The Human behind The Avatar book are being donated to Doctors Without Borders, it only made sense that the products chosen for this contest too, were products with a conscience.

And the bath truffles definitely felt like something to make her feel special, pampered and just as important as all those details she’d spent so much time taking care of for the house. She was just as important as the house, and she’d decided to prove it.

Just acknowledging that made her feel worlds apart from even an hour ago. Suddenly, she felt like a million dollars. Why hadn’t she figured this out earlier?

Why too, was it always some website that provided the revelation that would change her world? Last year it was WordPress and this year it seems it’s going to be Fuelmyblog and that wonderful gal from that SEOKats site who organized this contest. Goodness, not only that, but those fingerless mitties are the most adorable things she’d seen in a long time. And money tucked inside? Who wouldn’t be happy with a few dollars to perhaps spend at one of the other prize sponsors? It’s all such great stuff!

Making a mental note to go back to that SEOKats site later, and see how they could help her and that handsome husband of hers increase their own website’s traffic, she decided to check out the last prize offering. She’d deliberately left it for last because she knew despite offering some really great bags as prizes, the story was worth reading.

She wondered how many of us watched the news reports of the 2004 Tsunami that hit Indonesia, felt sick, and yet didn’t do anything other than send a donation? Reading how Roy & Louise van Broekhuizen did something most of us wouldn’t have dreamed of, she learned they created Laga Handbags, and are helping create a better and brighter future for  tsunami survivors. She knew their story was one everyone should read. She also realized right then, that part of feeling better for herself, might involve choosing to be a handbag consultant  and thus also helping as Roy & Louise are, rebuilding lives… one handbag at a time.

What a day she’d had!

She felt like a new person. Gone was the unexplainable dread she’d been feeling; gone was the heavy feeling in her chest. She was, like last year, incredibly relieved and again, asking herself why she hadn’t seen the answer sooner.

She was just filling out the form to join fuelmyblog and get started on her contest entry, when she heard the door.

He’d come home early today! She was excited to see him and tell him what she’d learned today. She knew just like that night last year…

…tonight would also be a good night!

Copyright SW (Fracas) enforced. Do not blog scrape or I will find you and wish upon you, a thousand of those biting little red ants to make a home in your personal nether regions. Write your own content, this story is for the benefit of the good people at Fuelmyblog, SEOKats, Laga Handbags, Peter G. Candles, The Mad Roaster Coffee Bean Company and Tub Truffles.