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Cynthia Olsen

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Aug, 2020

Stories (3)

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3 Stories

61 karma pts

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The silence felt good.

Submitted to Contest #218

 I still couldn't believe I was here. After growing up in an orphanage in the 1960's in eastern Pennsylvania, I thought college was not even a possibility. I was working as a machinist toolmaker when my boss came up behind me one day and said, "Rob, your left hand sure knows what your right hand is doing". He had no idea, but that funny comment gave me the courage to think I might actually be able to go to college. You see, engineers would come into the shop often, and I sometimes had to correct their designs. I started to believe I cou...

4 likes

You gotta be brave before you can be good.

Submitted to Contest #129

You gotta be brave before you can be good. The Golden Gate Bridge loomed high above, as I gazed out at the choppy bay, the likes of which I had never seen. I’d windsurfed in all kinds of conditions and wave types, but this was different. There are two kinds of water here. The Bay water is runoff from the surrounding land. It is warmer and carries silt. But the Pacific Ocean is cold, stirred by upwellings and tides. This creates a perfect storm of sorts, resulting in turbulent, dangerous, ever-changing wave patterns. It is considered one o...

14 likes

My Jimmy

Submitted to Contest #60

Barracudas are ferocious opportunistic predators. Relying on surprise and short bursts of speed, up to 36 miles per hour, they overtake their prey quickly and then bite them in half. Kinda’ wish I would have known this.  They are snake-like in appearance with razor sharp fang teeth much like the piranha, all in different sizes set in sockets in their large powerful jaws. Like sharks, some barracudas will attack humans, although such incidents are rare. I was one of those rare incidents. The Florida Keys, mile mar...

12 likes