Science Fiction Microstory Contest discussion
OCTOBER 2023 SCIENCE FICTION MICROSTORY CONTEST (Comments only)
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Mines up. Not sure it exactly met the requirements, but I'm going with it. Hope you guys like it! :)
Like a classic American sitcom, Chris. (Mother-in-Law humor never goes out of style.)
Tom, Chris, great stories!Chris, the very first word should be corrected to "Your" as in "Your kids are too skinny..."
A giant kaiju shrimp! Love it!
Justin wrote: "Tom, Chris, great stories!Chris, the very first word should be corrected to "Your" as in "Your kids are too skinny..."
A giant kaiju shrimp! Love it!"
Holy cow, what a rookie mistake, lol! First word, too. Even better! Fixed! Thanks, Justin! :)
Justin wrote: "Tom, Chris, great stories!Chris, the very first word should be corrected to "Your" as in "Your kids are too skinny..."
A giant kaiju shrimp! Love it!"
Thank you, Justin. Bon apetit.
Mod
Delighted for you both, Jot! Best wishes!
Mod
Mod
Well executed story, Justin. Good personal imagery. The twist worked well. (I'm still not sure what "headlights" are supposed to be -- eyes, or...well, perhaps best not to dwell on it.) The closing line was perfect.****
Jot - very moving vows and an effective and amusing story.
****
Humor seems to be the strength of this month's entries.
Thanks Tom! I revised the title from Latest Model Year to New Model Year. Seems to flow a little better. I actually had an idea early on this month. I had to cut out a few bits and descriptive words I would have liked to keep, but such as it goes. I was afraid I crammed the ending into too short a space in the story so I'm glad you like the closing line.
Done. Just under the wire. I've been putting solar panels on my roof. Turned out to be quite a project but nearing completion of the PV array. still have wiring to do in the basement, but the big part was the roof.
Greg wrote: "Done. Just under the wire. I've been putting solar panels on my roof. Turned out to be quite a project but nearing completion of the PV array. still have wiring to do in the basement, but the big..."
Hey Greg,
Do you have storage batteries, or are they just to help reduce your overall draw from the grid?
Mod
Good story, Greg.Direct and to the point. Potent as a bullet to the groin. I liked it.
On the subject of Solar Power:My panels were 44 x 66", about 70 pounds each. I used a homemade hoist to get them to the second story roof.
My system is rated at 5kW and is grid-tied (no batteries) so it only operates when the grid is up (no provision for backup power). The batteries would have been more than 50% of the cost, but, if the power was less reliable (99.9% uptime) the batteries might have been worth it.
By installing myself, I saved about $5,000. The system cost about $10,000 and I should get 30% back as a federal tax credit.
The panels were JA Solar, the optimizers and inverter was from Solar Edge and the mounting racks were Iron Ridge.
The distributer/engineering/etc. company was Unbound Solar
Getting permits took some time, but I was able to register as both the owner and installer.
Not online yet. A few more weeks...
I want to re-write "Sunshine on My Shoulders" as "Sunshine on My Rooftop"
Greg wrote: "On the subject of Solar Power:My panels were 44 x 66", about 70 pounds each. I used a homemade hoist to get them to the second story roof.
My system is rated at 5kW and is grid-tied (no batterie..."
Wow, sounds like quite the set up. Maybe you get storage batteries in the future. Out where I live in Lake Stevens, WA, trees are always taking out power lines. I finally got a 50 amp outlet put on the side of my house and wired into my power panel. Now when it goes dark I turn everything off on my panel, flip to the new outlet, plug in my generator, then power my panel back up. I lost power for 37 hours last year during December and I basically had to stay up a couple nights to keep our wood burning stove going so the house didn't get cold. It's tough when all your heat and hot water is electric. Hope your system lets you use less from the grid and more from the sun!
I'm surprised that/if there's no rural electric co-op out there, Justin! When I lived out in a rural county in Oregon a few years ago, the rural electrip co-op was just phenomally good--and faast--at keeping the grid running even after big storms/snowstorms! --In any case, I am very impressed that you could, and knew how to, establish your new power system by "[finally getting] a 50 amp outlet put on the side of my house and wired into my power panel" so that [n]ow when it goes dark I turn everything off on my panel, flip to the new outlet, plug in my generator, then power my panel back up." Not a trivial achievement.
Congratulations on getting married Jot!
Mod
Elements: Nail biter (survival at stake); Synchronicity