Ten minute writing exercise

I am sure most writers who have been writing for a while and have been to countless classes and workshops have done a thousand writing exercises. I have not.

So I went online to find some and stumbled upon several at About.com. So, I thought I'd give one a try.

I am putting my timer on for 10 minutes. And the only requirements are: it needs to be ten lines, using and modifying a phrase, I chose 'a needle in a haystack,' and using these five words...cliff, blackberry, needle, cloud, voice, mother, whir, lick. Here I go...


A Needle in a Haystack
I was going to check my blackberry to locate the needle,
but my phone had fallen off a cliff
I called in the loudest voice I could to my mother,
but her head was in a cloud.
I'm sure my voice was nothing but a whir to her,
and she couldn't care a lick about
finding my cell among thousands of rocks.

Get it? The phone has become the needle in the haystack-- I mean rocks. I know sophomoric, but a fun exercise.

Now, I'm off to paint my daughter some artwork for her bedroom walls.