Character Practice - VF

(Preface - I really am struggling to stay faithful to the character I have created for my book. I like her generally speaking but she is different than me - I'm judgmental - I keep coming into situations that, I guess, are out of my comfort zone - and I disapprove of how my character's nature ends up leading her to respond . . . so I actually rewrite her. I've done it over and over. Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite (5 time so far I've redone my whole character) I need to stop. I need to just accept that my character is not ME. So - outside of the plot of my ongoing story I'm writing this as a practice to try to get over my hurdle: write my character into a situation with behavior I don't approve of

My given writing prompt for this exercise - a situation she wants to be in that I would avoid at all costs: Free day at the zoo. - because my character doesn't like to be alone. I do. So dangit-when she is ALONE unexpectedly she seeks out things to do with PEOPLE (ugh!) - so of course she goes to the zoo when there's free admission! Of course she does.

See the difficulty - I cannot make her a recluse like me becaues then that makes it no story at all. No one's going to read about a recluse who does nothing - how would she ever meet her boyfriend? LOL! So - that's why I cannot keep trying to change her and change her.)

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The Zoo

He called to tell me he would be late. I groaned in frustration and annoyance. I had this day planned out to be fully occupied for the entire day--not a minute down, not a minute alone. So much for that plan.

"You'll be ok, won't you?" He asked--he knew me, he knew how I was.
"Of course, I have plenty to keep me busy." What a liar I was.

I had nothing to keep me busy, I had done it all already. I paced the living room, the walls started to feel like they were closing in on me. I started humming a tune, but it just reminded me of Chad--the one person I didn't want to think about right now. What with his 'I'm sorry, it's not you it's me.' bull. I tried to change the subject of my mental chatter--that was pointless.

I couldn't stand to be here anymore. I had to get out. What to do? Where to go?

I mulled it over a for a while and eventually remembered what Marsha had said they were planning on doing with the kids; it was free-day at the zoo. Perfect. Never too old, or too screwed in the head, for that sort of thing.

***

The crowd was so thick I couldn't see my way around. I was just going with the flow of foot traffic, letting the rhythm of the crowd guide me. I had only a vague sense of where I was from memories in the past, being here will much less people, and a cartoon map. Right now, I decided, I was near the gorilla exhibit. I was too short to be able to peek up and over people, I was only met with shoulders and backs--and one tall man's nicely clad but--as I made my way through

Children in strollers being pushed by overanxious mothers. Fathers with tots hoisted up onto their shoulders. Everyone was either happy or stressed. I was so busy people watching I didn't have much time to animal watch--they were harder to see, anyway, what with the crowd and all.

An elephant trumpeted in the distance, a peacock screeched. I was so focused on figuring out where I was and where I wanted to try to get to that I didn't have time to think about him. That was the point, mission accomplished. he was so thick in my thoughts I felt like I was living in a Chad induced haze.

Now, though--now it was time to admire the empty field where the great wolves were--but was just met with an empty lot filed with food troughs and a balls. Did you know that great wolves played with balls? I didn't--learn something new every day.

Walk, wait, squeeze, peek, wait. The ebb of the crowd eventually dumped me out near the bear house. Fat, happy, lounging specimens. They didn't mind being alone and having distance. I think they preferred it. They were all about distance--but, huge husky distance lovers. Not like me. They were content, though. One playfully pawed at the water no doubt wanting the crystal blue to boast a fish or two, big juicy meaty ones he could snag out and sink his teeth into. Another rolled onto his side almost like a dog. If he had a tail he'd wag it. His mouth lolled open, probably an atrocious smelling cavity but from a distance he just looked pleasantly comfortable.

The next stop was the primate house, and then the reptiles. More loners. More distance lovers. It was kind of depressing seeing them caged and separated from others. A lone animal here, a lone animal there. I worked my way against the tide of people and out, almost like cars in traffic--I was Frogger trying not to get hit.

Yes, here, with all of the people--I remembered the city. Holiday traffic, people things, Day-this, Event-that. That was home. Here, though, I had to find ways to be around others. I had to hunt them out. Hard work for a small town such as this. Again, I wondered what on earth I was doing when I decided that moving here would be good--in with my brother of all people.

I spent as much time as the zoo as allowable--I made my way around to the front gate eventually. Maybe after three hours, small zoo. Reluctantly, it was time to go. In and hour Zach would be stopping by to help me get my new front door into place...

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Alright - that wasn't too bad to manage. There she is liking people and a busy place I wouldn't step a foot into. If I do a few more like this I'll be able to better tolerate writing these types of situations.