Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday

Happy Thursday, friends! Today we are, of course, participating in the Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge.

Our hosts, the always handsome Angel Sammy and Teddy, give us a photo prompt each week, to guide our poetic endeavors. The photo prompt for this week is this fun image right here:

I won't lie, I've always been a bit wary of carnivals. It might be the clowns. I'm one of those people who gets a tad bit freaked out by clowns. Some of the carnivals I went to as a child seemed to run rampant with those fellas, and even just the sight of them sort of made me cringe. (No offense to any professional clowns out there! I'm sure you're awesome! You just sort of freak of me out.)

Anyway, the image above of course still seemed like lots of fun to me, and I certainly wanted to stick with the carnival theme. So, I thought of some things that I always liked about carnivals as a child. One of those things was, of course, cotton candy. Do you see that cotton candy stand in that image up there? That's where I would have been hanging out when I was a child! If I went to a carnival as a child, I also always went searching for a carousel. What's more, I always hoped one of the animal seats on the carousel was a big cat. If there was one, I'd always race to it.

Now that I've resorted to rambling, let's just get to the rhyming. First, though, I thought I'd warn you that I feel as if this poem has themes and events that are quite similar to those in a number of my other poems. I seem to get myself stuck in a bit of a rut when I write poetry, and they all start sounding the same. But, I hope you enjoy this one anyway.

Carrie and the Carousel

The carnival came to town on a Thursday.

One week was to be the length of its stay.

It brought with it all sorts of fun and games,

Like cotton candy, daunting rides, and tiny trains.

Little Carrie was a girl of eight,

And she visited the carnival one night quite late.

The cotton candy stand was her first stop,

And on that sweet goodness she did chomp.

If Carrie were to tell the truth,

She did not wish to visit the carnival's ticket booth.

To her, the rides seemed really quite scary.

They spun and spun and looked too daring.
She didn't want to go upside down and fly around,
Or to rise so high up off the ground.

Oh, and that clown over there?

He also gave Carrie a bit of a scare.

She enjoyed her sugary sweet cotton candy,

But that was the only part of this she really found dandy.

And so Carrie worked on her second sweet treat,

Looking for somewhere quiet to take a seat.

Though she could not find a bench anywhere in the disorder,

She did find a carousel with a sign that read, OUT OF ORDER.

No one was near the broken ride to tell her to scat,

And so Carrie took a seat on the back of a giant cat.

It appeared to be in the form of a tiger,

But she would only be sure if the moon shone a bit brighter.

 The giant cat was not the only carousel ride,

For there were also saddled horses frozen midstride.

They looked like statues posed midrace,

And Carrie could not help but study each and every face.

Carrie found herself wishing the carousel had not broken down,

For it seemed far more inviting than that frightening clown.

Wait, did that tiger having working ears?

Did it have the ability to hear?

Because the weight beneath Carrie suddenly shifted,

And the tiger said, "A ride on this carousel to you can be gifted."

Carrie gasped and jumped to her feet.

The tiger was no longer a mere carousel seat.

It turned its neck and looked her in the eye,

Saying, "My my! Aren't you spry!"

Carrie found herself completely in shock.

She could not move, and she could not talk.

So the tiger nodded its head and said,

"Do I really fill you with that much dread?"

Then the tiger let out a sigh,

Saying, "All right, then, goodbye."

"Wait!" Carrie managed to stutter and spew.

She admitted, "I'm really just very confused."

"I simply offered you a carousel ride,"

Was what the tiger said in reply.

"Do you think you would like that, miss?"

Carrie nodded, deciding that was an offer she could not dismiss.

The tiger instructed her to hop on its back.

With only a slight hesitation, Carrie did just that.

Immediately, a quaint little tune began to play,

And one of the horses even let out a neigh.

Round and round the carousel began to travel.

Its lights flickered on, and they glowed and dazzled.

Carrie could not help but smile.

She wished this ride would go on for miles.

Carrie never expected the upcoming trip,

Yet she felt a hop, jump, and a skip.

She suddenly realized they were at the carnival no more.

Were they, in fact, on an ocean shore?

That was all just the beginning.

This carousel ride left Carrie spinning and grinning.

Before she knew it, they were circling through a forest,

The carousel's tune singing along with a thousand crickets' chorus.

Oh, but that was not all.

Now they were circling a waterfall!

Then up and up a mountain they sailed,
And then, somehow, across a desert trail.

Carrie had never before been on a safari,
And most certainly not beneath a night sky so starry.
Yet, now she was seeing giraffes and a lion!
And look at those zebras and that great big bison!

So many sights there were to see.
Carrie did not wish to return to the land of the cotton candy.
But late it was and so back to the carnival the carousel traveled,
Carrying Carrie, the tiger, and the horses saddled.

Carrie was sad to see the journey end,
And she was reluctant to say goodbye to her new tiger friend.
That would not be Carrie's last trip to the carnival, though.
Indeed, on many more carousel rides she would go.

***

As much as she loves Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenges, Thimble says that's enough of that. It's her time to shine. After all, it's Thimble Thursday!

On days when the heat is mild and we don't all melt, we'll leave the front door open for a bit so that certain kitties can get their sun puddle fix. While Evan seems to enjoy the simplicity of just basking in the sun, Thimble often tends to get a bit more pensive. Sometimes she'll spend the entire time gazing outside, not moving a muscle, just pondering.

Thimble is always thankful for her quiet time, for her moments of silents. She is an independent womancat, and so she needs her time to think. That's why she's expressing her gratitude for peace and quiet fot Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Of course, all of us here have so much more for which to be thankful. We never cease to be grateful for all of you friends of ours.

***

Last but not least, we're here to help you prepare for tomorrow's Friendly Fill-Ins challenge! Ellen of 15andmeowing crafted up the first two fill-ins, and I thought up the second two.

1. As a child, I feared _________.

2. Friday the 13th _________.

3. I think _________ is my best quality.

4. You can't go wrong with _________.

We'll see you tomorrow, friends!

***

Our Tip of the Day:

Today's pet parenting hack of a tip is one to help you save on floor space. When it comes to storing some of your pet supplies—whether it be treats, canned food, medications, brushes, toys, or cleaning supplies, just to name a few—you can try using a shower caddy or other similar shelving system. You can even get shelving units that are meant to hang from a door, such as by a hook that goes over the top of door, to further save on both floor and wall space. Sometimes our furbabies come with a lot of supplies, and we have to find a place to put all of those items. So, as needed, think outside the box and find ways to use a variety of storage systems that will help save you on floor space or even wall space.