(75 word short story published on Paragraph Planet on Sunday 29-May-2016)

Papa left us with nothing except a tablecloth of scrubland. Mama tilled and toiled until it fed us.

Winter, she makes green spinach, served hot.

"Natalia," she says, "tell Yuri his soup is getting cold."

Summer, she makes red borscht, served cold.

"Natalia, tell Yuri his soup is getting warm."

Today, she made white bean broth, served at room temperature.

"Natalia," said Mama, "enough shouting. Let's you and me eat in peace."

The rules of 130Story are simple: given a random seed word, write a story in 130 characters.

Tailor

Ten long minutes he measured me yet never made a single note. Amazing, I said to the tailor. Not really, he said. You're a medium. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 27, 2016

Think

On her tiny trike or hover board or Heelys, she's a menace on our roads, hence that poster:
Think Once.
Think Twice.
Think Bjork.@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 26, 2016

Clip

Retail park via a texted postcode. Aisle 7, said the Post-It. By the treasury tags, drink was plentiful in the Staples clip joint. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 25, 2016

Crowd

Poetry night at the Port Authority Social Club. Tough crowd. Longfellow goes down a storm. Woe betide anyone attempting Masefield. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 24, 2016

Sparse

Time to sit my German lit.
Revision notes were sparse
Mann and Hesse I didn't get
And yet I scraped a pass
Danke, Gunter Grass@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 24, 2016

More to follow.

Not often that I notice stuff and yet, locking my bike, observant old me noticed that the mahoosive pics of wraps and burgers on the mahoosive Tesco were no more. Seems that troubled Mr Tesco is offloading Giraffe -- the neck! -- and replacing its in-house eateries. Return to Mount Eurest, perhaps?

Those marketing guys and gals have been locked away for weeks. Eventually their self-appointed leader emerged, crumpled a can of Red Bull, and said "We've got it. We've got the name. We're going to call it ... The Cafe."

Same Giraffe layout and the exotic prints have been pasted over by huge canvas prints of flat whites and scones. Disappointingly, breakfast is only served until noon leaving light bites (soup, jackets, wraps) and lunch (lasagne, pasta, sausages, burgers), probably more in keeping with the Tesco demographic. Go elsewhere for your poncy San Pellegrino.

To be honest, my BBQ chicken panini (with cheeky chips on the side) is OK and let's award five points for the proper Heinz ketchup gracing the table. Adventurous Kev's gone for the goat's cheese flatbread, get him, which he says is tasty if modestly sized. Andy's plate? He's too busy these days, appaz. Quite like the spotty red typography and those M&S-like slabs of carrot cake look appealing. Another day, to be sampled with an as-advertised "hand-crafted coffee".

If it was a car -- Honda Accord.
If they were passing by -- Ben Miller.

The rules of 130Story are simple: given a random seed word, write a story in 130 characters.

Fine

Each deck shone. Two inspectors arrived, one fat with a moustache, one thin. "This," said the larger one, "is another fine mess." @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 20, 2016

Sip

Fridays, I sip my way through cans of Barr lemonade, limeade, appleade, raspberryade and orangeade. They're my 5-a-day.@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 19, 2016

Digit

That LED model? Wow. And that one no bigger than a credit card? Fab. But that Casio with the ten (!) digit display? Blew my mind. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 17, 2016

Police

Those Twinings drivers use our road as a cut through. Today, one overturned. Gridlock, with police and tea leaves in the street. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 16, 2016

More to follow.

We keep meaning to head down this-a-way. Truth be told, you need the weather on your side if you're going to risk an alfreso lunch, and today looks OK if a tad brisk. Andy pulls over this side of the refurbed coastguard tower leaving YT to jog half a mile into so-called Martello Park where, happily, there stand not one but two eating spots. One's open. That'll suffice.

From the French "kiosque", a bandstand, North Kiosk (board says Georgie's) is doing business on this breezy Friday. Hardy Felix folk are seated and supping. Flying rings, beach windmills and colourful buckets are on sale. Precious little savoury food, alas. Not really their bag, I guess. Kettle chips, it is, with the need to hang on to the pack lest those tasty potato slices sail off towards the continent.

Short walk back past the retro Fab upright bin for sweet stuff. Now we're talking. Various pre-wrapped offerings but good to see a selection of freshly made curiously cuboid cakes on the counter. Vic sponge and piece of chocolate, if you please, both decent with a better than expected push-button latte. So, a far cry from The Dip though perfectly fine if you're up this end of town.

Still in need of salt, we called in at Huckleberrys on Beach Station Road for some fine takeaway baps. Sad to hear that mother and daughter are selling up after many years. Best of luck to both of them.

If it was a car -- Vauxhall Movano.
If they were passing by -- Tim Key.

The rules of 130Story are simple: given a random seed word, write a story in 130 characters.

True

Stroll around Tony's garden and he'll bore you rigid with his fully organic compost. "I know," says Tony, "this mulch is true." @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 13, 2016

Risk

She'd booked a last minute boutique B&B, then mentioned "domination". His job to pack. Book? No book? Should he take the Risk? @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 10, 2016

Poem

This Tangfastic poem
Has a Haribo habit
Especially Maoam@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 10, 2016

More to follow.

The rules of 130Story are simple: given a random seed word, write a story in 130 characters.

Drone

By day, top scientist Darius One toils in his soundproof lab.
By night, Dr One deploys sonic weapons to fight crime as The Drone! @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 6, 2016

Crown

With over 13m YouTube followers, Chocella is anything but soft-centred. Today, she says, I'm going to make a crown of Thorntons. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 6, 2016

Bend

Books, Bob lends
Rules, Bob bends
Bob's a libertarian librarian
If you're late
He'll say that's great
At least you brought it back@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 5, 2016

Cat

Ordering tapas, he impresses her father with his translation skills. They have their uses, those multilingual sachets of cat food. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 3, 2016

Crack

In bible studies, our new priest, Dave, got us to cut up photocopied hymns, then jumble the lines. We call him the cracked rector. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 2, 2016

More to follow.

The rules of 130Story are simple: given a random seed word, write a story in 130 characters.

Sheet

Ray's dying wish? City to keep a clean sheet. Ended 2-0, Ray, says Paula. He smiles and is gone. She doesn't say who got the two. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) May 1, 2016

One

Before sitting down, she removed her guitar, harmonica and bass drum. "Hi," she said. "I'm Unity." I could tell she was the one. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) April 28, 2016

Saint

Vatican officials have said that an "admin error" led to Norman Peters, the celebrated human cannonball, being pronounced a saint @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) April 28, 2016

Claw

They offered Greg any toy "on the house". He declined. Greg inserts another 50p and guides the claw. That plush Mario will be his. @130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) April 26, 2016

Poster

In halls
My walls
Were mostly poster
Repo Man &
Pet Shop Boys &
Art Of Noise &
Marquee Moon
With pride of place to Paddy McAloon@130story

— Ed Broom (@edbroom) April 26, 2016

More to follow.