Quarterly & Special Issues
January 15, 2022
It's official! The MockingOwl Roost is now one year old! We've got a brand new quarterly PDF issue for you to enjoy on the topic of exploration. New contributors and old, plus staff, share their views on exploration through poetry, fiction, essays, interviews, and more. Please enjoy!
January 13, 2022
At my library study carrel, I conjured scenes of children playing on rocky Andalusian shores and fishermen arranging their bountiful Mediterranean harvests. Vicente Aleixandre’s poem “Ciudad del paraíso”, translated as “City of Paradise” in English, transported me to Málaga, Spain where time stands as still as the mountains overlooking the sea below.
January 12, 2022
Many herbal teas by numerous brands cover the shelves of local grocery stores and fill out the aisles at little tea shops in cities like Chicago. Finding the right tea choice can be difficult, especially for newbies. However, seasoned tea-drinkers can struggle with finding new options when favorite blends stop circulating, too. I present Loyd Herbal Tea Mint with Cranberry and Herbs for anyone looking for good-quality, affordable herbal tea.
January 9, 2022
It turned into more than diving into the delicious queso dip we had to order every time we sat down. It became a time when we could sit across the table from each other and leave the day behind.
January 8, 2022
Almost time, always time to go somewhere, do whatever,
though I’d rather wait here longer,
January 7, 2022
“So this is the bunker?” Clarence said. “What about the bike?”
“If the main hatch opens I’ll pull it in. If not, it’s safe. No one steals a bike on Io. The dragons are all a little too big.”
“First time for everything,” Julia muttered and actually earned a few shared chuckles. She felt safer already with a roof overhead.
January 2, 2022
I’d heard Stellaris had received a small update. Something about a Horizon Signal spawning rarely in black hole systems. I’d never triggered it in any game prior and had religiously avoided spoilers. And in a game where I couldn’t reload, one weaponless science ship had just popped the event chain.
January 1, 2022
The snow whispers one word over and over…hope!
As it sings its song,
Fear is conquered.
Hope brings family together.
Hope motivates men of science to heal an isolated world.
January 1, 2022
Closing her eyes, Makenzie soaked it all in. These moments, this was what dreams were made of: moonlight walks along the ocean, a gorgeous man with an accent that made her go weak in the knees, a romantic backdrop that belonged in some cheesy romance novel… It was enough to make her giggle. Or maybe it was the wine.
December 31, 2021
Freefall. Icy, enervating, lacerating winds flipped her far away from Clarence. She fell forever, screaming, dying, and then straps dug into her diaphragm, squeezing what breath remained from her lungs. She drew a breath in barely and then another. Jupiter and Io had stopped swapping places. She looked up and saw her parachute had opened.
December 31, 2021
For me, being a part of MockingOwl Roost is part of a more significant thing that needed to be done within me, raising from the dead my ability to write.
December 30, 2021
The author tossed well-crafted twists that awakened me from complacency for the characters and set them to spinning out of control, recapturing my vigilance.
December 27, 2021
Even with a bit of a cold/flu for most of the month of November, I enjoyed the aroma of the tea as much as the taste. The delectable tea is soft yet cake-y in ways I wouldn’t have thought possible in a green rooibos, gluten-free cake-flavored tea.
December 25, 2021
I grew up in the ’60s.I believed in Santa Claus.We had a real tree every year with tinsel – real tinsel. And putting it up was a family affair. A tradition that continued into adulthood, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
December 25, 2021
Tonight is the night for mystery, and joy
I wander alone to the cove of pine trees
Bedecked in white sparkling gossamer...
December 24, 2021
Her brother was grinning. Despite her intention to remain jaded, Julia’s rebel breath caught. Here she’d thought their views would be restricted to the portholes pocking the side of the shuttle, but there was far more now to see; not only the vast expanse of stars glinting like diamonds by the thousands but the rim of massive Jupiter. And Io: terraformed.
December 24, 2021
Sometimes asking questions leads to a Christmas miracle.
December 22, 2021
“In November of 2021 the leading platform for podcasts was Spotify. They beat out Apple Podcasts, which was second place.”
December 22, 2021
Jingle bells sound off in one accord. Bright, flashing lights on hats and necklaces fill up the night with the feeling that Santa is waiting right around the corner.
December 18, 2021