avatarRaine Lore

Summary

The article is a humorous take on the concept of bucket lists and introduces the term "fucket list," with a focus on the personal reflections and musings of the author regarding life goals and desires, particularly in the context of the Year of the Rabbit.

Abstract

The author of the article playfully addresses the idea of bucket lists by first listing various types of buckets, then revealing a personal and secret ambition that remains undisclosed to avoid jinxing it. The piece transitions into the concept of a "fucket list," which represents things the author dismisses due to lack of enjoyment or fulfillment. The narrative is interwoven with a fictional dialogue between a rabbit and a monkey, humorously discussing the significance of the Year of the Rabbit and the implications for rabbits in the grand scheme of things, including cultural and religious references to animals like monkeys and cows. The article concludes by acknowledging contributions from other writers on the theme of bucket and "fucket" lists, emphasizing the importance of focusing on what truly matters in life.

Opinions

  • The author expresses a sense of completion and contentment with life, as indicated by the short bucket list and the dismissive "fucket" attitude towards unfulfilling activities.
  • There is a humorous critique of societal norms and religious practices that elevate certain animals, such as monkeys and cows, while rabbits seek recognition during their designated year.
  • The author values privacy and superstition, choosing not to reveal a personal ambition for fear of jeopardizing its fulfillment.
  • The fictional conversation between the rabbit and the monkey serves as a satirical commentary on the fleeting nature of fame and the potential for unintended consequences, such as rabbit stew becoming popular in the following year.
  • The article suggests a preference for experiences that are fun, uplifting, joyful, educational, or creative, aligning with the author's personal values and OCD tendencies.
  • The author shows gratitude towards readers for engaging with the content and acknowledges the work of peers who have also written on the topic of bucket lists with their unique perspectives.

AN EVERYTHING FUN PROMPT RESPONSE

The Year of the Rabbit

My bucket’s old and empty and I don’t give a rat’s!

Images available from Pixabay — arrangement and additions by author

Fucket and bucket lists

I’m a little late to this party — sorry/not sorry, lovely Everything Fun editors, but in the spirit of this exercise — I say, fucket!

So, we are supposed to write lists for both our buckets and our fuckets.

Bucket List

Let me start by examining the idea of a list of buckets. I don’t think this is going to be very long:

Metal buckets Plastic buckets Milk buckets Backhoe buckets Ice buckets Mop buckets Buckets with holes, as in, There’s a Hole in The Bucket

I’m sure there are many more types of buckets but don’t go filling up my response column with stupid bucket suggestions — boring!!

I am fully aware that the prompt is suggesting a bucket list of desires to be completed in one’s lifetime.

This is also going to be abysmally short because I am old, have completed most of my buckets and so, once again, fucket!

There is, however, one, miserable, lonely little item languishing in the bottom of my rusty, disused bucket. Unfortunately, for this story, I am not sharing it with you because it’s a private and secret ambition.

I am afraid if I share it with the world, I might jinx the universe thereby stuffing up the magic of the bucket, so to speak.

I am old, and like water in the proverbial bucket with a hole, time is running out. I can’t afford the time and energy to grovel at the feet of whatever power it is that manifests secret desires just because external forces are jeopardising my efforts.

So, sorry/not sorry, lovely readers but in the spirit of this exercise — I say, fucket to revealing my last, lonely bucket item!

Fucket List

Oh, goody — we’re up to the fun part but as I once mentioned to the marvellous but potty-mouthed Krystal, at my age, I have learned to say fucket to absolutely everything that isn’t fun, uplifting, joyful, educational, creative, or falls into a category that my OCD won’t allow me to ignore.

In the OCD instances, I say fucket to the fact that I must obey my instincts to straighten edges, pat pillows, clean the lint from Dee’s navel and generally have everything ship-shape and tickety-boo.

I keep saying fucket! until all my chores are complete. Please don’t call me a potty-mouth — I am merely saying bucket with an ef. Okay?

For those of you who have waded through this rubbish up to here, I say, a big THANK YOU! for your devotion to the cause. I am now going to reward you with a little bit of fiction that I am counting on to lift my garbage out of this writing quagmire and into the almost, but not quite, barely readable.

The Year of the Rabbit

Once upon a time, a rabbit and a monkey were sitting in a tin bath.

I wanted to justify my header image!

“Did you know,” announced the rabbit, thoughtfully twirling his whiskers, “that 2023 is the Year of the rabbit?”

“Really?!” exclaimed the monkey.

I think that just about does it with image justification. Don’t you?

Oh, except for the stupid cow in the background sucking on its own tail!

“Moo,” lowed the cow, wondering why she had a tail stuck in her milk teeth, “I don’t care, fucket! My bucket’s empty!”

All done with the image stuff now! Phew! I’m sick of writing on a slant!

“I am dreadfully excited,” Rabbit declared.

“Really?!” exclaimed the monkey, wishing he had more than a one-word, bit-part response.

He vowed to take it up with the idiot writer, Raine Lore. Perhaps the Monkey Actors’ Guild would start a class action against crappy authors, rabbits, and cows. Would serve the bloody lot of them right!

“All my life, I have watched on with envy as people revered sacred monkeys in India! Even Indonesia has a sacred monkey forest! What’s so special about you guys, anyway?” implored Rabbit.

“Really?! exclaimed Monkey, while thinking how special he was because he was almost like a human and had brains and an opposing thumb.

“Not only that,” continued the pathetic Rabbit, “the religion, Hinduism, holds cows as sacred animals! It’s not fair! There is even an expression, “a sacred cow”, which means something is above criticism or judgement. I always thought something should be done about animal discrimination!”

Rabbit scratched his left ear and then returned to twisting his whiskers in agitation.

“Really?! exclaimed Monkey, still mentally cursing RL for her lack of imagination regarding his lines.

“And now it is happening!” screamed Rabbit, putting the farm’s chickens off the lay for two weeks.

“It’s 2023, the Year of the Rabbit!”

Monkey unenthusiastically uttered his usual one word, without so much as an exclamation mark.

“Oh, I know, rabbits have Easter,” grizzled Rabbit, “but let’s face it, Easter is a celebration honouring Jesus and rebirth and, for the non-religious, it’s a festival of gluttony involving pretend eggs made of cocoa, milk and sugar. Blah!

Sure, rabbits get to carry the eggs and hide them and stuff but that’s no more than work without pay. Hardly a revered position. I mean, one time the Rabbit Labour Union stepped in and prevented rabbits from Easter duties. People just found replacements. Australia, for one, came up with a stupid chocolate bilby. Ridiculous!”

Rabbit primped and preened and waited for Monkey’s usual response. When none came, he carried on with his tirade.

“Whoop! Whoop! Now there’s a whole year when rabbits will be honoured and spoken of in hushed tones, and humans will look us up on their devices to read all about water and earth and gold and wood and fire signs, to see what rabbit they are!”

“For once in a very long time, we will be revered!”

Monkey remained sullenly quiet.

Surprised by the non-occurrence of, “Really?!” Rabbit stared at his companion questioningly.

The little primate suddenly became animated — had RL heard about his class action?

“Really?” he cried, waving his skinny arms in the air. “And what do you think will happen in 2024?”

Rabbit shrugged his shoulders. “We will have had our moment in the sun.” he smugly smiled, but was secretly surprised that RL had given Monkey a bigger part.

Monkey leapt up and down excitedly in the tin bath, screeching and creating so much noise, the chickens gave up the lay altogether.

“2024 is the Year of the Dragon, but everyone will still have rabbits on their mind and most likely, they will all be hankering for a taste of rabbit stew!”

“Really?! exclaimed Rabbit in horror.

“Fucket,” lowed Cow. “My bucket’s still empty!”

Hollie Petit, Ph.D. gave us all something to think about with her prompt:

Toni the Talker added her bucket and phucket lists:

My Medium buddy, Krystal, gave us her potty-mouthed version:

Dani Montage stuck her middle finger up at every thing rotten:

Humor
Prompt Response
Nonsense
Fiction
Animals
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