Tag Archives: Dog Days of Advent

TBM-2512.03 – Dog Days of Advent: Orbit

by

DDOA-03

Description:

Welcome to the Dog Days of Advent. I made a list of prompts, and wrote a bite-sized story for each one. They don’t live in the same universe, but they’re all a little off-kilter from what you might expect from holiday fare. And if you pay attention, you’ll notice that the last line of each story becomes the first line of the next. Today’s prompt is orbit.

Excerpt:

Below her, ribbons of green and violet curl across the poles, shimmering like breath against the night. It’s not the first aurora she’s seen from orbit, but this one feels different — brighter, alive. She thinks of the Christmas lights her father used to hang along the eaves of their house, blinking patterns that never quite synced. He’d laugh every year and say, “Perfection’s overrated, sweetheart. Just make it shine.”

Episode Cast:

Melissa A. Bartell

Links and References

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid blog header art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects and Music are from Freesound and UppBeat

Contact:

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:14 — 6.2MB)

TBM-2512.02 – Dog Days of Advent: Hearth

by

DDOA-02

Description:

Welcome to the Dog Days of Advent. I made a list of prompts, and wrote a bite-sized story for each one. They don’t live in the same universe, but they’re all a little off-kilter from what you might expect from holiday fare. And if you pay attention, you’ll notice that the last line of each story becomes the first line of the next. Today’s prompt is hearth.

Excerpt:

Outside, the church bells strike midnight — exactly on time.

Inside the café, the world softens around the edges. The espresso machine has gone quiet, its metal belly releasing one last sigh of steam. She wipes down the counter in slow, practiced circles. When she finishes, she pours herself a small mug from what remains in the pot — lukewarm, but still comforting — and brings it with her as she turns.

Episode Cast:

Melissa A. Bartell

Links and References

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid blog header art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects and Music are from Freesound and UppBeat

Contact:

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:08 — 7.5MB)

TBM-2512.01 – Dog Days of Advent: Clock

by

DDOA-01

Description:

Welcome to the Dog Days of Advent. I made a list of prompts, and wrote a bite-sized story for each one. They don’t live in the same universe, but they’re all a little off-kilter from what you might expect from holiday fare. And if you pay attention, you’ll notice that the last line of each story becomes the first line of the next. Today’s prompt is “clock.”

Excerpt:

Time, for her, is elastic. Sometimes it stretches, gossamer-thin, like taffy pulled too far, and she can walk its length to touch the moment when her mother bent to kiss her scraped knee, or the instant she first realized she’d fallen in love. Other times it snaps tight and whips her forward, years ahead, where she sees a conversation that hasn’t happened yet, the face of a friend she hasn’t met.

Episode Cast:

Melissa A. Bartell

Links and References

Transcript: Clock 

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid blog header art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound and UppBeat

Contact:

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:34 — 7.3MB)

Prayer for the Morning

TBM-2501.01 – Prayer for the Morning

by

Prayer for the Morning

 

Description:

#audio #talesfromthetub #socialjustice #AudetteFulbrightFulson #WomenofDDOP #WomenofDogDaysofPodcasting #collaborativereading

Excerpt:

Today marks the advent of the new year – 2025. Much of the world is on edge as we wait for what might happen, and hope for the best.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

Amelia Bowen
Charlotte Kennedy
JS Diehl
Nuchtchas

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.
  • Special production assistance by Clay Robeson

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:03 — 3.4MB)

TBM-2412.28 – Dogfish Days of Advent – Mermaid Minute: ChristmasTide

by

Riptide

 

Description:

#audio #mermaidminute #holiday #humor  #mermaidlore

Excerpt:

Mermaids know all about tides, but Christmastide is confusing.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 5:22 — 5.8MB)

Cardinal Sacrifice

TBM-2412.24 – DogFish Days of Advent – Sacrificial

by

Cardinal Sacrifice

Description:

#audio #flashfiction #christmas #christmastree #ornaments #spooky

Excerpt:

Mermaids don’t send Christmas cards because paper and saltwater do not mix well.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 7:14 — 7.5MB)

Mermaid Minute

TBM-2412.23 – Dogfish Days of Advent – Christmas Shards

by

Advent_Mermaid_by_Nutty

Description:

#audio #mermaidadvent #mermaidlore  #dogdaysofpodcasting  #dogdaysofadvent #dogfishdaysofadvent #humor #mermaidminute

Excerpt:

Mermaids don’t send Christmas cards because paper and saltwater do not mix well.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:14 — 3.5MB)

TBM-2412.19 – Dogfish Days of Advent – We Mermen of Ocean Are

by

Advent_Mermaid_by_Nutty

 

 

Description:

#audio #mermaidadvent #mermaidcarols  #dogdaysofpodcasting  #dogdaysofadvent #dogfishdaysofadvent

Excerpt:

We  mermen of deep ocean are,

Bearing gifts, we swim  from afar

Through coves and eddies,

Past rock jetties

We follow the great sea star

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:40 — 3.9MB)

Winter Flame

TBM-2412.17 – Dogfish Days of Advent: Flames of Winter

by

Winter Flame

Description:

#audio #essay   #dogdaysofpodcasting  #dogdaysofadvent #dogfishdaysofadvent

Excerpt:

And yet, these winter holidays all have something in common as well – aside from the tendency to celebrate with incredibly delicious, albeit unhealthy foods. They all bring light to the longest nights of the year.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 4:33 — 4.7MB)

Sandy Klaws

TBM-2412.16 – Dogfish Days of Advent: Sandy Klaws Is Coming To Town

by

Sandy Klaws

Description:

#audio #parody #mermaidadvent #mermaidlcarols   #dogdaysofpodcasting  #dogdaysofadvent #dogfishdaysofadvent

Excerpt:

Oh, you better not splash, you better not wail.
Better keep flippin’ that shimmering tail.
Sandy Klaws is comin’ to town.

Links and References

Guest Voices:

N/A

Support:

The Bathtub Mermaid is now on Patreon! If you like the stories and essays I share, and want to have occasional visits from Me-Me del Mare, please consider subscribing.

Credits:

  • The Bathtub Mermaid: Tales from the Tub is written and produced by Melissa A. Bartell, and is recorded and produced using the Auphonic iPhone app and Audacity.
  • Bathtub Mermaid album art was created by Rebecca Moran of Moran Media
  • Sound Effects are from Freesound.

Contact:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:31 — 3.6MB)