It’s time for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by our fairy blog mother Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. This week’s photo was provided by Al Forbes. Thanks, Al.
All are welcome to join in. The challenge is to write a 100-word story based on the photo. Give it a try.
I learned from a news story that driverless cars are not so far away. They say 10 years or less. Are you ready?
(100 words)
Road Fever
The Otto-Moto Driverless Car was Kevin’s solution for his sanity. He could sleep, eat, read, text, whatever the hell he wanted. Simply stress-free. No more anger. Not to mention, no more annoying searches for lost keys.
His driver Otto was more than willing to please. Driven by voice command, Otto was keenly aware, if not downright clairvoyant. When Kevin was near, the doors unlocked.
“Drive to work,” Kevin said. Otto ignored him. “Hey, wrong turn. Where are you going?”
“None of your business,” replied Otto. He proceeded to ram another driverless car off the road. “Punk. Learn how to drive.”
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For more stories from the Fictioneers, click here.
Check out my post about Rochelle’s novel Please Say Kaddish for Me. You’ll love this book! If you haven’t already read it, you really should. I know you’ll enjoy it.
Oh dear… Otto has attitude…
That was fun!
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I’m afraid so! Maybe Kevin can do the factory reset on him. Thanks, Dale.
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bahaha Otto was given a bit too much freedom, I reckon. Bit surprised he waited for Kevin in the first place. 🙂 Nicely done.
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Haha. That’s true! He doesn’t even need Kevin. Thanks so much.
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I think Otto wants some freedom… A world where cyber cars have their own will sounds chilling to me .
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This is light, but I’m hoping you felt a little chill, too. Thank you, Bjorn. The whole driverless thing seems so strange. I think I’d rather ride a train.
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Ha ha, oh dear OTTO has taken control! Cool
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It appears so. This is one OTTO you don’t want to mess with. Thanks, Laurie.
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Well you really made me laugh, thank you, great story.
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Oh, good! I’m glad it made you laugh. Thanks, Michael.
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Road rage is inevitable, I suppose. I think Stephen King should hook Otto up with Christine.
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Ha! Yes, Christine crossed my mind while I wrote this. I bet Christine would have some tricks up her sleeve that might surprise Otto. I don’t think she would be a good influence on him.
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You’re right. Though they have the murderous rage in common, Otto probably doesn’t want a clingy girlfriend with trust issues. 🙂
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Hahaha! So true. She’s definitely clingy!
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Dear Amy,
That last line had me laughing out loud. (After writing a particularly heavy chapter, I needed that. 😉 ) Robot road rage. Classic. Naturally it’s Otto and not Olive. Clever, girlfriend, very clever.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Good to hear, Rochelle. It’s the little laughs that always get me through the heaviness. Glad I could help out. Is Olive the Disney car? Well, you can guess Otto was not a product of Disney. Thank you.
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Dear Amy,
I just pulled the name Olive out of a hat as the female alternative to Otto. (And it happens to be my granddaughter’s name.) Leave it to the male of the species to have road rage…any species.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Oh, I see. I really didn’t think about the female name of cars and ships. Did you know that Olive happens to be the name of a robot car made by Disney? What a coincidence! I love the name Olive! But now I definitely don’t want this car to have that name since it’s your granddaughter’s name. I agree that it makes more sense for the car to be masculine in this scenario. Thanks for your thoughts!
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Hahaha. I love it. Driving brings out the worst in us, whether we are machines or flesh doesn’t matter. What a fun twist. A bit disappointing, I’ve really been looking forward to driverless cars. 😉
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Thanks, Gah. I’m pretty pro-technology, but I know it comes at a price. Hopefully, nothing like this! It was the weirdest discussion on the radio. They talked about whether drivers of driverless cars (and how strange it this?) will need to get licenses. Hmm.
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I hear you on the hmm and add an oh. There’s gotta be a hell of new bureaucracy. Accredited driverless car…
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Just think of all the new laws, Gah. And they’ll probably be blurry ones. Accredited driverless cars, that’s a good one!
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I am not ready for them and I have a foreboding feeling that some may be like Otto. But then again, maybe nothing can go wrong…go wrong…go wrong.
Provocative little piece of writing there, Amy–very nice! Happy weekend!
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I feel strange about them, too. I can see how younger generations, especially if they grow up with them, will probably think they’re no big deal! I will need some time to adjust.
Thanks, Brigitte! You too. Have a great weekend!
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Otto has taken over! Kind of like Siri with an attitude! Fun read, Amy! Hopefully when the day of driverless cars comes, we will see fewer accidents, but I think I would miss driving as well. Hope you have a good weekend! 🙂
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Thanks so much, Kelly. That’s a good point. I think I would miss driving, too. What I wonder about is whether there would be cars with and without drivers alongside each other. That seems even more strange! We’ll see what happens. I can’t believe it’s that close, but I’m sure it will take a while to happen. I hope you have a great weekend, too. 🙂
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I would assume it would be a blend to begin with… and probably a choice when you used it… would be nice for long commutes and sure would help with traffic jams when you think about it! xo
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It would be like your own private train. I’m having a hard time imaging this scene for a freeway. I can see it with city driving no problem. Going at high speeds with an invisible driver would be weird. Other than that, you could get stuff done. Maybe get some writing in! xox
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ha ha. Never have robots learn from humans. Nice story.
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Thanks, Ansumani. Right and they’re picking up the bad stuff! Glad you enjoyed it.
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i guess otto is not ready for prime time. 😦
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I guess not. I think he has some faulty wiring, Plaridel.
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I was worried about driverless cars, but this one sounds like fun! Just like a real driver 🙂
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Oh, this doesn’t make you worry! I guess so long as no one gets killed. Honestly, driving along at a slow speed in a driverless car is not too worrisome. It’s the high speeds that I worry about. But I’m sure everything will be fine, right? 🙂 Thanks, Ali.
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Yeah, everything will be just fine. And I’m sure they’ll be completely unhackable… 🙂
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I love the name Otto for an auto, although ships and cars are generally given female names as terms of affection. Artificial intelligence is a big thing these days, so it only seems natural for these machines to develop a less-than-lovely side. A very entertaining piece, Amy. I got a good laugh out of this one.
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I guess it’s kind of a play on Auto as a word. I totally forgot that ships and car are given female names. I guess it can be Otta instead! That’s kind of funny. Come to think of it, Russell, I’ve always given my cars female names. Pearl, Esmeralda and now Sapphire. See a common theme? I worry about the machine take over in a kind of fun, distant way. Some take it pretty seriously though. I’m glad I could make you laugh! Thank you.
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Otto seems to be the four wheeled version of Hal, Amy. I don’t think I’m ready for driverless cars, although I will say that I love the keyless entry feature on my new Jeep Cherokee. As long as my keys are in my purse I can open and lock the car without ever having to take them out. And I haven’t lost my keys once since getting the new car! 🙂
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I hear about these keyless features. I think I could used to this. I’m glad you’re enjoying your new Jeep, Cathy. Just don’t let it near Otto!
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That may still end up being his solution to road rage. He may see himself in Otto and not like what he sees. Fun story!
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That’s true, Adam. Maybe Kevin will be on his best behavior from now on. Thanks!
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Nice – not sure I’m ready for a driverless car!
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Thank you! Me neither.
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If you’d given the car a female name, everyone would have been complaining about PMS. But I like the sound of Otto, anyway – a car with attitude,
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Right, Sandra. Haha. The cars would suddenly develop hormones, so intent in the quest to be human. I guess Otta could work, but I prefer Otto too. It definitely has the sound of a car with attitude, never mind that’s it not exactly a good one. 🙂
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Otto reminds me of my laptop. It does what it wants at times. A pretty scary thing that unnerves me all the time.
Spell check is the worst. It thinks for me. 😬 I like driving. I wouldn’t buy a driverless car.
But you’ve written a fun and frightening story …
Isadora 😎
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That’s funny, my laptop does strange things, too. It’s the ghost. I would probably miss driving, too. It would be weird to not have control of it. Thanks, Isadora. I love your name. 🙂
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Asimov’s Three laws don’t cover doing damage to another automaton, so this is surely acceptable behavior.
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Good to know. Whew! I’m glad Otto is in the clear. What happens if a human dies? Thanks for reading.
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Well, according to Asimov’s laws, a robot can do no harm to a human, so… not sure. Self destruct?
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I just hope they wouldn’t self-destruct if they’re carrying a human. Thanks.
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Amy – I sent you million kisses as you are the most energetic, complex deep blogger:)
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You’re so very kind, Mihran. Thank you. A million kisses back!
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Roadrage Otto, haha. And to think driverless cars aren’t safe in 2016…
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They’ll be here before we know it and I hope they’ll be safe. Our lives will be in their hands or in their wiring. Cross fingers. Thanks, Adam.
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Excellent! I have a terrible feeling that driverless cars are a disaster waiting to happen.
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Thank you! It is unfamiliar territory. I’m sure there will be some bumps along the way sorting it out.
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Hopefully no bumps that involve pedestrians
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Let’s hope so. They say they will reduce mortality rates.
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“reduce” doesn’t really cover it. A mortality rate of nil is about right
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What a bully! lol
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He is, isn’t he? He needs to learn some roadside manners. Thanks, Dawn!
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Ha! No, wait… I was hoping Otto would do away with all of the dillops on the road – and not become one!
Fun story, Amy!
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I want to believe that, too, Tom. I truly do. I hope it works out. Thank you!
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Otto needs to visit the workshop – soon!
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He needs a check up! Thanks, Liz.
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Heheheheh…
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Otto or not there will always be aggressive drivers on the road that will take you out.
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It sure seems that way, Michelle! There will always be Ottos. 🙂 Thanks for reading.
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Oh, no–automated road rage! A cautionary tale for us mere humans…. Well done!
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Thank so much, Jan!
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Loved it. What an ending! What do we expect, if we model artificial intelligences on human thinking?
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Very true, Margaret. I think we’re going to have lots of glitches this way. Thanks so much for reading and commenting.
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That was hilarious and scary at the same time, Amy. Looks like Otto was a muscle machine. He was really looking for trouble. A reset is definitely called for. He might resent it though and be worse than ever. Hal the computer comes to mind. Well done. 😀 — Suzanne
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Thanks so much, Suzanne. Otto needs a reset for sure! And it might not even take. You’re right! I’m glad you enjoyed my story.
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That made me laugh, Amy. Hopefully it will never be possible to modify driverless cars with personalities. Road rage is much worse when it’s the car who’s angry. It seems that driverless cars are inevitable, although it would be pretty scary at first, especially going 70mph down the highway. Of course, it’d give me more time to read. 🙂
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It’s frightening to think about, the driving at 70mph driverless, the mad car that’s lost control! I don’t know how I’m going to adjust to this one. But then think about all the reading we’d get in. That might be worth it! 🙂
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Perhaps his attitude has rubbed off on the car.
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Could be, could be. Eventually the machines might notice that kind of thing.
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Nothing worse than a machine with an attitude!
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We wouldn’t want to make them mad either. Thanks, Roger.
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That was too funny 😂😃😁
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Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.
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Ha ha I can see this actually happening in a few years’ time 😀
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Scary thought, isn’t it? Getting into a car could be risky!
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