Life in the fast lane--where's the on ramp?

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Monday, March 12, 2012

Spam, hackers and OMG

Few days ago I got one of those "failure to complete delivery" notices from my email provider -- for an email I hadn't sent. I deleted it. Then I got several queries from others on my list asking if I'd sent this. I wrote back no. I had horrible thoughts about a virus or some evil cookie that had... Sign in to see full entry.

Two down, two to go: my kids' March Birthdays

D, who needs to get out in the woods, turned 53 yesterday. Robin, my daughter in law school, turned 45 on March 5th. She looks 25, works out, runs, bikes, etc., but doesn't get much time for exercise when she's buried in the books 12 hours a day. "Joe" just got back from San Antonio and his son... Sign in to see full entry.

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Aboriginal Living

My oldest son D is one-eighth Cherokee. His father was one-quarter, but got pale sea-blue eyes from his mother's British forbears. D has those same blue eyes. Although he looks like so many greying, stocky white guys in their fifties, his Native American spirit looks to the natural world, the feel... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

The day I ran out of sympathy.

A year or three into the marriage, two babies, a job, housework, laundry, etc. and Fang got into the habit of pulling off his socks as he sat in front of the TV, dropping them beside the chair. He didn't help get supper on the table. Didn't clear up or wash a dish. Didn't do laundry. Complained... Sign in to see full entry.

Write On!

It may have been the '60s when the term "Right on!" became synonymous with the. It was a catchword, along with things like "keep on truckin' " and "peace." When I comment "Write On!" on someone's post, it's a big thumb's up. It means the writer really connected with this reader. It doesn't mean... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, March 9, 2012

Martha wrote

she wants to start up the writing group again. So we're meeting on Tuesday at Books-a-Million, each with five pages of our work. We'll exchange and do a critique, and a week or so later, we'll meet again to go over it. I lapsed out of the group a year ago because I wasn't learning about words and... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Damned if you do, damned if you don't

Lloyd K once told us to write like we were explaining our old familiar to some alien just arriving from Mars. Not everyone, he said, knows what you know. Just now I'm reading a Writers Digest article that says to respect the reader's intelligence, she can connect the dots, don't over-explain. Lloyd... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Ladies, Forget Rosie the Riveter.

Yes, we can, but there's no need... Once the Santorum-Romney team is elected, we won't have to worry our pretty little heads about... well, anything but keeping our man happy. I understand the first big improvement will eliminate the sales tax on aprons. And there will be tax writeoffs for... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Malcolm Gladwell, Nostradamus and the Mayan Calendar

Do you remember him? He's amazing. He came to fame with his book "The Tipping Point," which I had not read before I picked up "Outliers" from the featured table at Borders (I still miss my big Borders store). This second book explores why some people are wildly successful (like the Beatles and Bill... Sign in to see full entry.

Spring Cleaning, Writer Style.

Maybe this mood is inspired by "how-to" articles in Writer's Market. Maybe it's the springlike weather we're having. But I've been spring cleaning with a vengeance. First I revised "My Disco Ball is Broken" and took it from 50,000 words down to less than 45,000. I cut two of my favorite bits:... Sign in to see full entry.

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