Back in October I somehow found out about the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Competition. I don’t even remember how, or why I took the time to submit my novel. Part of me thinks it was because: a) I never expected it to go anywhere and b) It was easy: just upload and forget about it. Well,…
Category: Writing
This is not content.
Noodle, Revisited
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I’m behind on my blog reading, so I just caught up to Ms JeanGenie’s excellent post on Noodles this morning. I had a revelation about Obama and Clinton the other day that rocked my world. It occured in an off-the-cuff manner by a newsman who was just talking about the Democratic race. He said: “If he doesn’t…
For Achievement in Transformer Watching…
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The Oscar nominations were announced today and as I scrolled through the list I have to admit this: it took a LONG time before I got to one I’d seen. Fortunately, I made it to “Achievement in sound editing” category, where I spotted the resounding critical success, Transformers listed. Phew. This was starting to get…
Joyce Carol Oates 1, Professor Buttercup 0
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At the Quick Center in Fairfield yesterday (where I was invited generously by my new buddy Carol), a simple author event became a righteous example of what happens when you are a man-professor of a certain ilk, with certain ideas about the world, and you set your puffed-rice expectations against a heady, hidden genius. I…
Scary South Carolina
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On NPR this morning, there were many quotes from South Carolinans who are backing Huckabee because “JESUS is our saviour and he would want it that way.” Now I am definitely a backer of Jesus. I am also a good friend of the Buddha and I think Allah has his good points too. In general,…
In a Crowded Room
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Time holds only the shape you give it. This week, it was pressed thin, squashed against the wall, hot and heavy. It was pressing, but lovely all the same. I am not sure, exactly what I am supposed to do with the time I am given. I only know what when I am busy, the…
90 Minutes from Door to Balloon
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Tis the Season to Keel Over…. Fa la la la luh. I’ll probably die of a massive coronary for writing this, but it’s a sad state of affairs — on the health, diet and media accounts — when we are to the point of worrying about aggravating our clogged arteries around the holiday season. My…
Message from the Leaf Pile
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Top 10 Reasons to Read a Blog 10. The blogger is funny, but not funny ha-ha… funny hmmmm. 9. You are bored of internet porn… it is so done! 8. Procrastination is nine-tenths of the law. 7. You hate your boss. Your boss wants you to do something other than browse the internet. You fancy…
Tag, You’re It
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Or, Silly Games Bloggers Play to Fill Their Time Recently, my “bluddy” (ie. my blog buddy, or, also, my bloody-pain-in-the-arse-bugging-me-with-chain-blogs-buddy) Grinder “tagged” me for some inocuous game of Blog Tag. Being tagged in a blog is not (I hope) like being tagged by a gang member. It’s more akin to that uber-long and somewhat-but-not-quite personal “Get To Know…
Environmental Me
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Or… Moving to the Beat of My Own Green Drummer Nothing gives you a good ol’ kick in the tush like hanging around with people who are really making things happen. At Green Drinks last night, I met more than a few people who are busy living a green life: they own an organic food…
The Happiest Terrorist (see new definition)
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After reading a somewhat disturbing account of a poor Japanese tourist on a Connecticut train, I’ve decided, on behalf of all Normal (ie., not bonkers) English speakers everywhere, to reclaim the word “TERROR” and give it a total facelift. New Definition: Terror (n) (trr) : Intense desire to use a pogo stick. Usage: From the…
While he was running, I stood here still
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For Denny, who ran the marathon yesterday Not every To Do list has value, even in completion. Accomplishments fill time. They tire you to your bones, make you sleep better. But they are just done things, sometimes. Stand in this group if you run in circles to wear yourself out, to alleviate the boredom. Come…
Take the Pineapple from the Bowl!
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Or… Mama Earth’s First Indication We’re Overstaying Our Welcome I’ve brought you all here today, in the witness of this pineapple turkey, to tell you about the legend of the pineapple. Once people went to visit a wealthy home and they were greeted warmly. They knew the hosts were glad to see them because on…
A Way to Occupy Her Time
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Photographer Julia Margaret Cameron took up her “hobby” at 49. The camera was a gift from her family, a way to occupy her time while her husband traveled for work. She set up her own darkroom at their home on the Isle of Wight. She kept a journal. She presented her own portfolio to the…
How to Win the Nobel Peace Prize
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You might have THOUGHT Mother Teresa won her Nobel Prize for caring for the poor and the hungry. But it was really her smack talk about the Bush family that sealed the deal. Because, according to a headliner at the “Ethics and Public Policy Center” there is one fool-proof way to get yourself noticed by…
