Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, inspiration, Thoughts on May 30, 2025| 1 Comment »
“Do. Not. Forget. how special and bizarre it is to get to live a human life. It took 3 billion years for the Earth to go from single-celled life forms to you. That’s more than a quarter of the life of the entire universe. Something very special and strange is happening on this planet and it is you.”
— Hank Green, 2025 Commencement address, MIT
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Posted in Other, Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, censorship, creativity, future, graphic novels, history, inspiration, space, Thoughts, Writers on May 27, 2025| Leave a Comment »
A couple of years ago I wrote about NASA’s excellent graphic novel encouraging folks to imagine themselves on the moon: First Woman: Dream to Reality.
There was a second issue, too, called First Woman: Expanding Our Universe. Both were free and available to the public on NASA’s site. (Which makes sense, because NASA is paid for by US tax dollars, including mine.) Sadly, both have now been removed.
But good news, aspiring explorers! As highlighted over at Space.com, both issues are still available via that bastion of awesome, The Wayback Machine:
Issue #1: Dream to Reality follows Callie’s trailblazing path as the first woman on the Moon. Callie and her robot sidekick, RT, overcome setbacks, disappointment, and tragedy along the way. From her childhood dreams of space travel to being selected as an astronaut candidate, Callie takes us on her journey to the Moon.
I don’t always take the time to update older links, but I thought this one was important.
Because if humanity stops inspiring the next generation, humanity stops.
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Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, inspiration, life, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, inspiration, poetry, quantum, Writers, writing, writing contest on May 23, 2025| Leave a Comment »
2025 marks the one hundred year anniversary of the development of quantum mechanics, and has been named Unesco’s International Year of Quantum Science and Technology.
It is also a good time to mention a poetry contest I came across, from Brilliant Poetry. I haven’t participated in it, but perhaps it will interest you? The contest goal is to “express scientific wonder and discovery through verse” and poems “must find inspiration in the quantum.”
Do I know what that means? I do not, but it might be fun to let my creative voice play with the idea. Hang on, here’s a quick related video.
And this is a much longer explainer: Physicist Brian Cox explains quantum physics in 22 minutes.
Ahem. Now that you have a bit of background, let’s get back to that poetry contest.
What are the rules?
Contest tradeoffs:
The upside is that there is no entry fee that I can see, and there are cash prizes. Good.
One downside is that by entering, “you give the organizers the right to publish your poem both online and in printed media.” In other words, you’ve essentially given away first world publication rights, so keep that in mind. (On the other hand, the limit is maximum 40 lines, so it may not be a big investment if you’re interested in some experimentation.)
Does this concept tickle your imagination? Submissions close June 20th so you’ve got a bit of time to consider the options, and get into the quantum.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, beauty, creativity, humanity, magic, Thoughts on May 20, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“We are mosaics — pieces of light, love, history, stars — glued together with magic and music and words.”
— Anita Krizzan
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, action, creativity, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 12, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“You can either be judged because you created something or ignored because you left your greatness inside of you. Your call.”
— James Clear
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 10, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I had a moment today where I got a funny idea and just started writing. It was ridiculous. It was grammatically incorrect. It was glorious.
Will this turn into a story that I will be happy to share? Maybe, but that’s not my concern right now.
Right now, I’m just putting one word after the other, because when you’re writing for fun, all words are good words. (Other times too.)
Don’t let fear of failure stop you. As long as you can, as often as you can, keep going.
“Failure is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign that you are alive and growing.”
— Buzz Aldrin
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, habits, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 7, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.”
— Carl Rogers, psychologist
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Posted in Entertainment, Holidays, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, george-lucas, inspiration, meaning, movies, myths, realities, science fiction, star wars, Star Wars Day, Thoughts, Writers on May 4, 2025| Leave a Comment »
It’s May 4th and you know what that means! It’s Star Wars Day!
Why is Star Wars Day celebrated on May the 4th?
Star Wars Day was created by fans as a sly nod to one of the films’ most popular catchphrases, “May the force be with you.”
And when does science fiction become science fact? A few examples:
Some ‘Star Wars’ stories have already become reality
…at least four important aspects of the “Star Wars” saga are much closer – both in time and space – than Lucas was letting on.
And while it’s true that we’re making progress on the scientific and technological aspects of the Star Wars universe, that’s not the reason we care so much about it.
Star Wars came to me at a difficult time, and has served as an anchor ever since. Why does the story resonate so strongly with so many people?
A force awakened: why so many find meaning in Star Wars
According to Lucas: “I became fascinated with how culture is transmitted through fairy tales and myth. Fairy tales are about how people learn about good and evil…it’s the most intimate struggle that we cope with – trying to do the right thing and what’s expected of us by society, by our peers, and in our hearts.”
These stories typically appear during times of doubt and can help viewers reclaim the goodness and innocence in themselves, reminding them they can overcome the evil they see in the world.
And while I normally ignore Episodes I, II and III (IV forever!), this quote from the script of III seems appropriate.
“In a dark place we find ourselves, and a little more knowledge lights our way.”
—Yoda
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, ephemera, ideas, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 3, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Every so often I run across story snippets, ideas or lines or just a mood that at one point I committed to paper or pixel.
They are a form of meditation, in a sense, and while some turn into stories or poems or posts, most are just my way of thinking. It’s constructive, but sometimes I find these fragments again and wonder, “What on earth was I thinking?”
And sometimes the idea sets off a new spark and triggers fresh ideas, along a different path. Here’s one such snippet.
When Fluffernutter, our cat of sixteen years, died, we buried her in a shaded spot under the willow in the backyard, down by the creek.
That was our first mistake.
Not checking the grave was the second.
And not warning the neighbors was our third.
*Note: No kitties were harmed in the making of this post.
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