Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, inspiration, publishing, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 9, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I just heard that one of my writer friends is in possession of a shiny new book contract! It’s all still super secret and hush hush, so no details yet, but I think it’s great. (They also read this blog and will know who I’m talking about. Hello!)
They are a fabulous person and a terrific writer. Can’t wait to read the book, and I can’t help but want to celebrate this kind of success… even if for the moment, I have to do it in secret.
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Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, history, Thoughts on May 8, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Today I’m thinking about life, the universe and everything. Mostly good thoughts! I’m not doing a great job of articulating them all, though, so let me just take a moment to commemorate one key event on this day in 1945.
It’s Victory in Europe Day, and while the end of World War Two wouldn’t come for several more months, it marked a significant step on that path.
What You Need To Know About VE Day 8 May 1945
Millions of people rejoiced in the news that Germany had surrendered, relieved that the intense strain of total war was finally over. In towns and cities across the world, people marked the victory with street parties, dancing and singing.
As I’ve noted before (and no doubt will again!), the exceptionalism of humanity is our ability to accumulate and pass down knowledge, experience, and lessons from one person to another, one generation to another, one society to another. That’s the magic.
How we use it, however, is now up to us.
Winged victory waits
for the call of those learning
history’s lessons.
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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 Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, forest-bathing, inspiration, nature, Spring, Thoughts on May 6, 2025| Leave a Comment »
It’s Tuesday, ugh, but it’s also spring, so today I’ll be taking a moment to enjoy the bluebells in the forest of Hallerbos.
Join me!
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, difference, diversity, humanity, quotes, similarity, Thoughts on May 5, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“We talk so often about the differences between people, yet here in our country we find that, in spite of circumstances which create great differences, we have certain great similarities. Rich or poor, we want our children to be well educated. Rich or poor, we want them to do better than we have done. Rich or poor, we want the respect of our neighbors and perhaps their affection. Love and death come to us all, no matter what the circumstances of our lives. In the big things that matter, the similarities are far greater than the differences. If this is true at home it is true anywhere in the world. People want the same things. They strive for the same things. They suffer from the same things. The differences are important but often superficial. The basic things are similar.”
― Eleanor Roosevelt
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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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Posted in Likes, Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, books, creativity, free reads, innovation, inspiration, libraries, library, national treasures, news, NPR, public libraries, reading, Thoughts on May 2, 2025| Leave a Comment »
I love libraries. Growing up, our local library was a great place to study, read, or wait for the bus, and was a never-ending source of new and interesting information. I’ve moved away but still donate, because I want others to enjoy the benefits I had. Libraries are idea repositories, the physical embodiment of one of humanity’s most impressive accomplishments: the preservation and dissemination of knowledge. The real genius of our current iteration of this concept, however, is that we made so many of our libraries free.
Once upon a time, only the rich could afford books. (Heck, for a long time, few could read at all. And while we’re here, feel free to take a quick detour into the world of traditional bookbinding.)
Now, we all benefit when we all learn.
To those who say that the world is worse than ever? I give you public spaces filled with the magic of ideas, free for the borrowing.
Libraries are a great source for reading material but can also supply music, movies, information, classes, tools, seeds, eclipse glasses, museum passes, fishing poles, a taxidermied sandhill crane, or help with your taxes.
How cool is that?
Why am I talking about libraries? Because PBS has a new documentary about the evolution of the public library system in the US, and it got me thinking. Here’s a review from another national treasure, NPR:
‘Free For All’ review: This library documentary is worth checking out
…this documentary ends up covering all sorts of ground. The historical beginnings of American libraries, with nods to Ben Franklin and Andrew Carnegie. The growth and importance of tiny branches in rural communities. And, at each stop, a focus on individual libraries, librarians and everyday patrons.
Those in the US can watch the full film here:
Free for All: The Public Library – Independent Lens
How public libraries shaped a nation and remain a beloved sanctuary for Americans today.
If you can’t access the film, here’s a bonus article:
10 Ways Public Libraries Make Our Lives Better
Any answer must begin, of course, with books.
It asks, “With the internet putting a seemingly infinite supply of answers, arguments, and amusements at our fingertips, do we still need libraries?”
I say yes.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, garden, haiku, nature, Spring, Thoughts on April 30, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Beneath violets’
purple shade, the chipmunk darts
from winter to spring
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2025, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on April 29, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“I don’t believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be.”
— Ken Venturi
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