Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, fun, genre fiction, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on August 18, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“If you love what you do and are willing to do what it takes, it’s within your reach. And it’ll be worth every minute you spend alone at night, thinking and thinking about what it is you want to design or build. It’ll be worth it, I promise.”
― Steve Wozniak
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, art, creativity, happenstance, home, inspiration, Thoughts on August 15, 2023| Leave a Comment »
This morning: hot oatmeal and a cool breeze from the patio door. We leave the door open for the fresh air, which brings the scent of wildlife to entertain the cat, as well as some of the unexpected moments of aggravation and joy that help make a life.
Aggravation: noise from a construction site down the block.
Joy: halfway through breakfast, I hear a beat, a pattern drummed out as from a wooden handle on a large metal surface. It is from the construction site, but it is not the sound of machinery or backup beeps or men shouting. Is it a wheelbarrow, a water drum, a backhoe scoop? Whatever the source, there is both intention and musicality. A bored worker, perhaps, or an aspiring musician. Or just someone inspired to create a moment of beauty in an otherwise average day.
And then send that art out into the world, carried on the wind.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, impostor syndrome, Thoughts, Writers, writing on August 13, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“Are you writing a book and worried that it’s awful and you suck and everyone who said they liked it is lying to you? Welcome to being a writer!
— Jessie Mihalik
I’d say most of us struggle with those feelings, even people who are highly successful. Keep going, you’ve got this.”
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, Saturdays, Thoughts on August 12, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“I cannot go to school today,”
— click through for the full poem from one of my favorite childhood authors
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
“I have the measles and the mumps,
A gash, a rash and purple bumps…
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, Fiction, ideas, quoteandaprettypicture, Thoughts, Writers, writing on August 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“To invent you need a good imagination and a pile of junk.”
― Thomas Edison
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Posted in Favorites, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, site notes, Thoughts, Writers, writing on August 9, 2023| Leave a Comment »
For years, I was what you might call a desultory blogger. I’d pop on when I had something I wanted to note, or when I realized it had been too long between posts. Ironically, the first year of the pandemic was a particularly dry spell in terms of my online communication.
That changed in 2021. As a way to kickstart my output and overall creativity, I decided to post daily. I’ve talked about that goal before, and I’ve mentioned the benefits of sticking with a streak. It’s been a good move for me in a number of ways, but it has produced a significant number of posts. WordPress is a useful platform in many ways, but it can get cluttered. Or maybe I’ve just dropped the ball on the keyword tags, but whatever. It’s a lot.
My mother asked me for a list of my favorite posts the other day. I think she wanted to share what I’m doing with a friend, but didn’t want to overwhelm them with a deluge of posts.
That’s fair.
I do have a Favorites tag but it’s a bit haphazard and also still pretty extensive. So I put together a quick selection of some of my favorite posts and added that list to the sidebar. You may need to scroll down a little but you’ll see that the widget is called (very cleverly, I thought) “Favorite Posts.”
Now, these aren’t all of my favorites and they aren’t necessarily the most popular posts; that honor tends to go to the “quote and a pretty picture” post category, or ones that feature fluffy cats. (Maybe I’ll go back and tag those posts for easy access.)
I get it, some days you just need a pick-me-up.
But if you’re curious, check out these favorites. Comfortable with a little chaos? Dive right in with a random post.
Whatever path you decide to take, enjoy.
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Posted in Likes, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, inspiration, quotes, Thoughts, Writers on August 6, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“Stuff your eyes with wonder,” he said, “live as if you’d drop dead in ten seconds. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.”
― Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, home, Thoughts on August 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Today, a moment of happiness.
Picture it: the sun has finally come out, the day is warm and the wild things have voted our little yard Best in Neighborhood. Mr Man and I are having lunch under a canopy on the deck out back. This is not a day to consider the cracked boards or the layers of pine needles or the gutter gunk. It’s a day to see the four juvenile robins play-fighting to determine who will get the upper bird bath first, and then squawk when they are all pre-empted by a grackle. It is a day to notice that we are hosting not just animals, but families. The chipmunk has two smaller companions, Mr and Mrs Cardinal are both present, a pair of mourning doves stop by, there are three woodpeckers at the feeder, and the black-capped chickadees shepherd smaller versions of themselves first to the suet, and then to the nyjer, and finally to the sunflower seeds. Squirrels also visit, black and brown and grey, including one flicking the longest, plushest tail I’ve yet seen. There are sparrows and more finches than I can count, a mix of brownish, reddish and a vibrant shade I’m calling Attention-Grabbing Gold.
The extra shot of happiness comes when I realize that our yard is doing an admirable job of being exactly what our wild neighbors need.
The yard is not particularly photogenic. The bushes are a little scruffy and what grass persists is overlong. Hastas and honeysuckle and sweet woodruff sidle up next to lamb’s quarters and dandelions, violets and goldenrod, clover and daisies and oxalis. I don’t mind. It provides water, food and shelter, and is homey and inviting in a way that over-manicured spaces frequently are not.
And our wild neighbors don’t mind a bit.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, genius, inspiration, Motivation, myths, productivity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on August 4, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“The more shots you get at the target, the more likely you’ll eventually score a bull’s-eye, but the more misses you’ll accrue as well. The bull’s-eyes end up in museums and on library shelves, not the misses. Which, when you think about it, is a shame. It feeds the myth that geniuses get it right the first time, that they don’t make mistakes, when, in fact, they make more mistakes than the rest of us.”
― Eric Weiner, The Geography of Genius
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Posted in Holidays, Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, adventure, inspiration, Thoughts on August 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Summer can be a time to plan big, but today I am going to suggest that you consider adventures a little closer to home.
The Microadventure-Filled Life of Alastair Humphreys
Humphreys defines a microadventure as “a shorter, simpler, cheaper, more local, more accessible version of what you deem to be an adventure. It’s something that you can squeeze in around the margins of real life.”
I kind of love this idea, of finding what’s interesting right around the corner.
Now I’m off to consider what might be fun to do around town. Like this, which holy crap, looks both scary and crazy cool!
Interzip Rogers – The interprovincial zip line.
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