Tag: language

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Intractably Distractible

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The oft-blamed bugaboo “writer’s block” can be (and often is) an unfortunate misnomer. A recent email from writer/editor Katie Holmes spurred my thinking about this designation. Editor Holmes referred to my 2012 post in which I fessed up to a lack of production disguised as “writer’s block” but was (is) more precisely my intractable distractibility!http://quotesgram.com/blocking-haters-quotes/

One of the discussions hosted by Editor Holmes at Outwittrade.com offers helpful tips for (and from) writers on the topic of writer’s block. Holmes provides an excellent distillation of hints, work-arounds and motivators designed to help a writer work past his/her perceived lack of production. The tips are practical and constructive for the new writer as well as for experienced writers. Continue reading “Intractably Distractible” →

Random Vicissitudes

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Most people understand – at least in a theoretical sense – how quickly life can change. In the two months since I last posted, the silence hasn’t come about due to a lack of blogging material. No, no, no. Furthermore, every single day without a post brought a deeper sense of unease … the pattern of my life seeming slightly upended! Red-Pencil

But the respite from my daily pattern was necessary and welcome … necessary because life demanded I attend other matters and welcome because it freed me (somewhat) from my irrational obsession to slavishly maintain daily posts – no matter what! With each day that passed, my figurative pencil grew more insistent and red-faced. Much to my surprise, people continued to drop by and read previous posts. (I am gratefully humbled by your interest.) Continue reading “Random Vicissitudes” →

Supreme Poetaster

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Here’s a word that doesn’t get much use these days: Poetaster. One of the memorable ways to define this word – as well as to remember its pronunciation – is to take the word Poet, marry to it the last two syllables of disaster, and you have Poetaster.poetaster-n-s

A Poetaster is simply “an inferior poet, a writer of indifferent verse.” There’s some latitude in the word I think. A Poetaster might be someone who fancies himself (or herself) a fine poet because of a perceived ability to witness flowery and inane rhetoric flowing from his or her pen. By definition, what flows from a poetaster‘s pen is insipid, even foolish. Hence, my personal mnemonic, explained in the first paragraph. Continue reading “Supreme Poetaster” →

Draw A Poem Day

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After the weekend’s events in Garland TX, we’ve had an ongoing and vehement discussion about things including the concept of “hate speech.” With a $10,000 prize drawing people to the Mohammed Art Exhibit and Contest at a Garland civic center, two gunmen arrived from Arizona ready to commit violence and mayhem. Instead, they were quickly killed.Rockwell-Muhammad

Criticisms of the Garland event haven’t fallen along predictable lines; people from both right and left have railed at the event organizers. Words like “incendiary” and “hate-monger” and “nutty” and “vile” abound as descriptors for organizer Pamela Geller. Speaker Geert Wilders is similarly lambasted for his outspokenness. Both have received numerous death threats. Continue reading “Draw A Poem Day” →

Reflected Glory

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Back in the 1990s, a number of books landed on the bestsellers lists relating various aspects (and viewpoints) on the male-female communication divide. Deborah Tannen’s You Just Don’t Understand explained boys and girls approach language and communication differently. John Gray’s Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus offered a similar take … men and women perceive the world differently and naming those differences helps promote successful communication.

FROM: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Blake
FROM: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Blake

As we continue through The Book of Job, it’s becoming clearer that Job and his comforters (though not from either Mars or Venus) have been mis-communicating. In part, they may have been saying the same thing, but not successfully enough to reach a level of true understanding. Perhaps you’ve experienced the same thing? I know I have. Admittedly, it’s often because I’m more concerned about making a certain critical point. Perhaps Job’s friends were doing the same … and that’s why the first half of the book seems so repetitive. Continue reading “Reflected Glory” →

Only Fools Rush In

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Say goodbye to the first quarter of 2015. Tomorrow, April 1st arrives. Now we all know what that means … it’s April Fool’s Day of course. (One day a year, Mark Twain said, we’re reminded what we actually are the other 364 days.) When we were children, my siblings and I enjoyed pranking one another, but as an adult, I’m not a fan of pranks.Happy-April-Fools-Day-Wallpaper-3Don’t ask me why because I’m not sure I know. I think it might have something to do with the nature of so many pranks. They’re not usually funny, they’re sometimes terribly cruel, and too often the pranksters have failed to analyze far-reaching consequences that might be caused by their pranks. (Stupidity or short-sightedness?) Continue reading “Only Fools Rush In” →

Preferred Pronoun Fitness

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Currently, my Beloved is a dues-paying member of the now-famous (or infamous, depending upon one’s point of view) Planet Fitness franchise of non-judgmental workout centers. The recent hubbub revolves around a female member who expressed her dismay (to PF management) and questioned the appropriateness of a naked – and obviously male – individual boldly ensconced in the women’s locker room. (In this HuffPost news story, the naked male is referred to as “a transgender woman.“)planetfatnessThe outspoken woman in the story discovered almost immediately how seriously PF adheres to their stated policy of the facility as a “Judgment Free Zone.” In a move that surely defies the notion of “the customer is always right,” management at the Michigan facility immediately revoked the complainer’s membership! (Freedom of speech? Not here!) Continue reading “Preferred Pronoun Fitness” →

Eden’s Paradise . . . Lost

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The world described in the Book of Genesis was different than ours. In the Beginning, after six days of creative endeavor, God rested and judged His creation as “very good.” Put simply, the Garden of Eden was Paradise … and while the Book doesn’t elaborate in minute detail, we know Eden was radically transformed because of sin into Paradise Lost.CMB_TimelineYesterday, I posed the question:  Are We Smarter Than Our Biblical Forebears? This question actually has some currency given recent discussions dealing with big bang inflation theory (as illustrated above). Certainly, this theory is a departure from the biblical narrative of Genesis. Continue reading “Eden’s Paradise . . . Lost” →

Squat Zone

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Ownership. What exactly does that word mean? When you possess a title or deed to a piece of property and your name is on the line that indicates OWNER, doesn’t that mean you have the legal right to possess and control that property?

Be careful how you answer these questions … remember we’re living in a progressive age where words rarely mean what we think they mean. There’s a strange (and damaging) trend in our country today to redefine words or to completely ignore their common meaning. There’s also a growing inclination for “… every man [to do] what is right in his own eyes” (as Judges 17:6 describes it). Few examples are more helpful than this video to illustrate what’s happening.

After watching this video, your initial response might be similar to mine. This is Detroit. Things are slightly off-kilter there. Why should I be surprised if squatting is a common practice?

Then I did a simple online search and discovered squatters aren’t just a Detroit problem. Apparently, the situation got so bad in Great Britain that in September of 2012, the country ruled squatting to be a criminal offense if squatting on residential property (though it’s still okay to squat on commercial property). It’s also permissible to squat if you’re “a Gypsy or Traveller living on an unauthorized site.” Maybe I should check on having my Gypsy card renewed? Continue reading “Squat Zone” →

Court Jest

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When I left the house this morning, I knew I’d be sitting in a courtroom. Toward the end of the day, I found myself in an unenviable position … sitting in the witness chair being questioned by three attorneys and fielding additional directions from the presiding judge! (So glad none of them were wearing the white powdered wigs I’ve seen in movies like the one below … I’d have found it hard not to laugh!)courtroom scene

I have never enjoyed being the center of attention … oh, okay, maybe in my younger years but those days are long gone! I’m much more comfortable sitting on a bench behind the railing, watching the events play out as if on a television or movie screen. That’s pretty much how the morning went before lunch (9 a.m. to noon). I’m an election official in my county and the issue before us related to election procedures. The issue was straightforward and I expected to be only an onlooker, but my name on the complaint was reason enough to be present.

It’s funny, too, because I was so confident I’d be an onlooker, I had brought an electronic device so I could sit in the background and work on my poetry! It’s not as if the hearing required my full attention; I’m able to multi-task. I had the beginnings of a whimsical poem rolling through my brain already. All I needed was a bit of time … There once was a courtroom in town, Where lawyers and judges came down … too bad I didn’t have time to finish it!  Continue reading “Court Jest” →