A Very Short Post

Just wanted to share that WordPress let me know that I signed up with them 6 years ago!

It doesn’t seem that long, but in that time,  I have made many new friends on this site.  I have shared a lot of my life, good and bad on here; I have become a published author while blogging; and I have done over 900 posts.

I think this is a great time to celebrate.  Who knew that interrupting my teaching career by having a near-death stroke would have brought all this about?  Wow!  Positives flowing out of negatives!  I am so looking forward to the future.

Here’s to the future and to all of you!

Let me know in the comments what you wish to celebrate from the last 6 years.

Namaste,

Scott

Rough Times Looking Better – Thanks to You!

Finally, I have caught back up, at least, somewhat.  I have changed my hours back to bed around 5am and try to get in 5-7 hours, up a while, then nap, before the evening begins.  Personal/family matters are being handled here and I don’t feel comfortable sharing them just yet, but you all understand:  you do what you gotta do.

I thought, for awhile, that I was going to have to stop blogging for an indeterminate amount of time.  Turns out, I need you all! 🙂  You are a wonderful sounding board as well as some good “go to” advice in times of need.  I love you all.

So, in celebration, I will tell you a story to get your smile on today.  I was walking across a parking lot last night and there were three people, two women and one man, standing behind a vehicle with the back open.  They were discussing and I could not help but overhear enough to make me smile.

One of the women was talking loudly and stuck both her middle fingers up in the air, gesturing to whomever she was telling the story about.  I heard, “and this is what I did to her.”  Making it kinda obvious what she thought for whatever reason.

Then, as I passed by, she continued her story with, “…if you don’t have Jesus in your life by now…”.  I nearly cracked up right there.  Most of you know that I don’t ascribe to organized religion.  This, apparent, two-faced statement had me in the grips of giggle fits.  I could not see how someone who is, apparently, religious and talks to others about Jesus could be giving the finger (both of them) to someone for much of anything.

Doesn’t bother me, mind you.  I consider myself very spiritual and have a wonderful rapport with God and the universe.  I still could see myself flipping someone off if I was angry.  I could see me getting in someone’s face about something if I thought it was important enough.  And we won’t even go toward my feelings and opinions on sex!  However, I do doubt I would be flipping someone off and then start talking to them about their relationship with God.  Just can’t see it.  Could happen, but just.  can’t.  see.  it.

I hope that story does two things:  1) makes you smile  2) makes you take a look at your own relationship with God.

My bit for the morning.

Namaste,

Scott

A Sincere Apology, Maybe…

He looks sincere, doesn’t he? Licensed for reuse Click pic for source page

I have doing a lot of things this week.  Blogging has not been one of them, at least, my usual blogging.  I enjoy doing the flash fiction duo that I handle each week:  Friday Fictioneers and Five Sentence Fiction.  In fact, soon, I hope to publish on Kindle a collection of 100 (or more) of my Five Sentence Fictions from the last 100 weeks (give or take).  It’s in the making, but will be a bit.

I also have been tasked with writing a 2500 word horror short story that is turning into 4000 words.  I am enjoying the task.  It has, however, kept me from blogging as usual.  That’s not all, of course, I have also been busy seeing doctors, taking my Dad to his doctors’ visits, trying to rest, and reading more blog posts than I have been in many many months.

So, I apologize to you, maybe.  I say “maybe” because, even though I didn’t write my Flash Fiction items, I have been sharing even more with other bloggers.  Both through my comments and people actually viewing my other posts.  It seems that, though I really like writing fiction, I have a bit of flare for other writings.  I knew this at one point, but it has been over-shadowed lately just because I was pushing myself in so many areas.  That kinda stopped today when I realized that I have had more views this past week when I did other types of posts than when I simply write my fiction.

People seem to enjoy personalized posts in which you pour out (or tear out) your heart by voicing opinions on topics you are concerned about and when you reblog excellent posts of others.  I knew this, in actuality, but had put it on the back burner, too.

I have decided that I don’t have to have a set routine for my blog.  I can write 1-2 times a week at times and 4-5 others.  It is up to me.  As long as I stay in the loop and write weekly, I think it will be fine.  Well, it will be just because I intend on doing it.

I will end by pointing you to a post I read that hit me good and hard.  Language is strong, so is the topic.  However, because it hit me hard, I think everyone else should look at it, too.  I hadn’t thought about some of the specifics mentioned; that’s what hit me so hard.

“Whoever Invented the Phrase ‘Real Women Have Curves’…” 

Link:  https://voicesofsteph.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/to-whoever-invented-the-phrase-real-women-have-curves-heres-a-heartfelt-fck-you-strong-language-used-obviously/

Namaste,

Scott

What has Writing Got to Do with It?

I want to play about two paragraphs of catch-up, then go on with the post.  I have a lot of people who have joined me as of late and I want to make certain they understand the madness person they are dealing with.

I was a mess growing up.  I was smart, witty, funny, shy, and a botched up turmoil inside.  People liked me, but I tried hard to make sure of that by doing what they wanted and sacrificing my self-esteem to do so.  I had friends but never let anyone really inside my head.  I lived in a fantasy world of books, movies, TV, and stories I made up.  The outside world was a place in which I was always afraid and failing in.  I continued this process through over 50 years of life, two marriages, and – the best thing I every did -> my two children.

Finally, on May 7, 2010, my body gave up on me and I had a horrible hemorrhagic stroke.  The first post talks about the stroke and a lot of my feelings.  The second one tells, mostly, about this past year or so.  The final one is what it says, a coming to terms and is a lot about prayer.  Read one or all or none of them.  The post from the title starts after these three posts.

My stroke and my feelings

My year 2012

Prayer and how I see it

Okay, now, what has writing got to do with it?  I love to write.  Actually, I love a lot of things and writing is one.  This is very important to both you and me as we finish out this post.  You see, while I love writing, I find that I write some stories, then stop and do other things for quite awhile.  I can blame it on having to watch how I feel or that my fatigue level is really high or that I want to see if I need to rewrite any of the ones I have done; however, the short of it is, I like doing a lot of other things, too.

What made me think of all this was August McLaughlin’s post “Blogging Commandments: What Works for Me“.  It’s an excellent post, well worth your time to read, but my point was that I saw it as saying that I should be wanting to write more rather than blog.  And, I don’t, not really.  I enjoy the daily blogging procedure – read posts, post one, answer comments, not always in that order.  I learn a lot by the reading and by the comments – heck, sometimes, I learn a lot by the post as I am writing it!  August wasn’t criticizing me or anyone else in her post; it’s the way I read into it.  I realized that I have been kinda hard on myself for not writing 40 hours a week.  I have realized how ridiculous that is for me, especially now.  I cannot work much more than 4 hours a day and that has to be split up.  I can’t concentrate well enough to write a book, but stories seem to flow well.

But, bottom line, I enjoy all of you people and your thoughts and your little eccentricities.  I like that, when I read something you have written, I could almost tell you in one post that it was you.  I know enough about 20+ of the blogs I follow to be able to do that.  If you gave me a paragraph out of 12 different selected bloggers, I bet I could match the names to the paragraph.  That is great to me.  If I know you that well, then we are friends in the best sense of the word.  And, the way a lot of you treat me, makes me feel that friendship goes two ways.

So, what does writing have to do with it?  Not so much, it seems.  What seems to have the most to do with it is a sincere desire to know you all well and to give you the opportunity to know me as well or better.  I think we do a pretty good job of that.  I will still write my stories, but I feel pretty good about what is going on right now.  I am disabled and can’t work, so I have the small luxury of being home and able to blog more than write.  God is pretty smart; He knew I would excel here, and I am.

Love you all.

Namaste,

Scott