--I CAN BEAR ALMOST ANYTHING, AS LONG AS I KNOW I'M NOT ALONE

…I’ve had some new things published:
Three pieces--"Ancient," "Voices Carry" and "My Neighbor, The Nudist"--up at BLIP Magazine.
"Locked In" at Eunoia Review
"Partners" at 52/250 A Year Of Flash
They're all here under "Words in Print.

…Sometimes I think about giving up. Do you ever do that? I used to consider this a lot. Maybe five or six years ago I did. Then I had a burst, a renewal, but now my old way of thinking has returned and I wonder about turning in the hall pass, maybe for good.
I don't know. We'll see.
Purpose is an interesting concept.
What is my purpose?
What is yours?

…And what about God? Where’s her role in all this?
Do you even believe in such a thing? In God? No?
If this—life, existence--is not a happy accident, and if there is no God, then are we really here just because energy bumped into energy--not by accident, mind you--but because the stars happened to be aligned before there were even stars in the sky?
Gee, I just don't know.
I want to know, though.
I really do.
This is something I am very curious about.

…I saw this post yesterday and it made me smile out loud: "Poll: Given a choice between Sarah Palin and Donald Trump for President, voters overwhelmingly choose suicide."

…I watched TIVOed episodes of "The Office" last night--the latest ones with Steve Carell leaving and Will Ferrell stepping in. I actually got wet-eyed several times. I never thought that show could make me cry, although, come to think of it, there were several moments--Jim and Pam kissing at the Christmas party, Jim getting on his knees in the rain outside a convenience store to propose, Holly finding Michael on the roof top--that did, indeed, do that very thing to me.

…Yesterday this wicked lady scolded me for driving over the 20 MPH speed limit on her road. She was with her dog. She did not have a leash on her animal. She saw me driving and sort of pounded the air with her hands, which was her way of making a Go Slower motion. When I rolled down my window, she was all bitter and vitriolic. “It’s only TWENTY MILES PER HOUR ON THIS ROAD,” she said. I didn’t realize that. And honestly, I didn’t care, either. So I said, "You should try a leash."
As I drove off, this sour woman who is probably—unfortunately—someone’s mother, shouted, "I can have you arrested!" Really, she did.
There are all types of people in this world.

…It's Friday. Friday is a popular day of the week. Lots of folk prefer this day over others. It's the tipping point, a nod to the weekend. There are even many songs about Friday i.e., The Cure, although Saturday might just have the advantage i.e., Elton, Chicago, that whack internet chick.
When you are not ordered to a work cadence, Friday doesn't stand out. Friday becomes another day like any other and the challenge is making it special just because it is special having the time to live, to play your life out.
That is what I am going to try to do today.
What do you think about that?

"To live without ghosts requires solitude." Anne Michaels

"Dying a little each day is really time consuming." Justine Middleton

"Let it all come ripping right through you." Jeff Bridges

"We must find time to stop and thank the people who have made a difference in our lives." -- Dan Zadra