--LET'S GO BACK TO SQUARE ONE

 

...As I write this, the beaver is swimming in the lake down below my office.

He’s a big fellow, flopping his tale now and then and sticking his snout out of the water, dog paddling.
I bet he’s bigger than most Labradors.
…Yesterday I gave blood.
I hate giving blood.  I had being punctured.  I never watch them stick the needle in.  I don’t even look when they prick my finger for a sample to test for iron.  The good news is I could never be a heroin addict.
But I’m O+ and it’s an almost universal type, plus they’d sent me a note saying they were down to an all-time low of two day’s supply on hand for my type.

…The reading Sunday night in Bellingham went really well.  It was all poets and me.  I say that because my pieces were really flash writings.  It’s fun to read, and like anything, the more one does it the more improves and gets the chance to learn from others.

I dropped off my daughter, who was meeting a Canadian friend, at 10:00.  That left me with nine hours of free time until the reading.
So I wrote and wrote and wrote some more and I finally finished the shitty first draft of my first novel.
Yay me.
Now I’m working on edits.  Now I recall why I hate working on editing so much.
But, like most jobs, it’s all about showing up, doing the work, keeping one’s head down.
My new mantra has been “Page up by nine.”  That means I have to have my manuscript on screen by nine o’clock and my fingers typing on the keyboard.
So far so good.

…Here are some things I learned that might interest you:

Which of the following would you be most embarrassed to be seen reading in public?

48% -"A Shore Thing," by Snooki
16% -Obama's memoir
11% -National Enquirer
8%   -Romney's memoir
6%   -"Fifty Shades of Grey"

Compared to you own parents, how would you rate yourself as a parent?

59% -The same
36% -A Better parent
3%   -A Worse parent

Which do you think is worse for a person's reputation--filing for divorce or filing for bankruptcy?

67% -Bankruptcy
25% -Divorce

When you go out to a restaurant, how much do you usually tip?

8%     -Over 20 percent
20%  -32 percent
15%  -32 percent
10%  -18 percent
Under 10%  -3 percent
Don't tip  -1%

Only 52 percent of Americans can correctly name the number of justices who sit on the Supreme Court (it's nine)

…I like these things.  Maybe you will, too:

"Oh, friend, think this over carefully!

If you are in love,
then why are you asleep?"
--Anonymous

"I don't believe people are looking for the meaning of life as much as they are looking for the experience of being alive." Joseph Campbell

"You have everything, and so much of it."  Peggy to Don Draper on "Mad Men"

"Mere survival is an affliction.  What is of interest is life, and the direction of that life." Guy Fregault