Six-pack Saturday

Life is full of paradoxes here are six that drive me crazy–

1) I don’t know what I don’t know. Even when I realize I’m missing parts of the puzzle–it’s still impossible to figure out what they are.

This particular conundrum applies to everything. At the moment, it’s a replace or repair decision on the garbage disposal. And do I consult a plumber or an electrician? Before I call anyone I have to clean the under the kitchen sink cabinet….

2) People are both unique and similar. Their outsides are real different. Yet, I know their insides are all much the same. And their insides are what count. As a writer, I need a firm grip on this subject on it’s slippery.

3) The more I study anything, the more complex the subject becomes. This translates to one of life’s basic frustrations–the more I learn the less I know. People fascinate me and baffle me. Real life people are inconsistent. Whereas, fictional people need strong motivation to behave out of character because fiction has to make more sense than real life.

4) Writing for publication has lots of levels to it. I don’t know everything about this business (see number one above). But, I have learned a few things. Success has many factors but there are baseline requirements. Clean manuscripts, correctly spelled, punctuated, and formatted are job one.

By the time a writer gets to the level where professional editors are cheerfully catching her mundane errors, she won’t need them. Editor’s have other jobs.

5) To break into mass market publishing one needs a good agent. Good agents are busy working for established authors. Therefore a high powered agent is difficult for an unknown to acquire. Obviously, there are exceptions–every single author on the New York Times best seller list started out as a newbie.

6) Time and money are trade off commodities. Money isn’t easy to make, but time can’t be made at all. Everyone gets the same twenty-four hours each day.

Feel free to share your frustrations.

Six things I love about autumn

1) The brilliant fall foliage–deciduous trees, shrubs, and plants that change into new vibrant hues–it’s a mood lifter as the days shorten and grow colder

2) Mums,asters, anemones, cyclamens–all of the autumn bloomers

3) Puddles, pulling on rainboots and splashing makes the daily walk more fun

4) Having a fire in fireplace

5) Flannel sheets on the bed

6) Homemade soup simmering on the stove

Tell me about your favorite fall things….

Weird Wednesday Stuff

There are drawbacks to being an optimist.

Here’s my list:

1) I always think everything will work out great.

2) I always thing the process will be smooth and painless.

3) Experience hasn’t changed the two previous beliefs.

Expecting the best is an ingrained trait.  Accepting whatever happens is something I need to work on–a little caution wouldn’t hurt either.

How about you–optimist or pessimist or somewhere in the middle?

Six things I could do without

During the recent presidential campaigns, I listened closely to both major candidates but they never even touched on the issues that bother me.  Here’s a partial list of what I need to have changed to make world a better place.

1) Bills– I’m never glad to see them.  I know I wouldn’t miss them.  But, I can’t envision how I can eliminate them entirely.  Clearly, it’s a government job.

2) Moles–yes I’m sure they are doing worthy things for the garden’s ecological health.  But, the dog is convinced those mounds need to be investigated–you can imagine what her excavations look like.  There’s lots of garden chores without mole repair.

3) Changing clocks–what’s the point?  Days are still twenty four hours long.  The amount of sunshine in each day is the same no matter where we set our clocks.  So why do we have to disrupt our schedules twice a year?  Just pick a time and stick with it.

4) Rainy periods–at least those that last more than a week,  Rain is good.  I actually like puddles.  But, I need to mow and it’s not good to mow when the grass is wet.

5) Gravity–some gravity is beneficial.  I understand that concept.  But, as time takes its toll on the body I think slightly less gravity would be a very good idea.  Is NASA working on this?

6) Aging– what I really need is a good age retardant.  Good genes, good health, and smart life style choices are all well and good but clearly there’s more vital work to be done in this area.

So what issues would you like to your government to address?

Weird Wednesday Stuff

Last weekend I invited company for dinner.

My potential guest mentioned, ” I might have to work, but if I can get the evening off, I’d love to.”

“Not a problem, if you can make it great. If not, well what the heck I’ll have a clean house and much better dinner than I would’ve made for myself.”

She laughed.

And then, we talked about why we don’t care for ourselves as well as we do others.

As things worked out, she did have to work.   But, I have a clean house and dinner was fantastic.   I’m thinking of inviting her more often….