Covid. Pandemic. Plagues that follow the tracks people make in their journeying to and fro. Interacting, as humans do. Until times like these. It's not new. History is full of the times of fear and disease, of deaths in high numbers. None of that matters when it's close to home. We fear the unknown, even … Continue reading It’s Not New
My moments
Kaoticat
"You talkin' to me, punk?" That's the cat, whose name was once Slinky. He's a real spy-cat, a super-hero who can leap tall bookcases in a single bound - especially late at night when the walls vibrate with human purring, and he thinks they should either be quiet, or - the better option - get … Continue reading Kaoticat
3 Levels of Subtext
The first and most obvious is body language. Bodies and faces speak volumes. It's not easy putting that into a story, though, so the body language needs careful construction to convey the subtext. Next would be the things left unsaid. Sometimes, it's in the thoughts of the POV character, which makes it more accessible to … Continue reading 3 Levels of Subtext
It’s All in the Timing
Daylight timing, that is. I have the dubious honour of travelling through seven time zones in a 4-day period once. Training people, so needing to be on my toes, functioning, and fully alert in each location. Add to that managing travel times to and from airports, gathering the tools together, finding the right place to … Continue reading It’s All in the Timing
Time and Tide
Putting it off, regardless of what 'it' is for you, is a waste. A waste of a dream, a goal, a level of achievement. How many dreams I had as a child. I dreamed of being a gardener, feeding the world, growing the best exotic fruits and medicinal herbs, and of people beating down my … Continue reading Time and Tide
The Melancholy of Reminiscence
A few things brought this to the fore. If you've heard about our dog, Pepsi, you know she's at a stage of her life where quality is lacking and she suffers. It's not at the stage yet where she's ready to give up and she fakes her ability to move and run and jump (she … Continue reading The Melancholy of Reminiscence
Too Many Jobs to List Them All,
Fandango's provocative question #152: What do you do for a living? If you are retired, what did you do before you retired? If you’re currently unemployed, what did you do before becoming unemployed? On my 'about' page, I say this: worked in so many jobs the list goes on for pages. And pages. Anyone would … Continue reading Too Many Jobs to List Them All,
FFF — the Answer!
The dilemma of how to use Freeze, Flight, Fight responses with Motivation, Response Units has an answer (yes, it’s also part of cause and effect). There is something that happens onstage, in the now of the story. It’s called an event, a motivation, a cause. Something happens and it can be seen, heard, felt. That’s … Continue reading FFF — the Answer!
FFF … Again
It's not being rude, honest. In fact, I've talked about it before. It? The human reaction cycle: Freeze, Flight, Fight. Freeze is always first: Stand still and the danger won't see me. It also gives time to assess the situation, to decide whether to slowly sink down or sidle across to the darker shadows and … Continue reading FFF … Again
December, 2021
And what awaits us in the next year? As an ever-hopeful soul (put that scowl away!), I'm hoping 2022 is calmer, shorter, less fretful than the last two years. I want people to care about others, to take care in how they interact with the world, to enjoy something in each moment of every day. … Continue reading December, 2021