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My blog of half-important thoughts and consistent communication practice. |
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There was never much hope. Just a fool's hope. ~Gandalf I'm not going to lie to you I don't have a plan for this blog, but a purpose does seem to be slowly emerging. I'll give my thoughts on this and that: maybe politics, a little religion, and talk about cultural touchstones that are important to me. Overall though I am going to be as personal as I feel comfortable sharing with the internet. This is going to result in some raw ideas coming up that may need to be cooked for longer, but I am not trying to write a perfect tome at the moment. Okay, listen up. Umm...You're a bunch of dirty misfits. But you're all that's left, so you'll have to do. ~Cayde-6 Writing is my passion and working on this blog has become a therapeutic source to me. I owe a lot to everyone who has read this blog; I don't know what interest first brought you here, however, I thank you for the time. Do or do not. There is no try. ~Yoda |
| A Forgetful Day I have dropped the ball on everything today. I have forgotten everything, and if it weren't for this buzzing in my ear, I would have forgotten this blog too. I wish I had a drive in my life that was consistent. Memento Mori,  KS   |
| A Better Day Today was no flawless victory, but it was better than yesterday; probably my best day this week. I'm actually physically tired instead of being emotionally exhausted. The weather has been just a few degrees below zero (quite mild, in fact), just nice enough that my neighbour has gone and finished redoing the fence between our properties. Tomorrow I have a later start to my work day, so I have laid out a plan and a small list of things I want to get done in the morning before I have to leave for work. (I hope I can sneak some writing into that time if all goes well.) The Halfway Mark Fifteen days deep into the month, I am still happy to say that I have managed to make a blog post every day in December as if I am doing a challenge abbreviated as BEDD. If I can offer myself some criticism, the quality and length of my blog posts would increase substantially if I wasn't writing so darn close to midnight almost every day. So far, my best posts have been the ones I haven't been rushing to get to the end. Kind of like how this blog post is... Memento Mori, KS |
| Present I am going to the daily blog equivalent of putting my hand up, saying present, and slumping back in my seat. I am feeling terrible at the moment, and I don't want to think tonight. I am going to go to bed and hope things are better in the morning. Memento Mori, KS |
| Poetry Prep I put a little work into my next poem, and I have settled on a structure. The last few poems I have been happy with are structured, so I am going to continue in that direction for this next one. My last free-form poem will not see the light of day; I must have been half asleep when I put pen to paper. I am going to work more on my meter for this poem; I think that was where I was weak in my last poem. Christmas Goodies I have now collected caramel corn, fruitcake, and a variety box of home-baked cookies over the last week now, and the sweet taste of Christmas home-baking is delicious. I am so very lucky to have a family that shares the Christmas bounty. As someone who doesn't bake much, this is sweet relief for my sweet tooth. Memento Mori, KS |
| A Quiet Night In After the excitement that was yesterday's unexpected mould remediation, I have just taken this evening after work to relax, and nothing is quite as relaxing as sitting down with an old favourite of mine, Kingdoms Two Crowns. A brilliantly simple sidescroller, where you play a king, or queen, managing your kingdom, riding from one end of the island you are on to the other, collecting tribute and building your castle. All the while, relaxing music plays during the day, and greed physically attacks your lands at night in the form of monsters called the greed. The only games I could play that are more relaxing are Minecraft and Stardew Valley. I would then round off the list with Coffee Talk and Surviving Mars. So I guess now, I have given you all an unintended top 5 games of mine. So to make sure the order is clear: (1) Minecraft (2) Stardew Valley (3) Kingdom Two Crowns (4) Coffee Talk (5) Surviving Mars A Pin to Come Back To Coffee Talk is a game that I will elaborate on more in the future since it has got a story that is much more easily talked about than everything else on this shortlist. So stay tuned for that when I have a little more time to write as I am fast approaching midnight again. Memento Mori, KS |
| Starting the Work Week Early So, I am having a good day. Get a free over john, take the baseboard to install it, and there's black mould growing. I had suspected when I bought this house that a flood had happened in the bathroom from the popped tile floor and the staining I can see from underneath in my laundry room. This is, fortunately, my actual job, so I have everything already. I cut it out, bag it, and spray deadly chemicals across the affected area. I love bringing work home. I was exhausted before, and now I am just about ready to pass out where I sit. It is everything within me to get this written today before I forget; almost did after I sat down after the cleanup. Why can't it ever be as easy as I think it will be? Hard Left Turn I saw you pop up in my notifications as I was typing this blog post, ~SilverMoon~  , and now you are doomed to receive a review from me in the future!...I'm sorry am overly tired, and now everything is a joke to me. I just launched into a grand sweeping evil monologue in the style of Dr. Doofenshmirtz. I think it is best I expunge most of it from this post; it was pretty rambly, and rereading it isn't as funny as when I initially typed it. Memento Mori, KS |
| How Many Do I Get I swear I must be running out of days where I can't think of anything to write. I would be more concerned if this were my job, but I just have to remind myself that this is a challenge month to get me into the rhythm of writing every day. I can focus on being interesting once I have the pattern and habit established. I am glad that I standardized my blog format at the beginning of the month; otherwise, I would be worried about that too. Not going to lie; Grammarly is the only reason I can write this all so close to the deadline and still have this looking half decent. A Third Done We are ten days deep already, and I am still struggling to get started on any story ideas for two of the contests I am interested in this month. Tomorrow I will shift focus onto the poetry contest and see if that goes any better. I already surprised myself with the last poem I wrote. And since this poetry contest is related to one of the story contests, it may kick-start that one as well. Memento Mori, KS |
| Before Midnight As I write this, there is a half hour before midnight. I am listening to Christmas carols in Latin and am drinking the last of the cold coffee I have left. Truly I am living the good life. The start of this week seems so far away now, and yet I am in the same space I was in then as I am now. Scrolling quickly back to see the work I have done in the in-between, though, is a little uplifting; more written in a week than the last two months. In addition to the blog posts, I also wrote the best poem of my career so far. My writing has done well this week, and that is a small victory I am going to take after everything else this week. Second Cup the Same as the First For those worried about how late I am drinking coffee, let me assure you that my sleep won't be affected. I was one of those students in college that found coffee not to improve my ability to study late. I can consume a large Timms, pile into bed, and fall asleep in ten minutes. I know because I will text my girlfriend, and I will be fast asleep in the few short minutes it takes for her to respond. I am just glad for the flavour and grateful it isn't anything stronger. I wish she was here right now. Sometimes I dream about being able to hug her at the end of my day and have a simple dinner. She took this hopeless romantic and turned me into just a romantic. Memento Mori, KS |
| A WdC Community Challenge I am delighted to find that there is a community challenge that takes blog posts. Today was again unremarkable, so a writing challenge that says to write based on this song (linked below) is a lifesaver for my daily blogging this month. Dreaming of a White Christmas like I Used to Know I live in Canada, so a white Christmas is a given. With lockdowns ended and a premiere unlikely to bring them back, Christmas celebrations should be more in line with how life should be at this time. And yet, I still dream of a white Christmas like the ones I used to know. "Now, what kind of Christmas is it that you are dreaming of," you may wonder. Well, it is a Christmas that sees me visit my friends on weekdays, family on the festive days and weekends, and attending church for the services that warm the soul better than a cup of hot cider. With friends, this will honestly take some deliberate action on my part since much of my social life still hasn't recovered fully from the cultural suicide that was prolonged lockdown. There are a handful of friends that spring to mind when considering this task of rebuilding those ancient alliances that I held dear, and this weekend I will get started contacting them for available times and schedules. (Two of them are married now, and I am embarrassed to say I don't even remember when that happened.) Family is the easiest of the old Christmas traditions to engage with since I am still firmly tethered to everyone in my immediate family, and the biggest thing is that I want to do a little more for my wider family of aunts, uncles, and cousins. I think digital Christmas cards would be nice since I am a little late sending physical cards. I plan to linger a little more after the church services this year and really take the time to wish as many people as I can a Merry Christmas. I just so very much miss talking with people in the church foyer with a Christmas cookie in one hand and a cup of hot cinder in the other. The running theme here, in case you missed it, is that the Christmases that I used to know are ones where I spend time with people I care about in a meaningful way. Yet there is a single new element of my life that would make Christmas feel like a Christmas from my past, and that would be my girlfriend. We have had a long-distance relationship the whole time we've been together; however, I can't say that Christmas is the same for me until I can spend Christmas with her in the same room. So when I dream of a white Christmas like I used to know, I dream of a white Christmas watching the snow fall outside, cuddled under a blanket on the couch with hot chocolate and the literal woman of my dreams. That's the white Christmas I am dreaming of. Memento Mori, KS |
| A Uneventful day Aside from the usual day-to-day duties, nothing out of the ordinary to report. I didn't have much in terms of conversation today, either. I couldn't be more disappointed with how today turned out. And now I am remarkably uninspired and unmotivated. Which is additionally horrible since I have been chosen to decide where the company Christmas party will be on Friday. It is hard to think about a future dinner when full, and now I have no spark of imagination on top of that. I am going to put on a pot of coffee to see if that helps anything. Let Me Ramble With a little coffee in hand, I am going to talk as if you care. That yellow suitcase beside my pen name caused me a lot of grief as much as it excited me when I first got it. I was struck with a severe case of imposter syndrome at the time, and that coincided with the arrival of lockdowns and the mass destruction of my social supports. Nearly two years after the fact, I have finally come to accept that yellow case. Part of my acceptance was realizing that I was already holding myself to the standard I expected of a preferred author, even if my full portfolio wasn't at the level I thought it had to be at. So now I have started ending my blog posts and reviews with the extra flair of This was a long time coming, and I wish I hadn't let it get to me as much as it did. Yet I am fine with it now, and that is all I could want right now; everything else will follow as time goes on. Memento Mori, KS |
| A Surprise To Be Sure So I know The Bard's Hall Contest wasn't in the earlier list of contests I had made for this month, but in my defense this is a contest that I passively look at as I desperately try my hand at poetry. All that to say, I have written for and entered this month's round of contenders. The poem is titled Star of the Night; written as a acrostic poem using the prompt of silver bells. You can imagine my embarrassment when after posting I read that one of the first entries already used the same prompt. Now, my lack of meter and desperate attempt to ryhme is in direct competition with a more confident poet. I did take time to read through all of the competition, but I think it would be a conflict of interest to review. Especially, since I barely know what I am doing with poetry myself. I will forever bemon the fact that poetry was so neglected in my education. From my novice point of view I think I have aquited myself well, however, I don't think I will place in this contest. In the last poetry contest I entered I think I was against one other person, so the judging could have been done by a coin flip for all I know. Still I think this may be the best poem I have written yet, and I think there is a marked improvement over my last poem. The Bard's Hall Contest and Star of the Night are linked below. The Silent Years of Christ In a review I received on my poem, it was rhetorically said why there is no record of Jesus as a teenager (and I would also add there is also no record in His twenties either). I thought it would be interesting to address it in a little more detail than I thought was appropriate for an off-the-cuff remark. I have always thought we have so little of His life because He lived a quiet life where His work and wisdom only impacted the small community around Him. During this time, He was working as a carpenter and not teaching as a rabbi, and He didn't perform any miracles either because the miracles were signs to bring people to belief. After all, Jesus said in the Gospel of John, "My hour has not yet come." Before His public ministry began, and when His first miracle was turning water into wine, the result was His disciples believed in Him. And it is essential to note that at the time He had done this, His disciples had just started following Him after John the baptist said He was the Messiah; His ministry hadn't yet started, but this made the first disciples believe what they had been told. Every other miracle Jesus performed was done to prove His divinity and claim as the Son of God. Jesus' birth and the situations around it are likewise important to the reader of the gospels as evidence of His divine origins. The one account of His childhood at the age of twelve is noted as a display of His wisdom, character, and desire to "be about His Father's business" even at an early age. It was probably the most amazing story in His mother's mind from His childhood, which is why almost two decades were skipped over until He was baptized at thirty. For the Regulars at the Dreamweaver In case you some how missed the latest announcement at "The Dreamweaver Lounge"  and saw this post first, I shall distribute the news here.The Anothology Project is back after a long absence and I hope as many members that are active with join in. More information can be found here for any members that need a quick link to get started: " The Anthology Project - Reborn (December 2022)" Memento Mori, KS
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| It Has Been a Monday I, unfortunately, have a bad headache today, so we will see what I can write while soldiering through it. I am self-medicating with coffee, so we will also see if that is a decision I regret. Otherwise, this has been a Monday. Not much to say about it; just disappointed by the lack of inspiration for today. This may be one of those posts where I simply bemoan the fact I don't have anything better to write, yet it can't be helped when doing a B.E.D.D. Thus is the slump I was talking about in yesterday's post. I think I will have to leave it there for today. It is just hard to think and stay focused right now. Memento Mori, KS |
| It Finally Happened A half-decade ago, I self-published a couple of children's picture books. At the time, I had put both through a few drafts and got multiple eyes on them; by the end of the process, I was happy with each book and paid the piper to get them in print. Something I was resigned to was the near guarantee I would not appreciate the effort of my past self and the depth of the lessons I had learned on the way. And now it has happened, I was reading both books as part of a pile of books for my little nephews, and the result was expected. I was very happy with the artwork that I had paid for—which is by itself worth the price of admission—and was disappointed with my own writing. My second book actually held up a lot better than I thought it would, minus a word change here and there, but my first book was a little more cringe to read back than I remember. And yet I felt like it was salvageable; there may be a second edition in the future. Another Inevitability This day of B.E.D.D. is a little harder to write as I am coming up to that old wall in my head that says I can't write new interesting things in rapid succession. This is a feeling that is likely to persist for a few days if I remember how this went last time I did a lot of posting. (It took me about an hour before I was able to get started today. Tomorrow will hopefully be better.) Memento Mori, KS |
| A Hard Saturday of Work Today was a busy day of throwing studs up to wall off a basement. Sadly this means I haven't had any time for reading or writing today, but I am keeping my eye on the prize. After a week of painting and finishing work, I will say that it is refreshing to get the blood pumping by hulling lumber. I hope to get a much better sleep tonight and wake up bright-eyed for the next day. The Prize As mentioned, I have my eye on the prize even if I am not writing as much as I would prefer, and that prize is that if I can manage to make this self-imposed B.E.D.D., then I will commission a merit badge and make this a yearly challenge for everyone to engage with. But first, I need to stick to my goals of one day at a time, one week after another, and one month as a whole. So far, this has been my best year for blogging, and I hope to close it out strong and begin the next year on the best footing I can. I feel the need to reflect on the time that has already passed, but it is late, and I sincerely need to sleep. Memento Mori, KS |
| End of Another Work Week So, another work week is over, and the first weekend of December is upon us. My brothers and I started this weekend with an evening bonfire in negative-degree weather: nothing could be better for Canadian-born souls. The warm glow of the embers surrounded by the steam swirling up from the melting snow is a visual magic that quenches the soul's thirst for a relaxed evening. Contests In B.E.D.D. For this month, I have found three contests that I am interested in writing for. They are month-long contests, and I will provide updates on the progress made for my contest entries. The poetry contest is going to be the one that stretches my abilities the most; any advice for a novice poem writer is much appreciated. "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest" E: Create a memorable character using the given prompt for huge prizes! " Magic Words Contest " 13+: A fantasy short story contest. Fantastic Prizes. Closed "Magic Poetry Contest" 13+: A contest for fantasy poetry. Fantastic prizes. CLOSED Memento Mori, KS |
| Making My B.E.D.D. This year I have been trying to get better at blogging, and this month I have decided to blog every day: a Blog Every Day in December or BEDD. I am borrowing the idea from a video creator and modifying it for my own needs. I may try to put some writing challenges in here for myself, and if anyone wishes to follow along with me, I would be happy to shout you out. And December Begins It is December once again and winter is in full swing. Christmas is around the corner and I am looking forward to having my house decorated again. The local radio station is playing all Christmas music for this month and I love it... minus a few select songs (to be elaborated on further). I did decide on this BEDD idea a bit late so I will have to keep this short for today and spend more time on BEDD for the rest of the month. Memento Mori, KS |
| Merry All Saints Day Just a quick blog post to say Merry All Saints Day! It has been a good day for me as I reminisce about the past heroes of the Faith. This last Halloween I thought that it didn't make sense to celebrate the eve without celebrating the day for which it is the eve of. If I had made a better plan then I would have more to say, but I will have to save it for next year. Memento Mori, KS |
| Happy Canada Day This may be the day after the fact, but I still wish everyone had a good Canada Day. I love this country and pray for the future of the nation. Looking out my front door and seeing the red and white flag flying this weekend causes my heart to swell with patriotism. Happy July 4th America As the days move on, I want to preemptively wish my neighbours a happy Independence Day. I hope you can keep the great project going there. Memento Mori, KS |
| Merry Mother's Day I thought for this week I would push my blog back for a day so I could wish all the mothers a happy mother's day. I didn't forget to write and post yesterday instead of getting locked into a game of Stelllaris. I look forward to seeing my nieces and nephews doing things for my sisters when they are a little older. My own mom was kind enough to give me a reminder the other day so it wasn't as much of a surprise to me as in previous years. And yes, it is always mother's day that is the surprise and father's day. If I ever figure out why I will let you know. Things Have Turned Green After starting the month with a little snow, we got some rain and spring is in full swing now. About half of the planting is done with my family and the last planting will be in this week. I am not growing anything except grass this year. I just don't have the time or resources to maintain a vegetable garden right now. Last year, I had a tomato plant because my sister had grown one too many; I haven't heard of any extra plants this year so I just have to maintain the lawn. W&R Update May 8th I currently have about ten tabs open for WdC: two contests, three stories, and a couple of portfolios that have caught my eye. Haven't had a review request in about half a month, yet I remain open if anything should come up. I have reopened an old project that with luck should be ready at the end of the month. A short review came in that reminded me that I need to get back to rewriting the back two-thirds of a story I had started writing in college. It's not my best work, but it was immensely fun and I still love the core of what I was doing at the time. Memento Mori, KS |
| Houses, Birthdays & Catan Well, that year rolled by pretty fast. I have officially been in my new house for a year now, which corresponds to my birthday (that really helps keep things simple). I am super grateful and thankful for this tiny house that somehow was being sold as cheap as it was. It's a small house built a hundred years ago when we didn't have to persuade people to live simpler lives. With its age also comes a wide range of fixes and updates that will undoubtedly keep me busy for at least a decade. Today is also the first birthday party I have hosted for myself apart from my parents. I managed to crowd six people around my little table and play a good game of Catan with my homebrewed rules mixed in. All had a good time, and I was delighted to have the company. For those wondering: I had homebrewed new rules for Seafarers and mixed it with Fishermen and Rivers. Sailing up the river and sending out fishing fleets was excellent. I think I have done a good enough job modifying the ships in Seafarers to work side-by-side with the ships from Explorers&Pirates. I am confident all the expansions will be harmonized with this latest effort this year. Happy Belated Easter Just because of life, I wasn't able to post for the Easter weekend. Since the Orthodox Church is celebrating it this weekend, however, I don't feel too bad in saying Happy Easter to everyone. He is risen! He is risen indeed! Happy St. George's Day The 23rd of April is also St. George's day. You would probably know St. George for a particular encounter with a dragon. If you know the English flag, then you know St. Geoge's cross as well. Next year, I think I will be wearing red and rescuing a fair lady to celebrate—happy St. George's Day. Memento Mori, KS |
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