By: yesisedit,
on 5/26/2009
You can be someone who goes through life making a jack-knife stick blade first into the dirt only to dull the point …
Or you can be the blade that uses the dirt to create life and makes it’s own sharp point !
By: yesisedit,
on 5/16/2009
It used to be in days before people and mystic practition what was seen could be believed but as soon as human metaphor was created the real world was under suspicion.
Shaman danced in fantastic costumes trying to scare us into believing their versions of why things are the way they are because they had no other way to grasp the real world that many times made no sense to them so they cast perversions.
This is the instance of the apple of knowledge being eaten, the knowledge that we could make the world the way we want, a way it could be beaten.
It was also the instance that humans began to fight amongst themselves as to the “Real” way things are and who’s truth was the correct truth and way to feel.
And all this time later the rest of the animals are still much closer to the truth and God for not asking why but just living in the atmosphere given them and basking even in the poor one man has left over.
By: yesisedit,
on 5/7/2009
We toil, some much harder than others, to provide ourselves with a future that is fun , comfortable, luxurious, interesting, or many other descriptive words about what it is we are striving for through some sort of “Work”.
We may be trying to make other humans, mostly our own progeny but at times our friends or supporters as well, have a better life but mostly it is about us, ourselves even though it is aimed at others or helps others outside our personal realm if even by accident, the ultimate, no matter the reason or how much it looks like it is for others, is for the self. Even if you are struggling to boost your family, company, country or the world from poverty, fear, want, or any malady that stalks us and even if we never make it out of the predicament the thought that we are helping others helps to ease our minds and thus lends benefit to us. There is never really a selfless reason for a response no matter how it seems to only help others. Even with no personal gain in material wealth there is always the comforting knowledge that our efforts will further our needs.
This is enough to keep the world hopeful and working for the future. It is called SURVIVAL and the seeds of it are always working for the future.
By: yesisedit,
on 2/22/2009
One day once upon a time, much like this very day , there lived in a place that was full of magic a very lucky boy …
His name was Very Lucky Boy and he was very happy. He had Very good friends and they were happy people also…
It so happened that people who didn’t live where the Lucky Boy lived were greedy and tried to take all the happiness away by destroying the economy of the Lucky people and making the things they believed in tarnish in the light of the sun…
It was so bad that one or two of the Lucky Boy’s favorite people started telling little white lies and trying to make up stories…
Lucky Boy saw this and it made him sad but before becoming bitter, Lucky Boy was even luckier and found some old friends he had not seen in many years who were still happy and did not believe in sad, unlucky things…
They came to lucky Boy and said great things that filled him with so much hope and happiness it drove the sad thoughts back to where they started and Lucky Boy was even happier than before…
He was so happy that even on a winter day he saw rainbows and blue skies…
By: Laurie Halse Anderson,
on 2/17/2009
I can guarantee that you're not reading this on FaceBook. Why? I've stopped blogging there.
I love FaceBook. It has a great design and tools that make it much easier to use than MySpace. I've connected with hundreds of old friends and new readers there. One of the features I loved about it was the ability to directly stream this blog into my FB account.
No more.
I turned that blogging feature off yesterday, thanks to a note on Stacy Whitman's blog that led me to this Consumerist article examining the very quiet change Facebook recently made to their Terms of Service (TOS).
I feel like FB is trying to have it both ways; writing the legal TOS language to give them blanket access to content, should they one day want to produce, oh say, a book of Best Blogs of 2009. Or a CD with Cutest Baby Photos Ever. Or Frat Guys Gone Wild and Photographed While Unconscious. At same time, they get to act all surprised and offended, "What! We weren't gonna do that. No way!" and refuse to change the legal language that would make the issue go away.
The New York Times today quotes writer Sasha Frere-Jones as saying that FaceBook CEO Mark Zuckerman's response to the protest "is just the modern version of ‘Ignore the fine print, ma’am, just sign here,'”
If Zuckerman truly believes what he said in the Times article, that "the philosophy “that people own their information and control who they share it with has remained constant," then he can very easily tell the company's lawyers to tweak the TOS language to reflect that.
Come on, Mark. You know it's the right thing to do. I don't have anything against good business models that turn a profit for entrepreneurs. I adore capitalism. But when you start putting your sticky fingers on other people's intellectual property, then you're turning into a Robber Baron. You're better than that. Fix the TOS.
Until that happens, you can find this blog on LiveJournal and MySpace.
And now, back to writing questions.
You wrote: What do you read, outside of researching and work?
I'm reading and reading an incredible book of poetry that I recommend to everyone: Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith I was lucky enough to hear her speak at NCTE in San Antonio (our paths crossed at the National Book Awards, too, but we didn't get a chance to talk). I think she's one of the most talented poets writing today.
In fiction, I'm about to start Soul Enchilada, by David Maciness Gill. I read more non-fiction than fiction (I don't want too many other fictional voices in my head when I'm writing, that's why.) I just finished Eden's Outcasts:: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father and now I'm reading
Edith Wharton, which is, yes, a wonderful biography of Edith Wharton.
Before I get to work, a couple of people inquired about Number One Son based on yesterday's photo. He is almost 17, but don't get your hopes up. He has a wonderful girlfriend and is not looking elsewhere.
Scribblescribblescribble...
By: David Elzey,
on 10/1/2007
It's been a while, hasn't it? Something about the summer just pulled me away from the Grimm and into the poetry. But with the chill in the fall air and the change of light it felt like time to reenter the forests. I almost wanted to ignore this chestnut altogether. The story has been told and retold and, really, it isn't that good in my opinion. But I remembered once in a drawing class we
By: David Elzey,
on 6/30/2007
by Carol Foskett Cordsen illustrated by Douglas B. Jones Puffin paperback 2007 Hearkening back to another era, this picture book takes a warm-n-fuzzy look at a day in the life of the old fashioned door-to-door milkman. Told in terse clip-clop rhymes we follow Mr. Plimpton as he readies for and makes his daily deliveries in a town straight out of Robert McCloskey's Centerberg. It begins with
By: April Henry,
on 1/22/2007
I got this email today from something called Authors4Charity.com. How many grammatical and spelling errors and other just plain oddities can you count? And notice how quickly it seems to move on to how the author can make a profit? But first, you have to pay $55 to join. Pretty sure that money is just going into these self-published authors' pockets. My comments in brackets.
"Good Morning,
"We want to take this opportunity and invite you join us at Authors4Charity. We are an organization of authors from around the country conducting book signings and donating a portion of what we receive to charity. We’re expanding our old organization to include many new things for authors to choose from, made it better and will do extensive promotions in the next few months.
"Members have found this organization has increased their own profits by allowing them to conduct book signings in locations where they may not be able otherwise. Additionally, readers seem more apt to purchase when they know a portion with go to charity
"We support our members through personal contact, newsletters, web site and suggested contacts. Often
our members ban together to conduct joint book signings at local locations. Many book signings are at Malls, bookstores, coffee shops and grocery stores, to name a few. [Malls with a capital M yet!] Members have access to a listing of locations agreeing to conduct such book signings. Even if you belong to another writers group, Authors4Charity is different in that we place more emphasis on book signings, promotions and other areas than most other groups. [Whew! That's a relief. Wouldn't want you to be placing the emphasis on charity!] So you can belong to more than one.
"AFC has a list of approved charities from which the author can select – or can submit their own favorite charity for approval by AFC. How much each author gives to charity is at the discretion of individual authors. Authors have different financial arrangements and constraints. Some have only an eight percent margin with which to work, others may have as much as thirty percent.
"Some of the benefits of joining us is [Some...is - love that subject-verb agreement] that you will receive discounts from businesses across the US, plus we’re working on updating our Authors4Charity Pamphlet which includes: ·The AFC Bookstore Database, The A4C talk radio shows database Lists 1500 shows (members
save $199.00., The A4C Speakers Database allows members, who would like to be speakers, to be listed
so that organizations may receive contact information, Discounts on A4C Seminars & Workshop, listing of media contacts, newspapers, magazines and libraries, and a listing of places for book signings for our members. [This reads like it was translated into Serbian and then back again.] This pamphlet will be updated as we get new things to include.
"Authors4Charity will also have it’s own publishing and Promotions company later on this year for it’s
members. [Another Odd capitalization. Plus it proves Dave Barry's spelling rule - an apostrophe means an "S" is coming.] With the publishing company, authors who use print on demand can buy books at cost using our own publisher. The promotions company will offer discounts to all it’s members as well.
Please, take a few moments to visit our website to learn more about our organization and join us today.
www.authors4charity.com
Sincerely,
Marie Jones and William Creed
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By: [email protected] (Mark Blevis and Andrea ,
on 11/15/2006
Author: Robin Tzannes
Illustrator: Korky Paul
Published: 2005 Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192722697 Chapters.ca Amazon.com
Argh!!! Another fabulous book that’s out of print. I sure hope you can find this great book at your local library.
This hilarious and thought-provoking tale of greed gets squeals of delight time after time.
Tags:age4 8, book, children, economics, ethics, fairness, greed, humour, law, podcast, reviewage4 8, book, children, economics, ethics, fairness, greed, humour, law, podcast, review
Just passing by.Btw, you website have great content!
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