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It’s been several days since my last appearance here. I’ve had a friend and colleague visiting for the past several days. Meena Rose graced us with her loveliness and brilliance.

Today has been one of cleansing websites, blogs, and general upkeep on the net. It’s amazing how much crud accumulates on a daily basis and then has to be swept out of the corners during housekeeping. During the process of this upkeep, we’ve been moving our personal blogs over to Two Voices, One Song.

This is an attempt to reduce our continued workload.  Each of us have other projects we’d really like to get back to. Having everything in one place will make that easier for us.

My blog Claudsy’s Calliope is being moved and reorganized as I write this. Claudsy’s Blog will be the next in line for the transfer.

Tomorrow I will post a new URL for this blog so that all of  its followers can decide whether they want to remain loyal and move with it or to cut ties and run. I’m hoping that everyone stays with Claudsy’s Blog and Calliope. I have plenty more to say and things I’d like to work on within the blogs.

There you have it, folks. I’ve so enjoyed having everyone coming here, and I admit a sense of guilt this past month or so for having been absent so much. I should be able to write more frequently on the blogs once all is together. That’s my current plan.

Remember–it will be one-stop-shopping at Two Voices, One Song at www.2voices1one.com/

Hope to see you there soon. A bientot,

Claudsy

Courtesy of BJ Jones Photography

Ever wonder why we use this expression this way? I know, you’re asking “What way?”

I say, “Every way.”

Think about it. What is a “step back”? Something leaps onto the path we’re walking. We step back; from startlement, fright, consternation, you-name-it.

We make use of this step to re-evaluate, to make a split-second decision whether to fight or flee. We need to know what we’re facing before making a leap of our own. This may be our only chance consciously to decide.

This stepping-back behavior for decision making permeates nearly every corner of our lives. We may or may not realize it at the time. On some occasions we don’t have the leisure to recognize the process or the maneuver.

“Let’s take a step back and look at this situation.” How many business meetings have paused after a similar statement while those in charge review options, repercussions of those options, or the people, places, and procedures involved in those options?

I dare say that few meetings get to an end without some variant of these words, especially interdepartmental meetings. “Shall we table this and regroup after everyone’s had a chance to take a good long look at it?”

See what I mean?

The question of pausing to consider plays a role in individual lives as well. It can be as minor as “cantaloupe or honey dew” while in the produce aisle of the grocery store or as monumental as “chemo or radiation.” Each decision event has impact; large or small.

“Shall we make it illegal for citizens to grow some of their own food?”

This pause has happened–is happening in Washington–at least according to the media. I don’t bring this up as a political statement, but rather as a demonstration of how vast an impact such a question—such a pause for consideration—can make. One question can force an entire country’s population to reconsider many things impacting their lives.

You might ask why this is on my mind right now. That’s a valid question.

I’m in pause mode because I made a major shift in my mindset throughout this summer. What and how I write has shifted; not because I didn’t like what I was writing before, but because I like writing in this new way much better. My approach to both life and writing was in need of an evaluation.

With the shift in my writing, my attitude about life and how I was living also shifted. That change warranted a continued attitude adjustment in my writing. I got to that old “chicken and the egg” portion of life.

Priorities became more pronounced. Life paths suddenly had the full light of purpose shined upon them. How could I not stop to consider or ponder my direction?

The Step became necessary to fully appreciate where I’ve come from and where I’m going. More importantly, I discovered some of the why’s in my life, and those always necessitate a pause. Hence, I arrived at this doorstep.

I have no clue where I’

Cover of The Vacation

Each year millions create an almost migratory herd, like so many waves rolling toward a shore called “vacation.” Each traveler has in mind a personal calling toward whatever destination reaches in and takes hold of the heart for that season. How many can resist that pull?

My writing partner left this past weekend for vacation with her children. Since that particular blog is on vacation this week, I’m left with additional and unanticipated hours of luxurious time to delve into new studies, new avenues of knowledge exploration. I could spend the extra hours working on some of my long projects, but they’ve already been delegated to regular work hours.

For now, I can download seminars and listen without guilt, soak in new knowledge to add to those bits I’ve stored away, and investigate hitherto unknown streets that branch off the cyber highway. There’s a lot of territory to roam in only a few measly days. What if I get lost?

No fears. Fear is the little mind killer. That has become my motto of life.

Learning new software applications will get an hour here and there. A new book will have a half an hour of my time each day. An hour long seminar each day isn’t too much to do. And a couple of hours devoted to my writing course will pay off handsomely in a few months. (I’m rebuilding—not revising–my YA novel.)

The finishing touches on my first book of poetry are happening today. It will go to beta readers within a few days, as soon as I get them all lined up. Once it’s out to readers, I’ll concentrate on the second book. I have all of the photos, thanks to Sister and that trusty camera of hers. It’s begun, but now I must implement the outline for the epic poem.

Did I mention that I just had two more poems accepted by Four and Twenty Short Form Poetry? That drives more incentive to send out more poems and create a few more just for outside submission. Surprises like this one I can handle without difficulty.

So far my week is starting out pretty well. Speaking of poetry, here’s the one I did yesterday for Poetic Bloomings Prompt of Write a Resting Poem.

Restlessness

What gentle rustlings

Probe mind’s nooks

While sleep hangs

Suspended, waiting?

What probings shake

Awake memories

Long forgotten

While slumber paces?

What shakings loosen

Ponderings, dry eyes,

And weave weariness

Into strain’s distress?

These rustling, probing

Shakings serve to

Alert, with useless

This post stems from the Thought Ripples over on Two Voices, One Song. Sometimes when you change a process for one thing, it sticks and bleeds over into other work, as well. That’s what happened here. I hope you enjoy it.

Once in a while, I take a trip through a zoo or sanctuary. While I gaze upon the residents within the confines of the area, taking note of mundane considerations, my mind focuses on the what-might-have-beens. Those are the natural landscapes and living conditions of whatever animal I’m viewing.

Take this guy, for instance. He was brought into man’s arena very early in his life. He worked for a living, hence his missing horn. And when his work was done, he was fortunate enough to find sanctuary on the Olympic Peninsula with other animal actors that had been retired.

He’s a sweetheart, who likes treats and people’s voices. He’s enclosed to keep him safe from those who would taunt and tease and stress him unduly. I think it’s sad that we have lock up the wild things to keep them safe from us, the civilized ones.

Because he’d not been allowed to be wild, he will never know his ancestors’ natural habitat. Then again, at least here he can live a peaceful existence without fear of someone taking his life, as well as his horn. And without his horn, he could have never survived in his natural habitat anyway.

Herds of elk and fallow deer have free run of many more acres of this wild animal park. The bison keep them company as they watch cars go by, occupants snapping and whirring with their cameras. Thankfully, no one can get out of their cars to aggravate the ones trying to eat or rest.

Peacocks keep order. Rabbits watch from the sidelines. Those in the petting zoo take little hands in stride. And everywhere are the sounds of human voices, rather than those of the residents.

Within the shadows cast by trees lurk yaks and zebras, not usual neighbors, though they seem to get along quite well.

The occasional small scene gives an idyllic glimpse of how life in the wild could be if allowed.

This post stems from the Thought Ripples over on Two Voices, One Song. Sometimes when you change a process for one thing, it sticks and bleeds over into other work, as well. That’s what happened here. I hope you enjoy it.

Once in a while, I take a trip through a zoo or sanctuary. While I gaze upon the residents within the confines of the area, taking note of mundane considerations, my mind focuses on the what-might-have-beens. Those are the natural landscapes and living conditions of whatever animal I’m viewing.

Take this guy, for instance. He was brought into man’s arena very early in his life. He worked for a living, hence his missing horn. And when his work was done, he was fortunate enough to find sanctuary on the Olympic Peninsula with other animal actors that had been retired.

He’s a sweetheart, who likes treats and people’s voices. He’s enclosed to keep him safe from those who would taunt and tease and stress him unduly. I think it’s sad that we have lock up the wild things to keep them safe from us, the civilized ones.

Because he’d not been allowed to be wild, he will never know his ancestors’ natural habitat. Then again, at least here he can live a peaceful existence without fear of someone taking his life, as well as his horn. And without his horn, he could have never survived in his natural habitat anyway.

Herds of elk and fallow deer have free run of many more acres of this wild animal park. The bison keep them company as they watch cars go by, occupants snapping and whirring with their cameras. Thankfully, no one can get out of their cars to aggravate the ones trying to eat or rest.

Peacocks keep order. Rabbits watch from the sidelines. Those in the petting zoo take little hands in stride. And everywhere are the sounds of human voices, rather than those of the residents.

Within the shadows cast by trees lurk yaks and zebras, not usual neighbors, though they seem to get along quite well.

The occasional small scene gives an idyllic glimpse of how life in the wild could be if allowed.

Today, I want to show you how many writersgo about clustering ideas for

Blank Mind Map–Clustering

story development.

The process is simple. Daydreams draw on it all the time. Draw a circle, square, whatever you like in the center of a piece of paper. Go ahead, draw it. Inside that shape, put a word or group of words designating a specific something; desire, idea, plan, objective, goal, or whatever.

For our purposes here, I’ve put “Main Character—Isabel” in my circle. Now, all I’m going to do is let my mind provide everything it can think of that could be related to this character named “Isabel” and draw a line radiating from the circle to the new word. “short” “dark hair” “tanned skin” “Speaks with an accent” “watery eyes” “clubbed foot” “Orphaned” “City dweller” Hates mice” “Can’t read” “generous nature” “hears voices” “Knows the king” and on and on until I fill the page.

I do this exercise quickly. (Most of the time I do this on the computer with my eyes closed.) I don’t stop to ponder any of my associations or to question where any came from. I only write whatever word comes to mind as quickly as possible to make way for the next word.

When I look back at what I’ve written, I will find anomalies. In the example above, some items are capitalized and some aren’t. Why? What is it about the ones with caps that make them important enough to warrant a capital?

Isabel speaks with an accent. Where does she come from if that is true within this story?

Isabel is an orphaned city dweller who can’t read. Why is it critical that I know this about this character?

Isabel knows the king. How does she know the king? Now that’s helpful and important. So, why are the other pieces important, too?

Without answering these questions, I’ll move on to the plot cluster to see if I can find answers there.

Plot Idea Cluster center–(Isabel’s story) “Taken from the king’s household during infancy” “Related to the king” “lives in the weaver’s quarter” “indentured to Master Weaver Challen” “Doesn’t go out in the daytime” “King has ordered a celebration for his son’s birthday” “City faces a dread disease”

Lots of capitals here. Let’s see what I have now. Isabel, disabled with a clubbed foot, lives in the capital city where the king has just ordered the celebration of his son’s birthday and at a time when the metropolis faces a dread disease. An indentured person to Master Weaver Challen, Isabel lives in the weaver’s quarter and doesn’t venture out during the day. How she was stolen from the king’s household during infancy is unclear as yet or what

Extension and definition (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Obviously this is the last day of May, but it’s also the day before the launch of a new website called “Two Voices, One Song.” My friend, Meena Rose, and I have created a new joint venture. It’s a blending of philosophies, perspectives, and visions, which I hope all of our regular readers will enjoy.

We’re inviting our readers to take a peek inside this new space before the rush of tomorrow, to have a look at the rooms within our freshly built abode.

Does this mean that Claudsy’s Blog will cease to exist or be abandoned like an old toy in favor of a new one? Not for a long while yet, is the only answer I can honestly give. It does mean that I’ll only be posting here every other day, instead of daily, as is now the case.

Meena and I are blending as much as we can of who we are as people and writers to give readers a far better look into our minds. Among the rooms at “Two Voices, One Song,” you’ll find regular brainstorming sessions between us while we work out problems with pieces of fiction, non-fiction, or poetry. You’ll find regular pieces of finished fiction/non-fiction, as well.

Memoir entries centered on travels we’ve made, and understandings or thoughts we’ve taken away from those travels, will show up in the garage each week. Discussions of philosophy will take place in the Library, even while meditation is offered in the Garden. For those in need of writing prompts, there is a large selection from which to find just the one to stir the imagination and the Muse.

Along the way, we’ll have links to places we find worthwhile, engaging, or instructive. We urge every visitor to take advantage of these offerings and to offer feedback in return.

Profiles and interviews, stories and articles, poems and projections all come together there for savoring by the reader.

In the meantime, I’ll be having regular posts here as well. If I do fiction there, it will show up here. The same holds true for poetry and questioning pieces.

And while Claudsy’s Blog will migrate much of its content to the new site, Claudsy’s Calliope will do the same; as will Trailing Inspirations. This co-mingling of content and perspective feels like the proper thing to do right now, in this surge of creativity that was fostered at the beginning of May.

Please enjoy a tour of “Two Voices, One Song” and see if what you’ll find there will be as suitable to you as my offerings her

Satire on false perspective, showing all of the common mistakes artists make in perspective, by Hogarth, 1753 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

People talk about attitudes every day. The subject is always revealing. This morning I came up against it yet again, but in a different way. Let me explain.

I was brushing my teeth a while ago when I heard the toilet flush. Ours is a split bath with the lavatory separate from tub and toilet. I was startled because I’d not noticed Sister moving past me, either going or coming back.

I immediately inquired if she’d done so, to which she said, “Of course!”

Color me surprised. I replied, “I must have been really focused, since I didn’t notice you walking past me.”

Her response was, “Oblivious would be a good choice of word, too.”

I’ll tell you what I told her. “I choose to take a positive stance on this one, rather than see it as negative.”

This whole exchange may sound silly, but it addresses an everyday choice we make as humans. I prefer to think of the episode as “being focused.” The opposite take is “being oblivious.” I was focused on what I was doing and what I was thinking at the time; which just happened to be what I was going to write for this blog post today.

Sister considered it as less aware. One the one hand, she’s correct. I was unaware of her presence behind me and of her proximate activity. From her perspective, what I was doing took little thought and, therefore, I should have noticed her movements.

At the same time, my perspective informs me of my concentrative ability to screen out irrelevant activity while working on the mental plane. This does not happen when I’m in unfamiliar terrain or in uncertain situations. I see it as indicative of how safe and secure I feel in my own home.

Different perspectives? Certainly. Different attitudes? Again, yes, though those attitudes are informed by expectations as well. My expectation was of safety in my home. Hers revolved around momentary awareness of my surroundings.

When we move around our world, we carry expectations, and perspectives based on them, with us and draw conclusions from those factors. Whether those conclusions are viewed as correct are, for wont of another explanation, dependent on how other individuals interpret those conclusions.

The behavior of the world’s populace is based on these factors. Until consensus of perspective arises, there can be little hope for consensus of behavior. At least, that’s how I see it.

If one small action—my brushing my teeth and not noticing someone move behind me—creates a schism between positive and negative interpretation, how much more dramatic are divisions surrounding vast actions?

Give me your thoughts on this question. How do you see perspective and its role in the daily behavior of those two-legged creatures called humans? Leave a comment below and join the discussion.

Until then, a bientot,

Claudsy

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11 Comments on Positive and Negative Perspectives, last added: 6/1/2012

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Meena Rose said, on 5/30/2012 1:44:00 PM

That was a funny episode. What I found intriguing was you validating that it was indeed your sister. Some would have accepted the assumption and moved on and as a result would not have sparked that particular schism between positive and negative.

On to the topic of alertness and obliviousness, there are so of us who by virtue of our life story remain vigilant and alert. Many times we expect everyone else to be that way. Admittedly at times, we tsk tsk the less alert people.

Obliviousness on the other hand implies that alertness to the external environment is diminished. I have noticed this word pick up negative connotations in this day and age of information. Unaware is probably a safer word to use and does not carry the same severity and expectation.

claudsy said, on 5/30/2012 2:42:00 PM

Hey there, Meena. I don’t know that I felt the need to validate who the other person was, so much as to set tone for the experience. I think of words having an undercurrent of negative/positive be the tone used when hearing them voiced. Certain vocal tones connote one or the other to me.

And yes, one’s background does influence how one perceives either perception. I think such experience is also what drives much of animosity/discontent/misunderstanding between people.

The mind’s ability to pigeon-hole emotive stimuli, as often, depends on the vocal tone one hears during conversation as it does visual impression during said conversation or presentation. What a person hears can also be emotively influenced by expectations as perspective.

Circular, don’t you think?

Meena Rose said, on 5/30/2012 3:40:00 PM

I think of it more like a spiral of escalation as anxieties rise with each lap.

What is heard via tone is key as even the nicest words can be said in the most negative way.

claudsy said, on 5/30/2012 4:00:00 PM

So very true, my friend. A compliment can turn into ugly accusation in an inflection. All reaction has the potential to spiral up or down according to personal investment and perceived situational position.

Veronica Roth said, on 5/30/2012 8:40:00 PM

I’m one to talk; today my post was about unhappiness while listening to a program all about hppiness. My partner Robert would say that I’m forever seeing the negative side. It’s true, I’ve thought about it a lot…a lot… but honestly my one bad habit is I write scripts in my mind. You know, scripts which when they don’t turn out the way my brain programmed them, results in disappointment, sadness and negativity. I can def. take a note from your book and chose to see things in a more positive way, I’m trying, but it’s me…and I don’t do this easily. The good thing is I never raise my voice and I always try to take myself away to solitude to minimise the damaging effect I have on those around me.

claudsy said, on 5/30/2012 9:09:00 PM

Veronica, there are many people who can’t quite let go of an idea, regardless of whether that idea worked for them or not. You’re not that unusual in this trait. Perhaps you need to concentrate more on the good turns that the scripts make rather than that turns were made in the first place.

For instance: you’ve got a script about a relationship that’s not working too well–that’s the crisis driving the plot. The twist comes when she realizes that the relationship has always been a bit faulty and not secured on a solid foundation. At this point the main character has to decide whether she really feels the need to “save” the relationship by dumping lots of time and effort into its salvation, or to find out what her life could be like outside the relationship.

If this is the kind of script change that drives you bonkers, you might re-evaluate the situation by realizing that Muse has given you as realistic and plausible an alternative for your story line as possible, one that might actually give you a better story in the long run. Why? Because Muse got a really strong emotional response from you–a response that can be used to fuel it to make your work into a killer script that will be snapped up in a heartbeat.

This is an example of using the positive perspective twist to encourage good things in your everyday work. Just a thought.

cloudfactor5 said, on 6/1/2012 3:33:00 AM

“When we move around our world, we carry expectations, and perspectives based on them”
“This does not happen when I’m in unfamiliar terrain or in uncertain situations.”
By isolating these two sentences that you stated, I would say to you that it is exactly when we put ourselves in unfamiliar terrain and in uncertain situations and then let go of our expectations and perspectives that we stand at the very threshold of magic where the question then becomes do you really believe what you are seeing? This then becomes the starting point where real experience is possible, just look at Carlos Castaneda’s books as a good example of this. I have been there many times in my life when I actually had to question if what I was seeing was real because I was standing in a thick fog of magic. That was the big draw of the Grateful Dead, where people could just show up at concerts, take acid, and watch the known world melt away. What was left was the magical experience of a lifetime, which is why certain Indian tribes still use peyote as a most valid way to commune with god and why these drugs are outlawed because the government would be in deep shit if millions of people woke up to realize that in fact they were god! Which is something we can never know until we leave behind the expectations and perspective’s that are brainwashing our minds daily! So now we arrive at the point of safety, play it safe and you eliminate most possibility, but to quote Robert Hunter and Jerry Garcia in their amazing song “Terrapin Station” “I will not forgive you if you will not take the chance” So I say seize the day and wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world !!

claudsy said, on 6/1/2012 7:09:00 AM

Randy, it must just be me then. I’ve never gone anywhere that I recall where I haven’t had some type of expectation, even as a child. In fact, I’ve always heard people say things like “I never imagined anything like that, or I wouldn’t have guessed that this was here.” Surprise at a finding, yes, but there was an expectation, however nebulous, behind the statement; imagination came into the picture and guessing at a possible finding.

You’re very fortunate if you’ve gone anywhere during your life and experienced the wide-eyed innocence of a child within a different environment that your usual fare. I’d've loved to have done that. Perhaps my perspective comes from always having seen the world through eyes too old for my experience level. Or perhaps, it’s simply an expectation of the impossible made real that I’ve always believed in.

I can’t testify to dropping acid at a “Dead” concert, but tribal use of peyote is another matter. From my experience I know that it’s not usual for the average tribal member to use the drug indiscriminately, but rather for the medicine wielders and shaman to use it for vision clarification. I could be wrong, of course. Each tribal group is different in its practices. Peyote is powerful and does intensify one’s experience. Does it surprise and delight? Good question. For one who’s never heard of its effects, I’m sure that it does. For someone who has been briefed before hand, again expectations have arisen. The same can be said for the “Dead” concert and acid. Unless the person had been raised under a rock in someone’s north forty for all those formative years, he/she will have heard something about the affects of acid on the human brain, which returns us to the question of expectations, regardless of how nebulous they might be.

Or have I missed something here? Good discussion, Randy. Thank you.

cloudfactor5 said, on 6/1/2012 7:47:00 AM

Then you have never really gone on a true adventure. When I went to Europe the first time I didn’t even know if I would be able to find food or a place to sleep in some places, and came very close to failing in that respect, and ended up driving 6000 miles in 30 days !! Some of the greatest experiences of my life were when I just got in a car with a bunch of people with a sleeping bag and no expectations and drove !!

claudsy said, on 6/1/2012 7:54:00 AM

I’ve had my own adventures, Randy, with just picking up and going; more times than I care to think about just this minute. Yet, with all of that, I still had imaginings of what I might find along the way or at the other end. There was always an expectation of surprise or confirmation of something I’d been told before I arrived.

That was doubly true during my sister’s and my adventure of five months on the road from Dec. 2010 and May 2011. We expected certain things because of our objectives and our research. None of them panned out. That’s why I’m in the midst of writing a book about the failures that resulted and the blessings and came from those failures.

You’re fortunate, indeed, to have had such an adventure.

cloudfactor5 said, on 6/1/2012 8:29:00 AM

You know for me, the Zen of when I play music,is to empty my mind of all thoughts and considerations as much as humanly possible and see what happens.I still remember the first time I fell asleep with a guitar in my hand and when I awoke my fingers were playing something very interesting. It was the first time I ever had such a profound experience of being outside of myself looking at myself.That’s why to this day I still say my fingers are smarter than me and I do my best to keep my mind out of their way!

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Satire on false perspective, showing all of the common mistakes artists make in perspective, by Hogarth, 1753 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

People talk about attitudes every day. The subject is always revealing. This morning I came up against it yet again, but in a different way. Let me explain.

I was brushing my teeth a while ago when I heard the toilet flush. Ours is a split bath with the lavatory separate from tub and toilet. I was startled because I’d not noticed Sister moving past me, either going or coming back.

I immediately inquired if she’d done so, to which she said, “Of course!”

Color me surprised. I replied, “I must have been really focused, since I didn’t notice you walking past me.”

Her response was, “Oblivious would be a good choice of word, too.”

I’ll tell you what I told her. “I choose to take a positive stance on this one, rather than see it as negative.”

This whole exchange may sound silly, but it addresses an everyday choice we make as humans. I prefer to think of the episode as “being focused.” The opposite take is “being oblivious.” I was focused on what I was doing and what I was thinking at the time; which just happened to be what I was going to write for this blog post today.

Sister considered it as less aware. One the one hand, she’s correct. I was unaware of her presence behind me and of her proximate activity. From her perspective, what I was doing took little thought and, therefore, I should have noticed her movements.

At the same time, my perspective informs me of my concentrative ability to screen out irrelevant activity while working on the mental plane. This does not happen when I’m in unfamiliar terrain or in uncertain situations. I see it as indicative of how safe and secure I feel in my own home.

Different perspectives? Certainly. Different attitudes? Again, yes, though those attitudes are informed by expectations as well. My expectation was of safety in my home. Hers revolved around momentary awareness of my surroundings.

When we move around our world, we carry expectations, and perspectives based on them, with us and draw conclusions from those factors. Whether those conclusions are viewed as correct are, for wont of another explanation, dependent on how other individuals interpret those conclusions.

The behavior of the world’s populace is based on these factors. Until consensus of perspective arises, there can be little hope for consensus of behavior. At least, that’s how I see it.

If one small action—my brushing my teeth and not noticing someone move behind me—creates a schism between positive and negative interpretation, how much more dramatic are divisions surrounding vast actions?

Give me your thoughts on this question. How do you see perspective and its role in the daily behavior of those two-legged creatures called humans? Leave a comment below and join the discussion.

Until then, a bientot,

Claudsy

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The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For many the season of warm weather has already driven temperatures into the high 90’s and above. Hence the reason we live as far north of the Mason-Dixon Line as we can. Today we might get into the mid-60’s with rain.

You won’t hear us complain too much. The moisture is something we need to keep fire threat down in our forests. Cooler temps ensure that we don’t have adverse effects from being outside and enjoying the day, as well.

The first of the season’s holidays has passed with celebrations, speeches, memorials, parades, and picnics. Soon June will open its doors to summer’s activities and school recess. What will your future hold this summer?

Thinking on this question this morning, I could see many changes for myself and how I move through my life. Sister comes out of the chute, anxious and excited as she begins summer session next week to get a leap into her new curriculum.

A new book is making its way to me. I ordered “The New Drawing from the Right Side of Your Brain” a few days ago. Many years ago I read the original edition of this marvelous book. After discovering a new version was out, I decided to slide the cost onto my educational spreadsheet and order it.

The one thing I learned from the original was that the technique taught by Betty Edwards could be used for any type of creative project or thinking. Yes, it does teach how to perceive an object in a way that allows the viewer to recreate it on paper, in oils/pastels/acrylics, etc. At the same time that perception bleeds over into other aspects of the physical world. Perception of time can shift as well or how one sees other people. Writers can learn a whole new spectrum of creativity.

When taken in conjunction with The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, a whole new view of the world is available. I intend to discover as much of that new world view as possible. The old one is getting a bit tired and frayed.

New seasons introduce new beginnings, and discovery of those beginnings is part of the drive into the months ahead. In preparation for discovery, here’s my list of impending activities.

• Continuing education in the writing craft
• Visits from three friends from around the country
• A
  0 Comments on Future’s Threshold as of 1/1/1900
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The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For many the season of warm weather has already driven temperatures into the high 90’s and above. Hence the reason we live as far north of the Mason-Dixon Line as we can. Today we might get into the mid-60’s with rain.

You won’t hear us complain too much. The moisture is something we need to keep fire threat down in our forests. Cooler temps ensure that we don’t have adverse effects from being outside and enjoying the day, as well.

The first of the season’s holidays has passed with celebrations, speeches, memorials, parades, and picnics. Soon June will open its doors to summer’s activities and school recess. What will your future hold this summer?

Thinking on this question this morning, I could see many changes for myself and how I move through my life. Sister comes out of the chute, anxious and excited as she begins summer session next week to get a leap into her new curriculum.

A new book is making its way to me. I ordered “The New Drawing from the Right Side of Your Brain” a few days ago. Many years ago I read the original edition of this marvelous book. After discovering a new version was out, I decided to slide the cost onto my educational spreadsheet and order it.

The one thing I learned from the original was that the technique taught by Betty Edwards could be used for any type of creative project or thinking. Yes, it does teach how to perceive an object in a way that allows the viewer to recreate it on paper, in oils/pastels/acrylics, etc. At the same time that perception bleeds over into other aspects of the physical world. Perception of time can shift as well or how one sees other people. Writers can learn a whole new spectrum of creativity.

When taken in conjunction with The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, a whole new view of the world is available. I intend to discover as much of that new world view as possible. The old one is getting a bit tired and frayed.

New seasons introduce new beginnings, and discovery of those beginnings is part of the drive into the months ahead. In preparation for discovery, here’s my list of impending activities.

• Continuing education in the writing craft
• Visits from three friends from around the country
• A
  2 Comments on Future’s Threshold, last added: 5/29/2012
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  Veronica Roth said, on 5/29/2012 5:39:00 PM
  

  The artist’s journal is such a great resource; I’ve been reworking my way thru it for several years. I tend to pick the book up in spurts, but I still write my morning pages. The best thing repeated throughout this book is advice on how a creative life can be steady, even tranquil. That we, that I, can work with an even pace and escape the roller coaster of high and low times of creative output. I like that. In a month I’m off to England to live there for a few months. To be home at West Cottage and to write my morning pages and to work steady.

  claudsy said, on 5/29/2012 9:16:00 PM
  

  I’ve gone through most of The Artist’s Way, but not all of it yet. Too many obligations got in the way. Looking forward to doing both again.

  Thanks so much for sharing your experience, Veronica. Hope your sojourn is a marvelous one. Please keep us posted as to your doings.

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choices (Photo credit: WhatiMom)

During the past few days on Claudsy’s Blog, discussions have risen about many issues. Definitions and roles began this journey of the week. A killer interview with Walt Wojtanik kicked over a massive rock to cause a landslide of hits and comments for both Walt and me.

I announced a guest blog that I’d done over in Pat McDermott’s kitchen, and took on questions about illiteracy in America yesterday. Sort of looks like I’ve been spinning the wheel of subject chances, doesn’t it?

The idea of subject chances sums it up very well. Claudsy’s Blog has always been a morphing kind of place. Like most people, I have whims. At present I’m redefining parts of blogs, types of writing projects, and future possibilities. I’m exploring both the writing world and myself.

My explorations have created a need to jump hurdles of my own making. Trained as a sociologist, with degrees in psychology, etc., my vision of the world tends to be a bit more esoteric than some people’s. I can’t look at something and see only one aspect. Too many factors go into the overall impact of each subject’s aspects.

Character building, for instance, by my current definition, refers to characters created for my stories. Developing a teenager for a short story or novel, as one example, requires knowing how a child is likely to live in a specific region, with specific types of parents, living with specific limitations, boundaries, etc. Every good writer builds a character with care and craftsmanship.

Finding character traits and circumstances doesn’t always take vast amounts of time. This afternoon a story came across my news feed, which carried one of the strongest characters I’ve seen in a very long time. The young lady in question was perfect for an idea that I’d been working on for a while.

A 15 year-old girl suffers from a rare, debilitating disease that has determined her entire life. She cannot eat as others do. A combination of an autoimmune disease and severe food allergies forbids her to eat anything by mouth other than potatoes. Sounds fictional, doesn’t it?

Her hurdle of choice is to become a professional chef. This lovely young woman wants to cook for those who can enjoy the food she’s denied. And she’s well on her way.

Talk about character. This is the type of model that makes for exquisite story characters. They are real, living and breathing in the world.

You might ask what kind of story can be built around such information. Here are some of the plotlines already under consideration.

• YA—female lead enters cook-off where one of the requirements has the chef sampling her own developed recipe concoctions
• YA—female lead suffers from condition which forbids 5 Comments on Character Building from Hurdles, last added: 5/11/2012