Sunday Morning Writing

It is Sunday, May 29, 2016, I have managed to post to all three of my blogs today. I have reviewed four items on writing.com, begin today's gratitude list, and started planning this week's writing goals. I finished two cups of coffee and a glass of cranberry juice. My Sunday morning depression left sometimes around breakfast. I am ready to begin working on this week's short stories and poem. 

One of my writing goals is to finish story 14 of the 44 stories I volunteered to write in 2016. This week I also have to clean out my desk drawers. I started cleaning out  the bottom right desk drawer last week, but I got distracted. This week I have to finish that drawer and one more. I have not turned the television on today, not even with my breakfast. I will not turn it on until I have finished at least 300 more words in story #14. I will post this and then get on with my Sunday morning writing. 

Midweek Reflection: Writing and Procrastination

I think I will have to dedicate one afternoon to cleaning out my desk drawers. I have managed to get one drawer completely cleaned out. I found numerous beginning of poems and other writing scraps, which I put back in the drawer. After that I got  sidetracked writing and doing some portfolio house cleaning. I am not sure why I decided that rearranging my writing.com portfolio takes priority over cleaning out the desk drawers. Perhaps it is just another manifestation of my tendency to look like I am accomplishing something when I am really procrastinating. 

True, I need to rearrange the portfolio. I also need to clean out the drawer of my desk. One of my problems is that I become so focused on doing one thing that I let the other slip. Cleaning out the desk drawers is not the only thing I let slip. I let posting to this blog slip as well. I am going to post this and then see what I can accomplish either in finishing the portfolio housekeeping or cleaning out the desk drawers. 

Success Saturday: May 15-21, 2016

It's been a successful week. I finished another short story and I come up with an idea for two more. One of the stories is about a jackalope, a mythological creature of the American west. A jackalope is a cross between a jackrabbit and an antelope. It looks like a rabbit with horns. 

I'm thinking of having my main character be a cryptozoologist. Cryptozoology is considered a pseudoscience, but I think I'll have my story set on an alternate Earth where cryptozoology is considered a part of the scientific community. Now I have to figure out what I'm going to do with the other story idea. 

I have two or three  paragraphs describing a woman sitting in a carriage on a mountain pass. Outside her carriage an early snowstorm is blowing which is slowly turning into a blizzard. I have to figure out how to either get her carriage out of the pass or out of the carriage and into the safety of a cave. Right now her name is Olevia; however, I'm considering changing it to something a little more exciting. Olevia is a a nice name for a character in a romantic fantasy, which I'm not writing. 

Website Wednesday: My favorite grammar blog

This morning I logged into writing.com to check my inbox and respond to a couple of blog prompts, I found that one of the prompts ask about my favorite non-writing.com blog. I had to think about this for a while because I have two favorite blogs that fit this criteria. After giving the prompt several minutes of thought, I decided I had two favorite blogs. One of the blogs focuses on spiritual concepts while the other focuses on grammar. 

The Anarchist's Guide to Grammarr is the one I will focus on today.  I like this blog because the posts keep my attention. No matter how many words an entry contains I can focus on reading without getting bored. The latest entry is dated Friday, March 11, 2016 and titled American-English – The Official Guide. The theme of this entry is spelling, it seems someone broke into the blog entries and screwed up the spelling.  

I got hooked on this blog several years ago when I did an online search for mullygrub, a word my Grandfather used. The date of this entry is Monday, September 24, 2012. I looked up the word because my mother had begun using it, so I wanted to find out what it meant. I like this word. It is a good word and not just because my Grandfather used it. It is a word I can use in a poem or a story, true when I edit the story I might replace it with another, but it will remain until someone else proofreads the story. Then suggest a word that I might like better. 

Motivational Monday: What Motivates me today?

My motivation today is to finish a story. I started The Power Behind the Throne last week with about 300 words and then got stuck. This morning I realized that the words I have written do not go with this story. This means I either have to change the title, which is based on a poem I wrote several years ago, or start over again. I am starting over again, but I am not going to get rid of the words I have written because I can use them in another story. 

I have another idea for a story, which does not work with either story I have started. My third idea is about a Jackalope. I did some research on the myth of the Jackalope this last weekend. I think a Jackalope would make a good character is a fantasy story, so I will use it. This means I am now working on three stories instead of two. 

Creative Saturday

It is Saturday afternoon about 1:19 PM, I just finished responding to a blog prompt on writing.com. This morning I posted a short poem on Facebook and now I have to either do three more reviews on writing.com or write a poem for a poetry challenge that ends today. Since April 15 I have written one poem each day for this challenge. It has been a creative fifteen days, at least I think it has been fifteen days. I'm not going to take the time to count to determine whether it was fourteen or fifteen day. I do not have time for that because today is the first day of a two day review raid on writing.com and I am looking to finish reviewing at least nineteen items before the end of the day.

Friday Question of the Day: Do you have friggatriskaidekaphobia?

This was a bonus question posted on one of the blogging groups on writing.com. Since I responded to today's prompt and  posted it on the group forum page, I decided to use this as today's topic. Friggatriskaidekaphobia is one of the words for fear of Friday the Thirteenth. The two other words are triskaidekaphobia and paraskevidekatriaphobia. 

Since  Friday the Thirteenth has three different words for its phobia it must be a frightening day or the fear must cross language and cultural barriers. The three names for this fear are derived from three different languages and cultures, so people across the planet must be afraid of Friday the Thirteenth. Are you one of those who is afraid to leave the house on this day? 

Am I afraid of Friday the Thirteenth? Do I suffer from friggatriskaidekaphobia,  triskaidekaphobia or paraskevidekatriaphobia? No! True the only time I will leave the house is to go for a walk and pick up  the mail, but that is because I have no plans for going any place today. This is the second Friday in May so I have to stay in my apartment to wait for the exterminator.  He is scheduled to come this afternoon, however, sometimes his schedule changes and he arrive in the morning. 

If you do suffer from fear of Friday the Thirteenth and have to leave the house in order to go to work then I suggest you say a prayer of protection before you back out of your driveway. If you do not want to say a prayer of protection I would suggest wearing your lucky socks, underwear or some other piece of lucky clothing.  Have a happy and safe Friday the Thirteenth and be especially careful of talking or texting on your smartphone while you are driving. 

10 Things I have to Write this Week

 

1. Complete group of poems: In The Garden. 

2. Write poem for poetry newsletter challenge: Meeting (Accepting) The Challenge 

3. Complete "The Power Behind the Throne" Story 12 of 44. 

4. Complete poem for Seasonal Construct Cup Challenge. 

5. Start story 13 of 44. 

6. Post to Poet 999's Thoughts about Writing and Other Stuff 

7. Post to Poet 999 – A Butterfly Emerges from Her Cocoon 

8. Post to Melting Snow 

9. Write a Minute Poem. 

10. Write a gratitude list. 

What Shall I Write?

I have two poems to write today. One of them I know the form, theme and the subject, but the other I am not  sure about either. The first one  is a free verse poem about self-knowledge. The second poem is one of a series with the theme of paradise or garden and it has to be a specific form. The second poem goes into a document called "In the Garden" which is composed of several different poetry forms. 

"In the Garden" is twelve poems using specific forms. These poem are inspired by the Twelve Day Celebration of Ridvan. I started this group of poems on April 21, 2016. I have managed to write nine of the  twelve, but now I am stuck as to what the tenth form should be. Maybe I will write a Minute poem, which is a 12-line poem with specific syllable counts for each line and a fixed rhyme scheme. Sometimes fixed form poems are more difficult to write then free verse. 

I have written minute poems before. It is both a difficult and easy poem to write. While I am writing the poem, I think it is difficult. However, when I finish the poem then I forget how difficult it was. This is why writing poetry is similar to giving birth. During labor you feel the pain and stress of the child exiting your womb through the birth canal, but after you see the baby you forget about the pain. That is how it is writing form poetry. 

Creation Saturday: Poems and Other Misdemeanors

All right, the title of this blog sounds like a good name for a poetry chapbook. I don't think that writing poetry is a "minor wrongdoing", but it does take up time. Writing poetry is also a good reason to procrastinate when it come to icky household chores such a cleaning the toilet. This is a job I never liked, but which is necessary to keep from embarrassing ones self when friend call. 

Do I hear gunshots 

Or just a car backfiring 

No sirens echoing 

That would be a good poem to include in a chapbook about poetic misdemeanors. I wrote that poem last night before going to bed. I never did find out whether they were gunshots or backfires. I have a good reason for not finding out. It was dark outside, even with street lights turned on, it was dark outside so I did not open the door to find out what was going on. The truth is I really do not care what was going on because if I was called to jury duty about whatever it was I would have to remember the incident and would be unable to serve on the jury. 

Trash collection day 

Garbage trucks are patrolling 

My neighborhood 

This is Saturday, which is trash collection day in my neighborhood. I hear the garbage trucks moving through the alleys and down the streets emptying trash receptacles. It's about 5:55 AM and they are out there making noise. Of course, the trash trucks are not the only ones disturbing the silence. Someone was playing their radio or something this morning about 4:30 AM, but then it is Saturday so what else does one expect. 

Doctor's Office Art

Saxophone, guitar, 

And piano are jamming: 

The  optometrist office. 

I went to an optometrist office this morning with a friend. One of the paintings was of three musical instruments in a beautiful abstract arrangement. As I sit there looking at the picture, I could image the three playing together in an ensemble. I enjoyed going to doctors' office with art or interesting displays on their walls because it activates my imagination and encourages me to write. 

May Day Memories: A Poem

I remember May Days from my childhood 

When we would dance around a Maypole, 

But I don't remember anyone 

Saying we were celebrating a worker's holiday. 

I remember May Days from my childhood 

When Grandpa would take us to The Lake 

Where we would swim, fish, and water ski 

While Grandma and Grandpa watched 

Us from the boat or the dock.