“THE TREE OF LIBERTY MUST BE REFRESHED FROM TIME TO TIME WITH THE BLOOD OF PATRIOTS AND TYRANTS” – Thomas Jefferson I watch with trepidation as the struggle for democracy unfolds in the Middle East.  I wonder if freedom will prevail or if some other power broker will em

THOUGHTS ON WRITERS, LIFE AND BLOODIED KNEES The other day, a newsletter from my local writers’ association provided the name of a resource book I thought might be worth looking into. I got it from the library but found much of the advice was pie-in-the sky. Example: a good way to s

Thanks for your comment on Jan 31.  Not clear how to respond on your site.  But have been watching your entries. You take me outside myself.  Thank you. 

THE LANGUAGE OF RAPE I read in the Yahoo news summaries recently that the U.S. House of Representatives has a bill before it to limit a woman’s right to medical coverage for abortions when she is the victim of rape. The new language proposed is that the victim must been forcibly rap

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS I’ve finished the last of the books I was given by a friend, the syllabus from a recent literature class she audited. The book is “The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle” by the Japanese author, Haruki Maurakami. I’ve mentioned a couple of books from the

THERE IS MORE TO LIFE THAN POLLINATION  Despite my blog of January 25, I’ve communicated with the author/manager of a well respected blog for writers. She takes submissions from other bloggers and I sent her two even though I was uncertain about the appropriateness of mine. She see

THE EVIL MEN DO ISN’T HALF AS MEMORABLE AS THE GOOD On my way to the park this week, I noticed a number of graffiti artists had scrawled their names on telephone poles along the way. My route isn’t on any main thoroughfare so the poles aren’t plastered six inches deep with poste

THE SHARP EDGE OF DREAMS One of my favorite short stories by Herman Melville is called, “The Piazza.” The plot is about a man who takes up residence in the countryside on an old farm and finding the house has no piazza from which to view his sylvan world, he builds a small

A BLOG ABOUT BLOGS Today, as I celebrate the writing of my 200th blog, I want to begin by tipping my hat to the human race. If there’s a need, someone will satisfy it. If there is no need someone will create one. Yesterday, while I was doing research on my computer, I came across an

STEPHEN KING SHOULD HAVE BEEN A MEDICAL WRITER The number of people who earn their livelihoods as writers is staggering if one considers almost every enterprise needs them. There are pamphlet writers, tech writers, writers of instruction manuals, ad writers, medical writers and so on.