Poetry FAQ: A Young Poet's Guide To Poetry and Poetry Writing

My Life In A Nutshell has been updated! (see above) Thanks to my friend Andy, who sometimes posts as "aiabx" on Blatherchat, for being such an inspiration. Andy pointed out that he hasn't worn a beard in five years, but I guess he's always worn a beard in my twisted Cartoonland imagination (and Jeff's, since he didn't notice either). :-)



Will Write For Chocolate has been updated! The comic has nothing at all to do with Valentine's Day, and the column is an interview with Deborah Ng (pictured to the right), a work-at-home mother who quit her day job to become a freelance writer...and is now so successful that she has more than enough work to keep busy fulltime. Thanks to Blork Blog for mentioning my strip yesterday.

And a new online project ('cuz clearly I don't have enough of them...): I'm pleased to announce the launch of Poetry FAQ: A Young Poet's Guide To Poetry and Poetry Writing, part of a project (wow, that's a lot of 'p's) that my friend Rand Bellavia and I are working on these days. Rand will be contributing a column and other content for this site soon.

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Valentine

The photo on today's Blatherings is of Flatmouse, one of Jeff's favourite childhood toys. Jeff gave it the name, and isn't quite sure how it became so flat, or how its weird-looking nose got bent.

Whatever flaws Flatmouse might have, it's clear the little guy has been well-loved.

Jeff and I went through the same thing most longterm couples go through. Lots of movie-type romance in the beginning, with flowers and candlelit dinners and romantic letters. When the initial flush of heady romance faded, I was disappointed.

The first fight was a bucket of cold reality in the face and I remember thinking, "I guess it's over, then." But it wasn't. We had more fights, and it still wasn't over.



We'll have been married fifteen years this August. Jeff and I aren't perfect; we've both made mistakes. But we accept each other and love each other, warts and all...a sign of a true friendship, really, and true friendships are a rare thing, not to be passed over lightly.

As for missing the heady flush of early romance with its flowers and romantic letters and candlelit dinners...well, I've realized that it's far easier to write a romantic letter than it is to live up to one. It's all tied in with my desire to live life rather than just talk about it. Jeff and I still have the occasional candlelit dinner but even when we don't, the romance is still there: a different kind of romance, a subtle undercurrent that permeates everything we say and do, providing comfort and strength.

Fact is, I love the guy like crazy and feel incredibly lucky to have him in my life. Here are just a few of the things I love about Jeff.

Happy Valentine's, my love.

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Tranzac session, Australian pottery and a package from Beckett

The sketch above is one of several I did last night at the Tranzac during the Irish music session, in my Moleskine. Lots of fiddles, flutes, whistles, concertinas, some pipes, a banjo, and several accordions. We learned how to play the 42 Pound Cheque polka last night (you can find the music on this page of Tranzac tunes). Lordy, but I do love some of these tune names.

I sat beside an accordion player last night who is actually a potter living in Australia. He's in North America for a few months giving university lectures on ceramics before going back. Check out the gorgeous piece on his business card:



If you're in Australia, be sure to check out Rosemont Pottery in Bathurst! Peter Wilson's pieces are also held in collections in Japan and the Australian National Gallery.

Hey, I got a very tiny and obscure mention (sort of) in a recent CNET news article. I discovered it accidentally while surfing for other information. I'm the "freelance writer" mentioned in the 4th-last paragraph. Woohoo, fame! :-D The focus of the article is on digital comic strips, and on Offpanel Productions, the company hosting my Will Write For Chocolate comic strip.

Thanks to Angela Hoy for giving Will Write For Chocolate a plug in her weekly e-mail newsletter for freelance writers, WritersWeekly. Incidentally, I forgot to post a photo of the cool-looking ornament that Angela had sent me a while ago, which I've added to my office tree:



Last week I mentioned getting a surprise package from Beckett and her boys. Here's what I received...

These leaves were handmade by Beckett, Casey & Riley for my office tree:



Some decorations for next year's Christmas tree:



Casey picked out the snowman on the left, Riley and Casey picked out the polar bear (Beckett said it reminded her of Jeff :-)).

Photos for my magnetic wall:



I put my two new photos (Casey & Riley) up beside a photo of Zoë. Apologies for the crappy quality of my picture...there's not much light in that area of my office yet.

Thanks so much to Beckett, Casey and Riley!

Yesterday I got WAY too much into my writing. "Impossible!" you may cry, but it's true. The good side: I love my work. The bad side: I sat on my butt in front of my computer the whole day and didn't take a step outdoors until it was time to leave for the Tranzac in the evening. I -will- go to my health club today, I swear it, else I invite you all to mock me mercilessly tomorrow.

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Finding inspiration

Will Write For Chocolate has been updated! This week's blog entry: "Finding writing inspiration."

Thanks for the supportive messages and e-mails about yesterday's Blathering, everyone, and for sharing some of your own stories. Thanks also to Essaywriter for mentioning the entry in her blog.

Here's a post from Mary Ellen I found especially inspiring:

"I haven't yet read the book The Good Life by by Jay McInerney, but I heard an interview on Fresh Air and this quote from the book which he read near the end of the interview really moved me: (The main character is falling asleep and meditating on the death of his best friend) 'It seems to him as if they are taking a course in loss lately. And as he feels himself falling asleep he has an insight that he believes is important which he hopes he will remember it in the morning, although it is one of those thoughts that seldom survive the translation to the language of daylight hours. Knowing that whatever plenty befalls them, together or separately in the future, they will become more and more intimate with loss as the years accumulate. Friends dying, or slipping away undramatically into the crowded past, memory itself finally flickering and growing treacherous towards the end...' (apologies for any punctuation errors, I transcribed it from the interview) I feel that way already a little. As more and more people I love pass into a world unseen, unknown by me, and unimaginable to me, I do feel that the past is increasingly crowded. Although my Grandfather meant a lot to me I think it really began with the death of my Father, then my friend Steve, the suicide of Iain, most recently Cindy's death...and not just death. As he says, some just slip away, people I really liked, or even loved but for whatever reason just don't see anymore. It is increasingly a crowded past. But, I try to make it a rallying cry for my present. I try to live as fully and passionately as I can. This isn't always easy and sometimes you just have to stop and let yourself watch bad TV and read frivolous novels and eat junk food and laugh. But, as you say, that's not 'wasted' time, that's time you give yourself as a gift when you need it. Thank you for sharing your grief with us."

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Things I've Learned

Click image above for a bigger version.

Also see here and here.

Some things I've learned:

Never take anything or anyone for granted.

Don't assume you'll have forever to mend your differences or tell XXXX that you love/appreciate them.

Don't waste time. Please note this does NOT mean the same thing as "never relax." I mean: be aware of how you spend your time. It's one thing to sit in front of the tv for three hours straight because there's a movie you REALLY want to watch and another thing to sit there idly surfing channels just because you figure there's nothing better to do.

Don't sacrifice your own values to keep everyone else happy (an impossible task, anyway). You'll end up miserable and resentful.

Don't let yourself get into a rut.

Always be learning something new.

From time to time, purposely put yourself in a situation that challenges you somehow, forces you to push beyond your safe little bubble.

Live every moment as fully as you can.

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