​Have you ever been reading a book when suddenly the author throws in three paragraphs describing something---just out of the blue? I call that literary whoop-de-doo. It’s the author’s way of saying, “Look what I can do.”
 
I once listened to a series of lectures on writing sentences and fell in love with long sentences. And this is against my impatient nature. I have to go back and edit out the simple sentences because if it was up to me I’d say, “See Jane run,” instead of “Seeing the man, a look of hate etched on his face that even the week long stubble couldn’t hide, Jane hiked her skirt and called on the skill she hadn’t used since running track in high school.” I speak in short sentences because I want to get it done, but writing is a different animal. You have to convey information in an interesting way.
 
 I enjoy reading Pat Conroy, the way his sentences flow; to me it’s like watching Picasso paint. But not many are him. Not me, for certain. If you want to read the wonderful use of simple sentences and beautiful dialogue, read anything written by Elmore Leonard. He has great timing, and timing is everything! If you like more description, try Cormac McCarthy. The Knoxville native does it his way and it works.
The older writers—Faulkner, Hemmingway, Wolfe, Agee, etc---were descriptive, sometimes to a fault (read Agee). But a page telling me what she was wearing and why is a bit over the top.
 
And speaking of that, has there ever been two more disliked Presidential candidates in our history?
 
On my way to NYC, sitting in an airport, so have a good week.

We should all give thanks to Cheney, Rumsfield and Bush for this violence which entertains the world every week. Their egregious actions in invading Iraq on the pretense of looking for wmd’s has set the world back for decades, if not forever.
 
But today, I feel a need to cleanse my thoughts of this so I’m going to discuss faith, something dear to me. Paul said that we walk by faith, not by sight. What does this mean? Well, I believe we grow INTO faith, more than growing in faith. Faith isn’t just a word, it’s the most powerful word in our language. Faith, to me, involves a deep imagination where our soul talks to our surface imagination. It’s telling our consciousness, which is filled with skepticism, to absolutely believe what we want is going to happen. It isn’t hope.
 
God used His imagination to create the world so imagine what we could do if we had anywhere near that same certainty. Jesus tried to tell his this over and over but we gloss over it because it hasn’t happened to us. When he talks about a small amount of faith being about to move mountains, he was giving us an example of faith’s power. We should always look AHEAD, stretch our imagination. Experience the power once and you will never doubt for when a truth is experienced, it is forever known. So, control your thoughts; when doubts creep in, stop and remember who you are, God’s creation, and Jesus said if God takes care of lesser creatures, won’t He take care of you? You control the power of your imagination so use it to your good.

​Goodbye

For the next few months this blog is going ballistic because I don't understand the world anymore. Today I'm talking about the Washington idiocy. I'm not even going to try to understand politicians. Here's a question: why in the heck do we treat the most miserable congressman like he's the king of our universe? We applaud when we should ridicule. Tell me, what has John Duncan done to deserve my gratitude? My granddaughter's school teacher does more important work!!! I don't know Duncan at all, but he's collected an immense salary and done nothing. And I'm sure you can say the same thing about your politicians wherever you live. So, here's my suggestion: when you see a school teacher, go out of your way to say something nice, and when you see a politician, tell them to do something for their salary! Let's all band together and put them where they belong, which isn't high.

We send out children on school trips and they think it's wonderful to get to see these people. We're fostering a generation of misguided affection. It makes me sick. And now we have tv show after tv show showing just what fools they are---powerful fools whose agenda has little to do with us. Tell me one politician who didn't leave office much wealthier than when he entered. Where did the gain come from?

Term limits and short terms at that.! And if there's any politician who wants to engage in a dialogue on this subject, I'd welcome it. But I'm not  holding my breath

I'm working on a new book, a novel about a man who finds himself working for an organization that tries to control the world, Think of the four percent of the people who think they have control; this is about those who actually control that 4%. It's becoming interesting to me. After the nonfiction books, I thought I needed to take a break and try something different. Anyway, that's that.

I"m becoming more and more concerned about the rise in terrorism and honestly don't know what can be done. Violence against violence doesn't seem to work; what we need is a leader with a different view, someway to reset what Rumsfield and Cheney brought to the world. Maybe we should begin a dialogue with ALL parties. Otherwise, I see no recourse without a terrible loss of human lives. I certainly would be interested in hearing other thoughts.

I'll keep you posted on the book and other writing projects that become interesting. And thanks for your support.