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When research becomes enlightenment.

11/30/2014

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I recently spent another long and languid afternoon with a close friend of mine. Our schedules are such that we can only meet once a month, so we cherish these hours spent in lingering conversation.

I’ve known this friend for several years, yet it was only the other day, after we had said our goodbye's, that a certain aspect of her being began to edge out all my other thoughts, and it would not let go.

And as I ambled down the street, my focus was not on the words that my accompanying daughter was speaking, nor on the crossing lights as we approached.  I heard her and saw them, but only dimly so.

As soon as we got home, I began to flesh out that meager snippet of an idea, removing the odd bits and refining the rest.  Within an hour or so it had become a rather sweet new poem about my friend.

The next day, while researching an idea, I came across this: “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” Michelangelo.  That was not …  Wait ...  What?

There was a distinct click in my brain, and the burst of an “aha” moment hit!  His approach to intuiting the promise within a monolithic block of stone reminded me of how I “see” the formation of an idea emerging from an ethereal mass of words.  Wow!

Epiphanies are such wondrous things, especially those that hit one sideways, like an abrupt, loud noise off to the left while you’re diligently focusing straight ahead.  I understood this kindred artisan.

Yeah, okay. I’m no “Michelangelo,” and I doubt that I’d recognize him on the street, but a connection was made, and it is helping me to distill my conceptual framework, which is key my work in verse.

And now, here is that little poem:


But Mary Does


We’re chatting in a small cafe
Where windows keep the gray at bay
And as I answer with a shout
The hiding Sun comes bursting out
As though on cue and so we laugh
No other patron gets our gaff,  
But Mary does.

A story that is often told
Is easily dismissed as old
No longer fit to entertain
Or even countered with disdain.
So few will once more hear that tale
With interest, and smile as well,
But Mary does.

Then by the jilted clock we spy,
That several hours have sped by
With total disregard of we
Who could have bantered endlessly.
I know not many who would stay
To talk an afternoon away
But Mary does.








Image: oi.uchicago.edu

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Navigating a maze called Weebly.

11/22/2014

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Daniel Boon once said, "I have never been lost, but I will admit to being confused for several weeks."  When it comes to computers, and the technical underbelly of my blog, I am always entirely lost.

This sometimes amuses me, because I’ve been using computers since 1985, I generally “get” geek jokes, and I am enamored of all that computers can do.  I am, I suppose, little more than a faux-geek.


And it’s all so very fun and so forth until my blog post, which I have labored over for a few hours, mysteriously disappears when I click “Save.”  Wait!  I know I clicked “Save,” so where is my post?!?


I am fortunate to have resident geeks in my household, who shake their heads at my ignorance while attempting to fix whatever it was that went wrong.  “Okay," they ask, "what did you do?”

"I clicked 'Save!'” I insisted, “but my post is totally gone!”  Alas, this time, my work proved to be irretrievable.  Weebly, for all it’s ease of use, is a most frustrating, and unreliable blog medium.   /(>_<)\

I was gently advised to compose, and save, my posts in some other file from that point forward.  “Oh, what a bother …” I whined, as I returned to my subject and began typing it out all over again.

In truth, whether its the workings of Weebly or computing in general, what little that I do understand has come to me by osmosis, as in eavesdropping while my geeks discuss all that tech stuff.


I can’t make anything of diagrams or programs.  I get lost while staring at a road map.  And please don’t ask me which way is North!  Spatially and technically, I am blind. 


Ah, but when I’m working on a poem, I know the territory well, and the map that leads me on is potently clear.  This is where I, too, might find myself somewhat confused, but I am never ever lost.



Image:
www.chemistryland.com
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Typos in ancient hieroglyphs ...?

11/14/2014

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I find it amazing that typographical errors have been with us for millennia. Years ago, I visited the Rosicrucian Museum in San Jose, California, where I saw an obvious typo in a hieroglyph.

Lacking an eraser, or some sort of editor's masking liquid, the poor scribe had to eradicate the erroneous symbol, and then chisel the correct one over the scar in the otherwise smooth stone.


Even they weren't perfect.  And down through the centuries, writers of all sorts have had to deal with typos.  A friend of mine once joked that, “Some people appear to lack the spelling gene in their DNA.

But what about the typos that go unseen?  Could they be due to a condition called Typoglycemia, (typo+glycemia), where the mind unknowingly amends typos and never notices a problem.

And even the most diligent author, or editor, can gloss over errors when they are engrossed in a story or a poem. Perhaps this a sign that the art supersedes the errors on the page. I'd like to think so.

My own books have suffered from typos, even after myriad edits were performed by myself and many others.  
Recently, someone gently noted that there was a “t” missing in one of my poems. In every other draft, the “t” is there. I checked. Embarrassing? You bet.

To date, I have learned that there can never be enough eyes on a writer's work.   And I am grateful that, if and when typos do arise, I  don't have to resort to pounding on stone with a hammer and chisel.









Image: neil.fraser.name
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Digital books ... oops?

11/6/2014

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I happened upon a recent article at Arts.Mic, written by Rachel Gates, which had me scratching my head.  The title of this piece was Science Has Great News For People Who Read Actual Books.

In the article, Ms Gates noted that there is a big difference, brain-wise, between reading printed books and digital ones; one involves reading in "a linear fashion," and the other "in an F pattern."  So ...?

The research indicates that reading digital books can lead to the loss of some important components of reading, some of which involve comprehension, memory, and retention.  Ah, there's the "Oops."


There is also the tactile sense of actually holding a book while reading, and the way the pages unfold as we progress through a book, as compared to being "limited to one ephemeral virtual page."

Based on this startling new information, (new to me, at least), I decided to revert to reading my dust jacket editions as an experiment and, so far, I am enjoying the novelty of reading them again.

Am I planning to box up my e-reader and stow it among my other "things' now.  Well, honestly, no.  I quite like the convenience of my my portable digital library; soooo many volumes always at the ready.

At this point, I am enjoying the smell and the feel of printed books again, especially whenever I'm at home, at the library, or in a bookstore.  Otherwise, when I'm out and about, I read my e-reader.  

Regardless of which format I choose, I have the hope that the very act of reading will help to stave off Alzheimer's, reduce my stress, keep my brain in good form, and so forth ... at least to some degree.

If you are interested in reading the article I am citing for yourself, it can be found at: http://mic.com/articles/99408/science-has-great-news-for-people-who-read-actual-books

    

Image: www.advantagebookbinding.com
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    Author

    I've written many poems over the years.  This blog is a preview of my books: Echoes, Neo-Victorian Poetry (April 2013), Echoes ll, More Neo-Victorian Poetry (May 2014), Echoes lll, Even More Neo-Victorian Poetry, (August 2016), and A Compilation of Echoes. (September 2016), so far ...

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