catnipoflife

Observe life at its best, Listen to life’s songs, Embrace life’s bounties, Breathe the breath of life, Savor life to its fullest!

Aug 2

e-This & e-That

by catnipoflife

A reflection on today, yesterday and tomorrow. . .

Oh, my! How will I ever get caught up? I think the term ‘catch up’ only holds true for that thick, tomatoey goo that cloaks my French fries and oozes between the hot hog and hamburger buns!

Here it is 6:00 AM and I check my email to find an inbox of 25 messages. Not bad, I can tackle that in no time. Ah-ha! BUT each one of those leads to another link which may or may not stop there. By the time I read maybe five messages and their outlyers, I return to my inbox and now there are 30 messages. Hey, I just read five, why isn’t it down to 20? Now, I am on the verge of getting agitated. I take a break just to calm down and return to an inbox of 50 messages! Will it ever stop?

Side Note: Would you believe I found a message today referencing the e-Notch? Ever heard of it? Well, I had not either but then discovered it has been around way before the age of technology, before even the idea of any technology, maybe even before the word itself. Recognize it from the picture? It is the cut out found on the end of an arrowhead. Go figure!

Then, there is Twitter. Tweet, Tweet, Tweet – what a charming little sound while sitting on the back porch as I have my morning coffee. Not this bird! It tweets and tweets and tweets and…never stops!!!! 24/7 this little nuance sings. Since e-mail already has me in a tizzy I decide to access Twitter. Um-m-m? Maybe 20 to 30 tweets. Most of these little birdies have not started chirping since it is now almost 6:30 AM. So I briskly scan the messages, retweet a few and favorite one or two. My husband walks in and says ‘hubby’ time, get off the computer. I close everything out and happily leave the online conversations to buzz away in cyber space collecting more and more messages while I am away. Of course, you know what I find upon returning – 128 tweets with new ones popping up as fast as kernals of corn releasing their energy in a popcorn popper!

Exiting the bird cage and re-entering the world of electronic mail, I find someone (more like somebodies plural) has repinned one or more of my bulletin board pins on Pinterest. Now, this is probably my favorite, next to blogs because it is a virtual picture world. Being more of a visual person, I enjoy visiting all the ‘sights’ posted by others. I hate being just a number on someone’s board of followers so I try to return the favor as often as possible. Some I click to Follow in hopes of returning to explore more of their boards. Doesn’t happen! Time is definitely out the window by this hour and I am only getting started.

Computer time is interrupted by pre-scheduled doctors’ appointments that I had rather miss than grace their hallowed offices. Doctors have no sense of time except their own, especially during two-hour lunch breaks, and have no regard for anyone having to wait, wait, wait. Reminds me of the story when the doctor made the house call and was told to wait until grandpa returned from the field! Love it! Anyway, three hours later after visiting Dracula and the Vice-gripper, I stop by a Quick ‘n’ Handy for some awesome chicken salad and return home.

Needless to say, after engaging hubby in some interesting (you know exciting) conversation from the doctors’ visits, I get back to the computer. I am already tired but realize that I have not even touched upon LinkedIn, Goodreads, Bloggers.com, Amazon Author Central or Klout. At this time, there are 87 messages in my inbox and close to 200 on Twitter (I know that is just pittance to some!). It is now fast approaching 9:30 PM (EST) as I complete this blog post. Oh, dear! I forgot my new venture – “Voyage en éphémère.” That will have to wait until tomorrow. . . more on than later, my friends. There is no end to this virtual world of hours. “In a minute, Babe. . .”

In closing, we have e-M, e-P, e-G, e-B, e-A , e-K and of course e-T. ET? No wonder! We are all in the clutches of aliens with powers to weave in and out the microfibers of cyberspace absorbing our thoughts and passing them from e-This to e-That. . .

Are all the avenues worth exploring or is it just a numbers’ game?
How do you handle them all? Any secrets?

Would love to hear your thoughts. . .

“By Thursday morning, we’d gotten over the worst of it.”
~William Scranton
“Thursday may be only the beginning in the virtual world.”
~catnipoflife

Reflection

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Jul 31

Writing: Gift or Curse?

by catnipoflife

Click HERE!

Have you ever experienced sleepness nights where you are caught between dreams and reality? Your mind is spinning as thoughts weave in and out filling the crevices of your mind.

Have you ever thought about writing being a curse, as well as a gift? Recently I was contacted by a fellow writer, Ron Lemco. Ron has published a compelling book, Rest Stop, that is scary in a sense because it could happen in real life – in fact, it DID happen. While the language is rough, the way difficult, the result frightening, the way I look at it, it’s life! Reading his book left me with the impression that I might not want to take advantage of the convenient ‘rest stop’ on my next vacation.

He shared with me a writing that definitely got me thinking about the writer’s world being both, a gift and a curse.

THE WRITERS’ CURSE
by Ron Lemco

A thought about what a person is writing enters into his head.
It becomes a vision and then, like magic, he begins to see a dialog.
He is trying to sleep but words are escalating taking control.

Jumping from his bed he writes notes he needs to contain.
All too often an image is lost and recollection is not the same.
Notes no longer satisfy the thoughts that must be transposed.

After a fix here, a fix there, he climbs back in bed. . .
One thousand words later.

Share your thoughts…have you experienced The Writers’ Curse?

Author Connections

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Jul 26

Pen Pals

by catnipoflife

Motorcycle Postman, 1912 (Library of Congress)

Do you remember waiting in anticipation for the postman to arrive? Let me clarify that which you are anxiously awaiting. . .it is a letter from someone much different from yourself and living in a far away land. That’s right. . .a hand-written letter, not typed nor texted, but actually penned in the best cursive one could produce. It could have even been debated whether the letter itself was the most important or that wonderful foreign stamp.

Needless to say, should I mention this to one of my daughters, now an adult, or perhaps I should say granddaughters, she would more than likely react in complete astonishment. “Mother, you have got to be kidding! Write a letter? That would take way too much time! I can contact anyone in the world with a click of a button.”

So true today, but not in the days long, long ago and not anywhere near as personal.

The memory that someone, somewhere once took the time and trouble, I might add, to pen their thoughts ever so carefully, fold the paper and crease it gently with his/her own hands, then, post it with a well-chosen stamp lay embedded in the knowledge that days or weeks had to pass with hopes of receiving an equally personal response. Those days or weeks of anticipation were filled hour upon hour with thoughts of excitement and imagination!

Did you have a pen pal? What do you remember?

“Dear Pen Pal, you are a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day. Please write back.” ~catnipoflife

Inspiration Reflection

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Jun 22

Inspiration: What is your blueprint for writing?

by catnipoflife

Inspiration and Imagination –                                  A Blueprint For Writing

An open window’s unique view
Thrusts awareness upon you
Look up, look down, look left, look right
Inspiration lies in plain sight

Make note of what you see
There’s magic in imagery
Spirits of inspiration
Whisper through imagination

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catnipoflife received a most gracious invitation from Aditya Samitinjay @Like Lite Life to write an article on inspiration. Aditya is currently studying Medicine. His interests are based in Sports, Reading, Writing and Music. He is an ardent fan of Liverpool FC, delves into the Rock ‘n’ Roll world and usually writes at his personal blog Mental Health and Lifestyle Tips. You can also catch up with him on Twitter (@foralitelife) and Facebook (/likelitelife).
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I invite you to read the article @

http://www.likelitelife.in/2012/06/inspiration-and-imagination-blueprint.html

Inspiration

5 Comments »
May 7

Inspiration: Meeting the Challenge 2

by catnipoflife

Butterflies_DaisiesRoadsides are dotted with clusters of brightly colored daisies engulfed in rain-aided green grasses. The smiling face of each flower brightens the view of fields and ditches along nature’s highway. Butterflies flit and flutter from flower to flower beckoning “come dance with me.”  ~catnipoflife

Where do you seek/find inspiration? Perhaps you need only to simply stop, look and listen within your ordinary surroundings for its discovery may take little or no effort at all. Within our daily midst, sights, sounds and smells are waiting to be awakened, explored, enjoyed and shared.

Butterflies&Daisies1That which is seen with the naked eye is often interpreted differently from individual to individual. With each vision comes thoughts and emotions that may strike an emotional chord of harmony or cast shadows of discord. Through these visions comes the ability to put what is seen only once into words that can last for a lifetime. Of course, thoughts might instead shift to that of a camera with the old adage ‘a picture is better than a thousand words’ immediately coming to mind. But, oh-h-h, how many times has that miraculous once-in-a-lifetime Kodak moment been missed? How many times has it been said or heard, “If I only had my camera. . .” More times that can be counted for sure! Yet, the vision is still there, stored in the scrapbook of the mind. Each time a page is turned in the mind’s diary that vision reappears. The recourse: write about it!

Nature is overflowing in its natural awe-inspiring, breath-taking wonders, none of which more mystical, nor mysterious, than the butterfly. What is it about this delicate insect that unites the heart with the soul? Some might say it is its symetrical beauty, others feel it has sensory powers of healing, while many purely delight in its wispy nature. Its beauty is consuming, none of which more captivating than when feeding on sugary nectar. (View Beautiful Butterflies from around the world.)

One of the butterfly’s favorite sources of nectar is the flower, especially the daisy. Butterflies and daisies go hand-in-hand within the natural wonders of nature. Watching the butterfly feed is a wonder in itself as it perches atop the flower dipping deep with a strawlike tongue into the rich nectar, opening its wings wide, bringing them in again, all the while savoring each drop. Ah-h-h, but this sweet fluid is not the only treat these little insects enjoy. Did you know they also love fruit? Of course, that is totally understandable since the fruits of nature are filled with sweet, natural juices.

Book Connection – EchoesEchoes

Inside Echoes, Chapter Three reflects poetry surrounding the beauty of nature. The verses in this chapter reflect Echoes of Life. The poem Butterflies ‘n’ Daisies projects imagery in answer to the question Do you see what I see? Through its reading, you should be inspired as its words guide you toward meeting the challenge of your daily inspiraton!

Butterflies ‘n’ Daisies

Come dance with me!

Mystical, magical butterfly
Holder of dreams, keeper of secrets
Touches so many lives
Bringing comfort without regrets

A simple message received
Or a challenge to be met
Inspires acceptance of life’s struggles
How to let go and accept

Fields of daisies, made of sunshine
Colors of splendor, a butterfly’s lair
Offer a place to linger and find solitude
Resting as though in thoughtful prayer

Butterflies and daisies, of rare beauty
Breath-taking in full summer sun
Reflect the colors of the soul
Instilling love and compassion as one

Kneel down in quiet repose
As though if part of someone’s plan
Let the daisies hug your knees
And the butterfly kiss your hand

Echoes©2004
Sharla Lee Shults

“The butterfly counts not months, but moments, and has time enough.”
~Rabindranath Tagore

Inspiration

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