As a kid I often imagined my bedroom into a boat. I planned to sail away in solitude and self-sufficiency... I would stockpile "important" things in my room---often things I wasn't allowed to have in my room (food!)---in preparation for my imaginary cast-off, and I would invest quite a lot of thought into (and derive … Continue reading The 2020 Sailor’s “Gam”
Tag: Writing
Setting Sail: the Launch of a Serial Novel
I’ve been writing “creative nonfiction” for years–-my Master’s thesis in poetry, essays (for introspection), freelance articles (for pay), and this blog (for joy)… But I haven’t touched fiction-writing since I was a schoolkid. Until last summer, when I did. Not sure exactly why, but this person called Gayla wanted to go whaling, so I let her. … Continue reading Setting Sail: the Launch of a Serial Novel
Playing Sims (and Questions of Free Will)
It's a little like writing fiction, or at least that's what I tell myself is appealing about it. If you haven't played with Sims (I hadn't before this week), it's a simulation game where you get to create and dress up little people, build and furnish their houses, send them to jobs, prompt them to … Continue reading Playing Sims (and Questions of Free Will)
Drawing up a gratitude list
November is a popular month for gratitude, given the holiday that’s named for the emotion, but my motivation this year is a little different. I’m grateful that October is over! "Isn’t that the same thing as being-in-November?" you ask reasonably. Well, not precisely. The thing is, almost every major Drama, Trauma, and Tragedy in my … Continue reading Drawing up a gratitude list
Spooks & Sparklers
I'm still a little haunted. On my psychiatrist's chart, that condition is spelled out "P-T-S-D," but I think "haunted" is a better descriptor of the experience. As much as I've tried to process it, my brain still doesn't entirely know what to do with some of the sights, sounds, and experience my memory contains. I'm speaking … Continue reading Spooks & Sparklers
Learning Curves
Sitting in a "town hall meeting" of Home Depot employees last week, several of us broached the subject of training with our store manager, Jeremy. The Home Depot offers some incredibly structured online training modules (I'm especially grateful for the interactive "Cashier's College" that helped me weather my first days at the register!) but several … Continue reading Learning Curves
The “Dead C” Scroll
I just changed out the roll of receipt-tape in my cash register, and there's a surprising amount left. I'm sitting in Home Depot's garden section in a Dead Calm (that's my "Dead C")---and now that I suddenly have a small scroll of paper to hand, I'll write. I was trying to occupy myself by re-reading … Continue reading The “Dead C” Scroll
Kana's Chronicles 