New Year’s Eve is fast approaching, and the radio ads remind us to enjoy “all things in moderation.” But it’s not just this time of year that we hear that advice. To many people, that phrase sounds restrictive or even punitive. Not to me. It’s my personal motto. Has been for a long time. You...
Tag: art
Why We Love the Classics
“A classic is a book that has never finished saying what it has to say.” I found that quote by Italo Calvino on Goodreads the other day, and it struck me that at no other time of the year is that saying more true. The holiday season brings us so many beloved classics in all...
The Force is With Artists, Always
How can I not comment on the upcoming release of the new Star Wars movie? I’m not a fanatic, nor do I plan to brave the crowds on opening night, assuming any tickets remain unclaimed. But from the years 1980–1983, a significant part of my heart and mind resided in the Star Wars universe. Why?...
Does Your Art Pass the Relevancy Test?
Yesterday, I was reading Jon Morrow’s blog post on the seven tests every blog must pass in order to grow and thrive. He argued that if the blog missed the mark in even one of those areas, it was doomed to fail. I bit my knuckle and read the rest of the article. Fortunately, my...
Just Another Grateful Day
“It’s not happy people who are thankful, it’s thankful people who are happy.” I found this quote on the internet the other day. A friend encouraged me to start a regular gratitude practice, and since I have, I’ve noticed that no matter how foul my mood, my gratitude practice lifts it every time. I tick...
Call Me Artist
My husband was recently asked by his boss to retake the Myers-Briggs test. His result was ISFP, also known as “The Artist.” When he saw the word artist and read the description, it shocked him. He figured he must have done something wrong, so he had me watch as he retook the test. I did,...
The Lost Generation Found
I recently returned from a trip to Paris with a friend. We went on a literary walking tour in which our guide showed us the pubs and bistros where some of the most famous writers of the early 20th century gathered to write, debate, drink, celebrate, and argue. Writers like Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, Ezra...
The Brilliance of Illness
It’s hard to be brilliant when you are sick. Remember when you were a kid and became ill, and your mother made a bed on the couch, turned on your favorite cartoons, made you chicken soup and told you everything was going to be better soon? Is it wrong that right now I wish I...
A Penny for Your Words
The Authors Guild recently released the results of their study on author incomes. They polled their nearly 1,700 members, most of whom are full-time or part-time authors. The results showed that 56% of respondents earn below the poverty level of $11,670 per year. And the medium income for authors has dropped 24% since 2009. They...
Who Will Tell the Refugees’ Stories?
When I was in college, I befriended a girl whose family members were refugees from Laos. She went by the name of Jenny because her teachers had deemed her real name too hard to pronounce. I learned it, though, and called her by that. I can still remember how to say it, though I can’t...