Blog Archives

Chaos Mode

8/30/2013

I apologize for not having my usual late week entry. It's been a busy week at work with a big deadline coming up today. And then wouldn't you know, the print galleys came back from my publisher Wednesday night, which means I have to do one more read through of the entire manuscript to correct mechanical errors. Talk about timing. These days, it seems I'm bouncing from chaos to chaos.

God willing, it will all settle as fast as it scattered. I'm reigning it in, but I still have much work to do. I promise to deliver a decent blog entry once I find the other side of this chaos.

That's all today. Have a happy Friday and a great Labor Day weekend.

Bye!

Paradigm Shifts

8/26/2013

On this, my 38th birthday, I find my self pondering the progress of the past year. I suppose this is a natural thing to do on a birthday. On first glance it could seem disappointing, as there are no "major" changes to report, but that's actually deceptive. There have been changes in the past year, but they've been more in the way of "shifts" instead of what could be clearly defined as "changed." I suppose this sounds somewhat elusive, so of course I'm going to explain.

The progress of the past year has actually been more in the way of building on things that have already been in motion. While it doesn't seem that much has changed - after all, life is progressing along very much the same today as it was a year ago - I can't say that I think about or feel the way that I did about life as I did one, two, or five years ago. In fact, as I ponder it, I notice that my paradigm has shifted quite a bit in the last 4 years. I suppose this is natural. My job changed and I finally broke into publication with my writing in 2010 - 2011, and while these things are "the norm" in my life right now, I see how incorporating those changes into my life has changed my view of life and the world. My basic morals haven't changed. That's not something that's likely to change. But the way you see the world around you and apply those morals can change, and I'm starting to see the evidence that it's happened. When you walk in faith long enough, you delve deeper into things, and that's certainly what's happened to me.

So how have I changed? For one, I'm seeing a whole new application of the concept of "reaping and sowing," as described in Galatians 6:7. You all know that this is one thing that my grandfather was a big believer in, and I took it to heart. But this verse applies to more than just relationships with other people and how you treat them - it also applies to progress and purpose in life. In fact, if you shift two more verses you'll read that "in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart." (Galatians 6:9) After several years of hard work to re-establish myself professionally in my current workplace and to get my writing established, I see the value of patience in all that we do. If life really is a series of ups and downs, reaping and sowing, then that has big implications for all of life. If we choose to only allow ourselves to be happy on the mountaintop, when we're reaping the rewards of our labors, then we're guaranteed to be miserable (or at least, withholding our own happiness) at least 50% of our life. Folks, that just isn't acceptable to me. That's not going to do it. Sure, there are some people that enjoy being miserable and whining and complaining to get attention, but that's not the way I choose.

I know from experience that there are blessings in every day because I've been through the major life changes when I looked back and realized that there were little blessings that I took for granted, and I was sorry for it. An example: before my writing was published, I used to do counted cross stitching and wrote short stories. Much to my surprise, I find that I have very little time for that now, between promoting my published works and creating new ones. I love my writing and pray daily that it will continue to grow and reach more people - in fact, I'm prayerfully striving to make a break into science fiction with Splinter this fall - but there are some days when I miss having the time to cross stitch, or to goof off on Writing.com with short story contests. I didn't realize how much time these things filled in my life until my writing grew to the point where I had to make decisions about what stayed and what went. I still stitch occasionally, but large projects are out now. And as for short stories, they take me longer to write, prepare, and complete than they once did. And ditto for the work move. I was glad to make it and still believe it was the best, but I didn't realize the little things I took for granted, like talking to a couple of my friends when things got slow, the great walking paths on the State House grounds, a covered parking spot or those outstanding subs for a great price on Tuesdays and Fridays. Yes, I've gained a lot through both changes. I wouldn't undo either of them or the world because I gained a lot more than I lost. But I did learn to not despise the small things, and to appreciate the small blessings that go with each day as well as the big things we work so hard to cultivate and grow in our lives.

Some people say this means to "enjoy the journey on the way to where you go," but I think there's a deeper meaning than that. A devotion I read recently said, "God doesn't want you to be happy. He wants you to do what's right." That really hit me and helped me to get a grasp on my own paradigm shift. I used to think that the point was about being happy, and I actually worried for a little while, wondering if I'd ever be happy like I was before. I see now that I won't, because happy is a side effect. The purpose of life is not to serve our feelings, but to do what we're supposed to be doing and work hard to do what's right for our purpose in life. If you are faithful in well doing and obedient to the spirit, there's a contentment to your life that nothing - situations, circumstances, or other people and their attitudes (because that really reflects on them more than anything else, but that's a pondering for another entry) - can affect. You can rest in knowing that you're doing all you can, and that allows you to enjoy the blessings of every day, large or small. And contentment is better than happiness. It's more stable, because you can still see the blessing in what you have even if a thousand aggravations are bleeding out of them. It's built on a firmer foundation that gives you the patience to hold out for the "bigger picture" even if you don't understand what the point is (as is often the case). It's built on a trust between you and the Lord and nobody else can put their hands on it. And that can give you the courage to do what's right, even in the face of ridicule, opposition, or doubt. Happiness is transient and comes and goes with circumstances. Contentment is faith in action.

No, the earth hasn't moved in the last year. Things look much the same today as they do every other day. But I know they aren't. I see how the work at the everyday levels is building to something new and better. I might not know what yet, but when it is revealed then I'll reap a reward in due season, and be glad I didn't lose heart.

That's all today. I hope you have a great week.

Bye!

Embracing The New

8/22/2013

We got new telephones with headsets at the office last week. If you’ve been watching my social media posts, you know that I had a bit of an issue when they announced the change because they mentioned “tethered headsets,” and visions of assimilation by the Borg (from Star Trek) ran through my head. It turns out that the headsets are wireless, so my fears of being bound to the desk by wires and cords were alleviated. In fact, I’ve found the headset to be quite nice this past week – especially since our call volume has picked up with exam registration for one of my programs nearing a deadline.

There are a few people that are taking a bit longer to adjust to the new headsets. Sure, it was a pain getting it adjusted, but once that was done, it’s kind of nice. I can look up files on the computer or even check our file cabinets without putting someone on hold. As you can see, it’s barely noticeable. And my neck doesn’t hurt at the end of the day anymore. I’m not sure why there are some that find it difficult. It’s certainly made working easier for me this past week. I think people are seeing the benefits of them now that they've had some time to adjust.

I'm pleasantly surprised at people taking to them this quickly. I'm used to hearing people complain about change and new technology. There are complaints about new systems, complaints about new ways, and complaints about "messing things up." People say they're afraid it will take them longer because they "don't know that way, but I think it has more to do with not wanting to change. They don’t have to make an adjustment, so they don’t want to. And while it’s optional, I don’t understand why they wouldn’t want to try something that can make life easier for them.

The same goes for so many things. I’ve known people that refused to get computers for the same reason. I even knew a few people that refused to get cell phones until the city started removing pay phones from our area. They claimed they were scared they’d mess them up, but I think it’s the learning curve they feared more than anything. Learning how to use new things does require patience and dedication, and some people just don’t want to put forth the effort unless they’re forced to do it. It seems like laziness on their part, too. What they don’t realize is their refusal to learn is resulting in making their life harder, because it takes them twice as long to do it the old way. Change is the path to progress, and the reason these constant upgrades keep coming is because they’re saving time, energy, and frustration. Believe me, I know this from experience with going from a Department that had all paper files to a Department that’s all digital: I find things much faster with a few clicks in my database now than I did digging through file cabinets a few years ago. My productivity is much higher, and those new computer and tech skills are things I’ve taken to my writing, which as resulted in progressing over the years as well. Sometimes, you can apply it to your home life too, and that’s saving you time that you could spend on other things.

I don’t understand why people wouldn’t want to give something that can make life easier a chance. Taking the time now to learn something that makes me work faster and more efficiently is well worth the investment on the time it will save me later. Technology helps me to do so much more faster, better, and more efficiently. I certainly want to take advantage of anything that can help me. I know that this headset has literally saved me aches and pains this past week, and I like it. I’m not taking aspirin for that pain in my head, neck and shoulders that used to plague me on days when I was on the phone a lot nearly as much this past week. And because I feel better, I’ve accomplished a lot more at home and with my writing, too.

I guess it’s a matter of personal preference. If others want to grapple with paper files, rickety file cabinets, and receivers and cords, well, to each his own.

That’s all today. Have a great weekend.

Bye!

Contrary to Popular Opinion

8/20/2013

First, I’d like to announce that tomorrow is my husband, Rick’s, birthday. Have a great day, Rick! The birds and I love you! We’re one happy flock!

And now on to the regularly scheduled entry:

I’m a radical non-conformist. That’s one thing about me that hasn’t changed in the 16 years since college graduation (or the 20 years from high school graduation). Ask anybody, and they’ll tell you that they don’t know what beat I march to, but it’s not any drum they can hear. Make the opinion a “popular” one, and I’m more likely to reject it – or at least put it under fierce scrutiny to see if it’s logical or makes sense. If there’s one thing I’ve always been proud of, it’s my authenticity. For example:

·        When I was buying a new car in 2006, I immediately dismissed the Toyota Camry as an option based on a commercial. It was store security store camera where the announcer said “attention shoppers, a Toyota Camry has it’s lights on in the parking
lot” and everybody left the store. They prided themselves on having the most popular car in America. And I said hell no, I don’t want to drive the same car that everybody else drives. I refused to even stop to look at a Toyota lot because of that stupid commercial.

·      Everybody loves San Francisco, and I’ll agree that it’s an intriguing place. I’d love to take Rick there someday. But frankly, it was too cold for my liking. 55 degrees in early September darn near sent me into shock. My sinuses didn’t care for it too much either, as I got the worse nosebleed I’ve ever had the day after I arrived. A lot of people tell me that’s their favorite place in the world. To each their own. It was interesting, but frankly it was a city that was a bit too crowded for me. I was more impressed with the nature, sunshine, and wide, open spaces of Arizona.

·       I don’t care for high heel shoes. At 5’1” I could wear stilts and still not fool anyone. It won’t help, so why bother with the sore legs and achy knees. No thanks. In fact, I refuse to wear shoes with more than a 2 inch heel. It’s a compromise (but not one I make often).

·        I refuse to color my hair (at this point in my life). People keep telling me I should get my hair highlighted, but I like my hair darker. I used to get natural highlights when I was in marching band in high school and college and I hated it. It might
have looked good to others, but it was dried out and frizzy, and I fought it and hated the color every day. Until I go grey, no color. And then, no blonde. I accept what the Lord gave me, so the rest of the world can darn well get over it.

·     I don’t own a flat iron. I don’t need one. My hair is straighter than pine straw. And it won’t hold a curl either, so I gave up on that too.

·        I don’t like the telephone. Frankly, I think it’s the most abused invention ever. People pick it up to ask stupid questions that they could answer themselves if they put their brain on it for 2 minutes. Or worse yet, to jabber about pointless things and waste inordinate amounts of time. Seriously, people use the telephone as a “surrogate brain.” Progress, my butt. That invention has kicked us down a couple of notches on the evolutionary scale. I pray computers and the Internet can pull us back up by the bootstraps before too much deterioration sets in.

·        I don’t think that print media will ever die. And believe it or not, it’s not because of the absurd “paper holdouts” that gripe about the evils of technology. Rather, there’s just too much already out there in the way of books, magazines and newspapers. The world can go more digital, but I don’t see a day where we’ll do away with all paper forever. Frankly, I think we’d already be there if that were a real trend. I believe digital print will take over a majority market share, and will certainly transition to the preferred method of print media. But no, books, magazines and newspapers won’t go away. They might go the way of cassette
tapes – rare, but not extinct.

·        Dogs might be man’s best friend, but this woman’s best friends have always been birds. I’ve never had a dog. It’s always been birds for me, because they’re more sociable, they’re happy, and they live longer. Much longer. Case in point: our oldest sun conure, Zack, is 13 years old, and he’s outlived 3 of my parents’ cats.

·        My laptop is pink. So is the mouse. And my phone case. And my work ID is on a lanyard with pink beads. Hey, everybody else has black, white or silver everything. There’s no question which stuff is mine!

I could go on for quite a while but I think one thing is already clear – I make up my own mind about what I like and appreciate in life. And if it’s contrary to popular opinion, so much the better. I don’t have a problem with being unique. In fact, I prefer it that way. How can you be authentic if you’re just like everybody else?

That’s all today. Take care and have a great rest of the week.

Bye!

Evolution of Character

8/15/2013

An interesting thing happened the past few days as I've worked on edits to prepare Splinter for publication. I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but I modeled the protagonist, Leigh Lorene Lybrand, after my maternal grandmother, Lorene Shull Lybrand. She passed away when I was 12 years old, and was a huge influence on me growing up. Lybrand was a very common name in our area, but thanks to too many generations of girls and, to put it tactfully, decreasing reproduction, the name is dying out (along with Shull, and some others that were quite common around these parts "back in the day"). I thought it would be a good thing to keep the Lybrand's alive, at least through my writing. Plus, it's not like she's going to sue me.

But in doing these edits, I realized it's not likely that she would even if she were alive because I realized, to my utter shock, that she's not Leigh Lybrand. She's not even like me. I don't know WHO that geophysicist is that I shot off to the moons of Jupiter on the eve of Earth's destruction but one things for certain - it's not who I planned for it to be.

At first I tried to say well, it's faulty memory. Nana died 25 years ago this year, and I'm sure that the natural degradation of memory has taken it's toll on my own grey matter. But the truth is that I wasn't satisfied with that explanation, and the reason came to be in a bolt of realization at 1 a.m. I realized: I changed the setting. I don't have that character in 20th century Earth, where she spent her entire life. I projected her 1,000 years into the future, into a 31st century reality that I created. There's no way that the grandmother I knew could be the same person in the future I envision. People change over time. We learn more about the world and the reality surrounding us, and it reshapes us. Think about it: vampires were born in the Middle Ages where disease was a mystery and royality in "darker places" in the world had strange fetishes. Now, they're glittery twerps trying to fit in a world that has explained the truth behind their origin and purged their purpose in the human mind. We've learned; we've grown; we've lost our fears. Or rather, I'd say we've replaced our fears with other things we don't understand. I think more people fear the mysteries that motivate government than communicable disease these days. It's consipiracy theories, mysteries, and how we plot against one another. And if that isn't your thing, then there's the increasing popularity of sci-fi, because we still don't know what's "out there," and can use our noodle to ponder the possibilities, if not in this day and time then in the future.

Nothing stays the same and as a result, people don't stay the same. I think Nana could have been a geophysicists in the Jovan system, had she been born 10 centuries later. Perhaps I could have been one of the engineers on her team, if I were there too. As it is, we are a product of the world we live in. Nana would turn in her grave if she knew I had been on an airplane and flown cross country twice. She's have turned again if she knew that Mom and Dad actually got on the plane with me one time - of their own free will! Yes, my grandparents generation had a number of fears that seem silly to us, and the superstitions of my great-grandparents generation makes me laugh from time to time. But then again, I suppose my own cares and concerns would strike them as odd, if they were here to see it. Or maybe they'd share them. Who knows? We're put on this Earth at the time and place where we fit, and that's it.

Hmm, so maybe I did hit the mark. Maybe Leigh Lorene Lybrand is a perfect manifestation of the evolution of character that Nana would be in my envisioned future. You can decide for yourself when Splinter is released through Whiskey Creek Press in November. Stay tuned!

That's all today. Have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a great weekend.

Bye!

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