Voyages

. . . along the road of life often lead to destinations not planned, locales strange and disturbing, or the mundane, never changing landscapes we no longer see or appreciate. We poke and prod, searching for the new, the exciting, the challenging. Always with a vague sense of disappointment when what we search for remains elusive, as it must because we know not what it is that we hope to find. A conundrum. A paradigm. A mystery that once solved holds wonder and enlightenment; we ask ourselves why we missed it the first time around.

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes."-Marcel Proust    

Writing a Novel

. . . is sometimes a real bitch! And sometimes, you walk into a world so fascinating, so mind-boggling you are almost certain it has to be a fantasy. I discovered one of those worlds while doing research for a science fiction story I'm trying to get on paper. That world is molecular biology--DNA, human genome, genes, amino acids, proteins and more. None of which work the way I thought they did. Take DNA for example. Or the human genome. We hear those words bandied about all the time, a kind of catch all phrase for us lay people. I understand the reasoning behind that, though. If the powers that be really went into an actual description of what we're all about, we'd probably turn off the news. Anyway, in trying to make certain that the science facts I use in my story are accurate, I started researching and fell into the rabbit hole. Which brings up a mental question. Do you think the scientists who specialize in those fields lose their initial wonder and awe? Do you think it becomes just another job? What an inconceivable thought! That's it for tonight--I have to get back to my studies. One of these days, I'll get back to my story writing.
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Cleaning the Mind

. . . is like cleaning house. First, you check the corners for cobwebs, especially up high near the ceiling. Cobwebs are unsightly in your home, but in your mind--oh, my! Plagued with fuzzy thinking, poor decision making, memory problems etc? Mental cobwebs for sure, excluding medical problems, of course--an overload in the stress department I've been told. Too many things to do, too little time to do them in. At least, that's what we tell ourselves. So, here's a tip. Once a week: steam up the bathroom, use every drop of hot water in your shower or tub, whichever you prefer. Listen to Tchaikovsky for an hour while you wait for the teabags on your eyes to do their thing. Have a hot-fudge banana split, take a walk around the block (not power walk, though), then settle down to a good book--NO television (it's only once a week, you can do it). In general--keep the world at bay for twenty-four hours.

Now you're ready to deep clean. Once you start, don't let more fun things distract you from your appointed tasks or, trust me, you'll be right back to cleaning cobwebs from the corners!

If none of the above work for you, try blogging for a sure fire cure.

That's it--I gotta go. My banana split is melting. Ummm, yummm.
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Evolution vs Creation

. . . or should it be Creation vs Evolution? I suspect that depends on your point of view, but I have to ask myself--when was the last time either proponent stepped back and took a second look without preconditioned bias? There is a lot of misinformation and/or misunderstanding not only about the creationist view, but also about the  science of evolution. It seems to me that both parties have valid, non-competitive arguments that could be mutually beneficial rather than mutually exclusive and that reminds me of a quote I read at sometime or other in past years. To wit:

"Be very, very careful what you put into that head, because you will never, ever get it out." Thomas Cardinal Wolsey (1471-1530)

Procrastination

. . . can sometimes be a good thing.
So. Here I am. Procrastinating. Although, I prefer to call it "taking a break." I really should be doing a line edit on the story I'm working on, but instead, I've been trying to put together a Blog--a strange, new concept for me. However, after three hours and many mis-starts, I do believe I have a glimmer of how it's done. What I'll do is read others I can find and hopefully get a better feel for what this is all about. I may even read the instructions. :)

The foot has tested the water and found it agreeable. Tomorrow, I'll see how it feels to go a little deeper. Or not. We'll see.
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