WB’s note: There’s something odd about the WordPress editor that makes it laborious to add indentations and spaces between words, which in turn makes it hard to reproduce a poem that has uneven indents. So here are pictures of the pages. The main thing you should know is that only one blank line is intended between “gaudy masterpiece” and “page after page.” Thank you and please enjoy.
P.S. This is what I wrote on Page 70 (and 71).
This is Day 358 of my “blog every day for 92 days” personal challenge. Barring an unforeseen catastrophe, next Saturday I’ll complete a full year of daily blogging for the first time in my decade and a half since discovering how easy it is to have a blog.
Will I quit shortly afterward, like I quit shortly after accomplishing a full 12 months of monthly Myke Phoenix adventures in 2014? Will the urgency fade, like the half-dozen novels I announced and have (so far) left unfinished? Or have I finally established a habit that will last until I drop the pen and the keyboard forever?
I imagine that all depends on me. I don’t have millions of readers to encourage me to show up every day, but even if I did, it’s still up to me to show up every day.
I do have other, probably greater, priorities. The deck needs restaining, I have bacon to bring home, and I really do love the novel that is slowly crawling out of the muck of my brain. Surely I should be devoting my writing time to that adventure?
Yes, but the daily ritual keeps the flame burning even when that flicker is the only creative burst of the day.
“You only fail if you stop writing.” That Ray Bradbury quote is affixed at the top of my computer monitor.
The novel, the poems, even the news stories and op-ed columns, come and go in spurts. The blog is the only constant, my proof that I can show up every day to keep writing.
So now it’s a point of — not pride — a point of perseverance, my little rallying cry to keep going, keep doing, do the best you can for as long as you can.
See you tomorrow, Lord willing and the creek don’t rise.
It’s easy to overlook them as you scan for deals, but Menards — a Wisconsin hardware and home improvement center — puts little quotes of encouragement and inspiration of the bottom of the page in their sales fliers.
“Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.” — Denis Waitley
It might be fun to be the person tasked with finding these nuggets every week.
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” — Amelia Earhart
Even if you’re not planning to build a retaining wall or load up on hydraulic fluid, the quotes are a reason to flip through the insert.
“If you really love something, just go ahead and do it.” — Joshua Williams
“Towering genius disdains a beaten path.” — Abraham Lincoln
And sometimes you’ll see something you just realized would be handy: I could use a 20-foot extension cord …
“Nothing is a waste of time, if you use the experience wisely.” — Auguste Rodin
“Those who don’t know how to weep with their whole heart don’t know how to laugh, either.” — Golda Meir
“I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start.” — J.B. Priestley
The quotes can be a breath of fresh air to take the sour out of a morning.
“Most people are motivated by unconscious motives most of the time.” — Richard J. Mayer
… or they can turn your mind in a different direction. (What ARE my unconscious motives?)
“Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement.” — Golda Meir
You could do worse than taking an extra minute to browse through the Menards flier — and that little detail is the key to its success as an advertising tool.
“Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your inner voice.” — Steve Jobs
And just because it may be an advertising tool doesn’t mean it’s not a great little service.
“It’s always too early to quit.” — Norman Vincent Peale
In addition to offering dozens of items for sale, the fliers do a little bit to lift spirits — and there’s never anything wrong with that.
“Happiness is not doing fun things. Happiness is doing meaningful things” — Maxime Legacé
