Sunday Morning Comin' Down

Department of non sequiturs: I want people to like me. I NEED people to like me. Therefore I've volunteered to moderate a number of internet discussion forums.

What's wrong with this picture?

{sigh}

New Year's resolution: I will not play moderator to any more internet forums. {writes 100 times on blackboard}

Anyway, I managed to get a halfway decent night's rest last night and I'm feeling somewhat better this morning. I was going to meet a friend for sushi yesterday but something came up - apparently she started getting harrassing phone calls and e-mails from someone and had to deal with that. I finally managed to reach her on the phone. Hope she will be ok ... she says the situation is under control now but I'm going to check back with her today.

Story update: "The Queen's Courtesan" is currently offline for work. I want to correct a couple of embarrassing goofs in the dialogue and expand the narrative somewhat, plus make a couple of changes in the setting so it makes more sense. Stay tuned.

Also I am thinking of beginning another story in that series (i.e. set in the Gilkesh universe) soon.

If all goes well, I should be meeting a friend for dinner this evening. Otherwise, it's looking like a nice, rainy, stay-at-home day in PDX.

The Quiet Hour

I am loath to admit just how hard it is for me to switch off the computer for an hour at a time. But it's a good feeling. (And I mean switch it OFF, not just sleep it or put it on screensaver. Somehow it matters that all those gigabytes and gigahertzes aren't humming in the background.) The computer, and the lights and radio too. And just lie back quietly and breathe.

Sometimes when I have a lot of junk and chatter in my head, I like to chant a mantra. It can be a line of poetry, or a verse from the Psalms, or a passage from the Tao Te Ching, or some other phrase that resonates with me. It quells the noise and lets me just be. Then the important thoughts - if they're there - can come through. If there are no important thoughts, it's okay to just be empty of thoughts for a while.