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Monday, November 28, 2005

 

Not on my blog, you don't

I didn't want to hassle with moderating comments, but someone just put up one that's a blatant advertisement for *** parties, and it seems to be located several months back in the archives where I'm going to have a devil of a time finding it to purge it. I don't want the search engines and the like getting the idea that this is that kind of blog.

Thanksgiving came and went; I've had plenty of turkey and football. I would have like to see a little more mention of giving thanks to God. Sometimes I think in our society, that's becoming more a taboo word than the one I starred out.

Friday, November 18, 2005

 

Life goes on

Last week I was asked a question that made me stop and think. I didn't realize how envious I can be of successful people. It's something I'd like to try to clean up.
My various arrangements for better living arrangments are creeping forward.
I've had a little bit of mail from family, it's nice to hear some news.

With thanksgiving coming up, I'm looking at two generous dinners (right when I'm trying to lose weight!), but I wonder; full belly, empty soul?

Monday, November 14, 2005

 

Oh, My

The "Wizard of Oz" was on TV the other night; I didn't see it through to the end, but I did get my favorite scenes. The Munchkin's Coroner, "Not only is she merely dead, she's really most sincerely dead!", The vigorous, "[I'm] off to [be] the wizard!", and the Cowardly Lion, "What puts the hot in Hottentot? What puts the ape in apricot? What have they got that I ain't got? Courage!" I remember that the scene where the Wicked Witch of the West's guards are marching around the gates was scary when I was a very yunster, but now both the chant (Woe--EE--oh. WOE--oh!) and the music give me a smile. "I'm melting!!". So do the rewards that the Wizard gives the Scarecrow, Lion, and Tin Man.


The past week has been a bit on the disappointing side, with a couple of hopes that didn't materialize. This is routine, but when enough of them buikd up, it can send me into a crashing depression. So I'm noticing a slide in that direction; time to see if I've learned how to head it off.

And I think I've managed to clean out most of the comment spam.

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

 

That time again

I heard a snatch of music in a TV commercial this morning which prompted me to check the calendar.
Yep. The jolly old thief in the red suit is coming out to make his annual rounds, with most of the retailers in the country as his cohorts in crime. It's time for the annual American ritual of buying off your conscience for a year of neglect and measuring your love for family, friends, and neighbors in dollars, while racking up a huge credit card balance that will take months to pay for. Bah, humbug indeed.
Now, if there really were an increase in peace on earth and goodwill toward men, and people would give space for the love of God instead of worrying about tinsel and trash and shoving for space at the checkout counter, that would be reason to celebrate. I'm surely not the first to observe that St. Nicholas has turned a bit gluttonous and overfed and is in danger of losing his sainthood. He needs to at least go on a diet.
I see that comment spam is the term I was looking for, and I figured out how to start cleaning it out. So far I'm back to February on this blog.

Monday, November 07, 2005

 

Blogspam, self-promotion, and writing

I'm not as experienced with this blogging business as I would like to suppose. I keep it to what I can understand. I've been having some blog-spam; people adding comments that are links to things like cold sore treatments, or worse...one of these days I need to figure out how to go through and clean these out.

Also, someone sent me a comment that I don't see linked to a recent entry. It suggested how I could find a publicist or promoter for my ideas, or failing this, do it myself.

To be frank, this idea of self-promotion a la PT Barnum makes me uncomfortable. It's bold enough for me to put my ideas out on the Internet for the whole world to read and anyone to stumble across, but I would much rather someone else think my ideas worth promoting on their merits than do it myself. I don't want to lose my balance in an overwhelming wave of publicity and popularity/criticism that fades as soon as it comes. I prefer a slower, quieter approach; a few regular readers, some of whom add comments and feedback so I can improve things and make them a little bit better...and much of this applies to what I am trying to do on my Independent Learning blog, anyway. This one is a rather more personal.

For a good while, I've also been participating on an on-line forum and I drop comments there, in response to the discussions. They've started a writer's forum for LDS writers that I've just joined. Also from time to time I look at Meridian Magazine, and saw this article that seems as if it could almost have been written by my ex-wife. The specific details and complaints don't exactly match, but the general tone is so similar that I couldn't let it pass without writing a response. I have no idea whether it will be accepted, but I'll watch for it.

Friday, November 04, 2005

 

Better now

I'm feeling better than I was; got over the "bug" and got some proper sleep. It's been a bit of a struggle to get back to my research; I've gotten a little involved with e-mail and some internet discussions. But I do have an update for Independent Learning showing a little progress.

I ran across a quote about Benito Mussolini (Isaac Asimov, "Chronology of World History" p. 543
"He never objected to changing his principles when necessary, for the very good reason that he had none." Ouch. But it occurs to me that that description could fit more than one person.

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