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"Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you…

"Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Harold Whitman

"We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit." - E.E. Cummings

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Dorian Grey Moment

I need to update the column at BackWash. But, I haven't come up with anything that makes me feel charged up to write. Plenty of links piling up.

Another hour before I get to leave for another 6 hours of Christmas shoppers. Some days when I'm there I get really fed up. But, it's not horrible really. I've had jobs I liked less. I've had jobs I liked better too. So, at the end of January when the big move happens I'll see what comes along. Not that I'm going to let things slide and settle into place for me. There are just too many balls up in the air right now.

I'm also waiting to hear from GlamKitty. Makes me sick to think what the worst news could be and that it could have happened. I'm hoping so much that she's just busy with the move.

Kind of chilly here but I could get off my butt and get a sweater. I was warmer before I changed for work. This T-shirt deal just isn't working for me. They call it a golf shirt, but it's really just a glorified T-shirt. Short sleeves don't do anything for me. Plus short sleeves all year round don't work. Maybe for those cute girls at work, all slim and cute.

Is it really a good thing that people seem to think I'm 24? I don't mind. But I have this dread that it will all suddenly catch up with me. I'll be stuck with some Dorian Grey deal. What a lovely picture that would be. Still, it's easier to take turning 39 this year if people still think I'm more than 10 years younger. Plus, as I just thought, at least I only look young, they don't say I act that way. At least not in a negative way.

Well, that's enough contemplation.. once you start thinking about how old you really are it's time to get distracted FAST! :)

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Captivating Keanu

Originally posted to Adult BackWash.

"Now, if I untie you are you going to come in for coffee or try to shove me aside and make a break for it? If you can't be sincere just let me know."

"I'm not going to shove you aside." Said Keanu.

"I'm not falling for that."

"Falling for what?"

"That disclosure deal. You're not shoving me aside but you are going to make a break for it. Is that how you feel, after all we've talked about on the drive here?" …more

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Yule or Christmas?

Christmas, by that name, is a Christian holiday, Christ's Mass is how it started as far as I remember. Also, if you want to get technical, holiday is also a Christian word, coming from holy day, the long, extended version before the remix.

I was thinking tonight, do you call it Christmas or always religiously, in a semi-fanatical way, call it Yule? To me, I don't think the small things are worth fighting against the tide over. I don't mind calling it Christmas or a holiday. I know what it means to me. I know where it comes from, historically and spiritually.

I also know how I celebrate it. I don't go to a church, not one recognized by the average Yellow Pages phone book. I live in my 'church' it's always with me and all around me. Mostly, I just like being outside. That's when I feel closest to everything that matters and makes me feel good.

So, for me Yule or Christmas, is about time outside as well as our family traditions. The Christmas tree, singing carols, the exchange of new pajamas on Christmas Eve, the big dinner, making bread together, driving around admiring the fancy coloured lights, and so on. My favourite things are fresh, new snow on Christmas day and admiring the tree all lit up and decorated with ornaments we've made and kept from year to year and relatives past.

However you feel about Yule, remember the spirit of the season. Don't insist people recognize you as Pagan, call it Yule whenever you might be listening and don't make someone feel their Christmas is less than your Yule. Play nice. Religious tolerance works both ways.

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Your Own One Day Writing Workshop

You can give yourself your own one day writing workshop. Pick a day which you can spend on your writing, without interruptions. Unplug the phone, don't check email and don't think of it as the daily grind. It's a special day, just as if you had traveled to some other town for a workshop or writer's convention. Give yourself a break from your writing routine. If you invite other writers, know this is not a social occasion, it's a work-shop for a reason.

As you plan the day make sure you have no family or job commitments that will conflict with your workshop. Let everyone know about the workshop. If you have to, let them think you won't even be home all day. After all, you aren't home, you're at a writing workshop.

Create and stick to a time table, don't think to dilly dally over your morning coffee. Gather your supplies before the day arrives. You can't abandon the workshop to pick up more coffee cream or one more book for your research. If you can't get the space and quiet you need at home book a hotel room for the day. You can also try the local library, just don't get tempted to browse..

Plan what you need for a snack and lunch, just as if you were taking a break at a fancy hotel at a convention. Give yourself a treat. But, when you do take your break, stop working. Think of the day as a day away from home, even if you are home. Eat at a table without making space for a keyboard or paper and pens.

Start your workshop by visualizing yourself at a workshop, writing. Write a statement of purpose for your workshop. Know what you want to accomplish before you throw yourself into it. Divide the day into morning and afternoon sessions. When you come back for the afternoon reread your morning's work. Decide which direction you want to go in next. Are you ready to edit your writing or keep going with the flow of writing it? Are you headed in the right direction, ready to move to a new chapter or change the tide? What new ideas did you get during the lunch break?

Put fresh, revamped energy into your projects. Use the day to finish something, get a new idea started or just plug on with what you've been doing. Don't let yourself get sidetracked or wind up finding new ways to procrastinate. This is your day, your own personal writing workshop.

"If you want to write, you can. Fear stops most people from writing, not lack of talent, whatever that is. Who am I? What right have I to speak? Who will listen to me if I do? You are a human being with a unique story to tell, and you have every right." - Richard Rhodes.

"Love your material. Nothing frightens the inner critic more than the writer who loves her work. The writer who is enamored of her material forgets all about censoring herself. She doesn't stop to wonder if her book is any good, or who will publish it, or what people will think." - Allegra Goodman.