Muddled Mind in Search of Clarity

Upping the ante . . . with a sense of humor.

As a writer this cartoon speaks to me.

I find humor an important tool in recovery from my trials and tribulations. Humor lifts me, shifts my mood gears, reminds me not to take myself too seriously. Through writing I embrace my deeper self, that creative well-spring within, and thus challenge, explore and expand my boundaries. The following words highlight my quest to go beyond the common, usual words of conversation, and expand myself with an expanded vocabulary.

The essential nature of a living entity, I say . . . is to interact with its surroundings,

whether in manipulating the inert environment or dancing with other living beings, be they

like or unlike. By analogy, the essential nature of a writer is to interact with fellow humans via

written word in a clear manner.

In my quest as a writer thus—my motivation to commit to print not always clear to me, though I accept this endeavor a function of my journey—I mentioned a list of words, often shunned “in the biz,” to other writers in discourse.

As I would have it, a connection occurred to me, a previous unconsidered idea. To wit, what if I eliminated those words from my spoken vocabulary? And by extension, wipe them from my mental slate . . . as possible? Strike the passive ones, and those words which are stale and tired from overuse, alone or coupled in their contexts . . . as well as those adorned with a cheap bauble? Abandon use of those words, along with their formulated phrases, with their weakened connotations and inferences, conveying a drab rendition of clothing or unkempt hair paraded in the presence of others? Lazy words doing our better selves injustice by failing to enrich?

Each of us guilty in our “day-to-day” dealings, I suspect.

Here are a few aforementioned offenders:

is; be; has; can; could; do; “a bit”; just; must; so; should;

even; am; being; have; then; it; was; would; with; almost;

some; that; thing; been; had; might; shall; and; sudden; very;

as; were; are; may; “-ly endings”

To clarify, I am not advocating condemning these words to nonexistence, for we can't do without use of these staples of our vocabulary. Every word serves a purpose, else why would it exist? I am, however, advocating for communication in fresh ways, more engaging of our attention.

Ain't easy. Yet, I’ll endeavor to practice what I preach, bearing in mind not to let the “perfect be an enemy of the good.”

Bottom line: Work to improve yourself, learn and experience something positive and new every day.

Hint: Keep a thesaurus handy . . . though be forewarned of an expanding vocabulary and shifts in perspective.

---

* This post updated from its original which appeared on Primate's Big Adventures.

Photo Credit: sadanduselss.com and eatliver.com

Totem Mask

Working with my hands, in this case, creating art from clay, "mud," helps me focus on the "here and now," while gaining satisfaction through the act of creation.

I've enjoyed the hands-on experience of ceramics at my local City College "Lifelong Learning" enrichment classes.

For my project in a class challenge assignment, and as a result of my attraction to American Indian spirituality, I created this "mask," modeled after designs of those of Northwest American Indians.

Fashioned from a medium bodied clay (containing a moderate amount of sand), this mask was bisque fired, then highlighted with enamel paint.

Bottom line: we all possess a unique ability to express ourselves.

---

* This post updated from its original which appeared on Primate's Big Adventures.

Photo Credit: Connard Hogan

Moon Squared

I've found the creative act of drawing to be soothing, as well as rewarding. I don't expect to rival Van Gogh, though I do find satisfaction from expressing myself in this way.

A few years ago, when examining an aerial photo of an abandoned Indian village along a dry river bank (Anasazi, perhaps), the remaining building walls formed a grouping of rough squares, and an idea emerged.

What if all we could see were the walls from above? Since that time I've created a number of drawings using that theme.

This moon drawing is eighth in the "Moon Squared" series. If you've not seen one of my "squared" drawings before, look for the pun!

Hint: I have an engineering bent.

Bottom line: You possess the ability to create, too. (We humans are hard-wired that way.)

---

* This post updated from its original which appeared on Primate's Big Adventures.

Photo Credit: Connard Hogan