I’ve always hated speeches that start off: “According to Webster’s, the word (honor, graduation, success, character, etc.) means…” However, it does say a lot about a concept to look at where it came from. And after all, a lot of us here do some writing. So here’s BOLD from Merriam-Webster: “Pronunciation: ˈbōld Function: adjective Etymology: […] Read More

“The fascinating thing about self-sabotaging behavior is that it actually takes an enormous amount of energy and mental stress, much more than if you just took the action you wanted or needed to do in the first place. The mental stress of feeling behind or beating yourself up for how a situation in your life […] Read More

A curious thing about waiting: some research I read recently said that people who’ve recently learned they have cancer are in better shape emotionally and show less physiological sign of stress than those who are waiting to hear their biopsy results. So when waiting is wearing us down, here’s a bold thought: there’s no reason […] Read More

Just got my every-six-weeks-or-so trim and it made me think of the hesitation many of us have about making radical recreational hair changes. For decades, I had long straight hair. It was a sort of signature. After a couple of years thinking about it, I got it cut to chin-length; and this was before advancing […] Read More

Bold self-expression can be even more satisfying when you’re able to make a living at it: that way you can do it full-time, and get it out into the world. Jackie Battenfield is an expert on how visual artists can do that. Writers and other artists can learn from her as well; I’ve attended a […] Read More

I just made a daring offer to an eminent institution of higher learning. I won’t burden you with the details just now. But I’m feeling very pleased with my ingenuity, resourcefulness, and daring. There’s satisfaction in coming up with and presenting a bold idea, whether it works out or not. I remember when I was […] Read More

From the Daily Om, “Tied in Knots“: “We don’t have to tie ourselves in knots. Instead, we can let the ribbons of our energy unfurl to gracefully direct us….” I think that probably means: go swimming. Which I did in the ocean at Wrightsville Beach, NC, on Saturday. Bright sun, low tide with big waves […] Read More

Self-employment is supposed to offer the advantage of setting one’s own hours. In practice, most of us work a lot more hours than we would on a job. This morning, however, I went hog-wild; stayed home and picked up around the house and did a summer’s worth of ironing, etc. You might not view that […] Read More

This is a rerun of a guest post I did a while back for Mystic-Lit: Writing or practice of any art form—or, for that matter, any kind of problem-solving—relies heavily on one intermediate skill: Greasing the Elements. I realized this while doing the Word Jumbles in my local News & Observer. As you probably know, […] Read More

“Just Do It” is a popular piece of advice (as well as a great advertising catch phrase.) And it has value. It can cut through a lot of inner garbage and unnecessary preliminary hurdles. It’s also true that saying “just” does not make a difficult thing into “a snap” that takes no time or effort […] Read More