Magical attractions

I say hello to October with a mighty hullaballoo and bid it farewell with a big bang—Halloween. It’s a wonderful holiday and is there a spookier place in America than Salem Massachusetts forever branded by the hysteria in 1692 that led to accusations of witchcraft? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem_witch_trials.

Personally, I was drawn to the town and visited during my time in New York. Throughout my walking tour, I couldn’t help but think of short story writer and novelist, Nathaniel Hawthorne and lingering pirates, but what stuck out in my mind most was not Salem’s literary connections or Hawthorne’s writings on how tortured he was by his ancestor’s involvement with witch’s condemnations, but of the city’s wicked past. 

The trials, overwhelming fear and executions are fascinating.  Beyond history, I wondered about the young women who were accused and prosecuted; as a group together in death the purpose they served.  Did they put an end to the rights and wrongs of people’s actions?  Of course not.  But I’d like to think that they helped the Puritans evolve out of their rigid morality of bad behavior is sinful, and to a place of higher consciousness, one of humanity— to being very much in the world, but not of it.    

Have a safe and bewitching Halloween.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTbFNsBy73I

Mirror in the office

There’s plenty in the news currently between the upcoming election (I already voted) and hurricane Sandy that is gripping the east coast. But I’m taking a detour and have thought about writers, trivia and the quirks that writers can breed into a habit.

What they wear while they write can make for trivia, too. I read somewhere that Edgar Allan Poe only wore black, while Emily Dickinson dressed solely in white as did Mark Twain.  Michael Douglas in the film, Wonder Boys, http://www.imdb.com/media/rm261274112/tt0185014 was an English Professor who hadn’t produced a speck of writing for years—he had to don an old robe to write.  I’m wondering if it’s superstition or if it’s working oneself into a mindset. Lately, I’ve been thinking if I wrote about a corporate attorney would I get more into a professional character by being garbed in suit, stockings, pumps, and makeup before starting to write.  Sort of like an actress getting into a role.

At a reading once, I heard a writer say she worked in her underwear.  No doubt there are some who write naked as well. However, I think most of us prefer to wear something. Because I start my work day around 10 am, I actually write in my version of home attire—in the long hot summer, it’s a jersey dress, because shorts will feel uncomfortable.  Other times of the year; it’s soft old jeans, and a tee-shirt.   

What we wear (or can't wear) to fuel our writing depends on our individual quirks. One of mine is writing with a happy color on; because color has a vibrational energy.  I have a cobalt blue tee, red, emerald and a deep purple, a color I love.  I wear them when I feel I need some luck — and won’t put on black or grey.  I also don’t wear orange and being a “deep winter” http://www.thechicfashionista.com/winter-color-analysis.html nothing in my wardrobe is in fact orange, but I do like rust.  I also turn up my nose to pastels, although I have a few icy shades that work for me, primarily in shades of pink and lavender. 

Physical comfort is an important part of the process, too. During the cold months I roll up the sleeves for more freedom of movement; I never wear rings, bracelets, watches because the weight and feel annoys me. I also can’t wear a necklace because I will fidget with it. But I will wear earrings. I put my hair in a clip or wear it in a ponytail to keep it out of my face when I write. Regardless of the climate shoes are out of the question—I’m either barefoot or in old socks.

I know there are ladies out there who won't be seen without makeup, but the only cosmetic I wear when I'm writing is lipstick; because I have an unconscious habit of biting my lower lip while I'm working, and the taste reminds me to leave my mouth alone.

Your writing attire is a matter of personal preference; all that really matters about writing attire is that it doesn't keep you from writing.

Do you have any particular quirks you indulge in when you dress to do your job? Let me know in comments.

To be young

As I write this, I’m another year older but don’t feel different from before.  Being in an Apple store on my birthday, I had a conversation with a techie—a young man who could talk shop but struck me with an enormous sense of entitlement and paralyzing fear of failure. Our exchange made me reminisce about the passing years and about the difference in young people before and now, and I offer this as my view.  

My twenties were a period in which big choices were made—career, economics, lifestyle and partner.  I went to Europe, finished my education, and felt free by leaving the structured world of academia.  I never saved a dime, but traveled, paid off my student loans and invested in life insurance.  I worked in management at a non-profit, and lived alone in a one-bedroom apartment in a hipster area of Los Angeles.  Although a soul-mate emerged, I had made up my mind that I did not want to marry. It was a milestone period, one in which I might be classified as an adult, but inside I felt very young, and in my heart I was apprehensive to commit to anything. I didn’t want anyone or anything tying me down, until I figured myself out.  

I felt over-whelmed and lost and weighed my options.  To know myself better, I delved into psychology and then an esoteric study and self-knowledge became my saving grace.  But by today’s standards I had it easy.

From my vantage point, one’s twenties are becoming more and more ambiguous. It’s as if I witness a development period that is a slow winding road into adulthood. I wonder if today’s youth has that part of their brain that plans, prioritizes and controls impulses fully formed. In my opinion, the 18-29 year old may look like adults but their responses are purely adolescent. I know it’s foolish to expect a twenty something to be fully formed as an adult, but I often look into their eyes and see they don’t know whether to be happy or frustrated.  I’m wondering does the brain actually start working at age 30?

Navigating the twenties is no easy task, and today’s kids are living with their parents as dependents. Why is this happening?  Have they been babied, are they too materialistic to give up creature comforts or is it truly an economic need? Why are they failing to grow up?

Living with parents was unheard of with my generation of baby-boomers, we were self-reliant, with a ferocious independent streak—eager to spread our wings and fly the coop. But today’s twenty-somethings are bemused not to be offered the world on a plate. They have been raised in an infant culture where nothing is unfair, hard or uncomfortable. As simple as it sounds, life wasn’t meant to be easy otherwise why were we given life? By confronting challenges we develop imaginative vision, cleanse our souls and emerge with character—personalities that are made stronger, braver, refined with integrity and wise.    

A brain is quite malleable in the twenties.  Will it come to a halt when it confronts a challenging situation? It thrives on challenges, and whether it can connect the dots in its life it will forge ahead. It will test alternative ways of living, of being and figure out where it needs to be, what it needs to do to get things done. That struggle is crucial for survival and growth. And whatever choices it makes, may need tweaking—in the immediate or down the road, and that sensibility is what directs the person from adolescence into adulthood, without anyone’s help or interference. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHfB63ln1Ig

Comments are invited.

Back of the Book

It came as no surprise that Newsweek magazine http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/money/55115037-79/newsweek-magazine-print-digital.html.csp that has become tabloid thin, will cease publication of its print edition the end 2012.  They announced day before yesterday that they will be adopting an all-digital format.  I have fond memories of my ties to them from the time I was living in Europe, searching for news from home. As a CNN viewer, I enjoyed Christiane Amanpour’s coverage but found other correspondents dry and boring.  Larry King’s abrasive and rude style did not appeal to me, although his guests were provocative.  I loved Elsa Klensch, but needed more substance than talk of fashion, entertainment and war.  I wanted something to read and carry with me either on the S-train or U-Bahn. Dissatisfied that many of the newspapers were slanted toward England, I found my match when I subscribed to Newsweek International. The European edition was intelligent—with fascinating glimpses into many subjects and an analysis of the global issues that affected the lives of Europeans and Americans alike.  Every week I looked forward to getting my copy and would read it from cover to cover. It influenced me to the point of when I got to New York I proudly walked down 57^th Street, passed Carnegie Hall http://www.carnegiehall.org/ and into the Newsweek office, declaring myself a reader and got the ear of the Human Resources representative. My knowledge and memory gained me quick entry into the Library as a temp in the circulation dept. The pay was poor, the cafeteria first-rate and inexpensive, and it was an exciting place to be, with the news of the day.  When I wasn’t researching something, I got to read, being paid to do what I love, what comes naturally. I got to meet smart people, who had a sense of serving a good cause—to do honest reporting about serious topics, believing they would help shape a better world. Through those contacts, I got to know a well-known columnist who offered me a job working from her home.  Although I turned it down, I grew to respect many journalists and the domestic version as much as its international counterpart.  

In some ways, the news was expected, still it’s another loss for me; good-bye to a publication of 80 years and of an institution, another reminder of the precarious future we are currently living in.  

Marvelous Musical Monday

Yesterday late afternoon I got a spontaneous invitation, I jumped at the chance because those opportunities excite me.  In fact, I could write a story of compiled memories when asked if I wanted to do something impromptu.  It seems that each time I’ve needed to wash my hair but went out on the spur of the moment anyway and thoroughly enjoyed myself. 

Last night at the Smith Center, my new home away from home; I saw the performance of singer, songwriter and rock-star Bryan Adams.  He is on his BARE BONES TOUR.  The concert provided an opportunity to watch him solo-acoustic and intimate. With hits like, “Cuts like A Knife,” “Summer of ‘69,” “Straight from the Heart” and “Everything I Do I Do It For You,” he keeps things simple; he doesn’t rely on gimmicks or light shows of any kind. He only strums along and taps his foot. And I tapped right along with him. Adam’s “If you wanna be bad, You gotta be good,” had great keyboards and was fun since he interacted with the audience.  Unfortunately he did not play my favorite but I now share it with you now: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeEFHJFUbEg