h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello again.

I hope whoever reads this is maintaining balance in their lives ... for me, balance has come from remembering that I am a writer, a creative person and a poet, and from utilizing my curiosity in stimulating ways.

For me, balance means risk. It means allowing myself to engage in my own interests and find my colleagues.

A few years ago now, I applied for a masters degree in creative writing. The road since has been generative and rewarding. Here's some of my latest news and I hope to hear yours, too:

Tabitha Dial, a graduate of Creative Writing at Colorado State University in 2009, has written a proposal selected by organizers of "The End?" conference at Indiana University this March. Her presentation incorporates poems written for her thesis and will focus on how Tarot visualization, the writing of poetry and the practice of meditation have become profound means of communicating with and overcoming difficulty in her life. One year ago, she began to suffer chronic eye pain from a condition doctors continue to try to diagnose. Tarot cards inspired the poetry written for her MFA, and Tarot remains a tool that helps her cope with current life struggles.

... I am working on things like establishing a web site to promote this line of thinking. I am working with a local metaphysical shop interested in evolving this presentation into a Tarot poetry workshop, which is a dream come true. And an essay I wrote on my experience writing poetry from Tarot is under consideration for inclusion in a two-volume anthology on Tarot and culture.

And I turn thirty. And I am happy with the way I am spending my time.

Hope you are, as well. Onward and Upward.

What a great journal! I wish you good fortune with your poetry and your tarots, Dragonfly.

i'll second that

as for "balance means risk":

soren kierkegaard remarked that “To dare is to lose one's footing momentarily. Not to dare is to lose oneself.”

not a bad motto to live by - for writers as well as others

Did Kierkegaard have access to a lost and found department?

nope. which makes his saying even more profound

Was he so profound that he was never at a loss?

far from it, i think

i never got around to study kierkegaard (nor any other philosophers for that matter) much, but am looking forward to my retirement when i will have another go at it - just to see if i can

old friend of mine started reading philosophy just for fun years ago, but then he is so much cleverer than i am - and not as busy drinking and running after and pillage and plunder and - oh well, you catch my drift, i'm sure

I'm sure that you chase and pillage much better than Kjerkegaard ever could, Pierce. He turned to philosophy because it was *easier* than -chasing and plundering. You'll have no trouble with the philosophy, Pierce.

you are too kind. let's just say that i have no problems with my current philosophy

Thanks for the positive reinforcement, guys.

Your philosophy, to the extent that I understand it, is fine, too, Dragonfly. :-0

indeed. it is impressive that your philosophy is so much like one of the greatest philosophers, MsD. kierkegaard is called "the godfather of existentialism", i believe, so there is something to be proud of

Ylfnogard would be a great name for a philosopher. Sounds like a cousin of Kierkegaard.

BTW Happy Birthday, Dragonfly, a little bit early. I'll be sending an email next week to discuss my favorite tarot decks.

Hi, I just noticed that you were discussing your book being reviewed by a publishing company called Ravenhawk Books, although the post was in 2003! Just got contacted by someone from said publishers, and was just wondering what your experience with them was like? Were they legit? Just new to the writing business and having publishers contact me about my work seems too good to be true! Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

JC

Drifted off on a tangent thinking about turning thirty..
turn it and you get 0E (near enough)then I thought about
lathes(turning is the term for machining in a lathe);
could you turn thirty in a lathe? Pretty difficult.
Maybe some people just keep turning 30 round and round,
time to stop perhaps......

What in heaven's name is "OE"?

Did you mean to type "oy," but your finger slipped.

Were you abbreviating "overexcited?"

Or "old eggs?"

Or "Olga Eardardt?" (Amelia's sister, if she had one)

Okay, that time the typo was mine.

Change "Eardardt" to "Earhart"

E was the nearest I could get to a 3 that's been turned upside down.
Don't take too much notice of me, I get rather whimsical in my dotage.