Tale of Two Cities: Why I Choose to Live a Double Life When I started my online business in 2006, I moved 30 miles north of where I'd been living for much of my life to a newer city called Santa Clarita. It was the northernmost suburb of Los Angeles and in the TMZ - the 30 mile zone - making it popular for film and television production. That first summer brought record-breaking heat and I decided to drive to Santa Barbara to spend the entire day a couple of times each week. It took about 80 … [Read more...]
Getting Involved
Getting Involved Is Life Itself Life is to be lived and loved and experienced, I firmly believe and practice with each breath I take. It's not possible to achieve these goals unless and until you are willing to go all in, and that means getting involved. Be vary of those around you who prefer to take the opposite path, as they are the people who have voted to take rather than give. Getting Involved to Connect with Others I'm an introvert. But somewhere along the way I made the effort to … [Read more...]
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life
Today could be the first day of the rest of your life. Have you ever thought about that? In the spring of 2005 I woke up in the wee hours of the morning in a cold sweat. Jumping out of bed and startling my little dog in the process, I went to my desk to write down what I was experiencing. It was as though all of my senses were enhanced, with colors brighter, sounds more defined, and even the feeling of my pen touching my notepad was a new and exciting experience. I wrote for over an hour and … [Read more...]
The Prescience of Choice
The Prescience of Choice In the beginning of the year he had promised to visit as soon as his schedule would allow. It was the last Saturday in January when he arrived on the afternoon train, carrying the baggage of a hundred years in a brown canvas duffel bag. He almost missed the last step as he floated onto the platform and met her gaze. She reached down to offer assistance, but he gently guided her hand up to his face. Taking her outstretched fingers into his palms, he covered her face with … [Read more...]
The Day My Body Began to Devour Itself
The Day My Body Began to Devour Itself Was the First Day of the Rest of My Life It began harmlessly enough: I wanted to lose weight and improve my health and was searching for a way to do this as easily as possible. It was December of 2019 and as I was preparing for my annual goal setting I wrote down that I would lose a hundred pounds during 2020. As I wrote the words, lose a hundred pounds my stomach began to hurt. I looked back through the notes from my previous years of formally setting … [Read more...]
Embrace Creativity
Embrace Creativity to Open Your Mind To Different Perspectives Creativity is the doorway to a beautiful life. Often because of the need to survive, we pursue what we can make money from. We put aside our passion and focus on building a career in a field where we think we will make money and have security. Fortunately, your creativity and your passion can be a means for you to make money. Embracing your creativity and viewing life through a different lens could lead to you becoming wealthy in … [Read more...]
Make Better Art… and Rule the World
Is it really that simple? If you're willing to do the work, focus on creating, and make better art, is success bound to come your way? For decades, I was the person who talked a good game but seldom followed through. How we do anything is how we do everything, so this lack of taking action spilled over into every area of my life. I'm not proud of the way I insisted on living for far too long, but I believe that by exposing myself and being willing to be completely transparent to the world it … [Read more...]
It’s Over in the Blink of an Eye
It's Over in the Blink of an Eye, So Make Every Second Count As I'm writing this, it's Sunday, October 17th, 2021 and Black Poetry Day. Each year I make note of this day by reading a poem or two written by my favorite Black poets, sharing my favorite finds with my online community as well as friends and family, and then closing the book on what this day means to me. We live in a world where people must be put in boxes that recognize them for a variety of reasons: gender, ethnicity, age, … [Read more...]
The Writer’s Cat
The rain came down hard and the streets flooded on the evening Marilyn Monroe died. It was August of '62 in Los Angeles, with people focused on their everyday problems that felt like a sort of death to them before they saw the morning paper. It's only when actual death stares you in the face that you can have some perspective. My mother and I were in the car with her friend, a chubby woman whose name I can't remember and who was kind and respectful and laughed like her funny bone had been … [Read more...]
People Tell Us Who They Are
People tell us who they are. Over and over again, the people we encounter throughout our lives tell us who they are, what they believe in, when they will deliberately interface with people under various circumstances, and how they will interact with the world around them. Whether or not we choose to believe them in quite another story. Observe the details; listen to the words they say and those they do not say; don't make excuses for the behavior of others and demand of yourself the habit of … [Read more...]